Little Words Project — Local services in New York

I have been a long time supporter and loyal customer of the brand, have been an ambassador, and easily spent thousands of dollars on bracelets. The brand has been in what the founder calls “an era of change” for a bit now, but the change is not for the better. I used to be very active in the Nice Nation group for customers, sharing how LWP has allowed me to share kindness, express my story and mental health journey vulnerably, and even just sharing my daily stacks. However, the last several months have brought about significant change for the brand, ones that have been hidden to the public such as the one in which you’re in the store asking for your bracelet to be resized under the lifetime warranty (used to be no charge) and now there is a charge. There have been collaborations with influencers and groups that have created bracelets with problematic words that can be seen as offensive to those struggling with mental illness and infertility. As a loyal customer, I have been adamant about asking for clarity, consistency, and transparency in the group, only for my posts to get deleted or have passive aggressive responses from the founder & CEO, Adrianna Carrig, addressing those expressing issues or confusion in a demeaning way and reprimanding us like middle school girls. I even had a personal experience at the Boston store over the phone that drove me to tears, to which I reached out to Adrianna and was guilted into apologizing for expressing my experience, how upsetting it was, and was ultimately publicly ridiculed in the group by other customers (not so “nice” nation, is it?). After asking a question in the group, and not receiving a clear answer and asking for clarity, Adrianna once again jumped into the group asking us to be nicer to the moderator, and when myself and another member responded that we were only looking for clarification and no hate or rudeness was expressed, but that we would no longer be customers, we were blocked by the Nice Nation group and I was personally blocked by Adrianna on Facebook. Prior to this, I also commented on a post regarding the “one size fits all” initiative they are taking in larger retails, including Target & Disney Parks, saying how it seems wrong to offer that someone buy that one size fits all bracelet, but make them pay the resizing fee. In an effort to share my experience, I took to TikTok, making a video that allowed others to share their experiences with the brand (and they did in the comments!), as many had reached out to me over the months to ask if I had noticed that things that had been inconsistent or different with the brand. I shared their concerns as well as mine. Upon posting this, I was bullied and harassed by current supporters of the brand and group, which felt so ironic, as Adrianna built the brand after her own experience being bullied, but as of recent, she’s been the one to show up as the “mean girl”, taking on the role of PR and customer service for the brand, rather than utilizing the staff she pays for these roles. She has privately expressed to me that “she is the brand”, so all comments she takes personally — from a business perspective, this is no way to run a business if you cannot separate your personal feelings from the criticisms of your business, when you have even admitted that there have been missteps and things gone wrong over the last several months. Their word of the year is “grace” and I have been told by her, as well as others who felt the need to enter the conversation to invalidate my experience as well as that of others, that I need to give more grace as they are “trying their best”. I am no stranger to someone trying their best, but the lack of clarity, consistency, transparency, inclusivity, and kindness (from the founder and other group members) make it difficult to give grace when it is a repeated issue, not an isolated incident. Below, you will see some screenshots of others’ concerns with the brand. I will no longer be supporting a brand that was “built on kindness” but perpetuates bullying customers who just want...

I live right in the neighborhood & have been shopping here for cute gifts since it opened. I went in today to see if they had a candle I was looking for, & I was out of luck. Totally fine, I decided to check one other store down the street to see if they had it, when I decided to turn around because I absolutely love little words project & always buy my gifts at this location. I decided to get the UES bracelet for my friend moving uptown. I asked if they had it, & the front desk girl said no, we only carry that at the Upper East Side location. I told her I had purchased an UES at this location one three weeks ago (everyone is moving uptown!) & they also had UWS, East Village, etc in the store. One of the other girls working told me they could custom make it, & it would only take 30 minutes. They then tried to charge me $20 more because it was technically a custom order! Are you kidding? My second time in the store that day, you know I shop here all the time, you OFFERED to make it because you already sell the same bracelet I’m looking for, & then you try to charge me an extra $20, making it $50 for a beaded bracelet? What kind of small business in the neighborhood is that? The girl who offered to make the bracelet was even trying to argue with her co-worker that $30 would be fine, as I declined after being charged $20 more for a bracelet they already sell, which I appreciated at some level! You’re a small business! You need to appreciate those who live in village & who support you! I was so upset &...

Went in store to buy a customized bracelet. As there was a wait to get it, the employees told me they could ship it to me. When I heard that I immediately thought there was a 50% chance that I wouldn't get it. So I asked: if I place my order today 11/5, when will you bead it? Tomorrow they said. I needed it by 12/22 so I said "I need it by 12/20, do you think I will get it?". They didn't guaranty I would get it on time as the shipping is a third party, but said it should take 5-7 days. So it was ample time between 12/6 and 12/20 to arrive in my mailbox. Except that I never got it. I called the store. The address was good. I asked if it had been sent out for shipping and when. I also asked for the tracking number to locate my bracelet. They didn't have a tracking number for my order in their system! They offered to make a new bracelet and ship it me again. Except that I needed it for Christmas, it was a gift for my mom. So I declined and at least they had the honesty to refund me. Now I have to find something else last minute, something that I will like less as this present was made customized, made for her and no one else. I'm disappointed. I should have listened to my intuition to not leave the store without the...