I've just had the most frustrating customer service experience with Ross-Simons, which is a shame, because it's actually my first customer service experience with them.
A month ago, I was given a gift (Multicolored Cultured Pearl and Multi-Gem Necklace in Sterling Silver, item #216594). It wasn't quite what I wanted, so I found a necklace I liked (Sterling Silver Graduated Bead Necklance, item #239497) and decided to make an exchange. The multicolored pearl necklace was selling on the Ross-Simons website for $60 (and still is, at the time of this letter), and the silver bead necklace was selling for $105. I assumed that I would pay somewhere around $50 ($105 purchase price - $65 merchandise credit = $40 + s&h + tax) for the silver bead necklace.
Imagine my surprise when the necklace arrived with a statement that said I had been charged $90! I assumed this was a mistake, and while I wasn't impressed with the shipping/billing error, I was willing to put in the time to call and rectify the situation. That's when the fun started.
According to the two customer service representatives I spoke to (first one, then her manager), because the gift giver purchased the multicolored pearl necklace during a 3-for-$45 special in December 2007, the multicolored pearl necklace was only worth $15 (even though it's currently selling on the website for $60), and that's all I was credited. It's Ross-Simons policy, apparently.
This policy makes no sense, and it's certainly not a policy that's adopted by companies who wish to keep their customers happy. If you receive an item as a gift, and you want to return that gift for merchandise credit, you should receive merchandise credit for the amount it's selling for right now. What the gift giver paid for it is irrelevant.
Why my gift, which I received without a receipt or order number, was associated with the original purchase price is beyond me. It makes Ross-Simons look like they're trying to weasel out of taking $40 off my bill. For a company whose 2007 sales reached $166,000,000, I'm amazed that a first-time customer is being cheated out of the paltry sum of $40, and that the customer service manager didn't refund me the $40 in order to keep me happy. I even told her that if she didn't refund the money, I would be very unhappy and Ross-Simons would lose a customer. That didn't sway her, and I was denied the refund.
There are hundreds of jewelry retailers in the market, and if no action is taken on this complaint, it will ensure that my future business - and that of my friends, family, coworkers, blog readers, and casual acquaintances - will be taken elsewhere. A favorable outcome - the refund of $40 to my credit card - will satisfy me.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
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