Since PG and I live in a no-man's land of RV parks, and our fiberglass castle on wheels does not accommodate typically normal household perks of a washing machine and dryer, we must weekly avail ourselves of the services of a local laundromat. At the beginning of our odyssey, a greedy entrepreneur opened a brand new, TV and Wi-Fi equipped laundry with an assortment of washing machines of all capacities, and a variety of dryers, all the same size......and all somewhat more expensive than most of the other laundromats we had scouted. Since it was newer and bigger, PG decided it was better than the machinery at the RV park we were living at, even if it was more inconvenient and expensive. After weeks of drudging back and forth, feeding what seems like HUNDREDS of quarters into insatiable coin boxes, only to have MY clothing barely dried with several coats of detergent still on them, I finally reached the breaking point.
Last week, the weather in sunny North Florida took a sudden, unexpected but very welcomed turn towards spring. In the laundromat, as they usually do with numerous dryers running simultaneously, it began to get just a little stuffy and warm. Unfortunately, the new harpy working that day insisted that even the overhead fans were on a secret, locked up, only accessible by the manager switch, and she then suggested PG and I move all our laundry closer to the front, where air quality was much more pleasant. Earlier, another fellow complained that one dryer he was using wasn't working properly. He asked for a refund, but was refused, and left, explaining that he would never return. PG had a similar problem in that one dryer stopped before an adjacent one she had been using, even though both had been started at the same time (timers were not functioning). After she also received less than helpful advice from the charwoman, and all I had asked for was simply to turn on a couple of overhead fans, we too decided we would vote with our feet and the few shekels we spend a week to patronize another, more helpful establishment.
It just galls me though, that particularly in a bad economy where every dime is hard won and earnestly sought, so many small business owners would be so unconcerned or unaware of their customer's satisfaction. Now, to be fair, I did not contact the owner, but when his business takes a dive, he'll hafta wonder why. There are also many, many good businesses in this town who offer excellent customer service, each and every visit. Though some of them tend to be a little pricier, we will continue to do business ONLY because of the level of service. It was coined many years ago, supposedly at Marshall Fields in Chicago: "The customer is always right". Even if that is not entirely accurate, if you depend on the cash paying public for your livelihood, it behooves the merchant to at least PRETEND that its so, as often and as well as he or she can.
I have been on both sides of the fence though, so in fairness to merchants everywhere, I offer the following website: http://notalwaysright.com/tag/bookstore
"We don't know what we want, but we are ready to bite somebody to get it."
Will Rogers
Its the economy, stoopid!
Jon
