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-   -   Very disappointed in Quilt in a Day, loved Fat Quarters Quilt Shop (https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1/very-disappointed-quilt-day-loved-fat-quarters-quilt-shop-t62639.html)

akrogirl 09-01-2010 08:23 PM

DH and I went to San Diego today for a horse show. Naturally, we also had to visit a couple of quilt shops ;-0 It so happened that the closest shop to the airport was Quilt in a Day in San Marcos.

Well, we got to the store and I soon found some fabrics I liked. We were a little late getting there, and it was close to closing, so I left DH with the fabric while it was being cut and took another quick look around. I got back to the cutting table to find the assistant, who was as slow as molasses, doing a really bad job of tearing the fabric - a good 1/2" was visibly damaged and unusable. I asked her to cut the remaining piece instead. The fabric wasn't even and, without making any allowance for that, she cut exactly at the 36" mark, meaning I actually got less than one yard. By that point I just wanted to get out, so I didn't bother to argue the point. Suffice it to say, this store is not on my "must re-visit" list and they have also lost my Internet business.

On a much more positive note, we also visited the Fat Quarters Quilt Shop in Vista. This store is located in a really quaint old house and every room is packed with a wonderful selection of fabrics and patterns. The staff were friendly, the cuts generous, and even DH agreed that we needed to go back there on future visits :-)

craftybear 09-01-2010 08:31 PM

Hi,

you should call back and complain to the owner that is awful!!!!

Sadiemae 09-01-2010 08:32 PM

I would send an email stating how I feel about the service.

lalaland 09-01-2010 08:42 PM

You really need to copy the post you did and email it to the shop. The young lady who helped you is a serious detriment to their business and unless they are made aware of it, it could seriously affect them, and their other employees who probably depend on their jobs. Be sure to include the day and the time you were in the shop so they can identify the employee that was helping you.

It may seem harsh, but in today's economy every business needs a "helping hand" to stay alive.

akrogirl 09-01-2010 08:48 PM


Originally Posted by lalaland
You really need to copy the post you did and email it to the shop. The young lady who helped you is a serious detriment to their business and unless they are made aware of it, it could seriously affect them, and their other employees who probably depend on their jobs. Be sure to include the day and the time you were in the shop so they can identify the employee that was helping you.

It may seem harsh, but in today's economy every business needs a "helping hand" to stay alive.

Sadly, it was an older lady who should have known better. Also, I doubt if Quilt in a Day is going to be hurt too much by the lack of my business, lol. Eleanor Burns seems to be doing very nicely, thank you, which we thought might possibly be part of the problem - the store felt more like a big box store than a local quilt store.

np3 09-01-2010 09:05 PM

This is really sad. She has been around for a long time.

patricej 09-02-2010 01:47 AM

problem #1: you bought the fabrics anyway thereby validating the clerk's faulty process and poor customer service.

problem #2: you did not take the opportunity to ask for a manager who would most likely have fixed the probem on the spot.

problem #3: if all you do now is complain here, their management still doesn't know what happened and has no opportunity to make things right with you and for future customers.

when we encounter situations like this, we should take the time to at least try to be part of the solution. otherwise, we become accomplices and help perpetuate the problem.

take photos of the faulty cuts. send a calm, factual letter to the highest level management address you can find for the store. provide as many details as possible. in the unlikely event they do absolutely nothing to make it right, then - and only then - you can accurately accuse them of not caring about the quality of their service or their customers' needs.

akrogirl 09-02-2010 02:10 AM


Originally Posted by PatriceJ
problem #1: you bought the fabrics anyway thereby validating the clerk's faulty process and poor customer service.

problem #2: you did not take the opportunity to ask for a manager who would most likely have fixed the probem on the spot.

problem #3: if all you do now is complain here, their management still doesn't know what happened and has no opportunity to make things right with you and for future customers.

when we encounter situations like this, we should take the time to at least try to be part of the solution. otherwise, we become accomplices and help perpetuate the problem.

take photos of the faulty cuts. send a calm, factual letter to the highest level management address you can find for the store. provide as many details as possible. in the unlikely event they do absolutely nothing to make it right, then - and only then - you can accurately accuse them of not caring about the quality of their service or their customers' needs.


Problem #1 - We were running late, the store was about to close and we just did not have the time to stay and argue - we had to get to our plane. Our time was more valuable than anything we would have gained from management at that point. If we had been staying an extra day I would have done more

Problem #2 - See #1.

Problem #3 - I am just relaying my experiences. Since it apparently upsets you so much, I will indeed write to the store management. However, we will still be giving any future San Diego business to the Fat Quarters Quilt Shop, where such action was not necessary in the first place.

patricej 09-02-2010 02:18 AM

sorry ... but as soon as you handed over your money you kept the problem going.

you made a choice.

i am, personally, not upset. i'm pretty sure, though, that Eleanor Burns would not appreciate your public implication that she and her employees don't care about us.

plainpat 09-02-2010 02:29 AM

I know a LQS & where you always have to check your bill.I ordered quarter yd cuts of several fabrics & the bill was too high.Opened the folded cuts to find 3 as ordered & one full yd.I said sorry, only want a quarter yd & the clerk was not happy....but she cut it right.Have since talked to others who have had some funny bills there.The owner knows & keeps the same help.

My solution is to spend my money somewhere else.

redvette54 09-02-2010 03:14 AM

I just have to ask a silly question. Is this store part of a chain? I work in a small "mom and pop" business (nothing quilting related") and its our personalized service has kept us in business since 1972 and any worker that would be rude to a customer, wouldn't be working for us very long. I understand why you did what you did, but the owner does need to know. There are alot of people who would take that job. We had over 200 people apply for a part time recepsionist job, of course we are in Michigan. just my 2 cents.

patricej 09-02-2010 04:00 AM

that isn't a silly question at all. ;-)

Quilt in a Day is owned by Eleanor Burns, a world famous quilter, pattern designer, author, and vendor of fabrics. The shop operates as both a brick & mortar operation and through two websites.

as big and busy as they are, i think it's fair to assume the employees - being human - make mistakes from time to time.

as big and famous as she is, i thinks it's also safe to assume that Eleanor (or one of her representatives with authority) would do her best to correct or to mitigate those mistakes if she knows about them.

Favorite Fabrics 09-02-2010 04:55 AM

I agree that it's important to let the business owner when there is a problem.

Being in business myself... though I never enjoy hearing that there was a problem, every time there is a problem reported to me, I view it as learning opportunity. We (the staff) have a chance to talk about it, figure out how it happened, and consider whether we can put a new policy or procedure in place to make sure that particular problem never happens again.

In this particular case, it seems that a brief employee training session might have been all that was needed.

litacats 09-02-2010 05:48 AM

Customer relations are very important in any business and if there is a problem you should take it up with managment, ASAP I know in our business we replace or rectify anything that maybe faulty it is more important to have a good reputation than a bad one.

akrogirl 09-02-2010 06:24 AM


Originally Posted by PatriceJ
sorry ... but as soon as you handed over your money you kept the problem going.

you made a choice.

i am, personally, not upset. i'm pretty sure, though, that Eleanor Burns would not appreciate your public implication that she and her employees don't care about us.

If I went to management over ever bad shopping experience these days, I would have no life left and, sorry, but there simply are occasions when my time is the more valuable factor - yesterday was one of those occasions. I just did not have time to spend arguing with an assistant. However, since you clearly are bothered by my actions, I have written to the store and detailed my experience with them.

patricej 09-02-2010 06:35 AM

i sympathize over the fact that you made a choice that didn't serve your own best interests. been there, done that - way more often that i'd ever want to count or admit.

i empathize with your reluctance to accept your share of the responsibility for the results. that's a very human thing to feel. i don't know many people who enjoy realizing and admitting they've made a mistake.

i relate to your desire for sympathy and commisseration. most of us want that when we are unhappy.

whether or not you give them the chance to make you happy with them is your choice.

i am not "bothered" by anything except the fact that you slammed the whole company and its owner(s) in front of thousands of people on the internet without having given them a fair chance to make it right.

word of mouth is a powerful thing. we should all be careful how we use it.


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