Just recently had a similar problem at the local fabric store, I had a lot of fabric on the sheet and she miscounted when she put it in the till, someone different had cut it, if was only 3.70 a meter and both the lady that had the mistake and the one that helped fix it was very gracious. Fixed it up in no time, (to save paperwork I just added the extra fabric to the pile) No feelings were hurt or anything, mistakes happen, everyone is human. Had they given me a hard time I would have been upset. I had about 15 fabrics and I only got a quarter meter of each.


I was there again today, this time, mostly one meter cuts, most were 3.70 a meter. But I had about 20 this time, the girls never complain when I do it, they usually make fun of it all.

Did you get your money back for the overcharge? I would hope that after you pointed it out, he fixed it. If not, you MUST go to his boss, or the owner and point it out, if only to help other customers down the road.

Service is king and so are the customers.

I think you are totally justified in how you feel. I would definitely take it up with the owner. If it was my store, I would be offering you not only your $6, but a token of goodwill as well. If things don't improve on your next visit, vote with your feet and go elsewhere. I always try to support independent stores, but if they can't provide good, honest service and treat customers with respect, I go somewhere else.

When managing staff, I always reinforced with them how important customers are....without customers you have no business....

We sell from 10cm upwards unless it is from the cheaper fabric then the minimum is 20 cm where I work. We do this whether we are busy or not. We don;t charge extra for this.

I would be very upset. And just because he's the owners son makes no diffrentance. First rule Coustermers are always right no matter what. No yelling or argueing with them. For all you know he could be stealing . I he did it to you than he has done it to others too. You just don't lose it like that.

Gosh . I don't think he handled that very well. Umm I suggest talking to the manager /owner. Good luck,, I know its frustrating

Like most everyone else, I think you are right in feeling the way you do, and would contact the owner of the store. I prefer to think that the mistake was unintentional, but his response was way out of line. Maybe a weakness in math is a sore point for him so he is defensive?

A few questions: What does having bought a couple of sale items have to do with it? I'm confused by the inclusion of that as a rationale. It's on sale, but you get charged for more yardage than you buy?

I've never known that cutting 1/8ths of a yard was an issue in some places? Or heard of charging extra for small cuts? Or lots of cuts? Is that a norm in some areas?

With the economy such as it is, customer service can make or break a busines, and a happy customer can provide much word of mouth advertising. An UNhappy customer is more likely to do the same!

You are right in being upset about how your were treated...even more so than the math error. For a small business or any business really, it is waayyy more economical for them to "keep" a customer than to find a new customer. As a former manager...I would suggest a politely worded letter, stating the FACTS of the exchange and suggest what will make you happy at this point...money back?...an apology???..a coupon??? Whatever it is, they should be happy to talk with you about it and come to a solution. If not...I would definetly take my business elsewhere and be happy to spread the word about the poor service.

I once had a problem at a cleaners...they ruined a suit and didn't want to pay for it. I told them nicely that their decision was no problem, I would just print up fliers about the issue and put one in EVERY mailbox within a 1 mile radius of their store. They immediately paid for my suit. :roll:


Good luck...let us know what you decide to do.

i would continue to shop there. Yes, this one employee made a mistake and handled it badly, but if your other experiences there have been fine, I would continue to shop there.

One of my favorite shops almost didn't become my fav. The first time I visited there, the employees ignored me and the owner actually got "on to me" because my kids were touching the fabrics. I didn't visit there again for a while because of it. Then, I went back with my kids at a few years later and the owner and staff were amazing. I go there frequently now and love the shop. I don't know why that first visit was so negative, but I sure am glad I gave them another try.

That said, I don't understand why they have a limit to how many cuts they will make when there are people waiting - a cut of 1 yd vs. 5 yds vs. 1/6 of a yard all takes the same basic amount of time...I would actually argue that the smaller yardage takes LESS time since you don't have to keep flipping the bolt over to pull out the extra yardage to cut! Anyway.... my 2 cents!

If you didn't get your money back, you need to. And if you haven't used the fabric yet, then I would return it all if they don't refund the money from the overcharge.

If I have this right???? if the material was $9.95/yd and you only wanted 6", 6" divided into 36" is 6....6 divided into $9.95 is 1.66/ea. He could have figured that out, he was embarassed he couldn't and wouldn't admit it. The owner needs to know.....