[Jewelry making - Article 00065] - Re: [Orchid] Problem Customer, possible wear and return

[LynPunk]

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    Well, the story took an amusing turn today. I got an email from the
    fair manager, who filled me in on the rest of what happened. The
    young lady in question was fired from her acting job last Sunday
    night. In a fit of anger she threw the $500 crown on the ground,
    resulting in the breakage. The manager then informed her, the fair
    WAS going to buy the crown from her before she did that. So my gut
    feeling was right. She had every intention of trying to return it for
    her money back after wearing it for four weeks then breaking it. My
    no return policy put a damper on her plans. Thankfully, the fair did
    purchase the crown from her this week, at a discount, and they're
    going to go without a queen for the remainder of the season. They'll
    be shipping it back to me, and paying for the repairs. So, it looks
    like the problem's resolved itself. 

    I really didn't ever think this would go to court. The whole thing
    is a bit ridiculous, especially for a pearl (yeah, that made me laugh
    too)...It's not worth it. I was more concerned about the validity of
    my business policies, and if anyone had similar experience with this
    kind of problem. 

    Normally, when I sell crowns to fairs I deal with the fair directly.
    They call for bids, have a budget, a committee, and long list of bid
    requirements including weight, height, extensions, specific artwork,
    etc. Same thing when I deal with any other group, or individual
    commission. The contract involved in this type of transaction
    provides a certain level of protection to both parties. When there's
    not a contract involved, I clearly state my policies on my website,
    or a sign in my booth. I've always understood this to be my
    front-line of protection against a problem customer. 

    I stopped having merchant booths at the renaissance fairs after last
    year because of the hassle. There seems to be a large group of people
    that frequent these things that think it's perfectly okay to buy a
    piece of jewelry because it goes with their costume, wear it for the
    day, then hassle you to return it. I don't have that problem at the
    couple other historical events/juried shows I do, just the renfair
    crowd. 

    Karen's idea of "leasing" a crown was brilliant! Thank you Karen! I
    wholesale to some fair costume rental companies, and I'll definitely
    be suggesting this as my next sales pitch to them. They can buy it,
    lease it out at the fair, and it'll pay for itself in a few weekends. 


    Thank you to everyone who responded! 

Lyn
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