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Are We To Blame? Online Vendors

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That is a big part of the reason why I don't try products that aren't mainstream. I tried Karen's Body Beautiful (she was local in NYC), Bee Mine years ago, the sulphur oil seller (?) and I have Oyin now but I am just trying out Curl Junkie and never tried Qhemet although they are now in Sephora.
 
naturalmanenyc said:
That is a big part of the reason why I don't try products that aren't mainstream. I tried Karen's Body Beautiful (she was local in NYC), Bee Mine years ago, the sulphur oil seller (?) and I have Oyin now but I am just trying out Curl Junkie and never tried Qhemet although they are now in Sephora.
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You named alit of heavyweights though. Only one I never purchase from anymore is Bee Mine. Everyone else, no issues other than maybe a scent change or bottle change.
 
I think for the most part, "Bad Vendor Behavior" is somewhat of an anomaly.

I think for the most part, the Handmade/Natural Vendors try to produce and deliver.

As with everything, you always got one or two Knuckleheads in the bunch, that makes it look bad for everyone else. And the repeat 'offenders' who ain't gone never be right.

But Folks need to get their Formulations, Pricing, Packaging, Consistencies, Shipping, Customer Service right. A few can cast shade on the whole group.

And it's not that way at all. For the most part, and I buy ALOT of "stuff".

I maintain, if you got: Marital, Relational, Financial, Work, Health issues, please Fall Back until you get your life together.

Please and Thank You.
 
YvetteWithJoy said:
Interesting thread. Thanks for it!

The other day I went to a vendor's website that did not inspire confidence in their products or business knowledge/acumen. Out of care, I sent this message:

Hi! I learned about your products from a hair blog. Congratulations on the business! I don't want any customers to be turned off from your site due to typos! Is there any way that you can have a proofreader go over your site? "Receive" is spelled "recieve." "Business" is spelled "bunisess." Punctuation is misplaced. Capital letters and lower-case letters are randomly "incorrect." Some "bougie" people might be a little turned off by all of this, thinking that if you can't be careful with how you present yourself online with these small matters, then how careful can you be with your product formulation, business sense, customer service, etc? I don't have these thoughts about you or your business, but I just wanted to KINDLY share this message with you just in case this stuff ends up mattering to some of your would-have-been customers. Please excuse MY OWN typos in the message! Many blessings! And godspeed with your hair product business. Wishing you ALL of the best, Yvette​

I received this message back:
We humbly appreciate you for taking the time out to contact us about the errors found on our website.​
We will take care of them asap.​

The "bougie" comment was not meant as a slight to anyone. I hope it was disarming and silly. Maybe I shouldn't have said that. :smile: Regardless, no matter what, I know I'll never purchase from this vendor. Sigh. I was feeling some kind of way about THAT, but I'm going to go with my gut. It's my hair. Once damaged, it would be . . . damaged. I don't know why they launched without a website proofreader. What else aren't they doing? :(
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What do you find wrong with their response?
 
Crackers Phinn said:
What do you find wrong with their response?
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Oh, I thought the response was great!

ETA: I didn't mean to imply otherwise.

I think my point was just that I was shocked to see such a poor site and that even though I really didn't want to be "that person," I still ended up being that person: I just couldn't shake my gut feeling to NOT order from them. All because of the website. Let me see if I can find it . . .

HERE'S THE SITE: http://www.sweettreatsbyoraje.com/

I'm sure they are doing a lot of work to become successful. I think they need a consultant.
 
shawnyblazes said:
I'm a product junkie. I find stuff in really odd places. I ordered it. Its okay. Mango something or other.

I'll try other items down the line.
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Well, congrats on become a Sarenzo Bath and Body ambassador. Your PJ-ism pays off and is fun for you and informative for the rest of us! :heart3:
 
This is a great thread! When I started my healthy hair care journey almost seven years ago, depending on the issue- I honestly was very hesitant to contact/reach out to vendors for order trouble/ customer service issues etc. For some reason I set my customer service expectations very low and I was quick to made excuses for their poor behavior/poor products etc. "They are having a sale and that's why it takes 8 weeks to get my order", I shouldn't have ordered this butter in the summer time, that's why it's gritty and not the same texture as the LAST time I ordered." :blah:

As time went on, I realized the value of my dollar and soon came to where I am today- having no qualms with sharing my experience/feedback and reaching out if I have concerns etc. It's best to do your homework prior to making purchases online in general and the hair care community is no different. For the most part, there are just a few companies that have made it to my "never again" list, but all of those vendors were given a chance prior to make any issues/troubles right. That's not to say that mistakes don't happen, but if the vendor acknowledges and fixes the problem, we are good in my book and I may purchase from them again (after them going on time out) :jail:

  • I don't buy/repurchase from anyone with poor customer service
  • I never order from companies with partial ingredient lists- automatic NO
  • I expect product shelf life at minimum 12 months
  • For handmade products, I totally get that there maybe some SLIGHT variations in consistency (BUT don't change the formulation without letting customer's know
  • Only once have I had a product completely separate on me- & it took a paypal dispute to get my money back. I'm not about to spend my money to send something back that is clearly faulty mixing etc
  • I pass feedback along if my labels peel or get wet and rub off- pet peeve!
  • Stop trying to charge these exorbitant shipping costs SMH! You know dang well it does not cost $12.95 to ship to me and we are in the same state!
  • Be sure to package my items so they will arrive intact. Please tape, but don't mummify my items
  • Communication is key! Please answer messages in a timely manner and send an email if there are any shipping delays
 
I haven't messed with new vendors in a while. There are probably under 5 companies I still buy from that don't have major presence in major stores. But they have been around for a while and have established themselves pretty well. I've been buying from them for years and tbh I don't have an itch to try new vendors the way I used to back in 2007. Natural hair products are all over the place now. I've actually started going back to the bss this year.
 
rileypak said:
I expect communication. Message me and let me know hey it's going to take a little longer but it'll be done by this day or something.
I don't want to have to start emailing you after the time limit has passed.
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I totally agree, I shouldn't have to hunt you down about my order- especially if you are exceeding the shipping expectations set prior. Plus, it has to be a reasonable time frame.

Seems like some companies have big sales without having at least some products already made.....
 
shawnyblazes said:
If they are having a sale and extend shipping times,to 10 business days and don't meet that deadline, what are your expectations?
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I expect an email about the delay and an updated time frame. If it's going to be a 1-2 week delay, throw in some samples. If it's going to be a month or two like some folks on the forum have been waiting lately then I'm going to need a coupon code for at least 30% off my next order, a free full size product or something more than "this is taking longer than I thought". You've got my money tied up while you're going on vacation, buying new furniture, moving to a bigger house or whatever so I need to be compensated.
 
PJaye said:
I disagree with the sentiment expressed regarding black entrepreneurs needing to evolve beyond “natural/mixtress” products to more commercialized merchandise. Small black businesses are a cornerstone to our community and enabled it to survive and thrive during Jim Crow and beyond until the integration stranglehold. These entrepreneurships also allowed for increased social mobility and access to societal rewards. IMO, one of the problems facing our community is our lack of these types of endeavors, not their existence. There’s a reason why the big commercial companies keep trying to add certain things, such as natural ingredients/products, to their line up. They are well aware of the huge natural, handcrafted niche and they want those dollars for themselves. So, no, black owned hair care vendors absolutely should not forsake their niche in order to chase after and copy L’Oreal and their brethren. *** dem. We got our own thing and it works. All we need to do is continue to build upon it and keep them out of it as much as possible.
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The upward mobility you mentioned is important. The introductory level mixtress type of business should eventually aspire to grow into something bigger (unless it's a mere hobby, in that case have fun and sell your little handmade products to hair junkies and friends).

However, it would be even better for some of these business incorporated themselves, got production lines, and were able to create full scale hair and beauty corporations.
 
krissyhair said:
The upward mobility you mentioned is important. The introductory level mixtress type of business should eventually aspire to grow into something bigger (unless it's a mere hobby, in that case have fun and sell your little handmade products to hair junkies and friends).

However, it would be even better for some of these business incorporated themselves, got production lines, and were able to create full scale hair and beauty corporations.
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I disagree.
 
shawnyblazes said:
If they are having a sale and extend shipping times,to 10 business days and don't meet that deadline, what are your expectations?
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I don't really sweat vendors after I make purchases (and if I were a vendor, someone sweating me about business days and tracking numbers would make me violent). I just buy my stuff and sit back and wait for it to arrive.
 
shawnyblazes said:
When you say inform, do we mean mass emails?

When would you ask for your money back?
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I mean send to people who are going to be delayed and shut down your website. That's one thing I respect Silk Dreams for; she will close her website until her orders are fulfilled during big sales.

I would ask for my money back if the extension is not fulfilled. IMO, by the extension, it hasn't then been made.
 
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