Well, It's been a very long time since I posted, so this one is a good one. Got an FTD order in on Saturday for delivery today, Monday for a Teleflora Good Luck Bamboo, T100-2A for $34.95. I promptly forwarded the order saying this exactly: Appreciate the opportunity, but we are not Teleflora, nor do we carry that specific product. You are an order gatherer as well, and we don't fill order gatherer orders. Sorry. Early this afternoon our employee Kelly answered the phone, only to hear a earfull, and got chewed out because I called them an order gatherer. She insisted that they are not an order gatherer, and that we should know better since we are from Michigan. She said they have for stores in Michigan. Kelly told her she knew nothing about that, but if she would like to speak to the person who sent the message , that she would get them for her. I never got a chance to speak with the person on the other end. I guess she must be a little sensitive to my remark, or maybe she heard that story more than a few times. Even if we had the product, I'm not sure I would have been able to fill it for nthe amount given. Anyway, we all had a good laugh, and that kind of made my day. Ol Wesley can't hide behind the curtain anymore. The word is out, and people are catching on fast, at least those in the know. Thought you might appreciate this one Mark.
Wesley Berry Chew Out
- Thread starter Renee45
- Start date
steve
Well-Known Member
That is a good story maybe we all should log into their face book page and continue to remind them that theyare indeed not only a deceptive order gatherer but maybe the most deceptive order gatherer in the country.
Renee - Not sure you've seen this, but WB has really ramped up the phony discounts on their OG operations: http://floristdetective.com/wesleyberryflowers.aspx
WB lists the retail price at $54.95 and then shows a discount of $20. Look at the receipt on the linked page. Buyer is expecting a $54.95 item but WB only sends $34.95 to local shop. It's absolute fraud.
Complain in writing to FTD. Complain in writing to TF. Complain in writing to your state attorney general. I really can't believe that TF & FTD can ignore this one.
WB lists the retail price at $54.95 and then shows a discount of $20. Look at the receipt on the linked page. Buyer is expecting a $54.95 item but WB only sends $34.95 to local shop. It's absolute fraud.
Complain in writing to FTD. Complain in writing to TF. Complain in writing to your state attorney general. I really can't believe that TF & FTD can ignore this one.
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
My reply to them and others like them is simple: If you advertize as a Pittsburgh florist, you can deliver your own product to Pittsburgh! End of argument.
Possible good news on the Wesley Berry front with regard to the BBB's A+ rating. WB has had more than 30 complaints through the BBB in January alone and I couldn't fathom how their rating stayed so high.
They were advertising same-day delivery on orders placed by 4 PM!??? but some small print on the site contained a disclaimer that if the delivery wasn't made that day, they would send it the next day. If a the buyer cancelled for same-day non-delivery, WB would keep the $15.95 service charge and the handling fee tacked on to each order. So several of the complaints were tagged as 'WB made an effort to resolve but the consumer was unsatisfied'. No kidding!?
I looked this morning and the BBB page now shows WB as 'unrated': http://www.bbb.org/detroit/Business...ley-berry-florist-inc-in-commerce-mi-6015021/ That A+ rating was probably one of the biggest selling points for WB and it is featured prominently on every product page.
The A+ is still plastered all over WBs sites, but let's hope that changes before V Day.
They were advertising same-day delivery on orders placed by 4 PM!??? but some small print on the site contained a disclaimer that if the delivery wasn't made that day, they would send it the next day. If a the buyer cancelled for same-day non-delivery, WB would keep the $15.95 service charge and the handling fee tacked on to each order. So several of the complaints were tagged as 'WB made an effort to resolve but the consumer was unsatisfied'. No kidding!?
I looked this morning and the BBB page now shows WB as 'unrated': http://www.bbb.org/detroit/Business...ley-berry-florist-inc-in-commerce-mi-6015021/ That A+ rating was probably one of the biggest selling points for WB and it is featured prominently on every product page.
The A+ is still plastered all over WBs sites, but let's hope that changes before V Day.
I've had the same conversation with them. I seriously don't think all their employees even get who and what they work for.
I had sent a refusal message once and it simply said..
"We don't accept orders from dOG's"
Holy Moly!!! They were MAD! The lady calls me "I want to speak to the MANAGER NOW!"
"This is she"
"We just got a refusal fr sombody named SHANNON and they called us DOGS!!"
"Well, I'm Shannon and Wesley Berry is a dOG. D O G is an acronym for Dishonest Orger Gatherer."
"We are NOT an order gatherer! We have actual flower shops! And we are not dishonest!"
"Are you aware that Wesley Berry advertises as real LOCAL florists all over the country?"
Crickets..........
Me- "Yes, seriously- Look up any city anywhere in the US and not Only will you see Wesley Berry claiming to have a local shop in any given town, but also that they have maaster designers on staff."
more crickets.......
her- "Well calling people names is uncalled for."
Me- " The Wesley Berry company is a dog. Think about it some more. Have a good day"
*click*
The End.
I had sent a refusal message once and it simply said..
"We don't accept orders from dOG's"
Holy Moly!!! They were MAD! The lady calls me "I want to speak to the MANAGER NOW!"
"This is she"
"We just got a refusal fr sombody named SHANNON and they called us DOGS!!"
"Well, I'm Shannon and Wesley Berry is a dOG. D O G is an acronym for Dishonest Orger Gatherer."
"We are NOT an order gatherer! We have actual flower shops! And we are not dishonest!"
"Are you aware that Wesley Berry advertises as real LOCAL florists all over the country?"
Crickets..........
Me- "Yes, seriously- Look up any city anywhere in the US and not Only will you see Wesley Berry claiming to have a local shop in any given town, but also that they have maaster designers on staff."
more crickets.......
her- "Well calling people names is uncalled for."
Me- " The Wesley Berry company is a dog. Think about it some more. Have a good day"
*click*
The End.
steve
Well-Known Member
the BBB thing is why I am skeptical about the BBB altogether. HOW did weaslie get an A+ rating to begin with. If you Google you find complaints about them continuously, yet their rating stayed so hi (until now)
So inquiring minds and all... did they buy it?
and that leads me to wonder, if we don't join the BBB do we get a bad rating? I don't check my BBB rating too often as it usually leads to a sales call from them looking for $$.
So inquiring minds and all... did they buy it?
and that leads me to wonder, if we don't join the BBB do we get a bad rating? I don't check my BBB rating too often as it usually leads to a sales call from them looking for $$.
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
Read the bottom half of this page: http://floristdetective.com/wesleyberryflowers.aspx for part of the story...
When I saw the Florist Detective report, I contacted the CEO of the BBB here in Charlotte. Here is his reply:
" Thanks Bill,
Wow, that is crazy! I have forwarded it to our Chief Legal Counsel in Arlington. They will contact this company to get their voluntary cooperation. If that fails they will work to get it stopped.
Thank you very much for bringing this to my attention."
All The best,
Bill
Doug Munro
Well-Known Member
Unbelievable!
Now we take pride in transferring the guilt to an employee who is simply doing a job and attempting to put food on their table.
What's next, drive bys and a brick through the window? Or maybe shaving the heads of OG sympathizers.....
What ever happened to simply operating your own business in the best manner possible and leaving the other guy to live or die on their own business practices.
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
What about when the other guys methods damage other businesses and the industry in general? Turn a blind eye? No thanks...
Doug Munro
Well-Known Member
Boss,
I note that you selectively quoted my posting by leaving out my real concerns. Does this mean you feel it is fair to "beat up on the person behind the counter"?
If so would you take an attitude with a teller or janitor at the local bank that received a government bailout. Or maybe lecture a secretary at a brokerage firm about how they ripped off the public and how she is a part of the thievery.
I don't imagine you would, nor would most on this board. Yet for some reason it is ok to tear a strip off the girl who calls on behalf of a company that you consider an OG. I wouldn't imagine she has any input or say in the companies marketing practices.
That attitude seems very wrong,but that's just me.
anytimeflowers
Linda
With the two examples here, both refused an order and gave their reason (often required). That the company is offended by the reason is their problem, not the refusing florist's.
If they want to employ people to "call out" a refusing florist, those employees should be fully cognizant of what they are going to face ~ the truth. It is this company's choice to draw the whole thing out into an ugly affair and defend an indefensible action.
That is exactly what Wesley Berry should be doing instead of choosing to try to make an employee of a florist feel guilty for just doing their job, instructed to turn down dOG orders ~ after all, they are just trying to put food on their tables. Right?
If they want to employ people to "call out" a refusing florist, those employees should be fully cognizant of what they are going to face ~ the truth. It is this company's choice to draw the whole thing out into an ugly affair and defend an indefensible action.
That is exactly what Wesley Berry should be doing instead of choosing to try to make an employee of a florist feel guilty for just doing their job, instructed to turn down dOG orders ~ after all, they are just trying to put food on their tables. Right?
Lizi
Well-Known Member
An A rating is easy to get. They called us last week, we could get an A rating for $395.00, told he I would think about it. I've heard the BBB can actually hurt your business if you're not willing to pay. There were several magazine articles about it a few years back.
Clarabella
Well-Known Member
Doug,
I think you are missing a KEY POINT here....Initially Shannon refused the order. Just as you suggested, Shannon was simply running her business and letting others run their own when she refused the order. She was well within her right to do that. She was simply letting them die by not supporting their business practice. I would do the exact same thing.
The "innocent employee behind the counter" is the one that called back demanding to speak to the manager NOW and started chewing out Shannon. That moves her from the "innocent employee" category into the "all gloves are off" category. At that point, Shannon had every right to express her feelings on the issue. Bottom line is Shannon brutally told the truth, but only AFTER the "innocent employee" opened the flood gates. WB IS DISHONEST PERIOD. If the "innocent employee" can't stand the heat, then she needs to get out of the kitchen. If the employee were "just doing their job" as you suggest, they would have respected Shannon's order refusal and found someone else to fill the order (haha--I know--good luck with that)
Oh, and by the way--IF the teller at the bank got in my face and gave me attitude because I said I didn't bank with institutions that received TARP funds then yes, I would tear a strip off her too.....but I haven't experienced a teller (or janitor) do that....
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
I quoted the part I had a problem with Doug, nothing more. And no, like you surmise I would not hammer an employee for something their employer did.
Wesley's methods leave little to be desired or championed except by others like him. It will be interesting to see what results come from the BBB investigation.
Likewise, his whining of late to state organizations here in Michigan strikes me as funny, as the very organizations that have showered him with accolades have finally seen him for what he is, and are beginning to distance themselves from him.
There is absolutely no pleasure in EVER having to refuse an order from a "florist" who is dishonest. I wish they wouldn't exsist or leave me alone. Since MY shop is totally indie- I wont have that problem anymore. However- I have tossed around the idea of BBrooks. (To be perfectly honest)
Anyway- Had she not called ME and ask to directly talk to ME and confront ME- she would have never gotten an education into what sort of company she worked for. FTR- I wasn't crappy about it- just actually matter-of-fact about it. I honestly (as I stated in my original post) don't think most of WB employees know what kind of company they work for. But she knows now. Oh and BTW- she hung up on me.
Oh and another BTW- They STILL continued to send me orders and I still continued to refuse them in the same manner in the hopes they would leave me alone to conduct our business in our own way (business practices) So as far as I'm concerned- they must have loved being called a dOG and wasting time, paper, ink, money.
And Doug- I tried VERY hard to block them and JF and FYF and Broadway Flowers and Absolutely Flowers and and and and...But they still got through and I could refuse the same order OVER AND OVER and they had ZERO respect for me and MY TIME and the shops refusal to take orders from them.
I could get down right nasty and they would still call back. I have seen more than one flower shop employee lose it when dealing with these OG's.
Once I even had a call (like the 20th in a row) from JF wanting to "give me an order" and as I'm telling the person "WE will not fill this order- stop calling us!" Another line rang with another JF employee trying to give the same order to one of the other girls at the shop! In a high volume time like a holiday (or any time for that matter) the last thing you want to do is waste your time and energy and manpower on refusing stupid orders from companies that your own personal/business ethics wont allow you to take. If you can't understand that, I don't know how to make you understand what REAL FLOWER SHOPS go through on a daily basis.
If ANY other shop calls my store with an attitude, they will get an earful. I don't care if they are a bottom-feeding OG or a mom & pop.
Doug,
sometimes, I wonder if you are sincere.
Wesley Berry is among the worst OGs there is. They have been caught conning customers with their fake BBB site. They inflate prices so they can give huge discounts. They accept orders for codified products then send "designer's choice" just to get an order filled. At volume holidays their salespeople have called my shop (not once, but dozens of times last V-Day and M-Day) claiming they were "Adam" from "another shop" Just trying to push orders onto my seasonal help. They have given their angry customers my phone number claiming that I have the order when I do not. This is a systematic approach at deception. The people who work for this company are not ignorant of these actions; they are actively involved in them.
I can relate when you argue that florists are lazy marketers, and the problems generated by DOGs exist because traditional florists left a gaping wound in the flower consumer market after the advent of the internet. It simply got infected and has filled with maggots.
I can accept that OGs have the right to charge whatever service fee they feel the market will support because web advertising is expensive work.
I know, first hand, that a sending shop has no quality guarantee any more. There are as many deceptive fillers as there are deceptive gatherers.
I cannot accept that we should roll-over and say "yes ma'am" when some a$$hole calls us (probably on our 800 number) to chew us out for rejecting an order that we do not want to fill.
Doug,
sometimes, I wonder if you are sincere.
Wesley Berry is among the worst OGs there is. They have been caught conning customers with their fake BBB site. They inflate prices so they can give huge discounts. They accept orders for codified products then send "designer's choice" just to get an order filled. At volume holidays their salespeople have called my shop (not once, but dozens of times last V-Day and M-Day) claiming they were "Adam" from "another shop" Just trying to push orders onto my seasonal help. They have given their angry customers my phone number claiming that I have the order when I do not. This is a systematic approach at deception. The people who work for this company are not ignorant of these actions; they are actively involved in them.
I can relate when you argue that florists are lazy marketers, and the problems generated by DOGs exist because traditional florists left a gaping wound in the flower consumer market after the advent of the internet. It simply got infected and has filled with maggots.
I can accept that OGs have the right to charge whatever service fee they feel the market will support because web advertising is expensive work.
I know, first hand, that a sending shop has no quality guarantee any more. There are as many deceptive fillers as there are deceptive gatherers.
I cannot accept that we should roll-over and say "yes ma'am" when some a$$hole calls us (probably on our 800 number) to chew us out for rejecting an order that we do not want to fill.