Well, it's been on my mind ever since I got the card in the mail with the picture of The Coat on it. I've looked for it online repeatedly, but it was never there. I made two (2!) trips to Express last week to see if The Coat was in stock, hoping to try it on. Maybe I'd see that it wasn't really cute in person, or maybe it just wouldn't be flattering on me. That way, I could quit thinking about it and quit debating about spending $168 on a stupid coat (even if it was really really cute).
On my first trip to Express last week, I saw that a friend of mine from college was managing the store. I talked to her for a while, and I mentioned to her that I was in there to see if they had The Coat. "Oh, you mean the one everyone's been calling about?" she asked.
Great. (I had really kind of hoped I was the only one who had seen a picture of The Coat.)
My friend told me they had a black and white version of The Coat in stock, but they hadn't gotten the white one yet. She took me over to it. It was cute, but it was $198. I figured it was more expensive because of the pattern. Either way, $198 was definitely out of the question. Even if it was also really cute.
On my second trip to the store, I thought maybe I'd try on the black and white coat just to see how that style would fit me. I managed to catch a glimpse of the price tag again, and I immediately high-tailed it out of the store.
Yesterday, The Coat (in white) was finally online. It was listed at $198. I thought maybe I'd read the price wrong on the mailout I'd gotten a few weeks ago, so I checked it when I got home. It definitely said $168.
I called one of the stores nearby and spoke to a manager. I told him about the price discrepancy between the mailout and the online store. The manager actually told me that the company had originally sold The Coat for $168, but because there was so much demand for it, they'd raised the price to $198. I couldn't believe it!
Immediately, I called Express Customer Service. I told him exactly the same thing as I'd told the manager. To my surprise, he gave me the exact same reason for the discrepancy as the manager. He said they'd actually sold out of The Coat three times, so they raised the price to $198 to cut demand. "If people really want The Coat, they'll pay that price," he said to me.
"No," I said. "I won't. Not $198. That's completely unethical! And false advertising!"
He actually agreed with me. He told me they'd gotten lots of calls about the discrepancy that day. He gave me the Express Custumer Relations number, so I called them this morning. The woman I talked to there told me The Coat had been mispriced in their system -- it was supposed to be $198 from the beginning. They had fixed the problem before The Coat was out, and they sent out a correction card last week. I told her what the store manager and customer service rep had told me, and she responded that she was sorry I had been misinformed.
But how could two people give me the exact same story, completely unprovoked? It still seems a little fishy to me.
So even though I still think it's really really cute, I'm pretty sure I'm not buying The Coat anymore out of principle alone.
Well, that and the fact that it sounds like everyone else will have it.
6 comments:
oh my gosh!! I am shocked at the poor customer service (not to mention questionable ethics). Whoa! You should definitely send a firm letter to the higher ups.
And maybe Old Navy will get a similar coat in (for much cheaper!). :)
What's funny is the cheaper coat I liked was at Old Navy!
Oh my goodness!! That is awful! That is really bad customer service and bad ethics as well.
It's a cute coat but not $200 cute. There's one thing I cannot stand...bad customer service...it infuriates me.
See Express made the decision for you on spending that much on coat that likie you said everyone will have.
Yep, I like what heather said! You can thank express for saving you that money!! :-)
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