Dear OXO, XOXO
According to OXO's Satisfaction Guarantee:The story continues with pictures, after the jump..."We guarantee everything we make! If for any reason you are not satisfied with an OXO product, return it for replacement or refund. Please contact OXO s customer service department and we will be happy to assist you."
I was not satisfied, so I contacted OXO's customer service department. They had three questions: 1) What's your name, 2) What's your address, 3) Where did you buy the palm brush. That was it. They said I'd receive a new one in 7-10 business days.
The replacement brush arrived after only five business days. Mustafa's email:
Last year I bought an OXO Soap Squirting Palm Brush during my new apartment move-in binge shop. The palm brush performed admirably for a year, scrubbing everything from greasy pans to smudge-marked glasses. A few weeks ago my palm brush started to show signs of old age. Its bristles, once clean and shiny, began to turn yellow and fall out. This I could tolerate. But when the whole bristle assembly split in two, so did my patience.The new and improved palm brush:According to OXO's Satisfaction Guarantee:
"We guarantee everything we make! If for any reason you are not satisfied with an OXO product, return it for replacement or refund. Please contact OXO s customer service department and we will be happy to assist you."
I was not satisfied, so I contacted OXO's customer service department. They had three questions: 1) What's your name, 2) What's your address, 3) Where did you buy the palm brush. That was it. They said I'd receive a new one in 7-10 business days. One week later (5 business days), Fed-Ex dropped a brand new palm brush at my door. I couldn't be happier. Talk about $4.99 well spent! Thanks OXO!
So clean, so shiny. Good work, OXO. — CAREY GREENBERG-BERGER
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Comments:
What had you been scrubbing with that thing? Ack. I think it is nice they sent you another one, but holy crap, you must have been scrubbing the hell out of your dishes. I'm not surprised it broke, especially after a year of scrubing god knows what.
I love this brand.
How coincidental. I was just about to contact them about a replacement ice cream scooper. Mine has some sort of greyish paint/coating over it, and the edges of the scooper was starting to chip and lose its coating. I don't want a) the paint to continue to chip into my ice cream, and b) for the surface underneath to rust.
OXO products are generally awesome. My mini salad spinner is the light of my life! (Well, pretty much.) Wonder if Mustafa was scrubbing a lot of broiler pans or something to make that brush wear out so badly. It's great that OXO replaced it without a fuss.
Their guarantee says they'd do this. Is this really above and beyond? I'm battling with the manufacturer of my sofa right now because 4 months after their 1 year warranty ran out the stitching started pulling apart on the cushions. They don't care. Replacing THAT would be above and beyond. This was just honoring their claim.
I got similar treatment from Aerobie for a very minor hairline crack (or maybe just a bad scratch?) on the side of my Aeropress coffeemaker. However, I actually received an email from an engineer, so that was cool.
I actually had a similar situation with them back in 2000, so I'm glad to see their policies haven't changed. We bought a mesh stranger with the good grips handle, which fell off after about 6 months of use and hand washing. When I called the company, they just asked for my name and address and where I bought it, and told me they'd send me another one. They didn't even want the bad one back!
I actually received a very large and expensive knife by mistake, and when I called them they told me to keep it and sent me a replacement strainer. All of this took about 2 weeks and they were incredibly friendly about it. Yes, I'd say that was above and beyond.
Well, it only cost like $.05 in materials+manufacturing, packaging and shipping by asian slaves......so even having a lifetime warranty, they still make money.
I would have paid the $5 to not have to waste my time calling the company and waiting for a replacement to come in the mail.
Jeez, the things people will do for $5. ;p
Above and beyond would have been if the product was D/C-ed
Kudos to OXO; I like their stuff (I have their nifty can opener, a couple of ice-cream scoops, some spoons and a few other kitchen items).
I don't think I would have wasted $5 of my time on this either, nor does it sound like the brush was defective, given that it was used pretty hard..but hey...who can argue with OXO's "Give us your name and address and we'll send you another one" policy. Nice.
If only OXO made TV's (I'm on my third defective TV).
OXO just got more than $5 free advertisement, and better yet, a customer testimonial. Most consumers would not go through the hassle to get a new one.
Yay for good companies that think these things through.
James
Seriously if you have time to fight for a replacement of a $5 product you've had for a year...get a job, get a dog, get a hobby. Find something worthwhile to fill your time.
To those who say it's not worth the time: it's not as though the customer service department was on the top of Mount Olympus; the website linked to above had an email contact form.
It must've taken a whole 5 seconds to google "OXO customer service" and two minutes to fire off a quick email that says "hey guys, this broke, and I noticed you have a satisfaction guarantee."
Get a job, indeed.
I've had that same brush for well over a year and it's still working perfectly. They're surely supposed to last more than a year. If mine broke too soon I'd probably ask for a new one too.
Boy howdy, do I love OXO stuff.
I had a similar OXO brush for something like 3 DAYS when the same thing happened. More irritated at the sad quality than anything else, I fired off an email to OXO. Much to my surprise, 3 days later a replacement showed up, complete with a nice note.
Considering the "Please let me apologize on behalf of...but there's nothing we can do" speeches I've gotten from the cable and phone companies recently, that sort of customer service from OXO is much appreciated.
@james2die4: Precisely. Most consumers will not bother with a warranty for easily replaceable items. When one wants a replacement, it's clear that the consumer cares enough to expect the company to live up to its word, and will tell others of the results, good or bad.
When a company guarantees a $5 item for a year, that alone is above and beyond. After all, in today's disposable society, $5 isn't worth the 15 minutes it takes to do this for many people. For those who need that $5, or those who just care enough about the principle of standing by one's handiwork, a one-year guaranty is a welcome, if increasingly less common sight.
For all the environmental concerns we have about living in a "throw-away" culture, contacting OXO was probably a positive step even if buying a new one would have been just as easy. When we hold manufacturers to high standards, we discourage the sale of "disposable" cheap products that are easier to buy new than replace. We have come to simply tolerate situations like cheap Old Navy clothing unraveling at the seams after a single season, and this in turn encourages more production and all the waste and exploitation that goes along with it. It reminds me of the book Brave New World, where the mantra was "Spending is better than mending".
It's cool that they sent a new one, but I think after a year of scrubbing, the original probably more than served its 4.99 purpose.