Dow Jones says:

The chain, purchased in 2003 for $12 million, had 11 stores at the time and has since grown to 78 stand-alone shops and 20 locations within department stores once owned by Saks. Club Libby Lu's closure should be completed in six months.

Some 1,700 employees will be affected by the shutdown of the chain, which had nearly $60 million in sales for the year ended Feb. 2.

In an effort to fully comprehend just what has been lost, let us now read from Club Libby Lu's explanation of their services.

At the party, girls arrive at the Club. They are all greeted by a fairy and make a wish on her fairy dust. Each girl then creates her own secret Club name. Then their Libby Dus™ comes true. After dressing up and playing games, they visit our Goodie Shop and make their own Goodie Bags. Singing and Dancing, all the girls celebrate the guest of honor.

This is the part of the post where we'd write something to sort of wrap up, but we're too busy laughing and have decided to quit while we're ahead.

Saks To Close Club Libby Lu Chain After 5 Turbulent Years [CNNMoney]

Pirate Wench Child Costume [SpiritHalloween] (Thanks to C-side!)

Stigma by Association in Coupon Redemption: Looking Cheap because of Others [Journal of Consumer Research] (Photo: Getty)

March 25, 2004; March 26, 2004; June 23, 2004; July 2, 2004; July 3, 2004; August 4, 2007; August 5, 2007; August 13, 2007; and August 14, 2007. You could also be at risk if you shopped at their Fresno Cali store between November 26, 2003 and October 24, 2005. If the above describes you, review your credit card statements for unexpected charges and monitor your credit report for strange activity. Affected customers may receive a notice from their credit card company.

Forever 21 also announced the problem to its customers via a small link on its site labeled "Important Customer Info Notice" that no one will ever click on.

Press Release

Etsy Bitch says:

Yeah, yeah, Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty made it a Hollywood hit, but in reality, Bonnie Parker was nothing more than a common criminal who supported her insane boyfriend's murdering spree. She's not worthy of having a trend of fashion for her, and even further perpetuating the falsehood that Hollywood began is just plain ignorant.

Besides, Faye's look wasn't even remotely Bonnie's look. Just look at the pictures of the real Bonnie Parker. It would be more apropos to call the article "Get the vintage Faye Dunaway look" instead of glamorizing a criminal.

...and here are some reactions from Etsy.com's commenters:

What is romantic about dying at aged 25 in a hail of bullets? Seriously Storque, you should rethink this article.

Bonnie and Clyde were murderers...I'm rethinking what it is Etsy stands for by promoting such things. Maybe saying "get Faye Dunaway's vintage look" would be more appropriate.

nice. hey storque, why not do sexy school shooters next?

Awesome! Next, how about some lighthearted suggestions on achieving Osama bin Laden's casual terrorist look? Or the funny-little-mustache and swastika sporting style of Adolph Hitler? Or maybe Ted Bundy's murderous chic and the trenchcoated glamour of the Columbine killers? That would be really cool too!

Ouch. The tipster who sent this story in says: "I thought this was so mind-boggling and in questionable taste that I am beginning to wonder of The Onion bought out etsy."

What do you think? Offensive? Or harmless?

Etsy Finds Vintage: Getting Bonnie Parker's Look [Etsy] (Thanks, Adam and Jace!)
Hooray for romanticizing criminals! [Etsy Bitch]
(Photo: FBI)

Another rendering of the life you will never lead.

Vitals:

• 640 stones of 3251 carats of Swarovski crystals
• 2.6-inch touch screen with QVGA resolution
• 2-megapixel camera
• ringtones (possibly with Dior's voice himself)
• USB-sized miniature "My Dior" auxiliary cellphone

New Dior Phone Targets China, Russia [WSJ]
"My Dior" Mobile Phone [Luxist]
Swarovski Dior Phone Inlaid with 640 Crystals, Costs $26,000 [Mobiledia]

5. Worst "Healthy" Drink
Glaceau VitaminWater (any flavor 20oz bottle)
130 calories, 33 grams of sugar.
Vitamins and water might seem like a good idea but what they don't advertise is that this water contains nearly as much calories and sugar as a can of soda. It should be no surprise that this stuff is made by The Coca-Cola Company.

4. Worst Juice Imposter
Arizona Kiwi Strawberry (23.5 oz can)
360 calories, 84 grams of sugar.
These bottles which are just 5 percent juice cost 99 cents which makes them one of the cheapest source of empty calories in the country.

3. Worst Smoothie
Jamba Juice Peanut Butter Moo'd Power Smoothie (30 oz)
169 grams of sugar, 30 grams of fat
Whether you call it a smoothie or a milk shake, it has more sugar than a bag of chocolate chips.

2. Worst Summer Cocktail
Pina Colada
625 calories, 75 grams of sugar
Because of the super sweet pineapple juice and fatty coconut milk, the only wise thing to consume here may be the garnish. Try a lime daiquiri or mojito instead and save 400 calories.

1. The Unhealthiest Drink In America
Baskin Robbin's Large Heath Bar Shake (32. oz)
2,310 calories, 266 grams of sugar, 108 grams of fat
73 ingredients go into this milk shake.
66 teaspoons of sugar.
11 Heath bars equal the calories in this shake
8-12 minutes to consume this drink.
240 minutes on a treadmill running at a moderate pace to burn it off.

America's Unhealthiest Drinks Exposed [Men's Health] (Thanks to Robert!)
(Photo: Getty)

Haven writes (to Bloomingdale's):

May 27, 2008

Bloomingdale's
Customer Service
P.O. Box 8215
Mason, OH 45040

Dear Bloomingdale's Customer Service Department,

I have been a Bloomingdale's card holder for about two years. In my time as a cardholder, I have spent close to $2000.00 at your store. Recently, I paid a bill online and because I didn't have the bill in front of me, paid what I thought was due that month. To my error I had underpaid the minimum amount by $5.00. Two days ago, I received a notice from Bloomingdale's (the first and, apparently, last notice I was to receive) saying I would be sent to collections for failing to pay this $5.00 – I thought this was odd as I had used my Bloomingdale's card in the store about a week and a half prior. If my account had been in bad standing I would assume Bloomingdale's would put it on hold and not allow me to complete my purchase. At the very least I expected to receive timely notice of the pending sale of my account to a collection agency, so that I could have a chance to fix the problem. Although I did receive "notice" from Bloomingdale's, it appears this served only to let me know that I could expect to deal with a collection agency, and have no chance to rectify the situation with Bloomingdale's. Yesterday (on a Sunday over Memorial Day Weekend of all times!) I had the pleasure of getting four calls from your collection agency MCCS. How a customer who has spent a considerable amount in your store could be treated in this manner over a sum of $5.00 is appalling. I was not aware that I owed $5.00, and if Bloomingdale's had taken the time to notify me of this small error I would have happily paid it.

To think that Bloomingdale's is spending time notifying collections and using MCCS manpower for multiple hours over such a small amount of money is completely illogical. The cost to do this I'm sure is well over $5.00 and totally inefficient. To bully me by potentially negatively impacting my credit standing over something so small is a bad business practice and completely ridiculous. You have lost a customer who until now was a supporter of your store and I will be mentioning this to other customers of your Company's bullying tactics.

Sincerely,
H.

Ugh. It's completely unreasonable of Bloomingdale's to send your account to collections without giving you proper notice and a chance to fix the error. And into the open arms of Nordstrom you go...

MCSS is actually the collection wing of Macy's. Still, calling themselves MCSS rather than Bloomingdale's makes them sound like a scary collection agency, so it's understandable why there was that confusion, a confusion that Bloomie's/MCSS capitalizes on to get people to pay up. We don't know about you, but in all the times we've ever been behind on a bill, we would just get another bill. It would be months before we start getting calls from places with acronym names. Even if H is overacting, Bloomie's response to the $5 under-payment seems overblown.

(Photo: nfarley )

Our reaction is, of course, "Holy Shit! Where can we buy that poncho!?"

ROFLcon and ponchos spark controversy [Weekly Dig]

Sears, Robert E. Lee Sued For Dressing Room Peep Show [Style Weekly]

I saw just about any kind of retail renting you can think of. The biggest thing that I wanted to convey is that we, in the business, all did it. Managers, employee's and even the district managers got in the action too.

Sometimes, it was legitimate product testing. I never liked telling a mom that this camera would take great pictures of her children until I tried it out on my own. Other times, I "tested" the portable DVD player for a week while on vacation. But the rule was always that you paid for the item and then returned it when you were done with it. Nothing under the table.

Customers did it to. The occasional rental didn't really bother me all that much. What I found was that customers would on occasion buy a camera from me later on once they learned how lax we were about returns.

In fact, last week I "rented" a $1900 lens from [the store.] Now, normally I actually "rent" lenses from a company that's equipped to do so. However, I needed the lens the next day and [the store] was my only option. As far as I'm concerned, its a victimless crime.

The lens had already been opened and used by someone else. My thought was that if I beat up or damage the lens, I own it. If not, I return it and nobody loses anything. I know that for a fact as a former manager. The only time it would bother me would be when somebody got to return something well beyond the time limit. I sold a digital camera to a woman once who obviously had used her camera on her vacation. However, she had gone almost 15 days over the 10 day return window. Corporate allowed her to return the camera and I had a huge chunk of my check taken away. Had it been during the same window as when I received the comission, I wouldn't have minded so much.

I think that people need to understand that its really a victimless crime. In the world of cameras, unless the box has a factory seal you have to assume that its been opened and played with at some point. Some stores even go the extra step of breaking all the seals on all the boxes to remove that bias.

We sort of saw the idea of renting as another way to get people into the store to buy something. Even if they didn't buy a camera, they would on occasion become printing customers. This isn't something that we encouraged people to do mind you. Its not like you could walk up to me and say, "Hi, I'd like to buy a camera for the weekend and take it back," and I'd say SURE SIR HERE YOU GO.

What normally happens is the customer would come in and within 5 minutes would make a $500 camera purchase. Before leaving they'd take the camera out and have me spot check it to make sure it wasn't broken or anything. it was at this point that I realized they were renting. I wished them a nice day and started a pool within the store as to when they'd bring it back.

Some stores would try to "scare" the customer by warning them of return refusal policies or restocking fee's that don't exist. My guess is that they were banking on the fact that the customer would be too guilt stricken to question company policy. Some of them were right. But I always found it was hypocritical to stop customers from doing what we ourselves did on a regular basis

My first store manager bought and returned her home printer every month. When she quit, she returned it for good.

I guess what I'm trying to argue is that if its done correctly, its a victimless crime. The insiders do it in much worse fashion anyways. I would argue that if your willing to rent something, you might be willing to buy it (eventually). Allowing you to rent with me increases my chances of a sale. And that's what I really want.

Oh yes, but that's why you check out the equipment before you allow the return. That's where I put my foot down. If I couldn't sell the camera at full price to the person behind you, we have a problem.

The best is since [the store] has a warranty that covers customer damage, people assumed that if they broke it they could return it and the warranty would cover the repairs. Meaning we'd return their broken camera and fix it under our warranty and somehow not lose money on it.

You needed every plastic cover, every piece of wrapping to bring it back into my store and most of my customers knew that.

Most of them threw a fit. I would assume because they got caught. But that's what you get for disregarding how serious I take returns. Some people would rent without regard for the fact that I would still have to sell the product.

Sometimes we'd turn it into a sale. Well, I can't return this camera but I'll let you exchange it. Then i'd write "NO RETURN/EXCHANGE" on their receipt and the camera box. But yeah, they'd get pretty pissed. Especially when I found all the little things. I've denied returns because that little cover that comes with the batter (that everyone loses right away) was missing. Or a tiny scratch on the bottom of the camera.

My store was very thorough with returns.

Hmm....
Well, there aren't many stores where you can these days. I did "rent" a heater from Costco once. I needed to warm my house for a party. I rented a $200 space heater, though I did end up buying a $30 a few weeks later from them. So I don't think it was a loss. I even repacked the rented heater the exact same way it was.

I suppose renting out of simple need is ok. Habitual renting to me would feel like stealing, and in truth, I did consider keeping the heater.

(Photo: *** Fanch The System !!! ***)
PREVIOUSLY: Is Retail Renting Ethical?

Research has shown a link between sexualized images of teens in the media and mental health problems in girls, including eating disorders, low self-esteem, anxiety and depression, according to the Boston-based Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood.

(Thanks to Darkwing Duck!)

"Group: Hospital should nix retailer name" [BusinessWeek/AP]
(Original photo before it got corrupted: D'Arcy Norman)

Some people don't see anything wrong with the behavior:

Jimmy Deignan's first time was with a $500 portable DVD player.

He bought it a few years ago at Best Buy for a Boston-to-Los Angeles flight, knowing he would return it for a full refund when he got back. More recently, in November, rather than spending $600 to rent a LCD projector for a business presentation, the Holden resident purchased one at Staples, then returned it a few days later and got his money back.

The way Deignan sees it, he is just a smart shopper: He gets the things he needs, uses them for as long as he wants, and saves money.
...
Some shoppers who wardrobe do not think they are doing anything wrong. Deignan refers to the way he buys as renting. To see him through the NFL playoffs, Deignan planned to wardrobe a plasma TV after his set broke in December. But it got fixed in time, just before the first Patriots playoff game.

"There's lots of times when I buy stuff that someone's bought before. When I rent something, I'm taking good care of it," said Deignan, who works as an event coordinator. "And, it made me look good when I saved my company $600 in rental fees for the projector."

Gawker Media polls require Javascript; if you're viewing this in an RSS reader, click through to view in your Javascript-enabled web browser.

Retailers Crack Down On Serial Returns [Boston Globe] (Thanks, Sean!)
(Photo:Getty)

Here's the most important take away. Now that L's store has been taken over by a liquidator the prices are actually higher than before. Don't fall for this so-called "sale." Apparently, it's just CompUSA, but with coats.

I've been at a Wilson's Leather store for over a year when we were told about the closings. Since nobody has reported it yet, here's how it all actually went down and certain points that makes all this even worse.

1. On 2/13, there was no indication whatsoever about what would happen the next day. We were sent the usual e-mails and price changes, as well as shipments.

2. Some new sign kits showed up on 2/14 (Valentines Day) and my manager knew immediately what they were. (They had the signs with the "Everything Must Go" wording on them.) She called out District Manager and asked him about it. He knew nothing and made some calls. They told him everyone would be told in a conference call at 3:00PM. Otherwise, they told him nothing. It's always fun when signs stating you're going out of business arrive before you're told you're going out of business.

3. The conference call consisted of them basically firing almost all their Regional and District managers (including ours) and telling stores they were being liquidated effective immediately. The best part was them thanking everyone who was now pretty much fired for being loyal employee's. Nothing was said about severance or unused vacation time, etc. And that was it. We—or any other cut store—had no real ties with Wilson's anymore. We were sold to a liquidator and they were taking over day-to-day operations from here on out. We received an e-mail listing all the stores that had been closed and a really vague FAQ about what was happening and why. That was the last communication to or from the Wilson's corp. to our store.

4. The signs are up, the tags were put on everything and we get to deal with customers who are angry that we can no longer accept returns or exchanges on anything regardless of when they made the purchase. Not to mention that the prices now (since the liquidator took over—who we haven't even seen yet, by the way) are higher than they were before the closing. So consider that a heads up to anybody planning to buy anything.

The only parts of this that anger me more than anything else are these facts:

-We have NO idea when we're being closed. The guy could show up at any time, say thanks for working, and shut the store down. We're just standing there waiting for the other shoe to stomp us flat.

-Despite e-mails to Human Resources, we've heard nothing about severance. If it actually happens and is not worth even getting, you'll be hearing security gates shut all across the country.

-My boss, who is the sweetest, most honest woman I've ever met in my life, has been a manager for about 14 years and trained the majority of the managers in other stores in our area, was let go without warning. There are people out there who were with them even longer who were dropped as well.

Everyone in the store considered each other family since we were always together and hanging out. My manager gave me a job when nobody else would and became probably the best friend I've ever had. Though I'm angered that all my coworkers are now left in the lurch, I'm especially pissed about the way she was told. I couldn't even speak when she was left in tears over this.

So thats the real story behind the closings. Nobody had any warning, no indication, not even a rumor of anybody being shut down. I'm sure other ex-employee's of companies have similar or worse stories about their closings, but I didn't work for them. This is a job I actually enjoyed doing taken from me without so much as a kiss.

Thats it.

I'm sure you get hundreds of complaints about salons, but have any of the salon owners in question put a lien on the car of the injured party? Mine has.

Nutshell: I went to have a perm done in a Tony Cao salon in Trophy Club, Texas. Three different people worked on me, including a boy who told me he had no idea what he was doing. He was the one in charge of rinsing out the solution on my head. I ended up with burns and bald spots (see attached picture), and severely damaged hair. Not only would the salon owner not give me a refund, he told me it was my own fault for having had damaged hair prior to visiting his salon. He also charged me for a full haircut, when I had not asked for one...

I asked for my money back three times, and he refused, so I wrote on the back of my car window with shoe polish, "Tony Cao Salon Ruins Hair No Refunds." And he PUT A LIEN ON MY CAR! (In Texas, you can put a lien on anything for any reason.) [ed. A lien is a claim by one party on a second party's property that entitles them to a specific amount of money in the event of that piece of property's sale.] After calling and speaking with Tony Cao, I found out that this was not even one of his salons, but it is a man he is suing to get the name taken down. I would never have set foot in the place if I had known it was just some guy off the street! So I have filed a small claims lawsuit to recoup the cost of his salon's services, the cost of the salon services I needed to manicure out the major damage he caused, and the cost of my dermatologist. I got a letter from his attorney last night saying that they will pay me my claim and remove the lien from my car, if I am willing to sign documentation basically stating that it never happened, and promising my complete silence and confidentiality. So, in effect, they are saying they will stop trying to TAKE MY CAR if I promise never to tell anyone that this horrible place burned bald spots in my hair. If nothing else, it's an amusing story to everyone I know. Thanks, Lane B.

Late yesterday, I spoke with their attorney and they made a correction on the suit. So we have settled, and the salon is giving me back my money. Thanks!Lane B

Frankfort also called consumers "rattled" and "scary," although that second word sounds more like a commentary on how he's doing, not us.

"Coach CEO says U.S. in "consumer recession"" [Reuters]
(Photo: qnr)

Policy

Washington Mutual will make a reasonable effort to provide a private, secure space to nursing mothers for the purpose of expressing breast milk. This guideline addresses how to locate suitable facilities and arrange for time off to express breast milk, and provides additional resources.

Requesting a Lactation Room

The Health Promotion Department is responsible for handling inquiries regarding lactation rooms or locating other spaces suitable for expressing milk. Employees and managers should contact the Health Promotion Specialist assigned to their region with such requests.

Existing Lactation Rooms

Designated lactation rooms exist at some corporate office sites. Existing lactation rooms should be used whenever reasonably possible. Employees should observe all posted guidelines such as signup sheets, hours of availability, and security guidelines. If the condition of a room requires maintenance attention, contact the Facilities Service Center at 888-745-8680.

Employees in work locations that do not have a designated lactation room should arrange with their managers to use a private office to express milk, provided the office has a locking door and a means to obscure view into the office (drapes, blinds, etc). If the office needs to be modified in any way to make it suitable, contact Corporate Property Services before proceeding.

If no lactation room or other suitable space is available, contact the regional Health Promotion Specialist for assistance.

Lactation Support

Employees have access to professional lactation consultants and additional support and education for breastfeeding through WaMu's Work/Life Assistance Program. To access these services, contact Work/Life Assistance at 866-808-5004.

Time Off

Time needed for lactation purposes should be taken during regularly scheduled break periods. If that is not possible, Washington Mutual will attempt to provide employees with additional unpaid breaks (consistent with business needs) to permit time to express milk. Any such additional breaks must be approved in advance by the employee's manager.

Equipment and Storage

WaMu provides enhanced lactation support through the Work/Life Assistance Program, including a subsidy on a hospital-grade personal breast pump for participants. Employees are responsible for providing and storing any equipment and accessories needed for breastfeeding including storage containers and a cooler, if a refrigerator is not available.

Any necessary equipment (breast pump, storage containers, etc) should be securely stored at the employee's workstation or at another storage area designated by management. These personal items should not be stored in the Washington Mutual lactation room. Loss or damage to equipment is not the responsibility of Washington Mutual.

Storage of Expressed Milk

In some cases, a refrigerator may be provided in the lactation room. If a refrigerator is not provided, expressed milk should be stored in a personal cooler secured at the designated storage area. In either case, expressed milk should be stored in a spill-proof container labeled with the employee's name. Expressed milk must be removed from Washington Mutual premises at the end of the employee's work day.

Questions

If you have questions about this or any other HR Policy or Guideline, please contact the Employee Service Center online or at 866-4-WAMU-HR.

Feedback

If you have suggestions or feedback about our HR Policies and Guidelines, please submit your comments via HR Policy feedback.

Recently, I discovered that many of Rice-a-roni's products, even the one's I assumed to be vegetarian friendly, had meat byproducts in them. Granted, I can expect "Chicken and Broccoli" to have meat byproducts, but I've come to discover almost all of them do. Nearly all contain Chicken Fat. I wrote Rice-A-Roni a complaint, which can be found below, with there extremely helpful response! I was very pleased with their Customer Relations department for the time being. They wrote they'd send me a few coupons and such to try out their Kosher line, which can be vegetarian friendly. I just received the coupons in the mail. I opened the enveloped, with three coupons for Quaker Oats products. Here's the irony. They decided it'd be friendly of them to send a recipe that I could try out with their products. What recipe is sent, do you ask. A recipe for Quaker Oats "Prize-Winning Meatloaf."

Here is the original complaint Jordan sent Rice-A-Roni:

I recently became aware of your new Natures Way Rice-A-Roni product line. I was pleased with this because of the high reliance upon artificial preservatives in modern foods. Being a vegetarian, Ive never bought the meat flavored rice-a-roni products, and have stuck with items such as mexican style or herbs and butter. The non-meat products were my targeted food groups. I never bothered for a moment to look and see if these contained meat or meat byproducts, until I bought the Natures Way: Italian Cheese and Herbs. Now, I find that this product and the old products I was buying all contain Chicken Fat. Your guidelines specifically request no product suggestion, so I will say that I have an extreme product frustration. As an off-campus college student, I had been eating these for lunches many days of the week. I cannot in good moral conscience continue to eat any of these products until they dont have meat byproducts. If I was seeking the chicken broccoli, beef, or any meat product, I would expect meat. When I buy the others, meat is an extreme distaste, one that has lost me as a customer until chicken fat is removed from the ingredients list.

Here was their response:

RE: Rice-A-Roni Nature's Way Italian Cheese and Herb , REF.# 026325336A

Jordan:

We're so sorry that the presence of chicken fat in Rice-A-Roni causes you some concern. We have shared your comments with our Product Development Team for consideration in the future.

We wanted to take this opportunity to tell you about another line of pasta and rice dishes called Near East. While not labeled specifically for vegetarians, the products are labeled for Kosher certification. Some vegetarians find the Kosher labeling helpful in keeping to their dietary preferences.

Kosher Law is based on the Jewish book of the Torah, and precludes the use of meat and dairy products in the same meal. While a product may contain meat and also be Kosher, it must be labeled as containing meat products to prevent accidentally being mixed with dairy. Below is guide to some symbols you can watch for on our packages of Near East.

* The letter "U" enclosed in a circle on the front of a product is the symbol of the Orthodox Union of Jewish Congregations and indicates the product is Kosher. If it appears by itself, the product contains neither meat nor dairy as defined by Kosher Law.

* If a letter "M" is beside or underneath the circled U, it means that some part of the product contains meat.

* If a letter "D" is beside or underneath the circled U, it means that some part of the product contains dairy.

If you would like to learn more about our Near East products, please visit: www.neareast.com.

We hope this information is helpful, Jordan. A coupon to try Near East has been sent to you and should arrive within 7-10 business days. We hope you will find a new product to enjoy.

Jennifer
Quaker Consumer Response

(Photo: basykes)

My work out experience was fine, as I didn't mind the bad smell, chipping paint, or inattentive staff. The problem came when I tried to cancel my membership. I moved to London in April 2007 (less than 2 months after joining), but they refused to cancel my membership and continued to charge my credit card each month. Under my two year contract is a section entitling me to a no fee cancellation if I move outside of the Lucille Roberts catchments area. They demanded proof of my move, which I supplied. Apparently, 3,000 miles away isn't far enough to be considered outside the catchment area!

On a technicality, they rejected the first set of paperwork: a copy of my London lease and a utility bill (the lease was not admissiable). So I did what they said and sent two utility bills instead. Still I was charged. They didn't accept one of my utility bills! Apparently "British Gas" is not an acceptable utility company!!!

I have called them several times (long distance, mind you), and mailed them and to absolutely no satisfaction. The staff is unprofessional and rude. I have jumped through every hoop they have set for me and still I am left with a monthly charge.

Sadly I am left to conclude that my little 'cheap' gym in Brooklyn was in fact a con. They clearly have no intention of stopping charging me when they satisfy themselves that I have moved to London. Their aim is nothing short than to drag the process out as long as possible and to extort as much money from me as possible.

Yes, sadly I am left to conclude that Lucille Roberts are robbers.

Jules Polonetsky, the Consumer Affairs Commissioner, said yesterday that the chain, which has branches throughout the city, would face an administrative law judge on Jan. 28 to answer 19 complaints, half of all the agency's current complaints against health clubs in New York City.

One member, Melissa Boyle, a 19-year-old dental assistant from Brooklyn, said she mailed 10 letters to Lucille Roberts, asking the gym to cancel her membership and stop billing her credit card a membership fee of $31.49 a month because she suffered from a condition that causes the dislocation of her kneecaps. In addition, two of Ms. Boyle's doctors sent notes informing the health club that they had advised her to stop exercising. It wasn't until the Department of Consumer Affairs stepped in that the gym stopped charging her, she said.

Under state law, Mr. Polonetsky said, ''if there is a physical disability that keeps you from using the gym for six months, then you're entitled to a refund'' for that period.

The law also says that members who move 25 miles from the gym's nearest location are entitled to void the contract. Similarly, members can void the contract if they change their minds about joining within three days of signing the contract.

''Lucille Roberts violated the law in their contracts, which state that the contract can be canceled only if there is a permanent disability,'' Mr. Polonetsky said at a news conference in the 92d Street Y. He said complaints were also filed against Lucille Roberts by the Better Business Bureau and the State Attorney General's office.

LucilleRobbers (Thanks, Doree!)
Fines Sought Against Health Club Over Refusals to Cancel [NYT]

RELATED: How To Negotiate Your Gym Membership Like A Diva

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REGIS: Ha! Ha! Ha!

Applause.

JOEY: That was a commercial, and now this is, without any solicitation at all, young lady, would you mind coming up for just a moment? Now really, we do commercials, and we're gently unfair, because we don't become familiar with the product. Now would you mind? I have a little dab of Hai Karate on me. And I want to get an unsolicited opinion. All right? Ok. Now just give it a little whiff. Is that nice?

GIRL: It's delicious.

JOEY: Is it? Ha! Haaaaaaaaa!

If you'd like to nominate a commercial for our weekly series "Great Moments In Commercial History" send us an email at tips [at] consumerist [dot] com. Be sure to put "Great Moments In Commercial History" in the subject. To see other commercials that have been featured in the series, click here.

The cashier pulled up the Urban Outfitter's website on her computer and showed Chaely the bag with the sale price of $19. After calling her roommate to confirm that the "real" website still showed the bag at $58, Chaely complained to the manager, but was refused additional store credit. She took her bag and went home.

Sure enough, when she got home, the website said the bag was $58. She was never able to return the item for its full price and now it's just sitting in her closet. She's wondering if there's anyone out there that can explain why Urban Outfitter's website said one price in the store and another price when viewed at home from her computer.

Anyone?

Here's Chaely's letter:

I was just reading the latest Consumerist update about the Best Buy secret in-store only website (dated 12/27/07) and realized that it sounded strikingly similar to an experience I had with the mega hipster-magnet store Urban Outfitters. I wonder if anyone has any experience or insight into this particular company and their undoubtedly twisted pricing scams.

Back in August I had a birthday and my roommates decided to pool their money to buy me a single gift. They ended up purchasing a handbag from UrbanOutfitters.com at the cost of $58. It was gift boxed and sent to our house with a gift receipt (no bar code, no price, just a packing slip basically). I opened it and unfortunately didn't quite fall in love with the handbag like my roommates had hoped I would. No worries, I work only a few blocks from our only local Urban Outfitters retail store. I'll just return it. I checked online to make sure it was, indeed, still worth $58 since some time had passed between the order and my actual birthday (maybe 3 weeks). It was definitely $58 on the website when I checked from my office at about 4pm.

My first attempt to return the bag at about 5:15pm that same day was a feeble one. The girl at the register (with the help of her manager - maybe she was new) couldn't scan any tags or slips to make the return because there weren't any included in the package. Manager found the bag in a different color and attempted to scan THAT tag but the tag had fallen off. He then told her to look it up online to get the SKU number and just type that in to make the return. She looked it up on their website, copied down the number, then proceeded with the transaction. I was handed a gift card and a receipt and I wandered off into the store to shop. For some reason I was struck with an urge to check the receipt and realized that the card she had given me only had about $21 on it. She had refunded me $19 plus tax for the $58 bag.

I went back to the girl at the counter and informed her that she had only given me $21 when the website had, in fact, listed the price at $58 only an hour earlier. She apologized and pulled up the website on her computer. She flipped the screen around and presented what appeared to be their regular website, only this time it said that the bag was $19 - about $20 cheaper than any comparable sized handbags were on that site, to my knowledge. Exasperated, I told her that I couldn't even buy the OTHER bag that I wanted with the gift card (which was also $58 but ONLY available through the website) so I might as well take the original bag back. She pulled the gift box out of the trash, re-packed the original bag, and cut up the gift card.

I immediately left the store and called my roommate to ask her to check the website. "According to the website it's still $58," she said, "it's not on sale as far as I can tell." I walked back into the store and asked the girl to get her manager. I explained to him that my roommate was on the phone with me and looking at the website and only seeing the original $58 price on the website. He apologized saying that he couldn't change what price came up when the SKU was typed in. "It's in the system that way," he said. He suggested that maybe it's GOING on sale this week but wouldn't do anything to help but to offer to issue another $21 gift card.

For various reasons I still have the stupid bag sitting in its gift box in my living room. My roommate probably could have used the e-mail confirmation to return the back online for its original price but that's another story completely. My concern, however, is how their website, which I accessed from several different computers to check its authenticity and my sanity, showed the price as being $58 for about three solid months. I can't understand how the website in-store, which I witnessed with my own two eyes, twice showed that the bag was on sale months before it ever changed on their public website.

Are any readers Urban Outfitters employees or just loyalists who can explain this? Has anyone else had this problem with the already overpriced, soul-sucking retailer? I would love to know if this was an isolated incident or another case of the mysterious Secret In-Store Website.

Thanks,
Chaely C

(Photo:emilybean)

Clear Unsightly Blemishes: the Case of the Ballpoint Baby Doll [Baby Toolkit via BoingBoing]

Holiday Shoppers Beware: Six Major Retailers Selling Real Fur as Faux [Humane Society Of The United States] (* note: this is a different group than your local animal shelter)

Outback: "Ninety percent of our meals are prepared by hand...Any analysis would be difficult to measure consistently."
IHOP: "We do not maintain nutritional data on our menu items, so I am unable to assist you."
Hooters: "Because of the millions of combinations available and our desire to frequently give you new menu options, it is impossible to provide accurate nutritional data,"
Fuddruckers: "Providing nutritional info would be "very extensive [sic] and timely."
Papa John's: "At this time, we have no additional regular menu items that are targeted toward eating lighter."
Magginao's Little Italy: "Sorry for the delay! I had to wait for corporate's approval. Unfortunately, they have declined to participate."

So they spend lots of money to focus group every aspect of their business, but don't know their menu's nutritional content? We're not buying it.

16 secrets the restaurant industry doesn't want you to know [Men's Health]

Expect some bargains as the shopping season wears down:

The drop-off, which the credit card company described Sunday as "surprising," bodes poorly for chains like Chico's FAS and Ann Taylor, which specialize in women's clothing, and could result in steeper-than-expected discounts on their merchandise in the final week before Christmas.

"Even when the dust settles, it is likely to be one of the weakest categories in retail this season," said John D. Morris, senior retail analyst at Wachovia Securities.

So why are sales of women's clothing down? Hmm, could it be the fugly clothes? Or maybe you're broke? What do you think?

Retailers Face an Ominous Holiday Sign [New York Times] (Thanks, Molly!)
(Photo:mainfr4me)

The Tom Ford ad has always confused us: the product is a cologne that a man would wear to (theoretically) smell more attractive to a woman—yet the ad implies the cologne smells exactly like a woman's nethers, which means the man would attract other men—other straight men? Or he'd attract gay women? This ad is confusing, or else it's perfect and the product is aimed solely at bisexual masochists. Or maybe tranny hookers.

"The Most Controversial Ads in Fashion History" [Debonair] (Thanks to John!)

Trendwatching says it's part of the consumer trend of "premiumization," whereby every product is available in "upgraded" form. Think premium vodkas, where you pay $10 more just to have a fancy backstory in a pretty bottle, and apply that mentality to every consumer good.

Renova... now you can talk out of your ass and wipe it at the same time!

While we can't disagree with the strict literal interpretation of the message, perhaps Walmart should consider printing it on a wallet, rather than on panties meant for teenage girls. The whole prostitution angle is clouding the message of fiscal responsibility. Hey, it's just a suggestion.

(Photo:Feministing)(Thanks,Tormolen!)

Searle, a chain of high-end boutiques in New York, is phoning husbands and grandmothers to tell them about the $478 silk dresses and $298 velvet scarves their loved ones have put on their "Dear Searle" lists. Bluemercury, a chain of 26 beauty boutiques, is inviting customers in Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Princeton, N.J., among other places, to provide names of relatives and friends the store can call to suggest gifts.

Online retailer Net-a-Porter.com, which sells women's designer clothes and accessories, has gone a step further, offering videos that are emailed to husbands and boyfriends, telling them what the sender wants. First, the sender fills out a questionnaire, in which they pick from a list of pet names for the recipient, ranging from "Honey Bunny" to "Hot Stuff" to "Boo Boo." They can also select descriptors of the potential gift-giver, such as "macho" or "commanding."

Then an email is sent to the designated recipient, featuring a flirtatious blond woman called "Santa's Helper." She advises the viewer that "It's time we had a serious talk, Honey Bunny" (or whatever the selected endearment). The helper says the sender is "lucky, isn't she, to have a man like you?" and highlights a gift the sender has picked out, sometimes providing a link to her wish list. "Let's face it," the virtual helper says, "if she's happy, you're happy."

Hey, Honey Bunny, Stores Know What Your Wife Wants [WSJ]

3BR, mall view [Boston Globe]
(Photo: Erik Jacobs)

China Daily says that used condoms are being recycled and sold as hair bands in China. The condom bands are cheaper then bands that were not formerly prophylactics. The recycled condoms are quite popular, but risk infecting users with the diseases that they were meant to prevent.

"People could be infected with AIDS, warts or other diseases if they hold the rubber bands or strings in their mouths while weaving their hair into plaits or buns," the paper quoted a local dermatologist as saying.

That's just nasty. We wonder if this story will turn out like the cardboard food scandal.

Used condoms winding up in people's hair [News.com.au via Digg]
(Photo:Amyadoyzie)

(Image via Sony Style. Thanks to Brian!)

"In midtown, I saw this in the window and thought to myself, "That must be where the whores shop." It's not unheard of in that part of town.

No, it was American Apparel."

Take away all the fluffy faux anti-fluff, and American Apparel actually makes nice cotton basics. But their advertising, and the the indentured servitude of their deluded employees, gives us the creeps.

(Photo: Maulleigh)

23% will spend less
22% will finish shopping right after Thanksgiving, down from 30%
45% will not finish shopping until the second week of December
20% will not finish shopping until December 24
66% did not make a budget last year
57% will not make a budget this year
8% went "way" over budget last year
24% regifted last year
27% of women regifted
21% of men regifted
19% most want electronic gifts
12% most want gift cards
25% of men want most want electronics
15% of women most want gift cards
13% of women most want electronics
71% say clothing is the number one gift they will buy
38% said last year clothing was the most disappointing gift they received

(1,003 interviews were completed among adults aged 18+. Interviewing took place over October 18-21, 2007. The margin of error is +/- 3% points at a 95% confidence level)

This lady who appeared on Oprah lives the life of a big house in the burbs, new cars, six beautiful kids, and spending way beyond her husband's $5,000/month salary. Felice drops $400 a month on Starbucks, $240 on tans and manicures, and her children have no health insurance.

"I have six kids and I sell their toys sometimes just because I don't like them."

When I do shop, I do kind of get a rush. It makes me feel good... but afterwards, though, I get depressed. I'll buy something even if I really don't like it because I have to come out with something.

Suze Orman's solution for them? Sell the houses and cars, move to Seattle, and for Mom to get her ass a job. Perhaps at Starbucks, since she likes it so much and they offer health insurance to part-time workers.

Keeping Up with the Joneses [Oprah]

8% of identity theft crimes are done by people who know the victim
36% of identity thieves are women. This is a higher percentage than most crimes.
9% of identity theft committed by stealing mail
$30,000 is the average loss
34% of the time, an employee stole the data used in the crime, most often one in retail

The article says one way to help stop identity theft is to report if you see people with multiple IDs with different names on them.

Study: ID thieves are strangers, often women [Red Tape Chronicles]
(Photo: d70focus)

4. Buying IS rebelling. The more you buy, the more you're showing that you're against the system of mass consumption. Get as many overpriced sneakers, tees, jeans, jackets and shades as you can. Also make sure that you have at least one (two max) small luxury items like a Gucci belt or LV wallet, to show off your well rounded sense of style.

"There is a showroom of doors and windows unlike any other we've ever tried," Feldman said.

"She can buy a light bulb as well as all of the lighting," he said. "Or a major appliance plus the laundry detergent to go with it."

Though there will be a garden center, the focus won't be on the act of gardening as much as the appreciation of outdoor living. No piles of dirt and grass-seed bags or rolling shelves full of begonias and impatiens will be found at the design centers. Instead there will be more stylish outdoor furniture and accessories, upscale pottery and other garden paraphernalia.

This Home Depot is for women [Contra Costa Times]
(Photo: AFP/Getty Images)

• Artificially limit supply. They had a giant warehouse full of Beanie Babies, but released them in squirts to prolong the buying orgy.
• Issue press releases about limited supply so news van show up
• Aggressively market to children. Daddy may not play with his kids as much as he should but one morning he can get up at the crack of dawn, get a Teddy Ruxpin, and be a hero.
• Make a line of minute variations on the same theme to create the "collect them all" effect.
• Make it only have one highly specialized function so you can sell one that laughs, one that sings, one that skydives, etc, ad nauseum.

Emeralds are rare. Honus Wagner cards are rare. Many toys are mostly different kinds of plastic. Plastic is not rare. Don't give your kid a hunk of plastic. Give him a cup of imagination. You can't get lead poisoning from imagination.