People come in different shapes and sizes, and companies make products to fit us. Well, the products are supposed to. Reader Chris got a wonderful desk chair designed for people who are, as he puts it, “big and tall” for Christmas. Christmas 2011. When it broke, he was stuck: surely the warranty was up and the retailer wouldn’t take it back. Right?

As it turns out, not in the case of Sam’s Club. Armed with his broken chair and the membership account number of the person who had bought him the chair, he visited the nearest Sam’s, and emerged with a brand-new chair and nineteen cents. That’s the kind of generous return policy that we normally associate with their competitor Costco.

Chris writes:

On 12/25/2011 I received an outstanding Christmas present. It was a super nice (leather) office chair for folks of…. “impressive frame”. Read: big-and-tall. I fit both of those descriptors. Loved the gift. Loved the chair.

Fast forward to a few months ago. One day while sitting in my office, the chair zipped down as if I had tried to adjust the height of the chair. I readjusted it back up only to have it plunge down again once I sat down. Color me not happy. It would be fine again for a while, but then “whomp!”

I knew the chair had been purchased from Sam’s Club so I asked about their return policy. Color me amazed when I was told I didn’t need a receipt… a box… manual… nothing! All I had to do was come down with the chair and it would help if I had the account number for whoever purchased the chair.

Today I walked in with the chair and the account number. I was prepared to have to argue my way to a new chair, but they needed no explanation. Just asked if I wanted a refund or exchange. I ended up walking out of the store with a brand new chair (slightly different, but I think even nicer) and $0.19 in my pocket. Making money!

The folks who answered my questions on the phone from corporate… The folks who helped me at the customer service desk… Everybody was really nice and immediately took care of my problem. It was a complete customer service win. I was already a fan of the company, but now even more so. I plan to tell everyone who will listen my story. In a time where customer service horror stories are the norm, this was a refreshing change. Thank you Sam’s Club!

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