Mustaches for Kids is a volunteer-run organization started in Los Angeles in 1999 to help the Make-A-Wish Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to granting the wishes of children with terminal or life-threatening illnesses.

 

Each year, participants ("Growers") raise money by growing sweet, sweet Mustaches between Thanksgiving and Christmas. They shave their faces, except for the Mustache, a minimum of one time per week. The Growers solicit donations from friends, family co-workers, and people in the community. At the end of the Growing Season, Mustaches for Kids hosts a Mustache Contest where the facial hair is evaluated by an independent panel of judges, and one Mustache is declared to be the "Sweetest."

 

Over the past five years, Mustaches for Kids has spread across the country, a steady expansion that is not unlike the measured, deliberate growth of a Mustache. Mustaches for Kids has enjoyed the efforts of an impressive number of Growers who, collectively, have raised over $100,000 for Make-A-Wish.

 

This year the New York chapter of Mustaches for Kids will be Growing for the Children's Hospital of New Orleans.  While we still support the Make-a-Wish Foundation, we felt that we needed to do something for the people of New Orleans.

Inspired by Smuga, Maya, and Mike I'm going to blog about a recent terrible consumer customer service experience. In addition to being a bit cathartic to whine about this incident, my hope is that other consumers might discover this post and think twice about buying from B&H. Or perhaps B&H will notice the post and get their customer service up to par.

I ordered a digital camera from B&H Photo-Video in New York City. They're supposed to be one of the best places on the planet to buy photo gear. Today the camera arrived, but the 512MB SD card I also ordered didn't arrive. So I called B&H customer service to see what was going on.

The guy who answered the phone talked to me as if I was a 12-year-old, was really rude, and eventually hung up on me! I couldn't believe it!!! The hang-up was especially surprising. The conclusion of the call went something like...

Oliver: I can't tell whether you're asking me a question or telling me information. So what's your next question?

B&H customer service: Oh, I'll check on what my next question is! [Click.]

So I called back and got the UPS shipment tracking info I needed from a different customer service rep. Then I told him what happened on the previous call and asked him if he could look at my account and tell me with whom I spoke with previously. He said it was Moshe, but he knows Moshe and he's a great guy, really polite, must have been a misunderstanding, etc. I was a little ticked that he was defending his buddy, but I shrugged it off and asked to speak to a supervisor.

Mike the supervisor came on the phone and, after hearing what happened, proceeded to go to the mat defending Moshe, too! He was saying things like "That's couldn't have happened....I've known Moshe a long time....You must have been disconnected....He'd never do that since he knows we monitor the calls, etc, etc." I asked him why he was disputing my story instead of just writing it down, but he kept defending his buddy! He kept saying they monitored the calls for quality so I asked him to pull the tape of my call w/Moshe so we could listen to it together, but he said he couldn't oblige. In the end, he agreed to talk to Moshe the next morning so I cut him loose.

I guess it's nice that everyone at B&H knows each other so well. But it really bothered me that they were disputing my story! I didn't have any ulterior motive for complaining about the customer service so why couldn't they just write down my feedback? It was really frustrating to have two guys who weren't on the original call dispute everything that happened.

So my recommendation is to avoid B&H Photo-Video because if you ever have the need to call B&H customer service, there's a chance you'll get Moshe on the phone and he'll ruin your day.  :)

Update: Below is the form email I just got from B&H. (They didn't discover the blog post, I emailed their customer service desk.)

We apologize that your recent experience was not reflective of our excellent standards. We continually monitor our system to look for ways to improve our service and to make certain any problem area is corrected. We are totally committed to our customers and we will continue in our efforts to provide the most efficient service offered in the photo industry.

On behalf of B & H, we extend our sincere apologies for the inconvenience you were caused. Your business is very important to us and every effort will be made to ensure your future orders are handled to your satisfaction. 

Thank you,
Your B&H Team