Bad retail service can often be like a meal you were better off not ordering. The bitter after-taste. The buyer’s regret.  The empty void that lives where your money not-well-spent used to be. The uncertainty of not quite knowing where to place the blame, and wondering how much of it is your fault.  Often blind-siding, and always a disappointment.

Recently, my wife and I had an experience that we were less than pleased with.  The incident was unfortunate, and the allegations were ugly.  I voiced my complaints in a public forum, more out of the need to vent than out of some misguided sense of entitlement (as some claimed).  I thought that would be the end of it.  This is a common cycle for many of us.  We’re treated badly.  We gripe among friends.  We go to bed dissatisfied, and plan to wake and go about our business, knowing that there are more important things in life.  This time, things were different.  My complaints had touched a nerve.  I was personally contacted by Jean-Claude Colban, a man who certainly has a lot of very important things on his plate.  Yet, he found the time to reach out to an unhappy customer with an apology, and a small gift.  I similarly conveyed my regret at the brashness of my accusations, and was left with profound respect for the commitment he has to ensuring that his customers are pleased.

It’s unfortunate that we live in a world where most people who run companies don’t think it’s necessary to personally get in touch with dissatisfied customers.  But when it does happen, it’s more than a pleasant surprise, it’s a glaring reminder of what good service is, and what all service should be.  A reputation goes a long way, but news of the way that one deals with adversity goes even further.  Hats off to Charvet.  I will definitely be paying them a visit the next time I visit Paris.