Back in October and under whatever spell I was, I bought something like a Groupon from Beecrazy, despite my friend warning me about it.
I called and made a reservation over the phone... the moment that guy over the line spoke, I had a gut feeling that this is not going to end well. I got even more skeptical when I looked the address up in Google and found out it was one of those "上樓舖" (shops that don't even have a store front and had to cramp into an old apartment in an old building)... that's how you know it's a start-up and is striving to make it work.
Here's the name and address of this place. AVOID IT AT ALL COST!
No. 9 - 太子褔華街9號1/F
Here's what I bought:
即買即用！HK$69起享太子No.9 Salon髮型護理，可選擇Prosil Hair Spa焗油護理、染髮、游離子直髮/數碼曲髮、Shiseido 直髮/曲髮，連洗剪吹！採用著名Shiseido產品，效果顯著，塑造出完美秀髮；完成後髮質能保持亮澤健康，讓直髮更具如絲般滑順的效果！於太子兌換，位置方便！ (原價高達HK$1,050)！
D. 游離子直髮/數碼曲髮 + 染髮 + 洗剪吹 + Prosil Hair Spa 焗油護理
The fateful day finally arrived and I got there at the appointed time SHARP at 6:30pm. I had to dart out from my office at 5:30pm hoping to make my exit as quietly as possible and not meeting anyone on the way... even though the official office hour close at 5:30pm... well, y'all know the OT culture...
Anyways, when I got through the heavy, rusted metal doors, the owner was no where to be seen. There were already 2 patrons sitting and waiting to be served - one of them is waiting for their hair dye timer and the other one waiting to be serviced. Finally the owner popped out from the "shampoo" room with a third customer and said...
Owner: "Did you make an appointment?"
Me: "Yes, 6:30pm."
O: "Oh, I won't be ready until at least another 30 minutes"
Me: I frowned and said "Well, I guess you left me no choice."
O: "Well, if your time is so precious, you could always asked for a refund from Beecrazy"
Me: "I made an appointment at 6:30pm because I knew the package I bought takes a long time. If you start at 7:00pm, what time will you be done?"
O: "Oh, are you in a hurry? I won't be able to start at 7:15pm at least. Well, you should be done by 10:30pm."
Me: "Really? You could do everything the package includes in less than 3 hours? (the shop close at 9PM) Plus, you actually meant for me to wait for another 45 minutes and not 30 minutes, probably an hour?"
O: "Wait, when did I said you had to wait an hour？"
Me: I frowned again and said "anyone who could do basic math knows 7:15 pm from 6:30 pm is 45 minutes."
O: "Well, you should get your refund [from Beecrazy] then."
Me: "I guess I will do that, can you write me a note?"
O: "Actually your hair is shitty. I don't know if you can get a refund."
That's when I got really upset...
Me: "So now you are telling me I can't get a refund because of my shitty hair, you haven't even touch it and you are standing at the other end of the room. You were the one that suggests I should get a refund in the first place."
O: "The package you got is for people with healthy hair. Your hair would fry."
Me: "Maybe you should have made it very clear in the coupon then"
(So not only this guy cannot honor the appointment, he is also selling shitty products. The coupon said loud and clear that he should be using Shiseido and Prosil Hair Spa products... so he's lying.)
O: "You should have read the description carefully"
Me: "I read, including the fine prints."
(The last salon I went also used Shiseido products and my hair was more than fine.)
O: "Just get a refund and make sure you read the description next time."
Me: "I will get a refund, don't you worry about it."
O: In a very sarcastic tone "Sorry to have wasted your time, goodbye."
Since I am so timely on my post, you can tell I am livid! I even finished writing the Chinese version of the complaint letter and sent it to Beecrazy already (since their office hour is M-F 10am-7pm I didn't have the "pleasure" to express my sentiments over the phone). If it doesn't get taken care of in a timely fashion, the Consumer Council will be hearing from me.
Morale of the story, I will still hunt for coupons and deals but if they expect me to go down without a fight, they will learn the hard way that it's not gonna happen. Afterall, I am so experienced in writing complaint letters I should probably make it into a career. (It actually was, for a little while...)
Haters are probably gonna say you got a deal, you should know it's a trap. Well, I learned my lesson and hence my post warning y'all about it. But if all deals are like this, they probably should not be called deals. They are SCAMS. Scams are different from deals and when the two became synonymous, you are just living in a very sad society where morals do not exist anymore.
This is sad beyond counts because first of all, people won't believe anymore. Then they stop buying "deals" altogether because they are tired of being scammed and cheated. Groupons, Beecrazy, etc. might as well close their doors for good and those who have invested in them will lose money. Honest businessmen who are trying to make the cut will lose the wonderful opportunity to offer excellent goods / service at "trial" prices. Unethical business practices will continue and it's just a lose-lose game for the society as a whole. So shame on you haters, what did you do to make they world a better place today? At least I gave a businessman a chance today, he just didn't take it.
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