Vince Maskeeper
Senior HTF Member
- Joined
- Jan 18, 1999
- Messages
- 6,500
An open letter to Best Buy.
On October 3rd, I visited my local Best Buy store (#393 on Santa Monica Blvd in Los Angeles) to purchase some DVDs. While over the years I have shifted many of my purchases from retail stores to online merchants, I find myself still buying DVDs every week from brick and mortar stores like Best Buy.
As a bit of history, I started shopping at Best Buy in the early 1990's, when the first stores appeared in my native Ohio. Over the years I have shopped at Best Buy for the majority of my media and electronics purchases: everything from my first DVD player (back when simple single-disc players were $500 and there were less than 50 films available) to appliances to car stereos to digital cameras. Add to these major purchases a weekly visit for DVDs and CDs, I have spent in excess of $30,000 in Best Buy stores over the past ten years. In the past year alone, my purchases at Best Buy locations in Ohio and California have exceeded $5000.
This brings me to my purchases of October 3rd, 2004. I picked up several new release DVD titles, including "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." I was not aware the film had been released on DVD, but since I had a friend who had missed it in theaters- I picked it up along with $200 worth of additional DVD product.
A few days later I sat down with my friend to watch the DVD. As I popped the cellophane wrapper off the case, the sticker that sealed the top of the case caught my eye. The printing across the top read 'FULL SCREEN."
I stopped immediately. Because I am an avid fan of film making and am an artist working in the film industry myself, I have a high level of respect for the work that goes into making movies. As a result, I only purchase films in their original aspect ratio and thus do not purchase "Full Screen" versions of widescreen films.
Because I had not known about the DVD release of this film in advance, I was not aware that multiple screen versions of the film existed. In my haste to add the film to my collection, I had missed the small "FULL SCREEN" marking on the disc label when making my purchase.
I apologized to my friend, and set the disc aside to return to Best Buy for an exchange. The disc was left "unopened" - although the cellophane had been removed, the labels on the spine were intact and the case was never opened.
On October 9th, I returned to Best Buy #393 with the disc to exchange it for a Widescreen copy of the same film. I am well aware of Best Buy's return policies but I have never had a problem with exchanges for the same title (in the case of defective discs for example).
The staffer explained to me that she would not be able to accept a return because it was not for the same title (the Widescreen and Fullscreen editions being "different"). She then went on to insinuate that because the cellophane had been removed that I probably removed the disc from the unopened case and copied it before returning it. I politely asked why I would copy it, only to return it and ask for the same title.
She shrugged and simply started helping the next customer. I was a bit surprised by her logic and even more surprised that she just walked away and started dealing with other customers. I told another girl behind the counter she could dispose of my "Full Screen" copy in the garbage. I walked out the door and purchased a Widescreen copy from the Target next door.
While I completely understand the need for policies concerning returns and your desire to not have employees interpret policy, I just wanted to write a brief letter to let you know that the refusal of a $20 exchange on a still sealed DVD for the same title will cost you at least $30,000 in lost sales over the next decade. Your policies are anti-customer and the level of service I have received clearly illustrates that your store does not appreciate my business.
I will never spend another dime in a Best Buy store and will encourage anyone who will listen to make the same decision.
Vince Maskeeper
Los Angeles, California
On October 3rd, I visited my local Best Buy store (#393 on Santa Monica Blvd in Los Angeles) to purchase some DVDs. While over the years I have shifted many of my purchases from retail stores to online merchants, I find myself still buying DVDs every week from brick and mortar stores like Best Buy.
As a bit of history, I started shopping at Best Buy in the early 1990's, when the first stores appeared in my native Ohio. Over the years I have shopped at Best Buy for the majority of my media and electronics purchases: everything from my first DVD player (back when simple single-disc players were $500 and there were less than 50 films available) to appliances to car stereos to digital cameras. Add to these major purchases a weekly visit for DVDs and CDs, I have spent in excess of $30,000 in Best Buy stores over the past ten years. In the past year alone, my purchases at Best Buy locations in Ohio and California have exceeded $5000.
This brings me to my purchases of October 3rd, 2004. I picked up several new release DVD titles, including "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." I was not aware the film had been released on DVD, but since I had a friend who had missed it in theaters- I picked it up along with $200 worth of additional DVD product.
A few days later I sat down with my friend to watch the DVD. As I popped the cellophane wrapper off the case, the sticker that sealed the top of the case caught my eye. The printing across the top read 'FULL SCREEN."
I stopped immediately. Because I am an avid fan of film making and am an artist working in the film industry myself, I have a high level of respect for the work that goes into making movies. As a result, I only purchase films in their original aspect ratio and thus do not purchase "Full Screen" versions of widescreen films.
Because I had not known about the DVD release of this film in advance, I was not aware that multiple screen versions of the film existed. In my haste to add the film to my collection, I had missed the small "FULL SCREEN" marking on the disc label when making my purchase.
I apologized to my friend, and set the disc aside to return to Best Buy for an exchange. The disc was left "unopened" - although the cellophane had been removed, the labels on the spine were intact and the case was never opened.
On October 9th, I returned to Best Buy #393 with the disc to exchange it for a Widescreen copy of the same film. I am well aware of Best Buy's return policies but I have never had a problem with exchanges for the same title (in the case of defective discs for example).
The staffer explained to me that she would not be able to accept a return because it was not for the same title (the Widescreen and Fullscreen editions being "different"). She then went on to insinuate that because the cellophane had been removed that I probably removed the disc from the unopened case and copied it before returning it. I politely asked why I would copy it, only to return it and ask for the same title.
She shrugged and simply started helping the next customer. I was a bit surprised by her logic and even more surprised that she just walked away and started dealing with other customers. I told another girl behind the counter she could dispose of my "Full Screen" copy in the garbage. I walked out the door and purchased a Widescreen copy from the Target next door.
While I completely understand the need for policies concerning returns and your desire to not have employees interpret policy, I just wanted to write a brief letter to let you know that the refusal of a $20 exchange on a still sealed DVD for the same title will cost you at least $30,000 in lost sales over the next decade. Your policies are anti-customer and the level of service I have received clearly illustrates that your store does not appreciate my business.
I will never spend another dime in a Best Buy store and will encourage anyone who will listen to make the same decision.
Vince Maskeeper
Los Angeles, California