My husband the SC. (ARGH! LONG!)

[Apathy]

Also, if he didn't go make a scene ... how is he an SC?

SC mentality. If he's that mad, you know he won't hold back if something irks him while at a store.

[unclejampuff]

That's pretty retardo of the bakery. Sometimes I get paid to do a special baking project for my co-workers and/or friends; I would never blow them off like that. HOW RUDE.

If you decide to make the cupcakes yourself, I have an EXCELLENT no fail recipe. You can adapt it to basically any flavour(s), it's the best recipe I've used, and it's pretty easy to make. Just PM me if you want it.

[wagegoth]

I'm going to come down on the side of your husband. He was over the top, but he did it at home, not at the store.

I think the store was sucky, and not just a little sucky. They took your order, then days later they call to cancel it and tell you, good luck, come in and maybe we'll have cupcakes for your child's very important birthday. WTH?!

This is your child's birthday! Right now, I would call them back and tell them exactly what you told us about how you've been going to them before they were even a store, talked them up to all your friends, etc. and if they can't make two dozen frikkin' cupcakes then they obviously don't want your business. That is NOT being an SC. That is being honest.

Now, go do it. Pick up the phone. Otherwise, what are you going to tell the family when the cupcakes aren't there for the parties?

If they tell you they won't do it, get a cake somewhere else, or bake some cupcakes yourself. It's not fun, but their attitude is ridiculous. And then stick to your guns. Never go back. And tell everyone you know how poorly you were treated. And be sure to tell the store just how disappointed you are in their attitude. Don't yell or scream or throw a hissy fit. Just tell them how disappointed you are, walk out, and never go back.

[Sliceanddice]

im with waregoth, that just sucks for not you but all the other cusotmers, unless they are plannign on tripling production fo rtheir last day before memorial day i seriously doubt you will be able to get your cupcakes, or you will but now someone else will

[Andara Bledin]

Coming in late, but I want to know how many cupcakes were available...

^-.-^

[Becks]

Also coming in late, and also curious about how it all turned out.

[Samaliel]

[...]This is your child's birthday! Right now, I would call them back and tell them exactly what you told us about how you've been going to them before they were even a store, talked them up to all your friends, etc. and if they can't make two dozen frikkin' cupcakes then they obviously don't want your business.[...]

I find this to be borderline EWism... Even though she did send business their way and has been a customer for a long time, she shouldn't be treated differently than any other customer. No suckiness if you manage to explain that in calm and peaceful voice, though.

However, taking the order and canceling it on such short notice for a birthday party is a very bad move from their part. No suckiness in ranting about it at home, either.

That said, I am curious about the outcome too.

[Billy_Bam_Wam]

A bakery that does NOT take special orders? WTF?!

I'm wondering if they don't have the room to stash special orders but have somebody cranking out cupcakes continuously. Either that or one of their sucky customers did something sucky to them to initiate the policy. Probably the latter.

[wagegoth]

Originally Posted by wagegoth
[...]This is your child's birthday! Right now, I would call them back and tell them exactly what you told us about how you've been going to them before they were even a store, talked them up to all your friends, etc. and if they can't make two dozen frikkin' cupcakes then they obviously don't want your business.[...]

I find this to be borderline EWism... Even though she did send business their way and has been a customer for a long time, she shouldn't be treated differently than any other customer. No suckiness if you manage to explain that in calm and peaceful voice, though.

I certainly don't advocate screaming.

I do believe that if you have a long-term, good customer, who buys from you regularly and happily talks up your business to whomever will listen, then you should treat that customer just a bit better than average. FYI, I used to work at Nordstrom and received all kinds of customer service awards, so I have gone above and beyond a lot, sometimes for people who weren't even my customers on sales that I wouldn't get commission on. But I also come from a family of small business owners who know that you want to treat your new customers well, but your good, regular customers even better.

It really bothered me that they didn't bother to give the OP a decent explanation for the situation. Was there a problem because of the holiday weekend? Had an issue arisen because of a bad customer? I feel there was a serious fail on the store's side. They could have done a better job at explaining the situation or making other arrangments for the OP.

[Meganjo23]

I used to work at a Bakery, and we had a policy like that for the two days before Thanksgiving. You could only place orders for loaves of bread, rolls, stuffing, and pies (there may have been more, but I try to forget as much about that place as possible). Everything else was still made, it was just first come, first serve. We even had special order forms for people to fill out to make the whole process easier.

As far as I can see, there are two reasons for this. During regular days, if someone places an order and doesn't pick it up, no big. There are still going to be leftovers at the end of the day anyways, so we'll just put it back on the shelves with those and hope it sells early morning the next day (after which it becomes dayold and we toss it). On holidays, we're bound to run out of everything, plus with all the confusion of running around getting ready for the big meal, customers were more likely to forget to pick up their orders. That product would go to waste, as we weren't actually open the day after, so that product would never sell.
The other reason is that we didn't have to room/manpower to take regular orders in addition to Tday orders. Our back hallway was FULL of bags for orders, we wouldn't have had anywhere to set things aside to. Or people to set them aside, as they were all busy packing/finding/placing Tday orders.

I also thought our policy was wierd, and many people got pissed off, but after seeing the hell that was just special orders? It was for a good reason. But that was just Turkey Day. Memorial day was never that busy, so I say this bakery should just suck it up and make you your cupcakes. As long as you place the order in advance there should be no problem, in my opinion.

[Amoryl]

I'm wondering if they don't have the room to stash special orders but have somebody cranking out cupcakes continuously. Either that or one of their sucky customers did something sucky to them to initiate the policy. Probably the latter.

I've never heard of a small bakery that doesn't do special orders, period. most smaller bakeries can't afford to not take special orders, those are their bread and butter, and one making a blanket policy to not take them are basically driving the nail into their own coffin. huge corporate conglomerates can get away with not caring about their customers, but small business' depend on their repeat customers and their special orders, and as such should be bending over backwards for most of their special order customers (as odious as this sounds to those of us who've had to deal with sucky customers) or they'll lose their business.

I'd (have) talk(ed) to the owner personally, from as happy as you'd been with them in the past, something tells me that there was some kind of oversight or miscommunication. one that could maybe have been cleared up simply by talking to the person in charge and not the register biscuit passing on the instructions to you.

I find this to be borderline EWism... Even though she did send business their way and has been a customer for a long time, she shouldn't be treated differently than any other customer. No suckiness if you manage to explain that in calm and peaceful voice, though.

I dissagree with this. I have favored customers and regular customers and customers I never want to see. I have customers I'll drop everything to go and help, even on my day off. these customers know to call and ask for me and only me period, to the extent that our idiot dispatcher sent someone else to one of my favorite customer's house rather then me (for whatever reason he couldn't be bothered with) and the customer sent him packing after telling the dispatcher rather curtly that she asked for me and me only, and doesn't want anyone else (in her defense dispatch TOLD her that they were sending me) these repeat customers are the customers that make me money while my other co-workers are struggling to make it through the week, they're the ones who never complain about the cost, they're the ones who give my card to their neighbors/friends/relatives. of course I'm going to treat them differently then the customer who haggles about the price for half an hour, complains about the job I'm doing the whole time, then tries to slip in a coupon at the end (conviniently after they've written out the check for the discounted price PLUS their coupon)

sometimes there's things I can't do for them in the way they want it done, but in those cases I thouroughly explain to them why I can't do it that way, how it can be done properly, and what I can do to make it as close to what they want as possible. I never just say "nope can't do that, sorry" and leave. which is likely the reason my boss constantly sends me to highly pissed off customers to fix other co-workers F'ups.

[Samaliel]

Let me be clear, I get your point about having a nice customer / retailer relation and I totally agree that the bakery failed at that, because of canceling, without giving a proper explanation. Major "Don't" in my Customer Relationship textbook.

But I don't see much difference in asking for something because it's your child's birthday when they told you they wouldn't do it, and every other story about where a customer would insist on getting service for "Little Precious" birthday.

Of course, most stories about "Little Precious" include whining and / or yelling, and that doesn't help. But even if you're neither yelling, nor whining, even if you're doing it nicely, even if you don't understand why, from the shop's point of view, you're still demanding something they told you they wouldn't do for your "Little Precious" birthday.

Sorry, but I just feel like being the Devil's advocate on this case.

[Amoryl]

Let me be clear, I get your point about having a nice customer / retailer relation and I totally agree that the bakery failed at that, because of canceling, without giving a proper explanation. Major "Don't" in my Customer Relationship textbook.

But I don't see much difference in asking for something because it's your child's birthday when they told you they wouldn't do it, and every other story about where a customer would insist on getting service for "Little Precious" birthday.

Of course, most stories about "Little Precious" include whining and / or yelling, and that doesn't help. But even if you're neither yelling, nor whining, even if you're doing it nicely, even if you don't understand why, from the shop's point of view, you're still demanding something they told you they wouldn't do for your "Little Precious" birthday.

Sorry, but I just feel like being the Devil's advocate on this case.

Oh, yeah I totally agree with that part. personally I can't stand people with the "you must because my pwecious!" garbage. thats not to say that if someone politely asks/hopes I can squeeze them in quickly because of some family or business event that they can't afford to miss (or not have their problem resolved) and I'll often do my best to do that. but they've got to understand that a) I can't guarantee this and b) kind words and understanding get me done quicker, rude behavior and entitlement gets me back in my van and on my way to a customer who'll be happy to treat me like a human being. course the difference between this and me is that I fix emergencies which they usually have no warning of, as opposed to the normal retail EW who has weeks or months to have prepared and seem to think it's the store's fault that they waited till the last minute, so I can be more forgiving of their impatience.