I know. What the heck am I doing blogging about cupcakes?
Well, this weekend was my niece's bridal shower. Family and friends alike all did their part to make this event memorable. My wife and I bought the cake for the event. We bought it at Misha's Cupcakes on US-1 in Coral Gables. The actual cake is pictured above. I didn't attend the bridal shower, but I was told the cake and cupcakes were delicious.
But the yummy cake, unfortunately, is not the focus of my post. I would like to bring your attention to the plastic tier on which it sits.
On the night of the shower, my wife handed me the stand and said, 'Hold on to this. We have to return it to Misha's Cupcakes'. 'Sure', I said. As I was holding it, I rested the base of it ever so lightly against my leg, and the bottom plastic plate cracked and fell off.
The stand is made up of 5 individual plastic parts. The bottom detachable plate, which separates from the other 5 parts, broke off.
Today, we returned the stand to Misha's Cupcakes. Misha's Cupcakes charged us $100.00 for the bottom plastic plate. They were cutting us a break, you see. Originally, they intended to keep my niece's check for deposit, which totaled $150.00.
I was not impressed with their attempt at generosity.
And yes, you heard right. I now own a cheap plastic disk which I purchased for $100.00.
Actually, I don't own it. Misha's Cupcakes keeps the stand, and will now pick out a cheap plastic disk from their storage, add it to the other 4 plastic pieces and... voila! And again, voila!... I am out $100.00.
The word has already gone out through other channels. This is unjust, unfair,and flat out wrong. Actions like this are the reason businesses fail so often in Miami. The customer is expendable, and usually wrong.
A friend of mine already sent an email to Misha's Cupcakes, expressing his displeasure with the whole situation. Misha's Cupcakes responded in typical Miami fashion... tell me if you've heard this before:
"When your order was made we made it clear that there was a $150 deposit for failure to return the tier, or if it was damaged. When the order was picked up, the customer signed the tier rental form stating this, which is an acceptance and agreement to these terms. So, when the tier was broken, the completion of these terms is to forfeit the deposit. There were no surprises, no ugliness, just following through with exactly what was stated would happen if the tier was not returned, or if it was damaged. I am very sorry you feel the need to spread negativity for something that was your own fault. I think more fairly you should take responsibiliity for your own actions. I would never want to lose a reasonable customer, but unfortunately you are not reasonable."
AHHHH! Sorry.
So, I am unreasonable because I think $150.00, and yes even $100.00, is a bit much to pay for a 13" plastic disk. I am also supposed to say, "Well golly, I did sign a rental agreement, so I guess it's fair to pay $100.00 for a plastic disk I can pick up for under $5.00 wholesale (I'm assuming)."
I would be willing to pay for the amount Misha's Cupcakes paid for the plastic disk. That would be fair. $150.00 is a great incentive to make customers bring back the tier, and totally justifiable. But to charge someone $100.00 for a broken piece of plastic is wrong in principle. But we like to wipe our rear ends with principle in Miami, don't we? It's like it's our job.
Miami seems to be a place full of "gotcha!" moments. Go buy a car, "gotcha!" on the price. Go buy a property, "Gotcha!" with misinformation.
Misha's Cupcakes, you got me. Congratulations. I'm sure there was a sense of empowerment there for a moment, along with a warped sense of benevolence that came along with your decision to cut me a break at $100.00. I feel extremely sad for you, especially since I found out this afternoon that you have done this before.
So if you live in Miami, PLEASE TELL ME THERE ARE STILL PEOPLE IN THIS TOWN WITH PRINCIPLES. I'm dying to find out if the idea of good and fair business practices still exist in Miami, because crap like this really makes me wonder who my neighbors are.
Finally, I love that I am now "spreading negativity". I guess I'm supposed to take being ripped off and say "Thaaanks!" on the way out. Amazing.
So I for one will not be going back to Misha's Cupcakes again. And if you go, be careful when you sign that agreement that says you will return and not break a flimsy plastic tier! Treat that baby like gold, or it will be the most expensive piece of plastic you ever bought! Take pictures, and for God's sake, carry the used plastic and already slightly marred and cracked tier as you would a Faberge Egg!
7 comments:
The moment they told me I was going to be responsible for the piece of plastic crap, I would have walked out of the store with the whole damn piece, stating I would be right back. I would then have gone to a party store and bought a new one for $10. And then I would have given them that one instead and told them 'graciously' that they did not have to pay me for the brand spankin' new cupcake holder.
Personally, I would take this to the news. Let them know what type of business Misha's runs. I would think Misha's would have some type of insurance that protects them against damage done to their supplies...particularly when they are sending cheap plastic stands with the customer only to be returned and reused. Cheap plastic can only withstand so much...and then the customer pays the price. And it was already damaged when you received it. I think a lawyer would argue how many times can that piece of plastic be used before it gives out. I guess you can say you were set up....
I love this. Although I will not go into lengthy details (as this is obviously not my blog, hence my name is adam and not marquito), I have run into a very similar situation regarding our wedding video. Almost a year late, and two years after our wedding we are finally about to get our video, but if you ask the videographer this is our fault.
I would raise a glass to your statement that we wipe our rear ends with principle.
Cheers.
-Adam-
I hear you cuz. But hind-sight is 20/20. The reason companies like this even try this stuff is because they're banking on people not having the time to follow-up, which in my case they would be correct. Unfortunately for them, they didn't bank on the fact that I have ENDLESS amounts of time to be in front of the computer and on the internet.
Why don't we do something non-plastic with that plastic implement?
Let's raffle it and give the money to a worthy charity or needy family. Let's say ... $5 a ticket?
The CupCake Charity Drive? The Cupcake Telethon? Cupcake Aid? (I like this third one the best)
Really. It could get big.
Someone can pick the winning ticket out of a
giant cupcake wrapper/cup thing.
(Yes, they exist. www.shopbakersnook.com)
$100 is a little steep but some quick internet research found the same stand for $47.95 plus shipping.
Link. I have a friend that's in the wedding cake business and they have all types of stands and mirrors and such and the practice of requiring big deposits is a common one not just because of the cost of the pieces but also the inconvenience of the loss of use of the item, even if temporary. Plus they don't want people to just forget about returning the item.
It is true that it is very common for bakeries to have this policy. It sucks, but I can see the bakeries' point. THey usually only have a couple of those and they rely on them. However, I do agree that Misha's people lack customer service. Hello! You need to keep the customer happy! Especially in this economy - how much longer are people going to be spending $2.50 for one cupcake when they can go to Fresh Market and get delicious ones for a buck a pop?
I bought a cake at Misha's for my toddlers birthday party and from one day (Saturday) to the next (Sunday- the day of the party) the sides of the cake had fallen and it was a mess! I sent a picture to Misha's of the cake and when pressed they informed me it was my fault! Apparently the cake does that when heated. They did not explain to me how the cake was "heated" in my well air conditioned home. Very dissappointing!
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