Dear LSS...

About a year ago I was at LSS that is not actually local to me. I was with two friends and there was no greeting of us by either the owner or her helper.

Come time to check out the owner was behind the counter and continued her conversation with her helper for about two minutes. Two minutes is a very long time when you are just standing and waiting. The first words out of her mouth were "will this be all". My total came to over $100.

When she asked that question I asked about a stamp that she had a card sample made with. Her answer was "I don't have one right now but you can check the website to find out when it is in." I felt that was her way of asking me not to return in person, just order on line.

I have never returned to that store nor ordered on line. By the way we were not loud, rowdy or disruptive in anyway.

That would definitely turn me to online shopping instead. I love my LSS and the new and unique things she has for sale. As a general rule, however, while I prefer to give them my business, if I'm not treated well, I will take my business elsewhere.

That sucks! We had one that had a staff of girls that acted sort of snobby and that way for a long time. I imagine folks complained, the staff is super nice there now. My closest one is great...sometimes there is almost too much customer service. I can be asked "are you finding everything" multiple times in one trip.

Sounds like our cashier at Costco the other day At least the gal boxing our stuff was nice and friendly!


~ Dori ~

Uggh. Sorry you had a bad experience. My LSS closed this winter and she couldn't have been friendlier. I just loved shopping there and was so sad that she closed.

That sucks. Two good LSS near me have closed. Owners/staff were always very friendly and helpful and ran great classes and crops. NOw it's just a couple of big box stores left and they have no idea about customer service. That's why I do all my shopping online.

My LSS had the same kind of owner. I went there for years and it was always the same....hence they're out of business. At a weekend crop I was talking to others who were local who all thought the same thing. The owner has not gotten into the crop retreat business but my pals and I have not gone based on our experiences. It may seem petty but she had all of these rules for her crop (a weekend) and was charging so much more than the weekend retreat we usually go to. For example, despite the fact that she was LSS, she provided no rates for commuters so it forced everyone to stay at the hotel. Made no sense to most of us because we are local and live in the same town as the crop or the next town.

Luckily, there is one LSS open near me and she's the complete opposite. She's got my business! A little kindness and friendliness goes a long way!

One of two LSS left within driving distance of me closed its doors for the last time today. They were the same way; very judgy, moody, unfriendly, and unhelpful when you would walk in. Unless you were obviously a customer who came in frequently and gave them a lot of business. Well, do you think I want to come in when you make me want to crawl into a hole in the floor and die every time I walk in your store?!

I have to drive an hour to get to an LSS, I go a few times per year. Mainly just because I find I am not liking a lot of products by looking at them online but in person I really like them. So it is worth it to me sometimes. Both stores are within walking distance of each other but carry completely different products. Both of the owners are pretty rude.

In one store they make it seem like a huge inconvenience that you need a shopping bag (they are kept behind the counter). If I have a question I have to go into their work room and ask because they are never just out and about in the store. Always in the work room out of sight. Last time I went I couldn't find white cardstock that wasn't textured. So I go into the workroom, ask nicely, and the owner makes a show of stopping everything she is doing and coming to the door way where she just pointed to a box on the floor near the cardstock wall "You can check in there". Gee, thanks.

The other store is a tiny bit better but the owner is quite stuck up and projects an attitude that she is better than you. She stays seated a work table, wears no name badge or anything. The first time I walked in I just thought she was a customer. And since I was never greeted or offered help I spent a fair amount of time just wandering around waiting for an employee so I could ask a question. It was actually a customer of hers that told me she worked there.

I have a store not far from here and the lady is rather snotty towards me, always has been.  I don't spend money in your store lady unless I have to because you look down on me and make your potential customer feel like crap for just having the audacity to be in your store.  Seriously it pisses me off to no end, I have in worked customer service roles all my working years and I just don't get the attitude. 

I suspect there are a lot of LSS owners that opened stores during scrapbooking's heyday because they were avid scrapbookers, loved the craft, and thought, what a great way to make money and be around something that I love. Perhaps they didn't consider whether or not they particularly liked dealing with the public regularly on a personal level. I have been into stores that I felt were more like scrapbooking clubs for the owner and their group of friends. That's great if their circle of friends can and will buy enough product to keep your store in business but most times, that is not going to be the case.

Unfortunately, with the craft settling down, even the brick and mortar stores that provided great customer service don't seem to be making it. Sadly, I believe that LSS's are going to become even more rare and a thing of the past for a lot of reasons. A good amount of square footage is necessary to carry a wide range of product. Many people come in a just buy a couple things they need and $3 sales are not going to keep a business afloat. The market has become saturated with so many different companies, designers, and lines that it is nearly impossible for a LSS to order everything that people may want. New paper lines and products come out so often that again, a small business can't keep ordering them all so customers go online to find what they want. Less new people are paper crafting and a lot of us that are still doing it have huge stashes already.

We still have 4 stores in the Bay Area and really, there is really only one that seems to have consistently good customer service. The rest are kind of crappy.