You'll pardon me, as I have a headache from trying to follow the shenanigans and tomfoolery I'm about to lay down on you. Brace yourselves, readers - it's time for a tale of scamming, free stuff, and (fake) cancer. Lympnoma strikes again!
So a little background: about a year or so ago, a few product formulators and company owners started receiving emails from a woman inquiring about free products for her daughter, a young woman suffering from "non-Hodgekins lymphnoma" (her spelling). The emails were all strikingly similar, along these lines:
"Amanda's Wish
I am writing on behalf of my daugher, her name is Amanda and she
is 17 and she has cancer, non hodgkins lymphnoma, she loves your products and I was
wondering if there was anything you could send to her, anything would
be cherished and appreciated,Thanks her address is Amanda Neil"
Amanda Neil was the young woman's name, and the email requests for free products always came from the same source, her "mother." About 10 months ago, one of the formulators who received this email posted about it in the Regretsy forums, because something seemed off about the whole thing. Lo and behold, several other company owners and formulators stepped forward with copies of their own emails from "Amanda Neil," all asking for free product because of "lymphnoma." Please enjoy reading some of the back story on "Amanda Neil" here: Regretsy.
You might ask, "well, Soctopus, what's the big deal? Why not give the cancer patient a few free things to brighten her day?" Because when enough people became involved, some of them started searching for "Amanda Neil" on the interwebs, and *boy* did they ever find her. A list of Amanda's outlets:
https://twitter.com/manda__mayhem
http://www.myspace.com/mandamayhemofficial#!
http://www.myspace.com/amandamayhemrocks#!
http://mandamayhemofficial.blogspot.com/
There's a lot of info in those links! Whew, am I ever BEAT from all that reading. I learned about Amanda's blog, her make-up favorites, her music, her love for "BooBoo" Stewart (I can't even, with that name). You know what I didn't read or learn about? Lymphnoma. Because it's not part of her life. It's not even a real disease. Lymphoma, however, is - a debilitating and scary dyscrasia. People with lymphoma deserve support and respect. People who fake having *lymphnoma* in order to receive free stuff deserve to rot in a special hell. Thankfully, the ladies and gentlemen of Regretsy swiftly went to town on "Amanda Neil," leading to the deletion of her prior blogs/FB profiles/internet presence. Because she was caught red-handed. So what brought on this blog post, since all of this is circa 10+ months ago?
"Amanda" surfaced again, with the same scam, asking for free products from Solstice Scents, one of my favorite indie fragrance/B&B companies. Same exact email. Same exact request. Oy. So this blog post is for you, "Amanda Neil," to remind you that the interwebs never forget. Never. Not ever. Not when someone scams small businesses, and not when they scam in a small, tight-knit community. Although you were right about one thing, "Amanda" - Solstice Scents *is* awesome. Too bad you won't get some free products to try them. Better luck next time, and good luck with your lymphnoma treatments!
Showing posts with label angryface. Show all posts
Showing posts with label angryface. Show all posts
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Friday, September 7, 2012
The Saddest of Sad-Faces...
UPDATE: I received my package from Lost In Makeupland. The products are gorgeous and wearable. I also received a partial refund from the owner. I would consider trying the company again in the future, if the TAT was lessened/straightened out.
So. It's with a heavy heart that I write this blog. It's going to be a short one, because it's basically an update on my last post (45 Days To Decide). I've finally heard from the owner of the company in question, and it was handled in a way that I consider unprofessional and wrong. My order was shipped on Wednesday, according to the company owner, but I wasn't emailed or informed of this until I posted in a Facebook group about my frustrations with this order. The only way I got any response to my questions was via members of that same Facebook group PM'ing the owner to get a response. That shouldn't have happened.
Now, going back, remember: I emailed the company's contact email, and eventually sent a PM to the owner's personal FB page. The company owner was on FB *after* I had sent my PM asking about my order, and did not respond in any way, shape, or form to either message, neither PM nor email. Initially, I was offered a partial refund OR a refund of shipping, with an increase in product sent. Color me dubious. Later, I was sent something (I won't say what here) to show me that a refund would not be coming anytime soon, partial or otherwise. I am particularly saddened because this company, by all accounts, makes excellent product. I'll let you know, if and when I get mine. Until then, I can say without hesitation that I cannot recommend Lost In Makeupland.
The owner has stated that she is unable to fulfill any further orders, and is shutting the shop down, but the site is still active, and I was able to add items to my cart today, when I tested. So I am naming the shop in question as a warning to other indie shoppers out there: beware of Lost In Makeupland. I'm sorry it's come to this, I truly wanted to love this shop and recommend it to everyone, but I can't in good conscience stay silent, not when the shop is still operational, waiting for someone else to fall into the same hole.
So. It's with a heavy heart that I write this blog. It's going to be a short one, because it's basically an update on my last post (45 Days To Decide). I've finally heard from the owner of the company in question, and it was handled in a way that I consider unprofessional and wrong. My order was shipped on Wednesday, according to the company owner, but I wasn't emailed or informed of this until I posted in a Facebook group about my frustrations with this order. The only way I got any response to my questions was via members of that same Facebook group PM'ing the owner to get a response. That shouldn't have happened.
Now, going back, remember: I emailed the company's contact email, and eventually sent a PM to the owner's personal FB page. The company owner was on FB *after* I had sent my PM asking about my order, and did not respond in any way, shape, or form to either message, neither PM nor email. Initially, I was offered a partial refund OR a refund of shipping, with an increase in product sent. Color me dubious. Later, I was sent something (I won't say what here) to show me that a refund would not be coming anytime soon, partial or otherwise. I am particularly saddened because this company, by all accounts, makes excellent product. I'll let you know, if and when I get mine. Until then, I can say without hesitation that I cannot recommend Lost In Makeupland.
The owner has stated that she is unable to fulfill any further orders, and is shutting the shop down, but the site is still active, and I was able to add items to my cart today, when I tested. So I am naming the shop in question as a warning to other indie shoppers out there: beware of Lost In Makeupland. I'm sorry it's come to this, I truly wanted to love this shop and recommend it to everyone, but I can't in good conscience stay silent, not when the shop is still operational, waiting for someone else to fall into the same hole.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
45 Days to Decide
So. Today I'm in a not-unfamiliar position: waiting for an order to arrive that is now more than double the stated turn-around-time (TAT). I won't name the company, because there are still emails/etc. that need to be answered. I'd like to give the company a chance to ship my order OR refund my product before going gonzo on my blog. However, I need to vent because it's frustrating as hell!
My indie-shopping readers will be familiar with this dilemma: the TAT has come and gone, no products have arrived, what do I do now? What are your choices? Well, you can do a few things. The first (and surely most obvious) is to contact the business/business owner to inquire about the state of your package. The right way to do this is to contact the company through their business page's contact information. If (and ONLY if this garners no response), it might be worth making an inquiry on the businesses Facebook page.
At this point, if you've gotten no response to your emails, you need to start thinking about filing a PayPal claim (or a bank claim). However, PayPal limits claims to within 45 days of the order, which effectively negates many indie companies, since TATs can be much longer than this time frame. However, PayPal has been know to open claims after the fact under certain circumstances. After the 45 day period has elapsed, your best bet may be to call your bank and attempt to get a refund or charge-back this way.
Being in this situation sucks. You ordered and paid for a product you were excited to try/see/use, and as the days go by without results, you start to feel like you've been stolen from. Perhaps the *worst* part of this situation is the guilty feeling so many of us get when we have to email a company owner about missing products/orders. Why do we feel guilty about asking a legitimate question? When you've paid for a product, and you're out both money and products, it is your right as a consumer to ask about your order. You, the consumer, should in no way feel guilty about emailing a business owner over this issue.
I've done what I can about my missing order. I emailed a week ago, and have yet to hear back. At this point, I just hope to open my mailbox and see a package waiting for me. We'll see. I'm over the 45 day PayPal limit, so I will have to contact my bank soon. At the end of the day, I just *really* want my products.
My indie-shopping readers will be familiar with this dilemma: the TAT has come and gone, no products have arrived, what do I do now? What are your choices? Well, you can do a few things. The first (and surely most obvious) is to contact the business/business owner to inquire about the state of your package. The right way to do this is to contact the company through their business page's contact information. If (and ONLY if this garners no response), it might be worth making an inquiry on the businesses Facebook page.
At this point, if you've gotten no response to your emails, you need to start thinking about filing a PayPal claim (or a bank claim). However, PayPal limits claims to within 45 days of the order, which effectively negates many indie companies, since TATs can be much longer than this time frame. However, PayPal has been know to open claims after the fact under certain circumstances. After the 45 day period has elapsed, your best bet may be to call your bank and attempt to get a refund or charge-back this way.
Being in this situation sucks. You ordered and paid for a product you were excited to try/see/use, and as the days go by without results, you start to feel like you've been stolen from. Perhaps the *worst* part of this situation is the guilty feeling so many of us get when we have to email a company owner about missing products/orders. Why do we feel guilty about asking a legitimate question? When you've paid for a product, and you're out both money and products, it is your right as a consumer to ask about your order. You, the consumer, should in no way feel guilty about emailing a business owner over this issue.
I've done what I can about my missing order. I emailed a week ago, and have yet to hear back. At this point, I just hope to open my mailbox and see a package waiting for me. We'll see. I'm over the 45 day PayPal limit, so I will have to contact my bank soon. At the end of the day, I just *really* want my products.
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