WHAT A HEEL: Service With A Snarl
Sarah Kohl-Leaf of Taylors Falls, MN, E-mailed Evergreen Entertainment to complain that one of its movie theaters, the St. Croix Falls (WI) Cinema 8, did not accept credit or debit cards, the ATM in the lobby was out of cash and an employee interrupted the first half-hour of “Shutter Island” checking everyone’s ticket stubs looking for people who did not have tickets for that showing. She ended her E-mail informing the company that “I would rather drive to White Bear Lake, where they obviously know how to run a theater than have this experience again.”
Steven Payne, a vice president at the company, shot Kohl-Leaf an E-mail back telling her to “Drive to White Bear Lake and also go f**k yourself. He ended his E-mail informing Kohl-Leaf that “We don't care to have you as a customer” and offered to give her directions to White Bear Lake, if necessary.
Payne sent her a follow-up E-mail to “sincerely apologize for my inappropriate response … yesterday.” You can tell he was sincere because he did not drop the F-bomb (“customer service is an important part of our business, and that clearly was not reflected by my use of profane language”). Payne also invited her “to contact me personally” if she was “willing to give our theatre another chance,” but since he obviously has anger management issues, Kohl-Leaf preferred to keep him at arms’ length and posted their communications on Facebook – which led to the creation of a Facebook group, "Boycott St. Croix Falls Cinema 8" (boasting 5,140 members as of this posting).
Editorial Note: A rival Facebook group, "We Support Steven Payne - VP of St. Croix Falls Cinema 8," has attracted both those wanting to inflict pain on Payne and service sector employees who applaud him for saying what is (apparently) on their minds when customers complain they have not gotten their money’s worth.
[Hat Tip: CNET News]
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