Crazy good customer service

[callee]

Or just crazy maybe, you tell me.

Last year I decided I needed some new thermoses for work, and so I headed down to the local walmart to buy whatever they had. I had intended to just get something cheap, but when I got there I found these stanley thermoses, and they just seemed so much better that I was compelled to "invest" in a good set. So I bought one big one for coffee, and one short squat one for soup:



I can't remember how much they were, but they weren't that cheap. I think maybe $40 and $25 respectively.

So I use them for the last year, and they work super great, but lately I noticed that the rubber gasket on the stopper of the soup thermos was falling off more than I would expect, and upon closer inspection I discovered this was because it had a tear in it.

I noticed a website on the bottom of the thermos, so on a fluke I visit and see that there are replacement parts available for order. I remembered though when I bought it that the packaging claimed "guaranteed for life" and I wonder if that means the gasket would be covered by warranty?
Probably not, I assume, since warranties usually exclude consumables like rubber gaskets.

All the same, I fire off an email to the contact address, explain the situation, and ask if they can send me a new gasket.

A couple days later I get a nice email back saying they will hook me right up, they just need the serial number etc., off of the bottom of the thermos. I reply and give that info, and while I'm at it I mention that the stopper on the coffee thermos also seems to be getting a little loose (it's not broken yet, just a little loose) and perhaps they could throw in one of those while they're at it?

Well, today I'm surprised to get home and find a large box waiting in the mail. What could this be? I wonder. Maybe Mack has sent me a nice pen? I check the return address and see that it is from the stanley company, but how could that be? I wonder, since a gasket and a stopper would only need a box one tenth of this size. Well, lo and behold, when I open the box there are two entire new thermoses! One of each! Brand new!

Now, on one hand this is super impressive to me, because hey, I'm happy to get new thermoses! On the other hand, I'm a little worried about how the company is going to make a profit if they ship out an entire new thermos when you only need a gasket! All the same, if the purpose of customer service is to retain the customer, then this worked great, because I can bet you real money that I'll never buy any other brand of thermos than stanley!

[mreza]

Good to hear you are treated well!
Sometimes the cost of finding the part and sending it is more than a brand new one. I have experienced a similar thing that if you spend a bit more and get a better product you usually get better service too.
Had a Cuisinart toaster that got a small problem within warranty period (like a year or two). Took it to a service center and they said you'll get a new one shipped to your address. And he was right!

[Dave in Calgary]

That's great Callee. I've had the same experience with sunglasses (Oakley) where the lenses were scratched. I don't think they even read the accompanying letter explaining that i just needed new lenses. They shipped me 2 new pairs of glasses. Wow!

[Andre in Quebec]

That's good stuff to hear about,only wish all companies would behave like this.

andre

[Bob_Macgregor]

I agree that is great customer service, but it still irks me to have a nice gadget with a tiny problem. I had a small part fail on a pair of ratcheting loppers. Rather than send me a replacement part, the company sent me a brand new replacement set of loppers. Now I have still have the old ones needing just one minor part to be good as new, but they are trash 'cause it isn't worth it for the company to stock parts. It rubs me the wrong way to be throwing out (almost) perfectly good stuff.
BOB

[BRIEN]

Same here, I've had one for about 12 years now. After the second year I owned mine it would no longer keep the beverage warm, So I called the company told them my problem and they shipped me a new one asap. Although I did have to mail the old one back, I guess they were interested in where it had failed. Great thermos!!

[DMartin]

Good to hear you are treated well!
Sometimes the cost of finding the part and sending it is more than a brand new one. I have experienced a similar thing that if you spend a bit more and get a better product you usually get better service too.
Had a Cuisinart toaster that got a small problem within warranty period (like a year or two). Took it to a service center and they said you'll get a new one shipped to your address. And he was right!

I now a believer in Cuisinart products. This is one example where you pay more and get what you paid for. This has not always been the case.

Dan

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Same service here, I bought a used SS Stanley thermos at a garage sale for 10 bucks, and the lady assured me it was in good condition, of course it was not, didn't keep my coffee warm, so brought it to a retailer that sold those Thermos bottles and a week or so later got my brand new replacement, used it for many years after, and we probably still have it, though not much need for it nowadays;-))

[Egon]

[QUOTEAfter the second year I owned mine it would no longer keep the beverage warm,][/QUOTE]

The same thing happened to the first one I bought back in 1966 or maybe 1965.