The Customer is Always Right…right?

I can’t tell you as a retailer, how many times that I have heard that statement. I heard it from retail consultants, read it in trade publications and heard it from the lips of virtually thousands during my nearly 50 years in retail. I even had the fortune to see it not just as a catch phrase but as a core strategy during the years I called on Nordstrom buyers. Nordstrom being the poster child for being the ultimate, customer centric retailer. I have my own amazing stories to add to fabled tales such as the customer that returned an automobile tire to Nordstrom which was gladly accepted without a receipt, or the fact that Nordstrom does not sell tires!
Nordstrom department stores certainly put their money where the mouth is when it comes to “The customer is always right.” This holiday season Kohl department store is promoting something similar with a “no receipt necessary” policy. Is this a strategy that you should include in your business?

It certainly depends on what business you are in. There are of course many products where it would be impossible to restock or return the item to inventory to be resold because of health issues or quality assurance. But, there is a more basic question at hand that goes beyond the just the return of merchandise. What about meals in restaurants, movie tickets for disappointing movies, or a cruise on the Love Boat that did not have an amorous ending? The product or service was consumed/used and a request of a refund in submitted. Is the customer right, no matter what?

We have all heard stories of the customer that purchase an expensive gown, wears it and then returns the garment. Was that customer right? What about those scammers that find a way to abuse the system…your system, are they right?

Does the customer is always right set the standard for customer service or open the door for abuse?

What do you think? Let’s hear from you on this subject. Please post your comment.