[Travb1999]

Mods feel free to move this post if need be.

So I have a local sports club that last year I did everything for.
Jerseys, Fan-wear, Banners, helmet lettering.


We offer a kickback of 10-20% of all fanwear sales if you use our uniform program and use of a webstore on our site.


I was giving a great deal to get in the door, we had some manufacturing issues that I personally went to the fields to inspect and handle.


This year they came back to us to use us again however they wanted everything for $2 less per item to which I said no infact the cost would increase by $0.62 as certain material costs had increased and others discontinued. they strung me along for about a month then said they were taking the uniform business elsewhere pretty sure they were trying to haggle a competitor down and wanted me to offer super low pricing to get them to cave.


We refuse at my shop to use low quality materials as inevitably it will fall back on my business. they were wanting non matching materials that just wouldn't work. The other company gave them what they wanted.


BUT they still wanted us to do their fan wear. ok cool no problem.
they then asked how many disbursement checks they would get for their cutback and I said none as they didn't qualify due to not ordering uniforms. (All this is in bold print on my quotes at the bottom in large print)they were upset but decided to upcharge to makeup the difference.

I requested 6 times for the teams, shirt color, and imprint color.
no response... ok well they finally sent me a list so I did my best to match colors. I sent a proof they went ok make the store live also we need you to print our handouts for all the parents..... I responded with we dont do that, we offer the file to you to print. well if we cant then this order wont happen.... ok fine so I stayed up till midnight at the office doing the 1/4 page full color glossy ads. she picked them up then started to complain that we had the wrong colors for the teams and she assumed I would look all 25 teams names and colors up and find them and match them. I told her no thats not how it works you approved the proof. I told her again send me the list in the next hour so I can correct it however i will not be reprinting the ads. she then complains she doesnt have time but will have someone else contact me.....


Am I being unreasonable here ? I know no other business in town would jump through this many hoops and I feel like washing my hands of this client after this season.

 

[Twisted Grafix]

I don't think so. It's pretty straight forward- no uniforms, so no kickbacks. I wouldn't give a disbursement check if they pull the major part of the order either. Why would you be responsible to figure out what the other place is doing? During the time that was spent trying to figure out and fix their errors, you could have made several thousand dollars. Instead, you're wasting time and materials to play games and "make it right" with a customer lacking in communication. If the proof is approved, then it's on the customer.

Just like in your shop, we don't cut corners because it will save money or time. It's done correctly or it doesn't go out. We use high quality materials and do what it takes to make sure it's correct.

 

[DrivingZiggy]

The more you give, the more they will want until they're stealing.

 

[TABOB]

If she has approved the proof, it is her fault...End of!
As for everything else... The way I see it, it is a negotiation. She's free to ask for lower price for example, but you are also free to refuse.
Stick to your guns, and refuse to participate in a race to the bottom. Look after the nice customers, and preserve your sanity. Let somebody else handle the trash.

 

[gardenhillemb]

Stick to what you're doing. We get people all the time that want us to lower our prices or perform extra services. Time is money and I'm sure not made of it (time or money).

 

[wormil]

I have run into this scenario twice, both times cost me a chunk of change. It's bad news. I hate dealing with sports teams because the buyers are so often clueless and there is so much potential for them to hurt your reputation. If you know anyone on the team, contact them and explain the difficulties. Contact them anyway because she is back there badmouthing your company, I guarantee it.