The Sweet Service Award goes to Pick ‘n Pay for its super Gift Card service, which offers a 2,5% discount for purchases of Gift Cards to the value of R20000, a service most Pick ‘n Pay clients do not know about. It does not replace the Smart Shopper card, which will be swiped for grocery purchases too. Intended as a corporate product for companies to use in rewarding their staff, it can also be bought by anyone else spending large sums of money at the retailer, as we do to pay our municipal accounts and guest house groceries, monies we would have to spend anyway but had paid by cheque via Easy Pay in the past. The process is simple: one requests an invoice from Pick ‘n Pay’s head office, pays the R20000 into their bank account, and then four cards are loaded with R5000 each, and the R500 discount is paid into a fifth gift card. One can then shop at any Pick ‘n Pay and pay one’s utility bills as well. Pick ‘n Pay loads one’s next payment onto the same cards again, but none may carry a value greater than R5000 each. A better discount rate is offered for a R50000 Gift Card purchase.
The Sour Service Award goes to Ou Meul Bakkery in Long Street, Cape Town, for its declining standard of service. About 3 weeks ago I bought some bakery items, and added a coffee and sandwich after the bill had been rung up. The so-called manager, who doubles up as the barista, was unable to add the two extra items to the bill nor to create an extra bill, so that I could pay for everything together. I said I would return when they fixed the bill for me. Feedback on Twitter did not generate a response. I returned a week later to pay the bill, and was delighted that the barista was not present. A new manager Richard was apologetic and took down my details, not being able to assist me either. I asked for some bakery items for my staff, and paid cash for these. When I got to my car, one of the items was incorrect and two had been left out, so I had to go back into the shop again. I picked up that most of the original (and nice) staff have left, and Tweeted to this effect. I received an immediate reply from @GoGo, saying that they had enjoyed breakfast there earlier in the day, and that they ‘love the staff’‘ there. I recognised the company name as an affiliate of Ou Meul Bakkery, and asked why the Tweeter did not declare that he is a co-owner of the bakery. He then turned nasty, now using his personal Twitter account @PieterBloem, asking (erroneously) why I go there ‘twice a week‘ if I complained about the service. I pop in there once a month at most, and have never met Mr Bloem since they opened a year ago (he runs Col’Cacchio in Cavendish Square), and have only seen his partner Antonie Basson at Oude Bank Bakkery twice in the past year!
The WhaleTales Sweet & Sour Service Awards are presented every Friday on the WhaleTales blog. Nominations for the Sweet and Sour Service Awards can be sent to Chris von Ulmenstein at whalecot@iafrica.com. Past winners of the Sweet and Sour Service Awards can be read on the Friday posts of this blog, and in the WhaleTales newsletters on the www.whalecottage.com website.
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Hi Chris, as a faithful follower of your blog, I am astounded at this sweet award for the following reasons. Pick and Pay is falling way behind its competitors, and this is the second sweet award from you recently. I think you are insulting the average shopper who can’t afford R 2000.00 let alone R 20 000.00. Also Woolworths offer 10 % on many items on their reward cards, plus additional 10% on certain food items, and the food lasts in your fridge.
Hi Chris, as a loyal follower of your blog, I find this sweet award crazy for the following reasons: Pick n Pay are losing ground against their competitors, and who has R 20 000.00 to deposit for groceries. Also Woolworths offer 10 % on many items plus a further 10% on certain groceries on their reward cards, and their food lasts.
I have four properties, and for each there are municipal accounts as well as telephone and cellphone accounts to pay, as well as the groceries to operate the guest houses. In the winter months this comes to about R20000 and in summer it is is about R35000. Pick ‘n Pay has never offered discounts for large purchases, not even for our guest house association members in Camps Bay. I wanted as many guest house owners as possible to know about this, as I only discovered the discount three months ago – for 17 years I have been paying Pick ‘n Pay in full, without a suggestion from them to use the gift cards. They have also just stopped accepting cheques for the Easy Pay accounts.
If you have been a regular reader, you will have picked up that Pick ;n Pay has earned as many (or more) Sour Awards as they have received Sweet Awards. I deal with three of their branches for our orders every week, so it is easy to pick up the good and the bad service. A Sour Service Award is coming up soon for one of their branches!
Hi Chris, as a small B@B owner, (6 rooms), I negotiated a flat 10% discount with my local Spar. Pick n Pay refused me any discount. That is a sweet award!
That is super – you are welcome to send the nomination to whalecot@iafrica.com.
Spar (in my opinion) probably charges 10% more for all its items relative to Pick ‘n Pay. I’m surprised that they have not introduced a Loyalty Card yet. I buy rye bread (which they slice in the larger stores) at Spar.
Klink vir my jy wou nie betaal nie…. oudste trick in die boek!
Glad nie – as jy mooi gelees het, sal jy sien dat ek drie keer teruggegaan het om te betaal, maar hulle het geen besonderhede oor die inkopies nie, en daar is nooit ‘n mede-eienaar aan diens nie. Toe ek laas daar was, het Richard my besonderhede geneem, maar niemand het tot dusver (2 weke gelede) gebel nie. Die diens word al hoe swakker, al hoe meer personeel verlaat hulle, en mede-einaar Pieter Bloem was onbeskof in sy Twitterasie!