Simon Bernstein | WhaleTales Blog by Chris von Ulmenstein

The Sweet Service Award goes to the Department of Home Affairs in Caledon, and Sonia, Crystal and Yneatte in particular, and is nominated by David Snoek:” Joan-Anne and I set out to renew Joani’s passport at The Dept. of Home Affairs in Caledon this morning. On arrival, we were greeted with an empty parking area and more than adequate signage welcoming visitors. We entered the offices and were welcomed by a very stern and official looking man at the door and 3 delightful ladies behind the counter. We were the only customers in the entire building and were ‘gobsmacked’. Such a difference from what we have being subjected to on TV. After arriving and completing the required documents, Joani and I were out of there in less than 10 minutes. This is the quality service we appreciate from a Government Department. PS What struck me was the friendly manner in which we were received! Totally Awesome”! Dave wrote subsequently, to feed back that the passport was received within one week, unbelievable service.

The Sour Service Award goes to KFC in Robertson, and is nominated by Simon Bernstein: “How the South African Consumer is being ripped off. My wife and I decided to have some KFC last night as we have not had any for a very long time. We ordered 9 pieces of chicken no chips, salad or cool drinks just chicken. The cost was R94-90 that is over R10-00 for a piece I could understand this cost if you received decent pieces. Our nine pieces included 2 wings, 2 drum sticks, 2 quarter breasts with cartilage 1 rib cage area and 2 thighs so not even a whole chicken. I’m in the hospitality business and an acceptable practice is to carve a whole chicken into 8 pieces2 wings, 2 drumsticks, 2 thighs and 2 whole breasts why can KFC not conform to this? I’m paying R21-00 from my supplier for a whole bird I’m sure with your buying power as a group you get it cheaper than that. Considering we did not even get a whole bird your cost must be around R15-00 for the chicken. Add in the other costs like oil, gas and spices which can be no more thanR4-00 you get a total cost of R19-00. Take off the vat on R94.90 is R83-25 the cost ex vat R16-66 you get a food cost of 20% the industry norm in the food business is between 32-38% please explain to me how you justify the additional 18%!!!!! The selling price should have been R49.95 ex vat with vat R57-00 that would still give you an acceptable GP to pay wages, rent and whatever other operating cost you have. It should relate to around a 12% NP. Once again please justify for me how you can over me R37.90 over what should have being charged. To further illustrate how much you are overcharging. My wife also ordered 8 zinger wings cost R22-50. This works out to R2-81 per wing totally acceptable to me take off the vat 2.46 on a selling price working to a normal food cost of 33% the cost would be: 9 pieces : 2 wings R1.62, 2 drum sticks slightly more than a wing R2.86, 2 Quarter breasts R4.39, 1 rib cage no real meat just bone R2.21, 2 thighs R5.39, Total cost R16.67 industry norm mark up R49.41 plus vat R56.32. So both calculations show how you are almost charging double as what the norm is. A family could come to my café eat a wholesome freshly made meal with salad and it would cost them less than to eat KFC. I feel it is high time that big brands start to justify their costs to the consumer”.

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 info@whalecottage.com. Past winners of the Sweet and Sour Service Awards can be read on the Friday posts of this blog, and in the WhaleTalesnewsletters on the www.whalecottage.com website.

The Sweet Service Award goes to the Grand Café in Robertson, and its owners Simon and Wendy Bernstein. Four times in the past month we have passed through the town between Franschhoek and Plettenberg Bay, and have found their service to be friendly, the cappuccinos are excellent (the beans come from Strictly Coffee across the road), they offer good value, and we discovered the time-saving benefit in ordering from the car, half an hour before arrival. Wendy organised a photocopy of their menu for us to keep in the car. On Wednesday we arrived at the coffee shop at 16h00, the closing time, unbeknown to us, but Wendy and Simon showed their customer care in staying open for an extra half an hour.

The Sour Service Award goes to Kodak Express in Stellenbosch Square, and is nominated by Erica Meles-Liebenberg (we have edited it to shorten it): “Having gone there for an Australian passport photo I was very clear on the specifications, the most important being that the facial dimensions on the print be no less than 32mm and no more than 36mm in length. The young lady taking the photo disregarded my instructions, stating that “we take passport photos all the time”. I explained that this was not a local passport photo, but she shrugged my comments off, and insisted that I remove my scarf and all traces of hair from my face; neither of which are stipulated in the specifications from the Australian High Commission in Pretoria – and the latter of which is impossible given my short fringe. When I objected she asked if the photo was for a Schengen visa, at which point I repeated that the image was for an Australian passport. When the photo was finally taken I was sent away while it printed, and when I returned to my dismay the facial length was less than 28mm. When I raised my concerns she insisted that this was acceptable for passports, at which point I said that I would not pay for the image. Her supervisor came over and said he would arrange a larger reprint as the image was clearly too small. I instructed him about the correct dimensions – he too explained that this was their core business and he knew the correct dimensions. Again I explained that this is an Australian passport; he replied that they frequently take photographs for such passports. He returned with a photo with a facial length of 30mm and when I refused to pay he said “look, if you don’t pay, the staff will have to pay”. I lost it and said that R38 hardly compared to the courier fees should the application be returned, not to mention the lengthy delays and waste of time for all involved. The store proprietor stepped in and suggested that he reset the machine to a maximum length of 36mm, but the final print was still only 31mm in facial length. I gave up and paid, thinking that perhaps I could scan the image in and resize it correctly myself – which has proven futile, so the images have been binned. At no stage did any of the members of staff apologise, nor acknowledge my attempts to explain why strict adherence to the guidelines was so important”.