As a 30-year Ada resident and local business owner, I've truly enjoyed watching our downtown area come alive again -- new restaurants, shops, and a sense of community that reminds us why we love living here. I was especially excited to see BEYOND, the new outerwear store apparently affiliated with Bill & Paul's Sporthaus in Grand Rapids, open its doors right here in Ada.
Their selection is undeniably high-end, featuring premium outdoor brands most people would recognize. And yes, prices reflect that -- but this is Ada, after all. I was happy to support them anyway. I purchased a winter coat for one of my twin daughters and received a "BEYOND Bucks" coupon worth 10% off my next purchase. Great idea in theory -- a nice way to bring customers back.
Two weeks later (exactly 14 days, in fact), I returned with my other twin daughter to buy her coat. When I mentioned the coupon, the owner/manager informed me that without the physical coupon, she couldn't honor the discount. Fair enough -- but when I asked if she could simply verify my previous purchase in the system, she said they had no way to track or confirm any of the coupons. That surprised me.
When I got home, I found my original receipt -- and right there, printed clearly on BEYOND's own receipt, was the "BEYOND Bucks" coupon number and value. Meaning, all the verification she said was "impossible" was sitting in her own system the entire time.
So, I drove back again -- twice in total -- with all my receipts and the coupon in hand. The transaction ended up being as simple as crediting my card and reapplying the purchase. The "coupon" itself wasn't needed at all. What was needed was just a little bit of effort and common sense on their part.
In the end, I did get the discount -- but it left a genuinely bad taste in my mouth. It wasn't about the 10%; I could easily afford to let that go. It was about the principle and the example I was trying to set for my daughters: that customer service matters, and that good local businesses go a little out of their way to earn loyalty.
Ironically, their own promotion expires at the end of November, so it's not even a long-term incentive program. Most of their prices are at or above MSRP anyway, and while I understand it's a boutique experience, this encounter just came off as petty and indifferent.
I wanted to love BEYOND and keep supporting a new Ada business -- but unfortunately, this experience makes it hard to recommend them. Sometimes, it's not the product that matters, but how you treat your customers. read more
