As someone who rarely posts complaints or concerns about businesses in our community, it is time to do so. I truly believe that customers can be very rude, demanding, and have outlandish expectations. This is not the case here. We purchased two turkeys from the Cabot Meat Market, for $98, to be served at work for our Thanksgiving feast. Upon placing the order, all that they stated was the turkeys would be smoked and ready to go at 10:00 a.m. It was explained to them when ordering that the turkeys would be served for lunch the same day as pickup. No other response or clarification was made from the lady taking my order. Then, when the turkeys were picked up, they were in the refrigerator/freezer with ice on them in sealed packages. They were rock hard. We left the store not really knowing what to do. A few minutes later we called and talked to the manager. She offered to refund our money IF we brought the turkeys back. Unfortunately, needing to feed a large group of people, it was decided to see how fast we could cook them so that at least a small percentage of employees could eat them. That being said, they were already in a cooker trying to be ready by the third lunch rotation. Obviously, I could not take them back at that point. That was all they offered. The first two lunches were without the only source of meat, these turkeys. (3/4 of the employees) After some thought and frustration, a second phone call was made to see if another resolution could be found for this egregious mistake. The owner began his tirade. He was downright rude and verbally aggressive. He constantly interrupted us as we tried to explain what happened and raised his voice throughout his comebacks. I wasn't sure if it was due to being a woman and he thought he could intimidate me through verbal abuse. He stated, "I don't care about your turkeys", "I sell 50 of them a year so I don't care", and "it's your fault you didn't know they would be cold." Went on to say "you don't even know what goes into smoking a turkey" They hung up on us twice as we continued to pursue a mutual understanding. This is not the type of customer service one would expect from a long standing successful business in Cabot, AR. It is a wonder with that kind of attitude, just how they are able to maintain any kind of customer base to remain open. His demeanor and verbal harassment led to this post. If that is how he treats his customers, then maybe the community of Cabot needs to let him know that is not acceptable. We accept the fact that a new employee may have made a simple mistake with not explaining the process of acquiring cooked turkeys from them. The response that cannot be accepted as the norm is the owner's outright inept ability to handle conflict and a disagreement with a woman/customer, his inability to find solutions to normal business issues that are simple in nature, and his lack of knowing how to maintain a loyal customer base that keeps buying meat from him. He should understand that these types of interactions with customers are not conducive to growing or maintaining his business. This is the worst customer experience we have had in the last 30+ years. Sir, (and your manager), you might want to get a part time job at Chick-fil-A so you can learn appropriate customer service and respect for the people that allow for your livelihood. We cannot be the only people that have encountered this manager & owner and their wrath. We will not be purchasing anything from them again. read more
