I have been buying and selling at Once Upon a Child for over ten years and have visited this particular location since it opened. Today after selling them over $150 in merchandise, I was loading the "rejects" back into the car and found that a walker they'd passed on had been damaged, so I went back in to find out what could be done to repair it. The ladies that had handled the transaction said they'd only turned the knob that was now not functioning but admitted they didn't know how it was supposed to operate. They then brought out the Manager/Owner to assist.
Immediately after coming out from the back room, she sized my father and I up. I'm not sure if it was because we were dressed casually, or because we are African-American, but everything after went horribly awry. Where I'd expected an apology and maybe $10, she was determined to make no compromise at all. Without fully understanding the situation or my value as a long standing customer, she first attempted to solve the problem without understanding exactly what that was. She was patronizing and curt, repeatedly twisting the knob and saying, "So what's the problem?" I reiterated that the mechanism worked when we came in and while we are fine that they passed on the item, in the process of deciding that, the item was now unusable.
She then went on to insinuate that it may have been broken before we came in, as if I was trying to scam the place out of a few dollars. I am an engineer by training and had tested the mechanisms before bringing the item in. Adding insult to injury, she never offered any apology and then said the best she could do was a $5 coupon to come back. I declined and stated that I would not be shopping at this location ever again. Her lack of customer service skills and patronizing attitude made it clear to me that she considers her patrons to be poor, uneducated, scam artists, as that is how we were treated without cause.
I feel sorry for her employees, who were apparently more concerned about whatever repercussions she would dole out than the potential impact to a baby sitting in a walker that would not function correctly. There are many options for parents in Orlando and I encourage others to seek out alternatives, as this behavior should not be rewarded and will not be tolerated. I have had very good interactions at the Colonial Drive and Alafaya Rd. locations. read more