Canadian Personal Finance Blog

On the weekend I was in search of a Bus Pass for one of my daughters, but they were sold out at the store I regularly buy them (an Independant Grocers that allows me to pay for it with my Credit Card or Direct Withdrawal). Evidently OC Chancepo our local bus company does not give the vendors of their bus passes any money for doing it (or a very small margin), so allowing someone to buy it using Interac or Credit Cards makes this product a “lost leader” (sp?).

I went down to another shop which sells cards and a few other interesting things, where my wife shops occasionally. I went in to check to see if the owner had any bus passes, expecting to have to go out and get Cash to pay for it, if the store had any in stock. I was in luck the owner informed me that Yes he did have a pass, so I said I’d be back with some cash, but the owner said, you can pay with Interac. I asked didn’t he normally ask for customers to pay cash, he informed me that yes he did, but he knew my wife was a regular customer and he said it would be ok this time.

This is a prime example of someone smart enough to take a small loss, to keep a customer happy, and who has in turn caused a customer to feel much more attached to this vendor. This kind of Customer Service is rare in a large store, “I’m sorry sir, it is company policy not to allow this”, seems to be the battle cry of most clerks. More is the pity I guess.

–C8j