Pavilion Kuala Lumpur is located in the heart of the city and is famous for having many international high-class brands as its tenants. Coach, Gucci, Prada, Montblanc, Marc Jacob have all opened outlets here.
Although I have been to Pavilion quite a few times before, I never fail to feel intimidated the moment I step into the mall. At least, I feel this way cause I don't see the point of and means to buying expensive branded goods. To me, it does not feel right to be spending so much of my parents' hard earned income, so easily.
Anyhow, for my 21st birthday, my parents brought me to Pavilion and told me to buy whatever I liked. I tried to negotiate my way out of their proposition but failed. They insisted that I buy something branded to signify my passage into adulthood. So after going in and out of almost all the shops there, I settled on a bright pink/maroon coloured Coach handbag that was placed at the center of their window display. This bag caught my eye because it was bright pink and did not have the word 'Coach' or the letter 'C' printed on every inch of the bag.
So after my dad made the payment, the cashier told me that I have now automatically qualified to be their silver member (yay!). Members are entitled to special discounts and are also the first to know any new Coach updates. We are also supposed to receive a membership card as proof of membership but until now, I have yet to receive mine.
Yet, that is not the main reason why I am so pissed off about Coach. Yesterday (25th November), I received a letter saying that there is an exclusive pre-season sale, with up to 50% off on select items and 10% off on the total spent. Tempting yes? I immediately shared this with my family and close friends so that we can go check it out together.
The part that blew up my inner volcano is that the event was from 21st to 24th November. This meant that I received the invitation only after the fact and the exclusive members-only post card is now worthless.
Imagine.
An international brand. With all its brand recognition and reputation. And the promise of luxury and exclusivity from purchasing that brand.
Broken, unfulfilled.
Lacking.
This kind of service is appalling. I can't help but think that they are trying to limit the number of members getting discounts. For such a high standard brand, I expected the quality of service to match the brand. They should have sent out the invitations at least a month beforehand and made sure that all the invitations have reached their destinations before the event.
Or, if sending out printed invitations is too difficult, then an alternative would be to simply send email invitations. I am already receiving periodic email updates. And I had received an email informing me of the upcoming arrival of the Fall/Winter collection. It isn't very difficult to send another email as an invitation to the pre-season sale.
On another note, I was also disappointed with the level of service given before I purchased my present. It was clear that because I was casually dressed in a tshirt and shorts, I was designated as a non-customer. Meaning that they did not think that I would purchase anything anyway, and so did not need to be serviced/assisted. Only when I confirmed my purchase that they became all smiles and polite. I am sure that if I were more dressed up, I would have been treated with their utmost care and attention. The discriminatory behaviour of the service staff does not reflect well on the brand.
I wish they will at least send a proper apology email. This is a simple post to remind everyone that superior brand value is really just good marketing. Nothing more. There is no promise of a service standard that matches the brand.
Take care people. Until next time~
PS: Maybe I should write a book review next time. Started reading this today and I'm already 1/3 through..
