Beware! This is truly the worst experience I have had at a Bikram Yoga studio. The owner is not sane! She has some serious problems!
We (me and my wife) had purchased in end of April a Groupon coupon that would allow us until August 29 to attend 15 sessions of Yoga at the said studio.
Today, to our surprise, we were thrown out of the Laguna Beach Bikram Yoga by owner Marna Kibby, herself, under the threat of calling the police if we didn't leave immediately and her pointing her finger at the end of her fully stretched arm showing us the
door!
And what was our crime to have deserved this service?
We drove 20 miles to get to the place (like we have been doing for the past 6 or 7 Mondays since April 28) in order to take in the tranquility of Bikram Yoga and enjoy a peaceful day. We have printed the coupon that shows we have another 7 or 8 sessions until Aug. 29 2012 that we should be entitled to attend.
When we arrived, the owner told us that our coupon has supposedly expired without showing us any proof! We asserted that our coupon would be expiring at the end of the month of August. She did not want to have any of this. She adamantly raised her voice and repeatedly told us we were wrong, even after double checking our names.in addition, with a blatant disregard for any
respect or even just politeness, she told us we "needed to start reading!" We could not believe our own ears that a so called business owner has the audacity to talk to her customers in this demeaning condescending tone. We asked her not to raise her voice, not to yell at us, and not to teach us what we need or not need to do. She yelled even higher and then told us "GET OUT!" pointing her finger toward the door and furthermore picked up the phone to call the police if we didn't leave immediately.
We are not sure why the owner treated us in such a demeaning, disrespectful, and almost racist way that reminded me of the customer service I used to get when I lived in Europe. But that is not what you are used to in America.
We are also patrons of another Bikram Yoga in Costa Mesa and will from now on go to the Costa Mesa location with the hopes that they as a business have their records more organized and perhaps not so frustrated with their business that they would have to resort to such discriminating, unprofessional, and incompetent means of customers relations management in order to meet their goals, needs, or objectives in business. However, I would hope that as a franchisee (if that is the case) of Bikram Yoga, the Laguna Beach Bikram Yoga would be trained to perhaps do the following with their customers in the future instead of what they did to us today:
1. Be courteous to the customers even if they are wrong.
2. Do not assume customers are wrong from the outset. Take time to listen to the customer.
3. Make the customer feel that their opinions or assertions actually count and are important. Take the customer's assertions seriously and not arbitrarily dismiss them.
4. Check business records and verify accurately what the customers are entitled to.
5. Ask the customer for proof or even better PROVIDE the customer with the proof of what they are entitled to.
6. Even if the customer is wrong, politely and courteously ask them to check any records or proof to the contrary of management's assertions and to provide such contradictory information upon their next visit.
7. Do not "lecture" customers on what they need to do in their lives differently. That is not the business owner's responsibility or position to coach or teach customers.
8. If the customer becomes upset and frustrated at the lack of organization of the business, remain calm, do not threaten them with police, do not show them the door, do not yell at them, but reassure them that they are important to the longevity and
survival of the business and that the business owner would do everything possible to investigate the source of confusion even if that source lies with the business itself!
9. Perhaps offer the customer who is now irritated and hurt a glass of water, offer a seat, or whatever else necessary to keep the customer satisfied.
The above suggestions are more aligned with a mindset that is informed and guided by the principles of Yoga and yogi all over the world. What the owner did to us today is despicable beyond any stretch of imagination and should not become part of the Yoga culture.
0 comments