Had to choose between refunding everyone or sending free replacements

Our small coffee roastery shipped 60 bags of Ethiopia Yirgacheffe to customers around Denver last month and realized the beans were over-roasted after 20 people complained. I picked sending free replacements to every single buyer, even the ones who didn't complain, because the cost was about $800 versus maybe losing half our regulars. Turned out pretty good, five people posted photos of the new bags on social media and our sales actually went up 15% that week. Anybody else handled a quality slipup by just eating the cost?

2 comments

2 Comments

sage_ramirez4215d ago

Turned out pretty good" is kinda underselling it honestly. You turned a potential disaster into a free marketing campaign. That $800 basically bought you a 15% bump in sales plus loyalty from people who didnt even complain. Smart move. One thing I gotta push back on though. You said "maybe losing half our regulars" but that math seems way off. Small coffee roaster in Denver, 60 bags shipped, 20 complaints... you probably wouldnt lose half your regulars over one bad batch. Coffee people are forgiving if you make it right quick. They'd probably just wait a month and try again. But yeah, eating the cost is almost always the play. We did something similar with a batch of cold brew that went sour last summer. Lost about $500 on replacements but kept everyone happy. People talk about bad experiences way more than good ones, so paying to shut that down is worth it.

angela_grant15d ago

Totally agree, turning a screw-up into goodwill is a solid win for any small business.