Crusader Sails - the delivery challenge is on...

[lustyd]

I'll start a new thread when our boat goes back in the water - but this one point, above all others - drives me nuts.

When the people working at these marine companies deal with their own domestic issues (insurance, boilers, Tescos etc) do they expect and put up with 1970s service?

When their builder doesn't turn up for the third day in a row do they call him and say: "That's OK mate, I don't mind. I work at Foxs so I fully endorse failing to contact the client and missing deadlines as a corporate methodology."?

It would seem only a very small intellectual leap to apply their standards as a customer to their delivery to their own customers.

My experience seems to be that many of them have not made that leap.

Could it be that in the spring every single person at Crusader is busy all day every day making sails for impatient customers? Deal with them at a reasonable time of year and you'll find they are quite chatty - I had a tour of the factory when I picked up my sail because at that time of year they were quiet.
You'll find Tesco at mid day on a Saturday is a similar experience and you have to wait your turn but from what I hear they are doing remarkably well for themselves despite this lack of customer care during busy periods.

[Hamma]

Jonic, lustyd, Lakesailor

No argument from me on any of the points - but keeping me informed of progress towards (or indeed away from) deadlines takes no more than an email or a phone call.

What's wrong with making it someone's job to contact or call all current customers once a week and update them on progress?

Edit: I've got no complaints about workmanship with my specific issue either - it is all about contact - or lack of it.

[lustyd]

Jonic, lustyd, Lakesailor

No argument from me on any of the points - but keeping me informed of progress towards (or indeed away from) deadlines takes no more than an email or a phone call.

What's wrong with making it someone's job to contact or call all current customers once a week and update them on progress?

Edit: I've got no complaints about workmanship with my specific issue either - it is all about contact - or lack of it.

Every time the person responsible for responding gets an email asking for an update they would probably interrupt at least a couple of people. Crusader have various teams, some for cutting, some for sewing and some for packaging. To find out where the sail is they may need to ask all of these and hunt through their (quite large) storage area. Add to this that they probably get loads of enquiries every day from people thinking about a new sail but who has no details and you see that this job would take more than one person working full time and it would still slow down production. Crusader prefer the personal approach and a call center and automation is therefore not their style. I think the majority of customers accept and love this about them even if it means that contact is sparse at certain times of year because we all know they deliver on time one way or another. Ironically, this thread is proof of that good service - they drove a sail to Scotland and back to meet a deadline.
Had the OP not been so short on time he probably wouldn't have chased or posted this thread. In fact, he would have probably been on here boasting that they hand delivered to Scotland etc etc as we see time and again from this company.

[Lakesailor]

Had the OP not been so short on time

Yeah. Fancy expecting the sail within 5 months.
He ordered it on 12th January 2012.

This again reinforces my point about building in some leeway into your delivery date by asking for items before you need them. It moves you ahead in the "to do" list
.

[Gk 66]

If we start expecting small businesses like this to provide constant customer contact then somebody will have to be paid to do it. That cost will be passed onto ...............? Its all very well holding small businesses to the standards set by the global enterprises we deal with in our non sailing lives, but can we afford to pay for it??

[jonic]

The problem with going so public like this, especially when there has not been a failure to deliver on time, is that Google picks up these threads pretty quickly.

I'm sure it wasn't the OP's intention but innocently Google "Crusader Sails" and 1st page in and just second line down you get "crusader sails woes".

Hardly fair on a company that by all accounts are generally very good and delivered the sail in question on time.

[Cardo]

Had the OP not been so short on time he probably wouldn't have chased or posted this thread. In fact, he would have probably been on here boasting that they hand delivered to Scotland etc etc as we see time and again from this company.

Which begs the question, why did it take them nearly 4 months to provide the sail? Didn't he make the order at LIBS? There are others on here that say they got their sails far quicker.

Whilst I appreciate people don't want reputable companies to be poopoo'd without cause, I do wonder why some people seem intent on vehemently making excuses for companies when it is clear the customer service could have been better?

[awol]

Every time the person responsible for responding gets an email asking for an update they would probably interrupt at least a couple of people. Crusader have various teams, some for cutting, some for sewing and some for packaging. To find out where the sail is they may need to ask all of these and hunt through their (quite large) storage area. Add to this that they probably get loads of enquiries every day from people thinking about a new sail but who has no details and you see that this job would take more than one person working full time and it would still slow down production. Crusader prefer the personal approach and a call center and automation is therefore not their style. I think the majority of customers accept and love this about them even if it means that contact is sparse at certain times of year because we all know they deliver on time one way or another. Ironically, this thread is proof of that good service - they drove a sail to Scotland and back to meet a deadline.
Had the OP not been so short on time he probably wouldn't have chased or posted this thread. In fact, he would have probably been on here boasting that they hand delivered to Scotland etc etc as we see time and again from this company.

I shivered when I read that. I find it difficult to believe that progress is not tracked and the information available - otherwise it must be chaos. It doesn't need a SAP system or anything complex - just someone performing the role that goes with the title "manager".

[OR4751]

But I wouldn't dream of publishing specific names and details on here, for literally the entire world to see. Especially if the deadline was not yet passed.

And if OP had waited till the deadline had passed, his cruise would have been scuppered.
No doubt leading to comments (from some) along the lines of 'why didn't you act or speak out sooner?'

If the thread on here prodded Crusader along to get a result for OP - good for him. And I think that is what he wanted to achieve with this thread.

[snooks]

I just used the phone, phoned Crusader, and I got my sails on the date I wanted them.

Silly me?