Would like your opinion

[nkeeprs]

I am at my wits end on this one. I had a new Inn sign made . Not even 2 years old yet . and NOT CHEAP. A few months agao I noticed that it was starting to peel at the top so I called the guy who made the sign for me. And got the same story with the bad weather he would fix asap. Well I get a call from him yesterday and he informs me that the paint he used was bad and he would have to do a new sign And then he tells me that he will try to keep the cost down with the new sign. He said it was not his fault about the bad paint he blamed the paint company. I hope this does not come off wrong but I could care less where he got the paint. I hired HIM for the sign. He did make a temporary sign while he fixes my old one but I think it looks tacky and told him that I want my old one ASAP. My ? Am I wrong to think he should be behind his work and fix the sign and not charge me. His exact words yesterday. What do you expect me to do sue the paint company ? Again I just want my sign fixed and be done with hime.. I am in the height of my busy season and do not need the frustration right now.

 

[JBloggs]

That is terrible. He should stand behind his work. He chose the paint, he needs to work it out with the paint company, you need what you paid for!!

 

[kattrin]

Bad Paint??? It sounds like an excuse to me. Did he prep the wood first? Did he even use the right paint? Where did he get the paint - let them help with the expense. Did he give you a warranty of his work? If he is not going to stand up his work, then he will not be in business long. Not that it will help you. No, I do not think you should be responsible for shoddy workmanship. I think I would call him on this - but let him finish the sign and see how it looks.

 

[Morticia]

I agree he shouldn't be blaming the paint and expecting you to cover the cost of a whole new sign.

 

[gillumhouse]

He needs to stand behind his work. HE chose the paint vendor, not you. WE are responsible for our choice of vendors that we are choosing quality vendors. I would also ask why a NEW sign is required - WHY cannot the current sign that you paid for be repaired? You post sounded to me that you asked for a fix (I call FIX= Repair) not a new sign - unless repair is not possible and then you bet, replace.
I would also never recommend him to anyone.

 

[Samster]

He has to get paid for something, I think. But he should definitely make good on the sign and not charge you much.
I went through this with a flooring company. We had our Italian tile crack in one bathroom in about 6 months and the flooring company tried to tell me that our house had settled! The house was moved here and had been here over 10 years at the time. (It's a 102 yr old house) I stuck to my guns and told them it was an installation problem. The guy that came to do the repairs said that they didn't use the right amount of adhesive or apply it properly which was obvious when he pulled the cracked tiles. I even had extra tiles and they only had to replace 4 tiles. We went back and forth and finally agreed to stand behind their work, but it was a struggle. I would never hire them again or recommend them because they didn't stand behind their work. (They did all the tile work in 4 bathrooms for us, so we did spend a good amount of $$ with them.)
When we finished our first floor renovations, I hired a different flooring company and they were wonderful to work with.
It's really aggravating when you have to do battle to get someone to do the right thing and stand behind their work.

 

[Morticia]

He has to get paid for something, I think. But he should definitely make good on the sign and not charge you much.
I went through this with a flooring company. We had our Italian tile crack in one bathroom in about 6 months and the flooring company tried to tell me that our house had settled! The house was moved here and had been here over 10 years at the time. (It's a 102 yr old house) I stuck to my guns and told them it was an installation problem. The guy that came to do the repairs said that they didn't use the right amount of adhesive or apply it properly which was obvious when he pulled the cracked tiles. I even had extra tiles and they only had to replace 4 tiles. We went back and forth and finally agreed to stand behind their work, but it was a struggle. I would never hire them again or recommend them because they didn't stand behind their work. (They did all the tile work in 4 bathrooms for us, so we did spend a good amount of $$ with them.)
When we finished our first floor renovations, I hired a different flooring company and they were wonderful to work with.
It's really aggravating when you have to do battle to get someone to do the right thing and stand behind their work..

Yeah, our floor guys never came back to fix the problem with the buckling floor, so when we spent another $5k on carpet, we went elsewhere. Gomez fixed the buckling and it took hom about 30 minutes. It would have taken the flooring guy 10 minutes, which is why he never came back- it wasn't worth his time. However, the guy he worked for lost the carpet job because of that.

 

[Innkeeper To Go]

Get a new signmaker. And this time, get one who knows what he's doing.
Forget about this guy. He's not worth the trouble.

 

[Morticia]

I wish I knew who made my sign. As far as I know it's over 20 years old. I haven't seen any photos of it from 'way back' but I do have a pen & ink drawing that shows it looking just the way it does now. It needs to be freshened up. After all those years of weather it's a little faded.
We did our own 'guest entrance' and 'guest parking' signs and are really happy with them. But that's not the point.
Can you email me and tell me who you used so I don't when I decide to get the sign done.

 

[Copperhead]

This sort of additude is not one we as innkeepers relate to easily. We are all in the mindset of making our guests (customers) happy and want repeat visits. It seems that many, many of these type of businesses these days, especially prevalent in the last 5-7 years, are only thinking of the current job or sale. Maybe it is due to the fact that people move so much that a repeat customer is more unlikely? Did he give you a quote on a repair or just tell you that you needed a new sign? If it were a repair, I would be willing to pay part of the quoted price of a repair to show fairness.
This type of thinking was very strong in car manufacturers and other industry related products in the 1970's and early 80's which lead overseas companies coming in and stealing the market. Then they all got wiser (as their sales dwindled) with all the quality this and that...as they realized that without it people fled elsewhere. (remember the slogan "quality is job one").
If this was indeed a paint problem, that is HIS problem to deal with and you should not be the brunt of an inferior job. Let it be known to him that your sign is as much a display of your B&B as it is a sign of his work. Make him aware of business and social organizations that you belong to and that it is common to provide recommendations etc. to others when asked. If you have been complimented on his sign in the past, state so. I am not stating to threaten him with a bad review - that is like someone threatening a bad TA review to us. But make him aware of your standing and that people do share their experiences in conversations and that as a business owner yourself, you understand the importance to have good word of mouth advertising. A lot of this type of people can not think past the end of the week - bring in the money now and think about next week, next week.
If he still does not see the light, take the sign to another person an see if they are able to correct the problem and get a quote.

 

[Samster]

This sort of additude is not one we as innkeepers relate to easily. We are all in the mindset of making our guests (customers) happy and want repeat visits. It seems that many, many of these type of businesses these days, especially prevalent in the last 5-7 years, are only thinking of the current job or sale. Maybe it is due to the fact that people move so much that a repeat customer is more unlikely? Did he give you a quote on a repair or just tell you that you needed a new sign? If it were a repair, I would be willing to pay part of the quoted price of a repair to show fairness.
This type of thinking was very strong in car manufacturers and other industry related products in the 1970's and early 80's which lead overseas companies coming in and stealing the market. Then they all got wiser (as their sales dwindled) with all the quality this and that...as they realized that without it people fled elsewhere. (remember the slogan "quality is job one").
If this was indeed a paint problem, that is HIS problem to deal with and you should not be the brunt of an inferior job. Let it be known to him that your sign is as much a display of your B&B as it is a sign of his work. Make him aware of business and social organizations that you belong to and that it is common to provide recommendations etc. to others when asked. If you have been complimented on his sign in the past, state so. I am not stating to threaten him with a bad review - that is like someone threatening a bad TA review to us. But make him aware of your standing and that people do share their experiences in conversations and that as a business owner yourself, you understand the importance to have good word of mouth advertising. A lot of this type of people can not think past the end of the week - bring in the money now and think about next week, next week.
If he still does not see the light, take the sign to another person an see if they are able to correct the problem and get a quote..

That's very good advice, CH.
It took me telling the flooring company that we knew a lot of folks who were going to be doing home renovations and we'd like to be able to recommend the flooring company to them, before they saw the wisdom in making good on their installation. There was just so much attitude involved from the owner that I decided to give the rest of my business to another company. Not only were they easier to work with, but the installer was much more professional and courteous.
I was willing to give the first company the benefit of the doubt to do the right thing but they didn't handle my job very well.

 

[Tom]

This sort of additude is not one we as innkeepers relate to easily. We are all in the mindset of making our guests (customers) happy and want repeat visits. It seems that many, many of these type of businesses these days, especially prevalent in the last 5-7 years, are only thinking of the current job or sale. Maybe it is due to the fact that people move so much that a repeat customer is more unlikely? Did he give you a quote on a repair or just tell you that you needed a new sign? If it were a repair, I would be willing to pay part of the quoted price of a repair to show fairness.
This type of thinking was very strong in car manufacturers and other industry related products in the 1970's and early 80's which lead overseas companies coming in and stealing the market. Then they all got wiser (as their sales dwindled) with all the quality this and that...as they realized that without it people fled elsewhere. (remember the slogan "quality is job one").
If this was indeed a paint problem, that is HIS problem to deal with and you should not be the brunt of an inferior job. Let it be known to him that your sign is as much a display of your B&B as it is a sign of his work. Make him aware of business and social organizations that you belong to and that it is common to provide recommendations etc. to others when asked. If you have been complimented on his sign in the past, state so. I am not stating to threaten him with a bad review - that is like someone threatening a bad TA review to us. But make him aware of your standing and that people do share their experiences in conversations and that as a business owner yourself, you understand the importance to have good word of mouth advertising. A lot of this type of people can not think past the end of the week - bring in the money now and think about next week, next week.
If he still does not see the light, take the sign to another person an see if they are able to correct the problem and get a quote..

This sort of attitude is not one we as innkeepers relate to easily. ...

Amen. If we learn to be polite but firm on ... cancellation policies, no smoking, room damage, etc. ... it go to vendors as well. And, it wasn't the paint, it was the primer or lack of a good oil-based primer recommended for a marine location. Get a boat builder to make the next sign!

 

[birdwatcher]

I would go elsewhere to get the sign fixed because apparently this person does not take responsibility for his work and does not stand behind it. Why give him more olf your $$$? Go someplace else and tell him that its not your problem what paint he used and that if he used a paint that was less expensive then its his job to fix it at no charge. Tell him that it would be like a mechanic working on a problem with your car and then your car breaking down because of that part that was dificient, the mechanic is liable for the repair and the part therefore wouldn't he want it repaired for FREE!?
And how do you know he won't use the same exact paint he used before?