Paper Plus Parnell
Paper Plus Parnell
It's rare for me to leave a negative review, but today's experience at Paper Plus in Parnell warrants an exception. As a regular customer, I've spent $700 in the past few months alone on books, stationery, and gifts—not including NZ Post services. It appears to be run by a family - the father and daughter are delightful and welcoming.
Today, I needed to post a parcel and purchase books and chocolates. The parcel required just a small piece of sellotape to secure a corner. The woman (am assuming the mother in the family) behind the counter was visibly unhappy, body language was unwelcoming. My simple request for a sliver of sellotape certainly put me on the receiving end of her rudeness.
With two books, the parcel, and chocolates from the counter in hand, I politely asked for a small piece of tape. Instead of offering assistance, she pointed to a sign stating, "No sellotape, no pens—bring your own." I completely understand policies around random requests from persons posting parcels - their need for marker pens, sellotape etc, but given that I was a well-recognized, repeat customer actively making multiple purchases—not someone randomly off the street—her response was unprofessional, her gestures and tone were unnecessarily rude.
So, I returned the $80 worth of books to the shelves, put the $20 chocolates back in their box on the counter, skipped the postal service, and walked out—never to return.
As a once-loyal customer, I won’t be coming back—taking with me the $2,200+ in annual revenue this Paper Plus/NZ Post could have benefited from (last year's total). What sets great retailers apart? Is it their culture - lack of being raised with NZ's can-do attitude? Their approach to customer service? Perhaps the difference lies in whether they embrace a customer-first mindset or simply see service as an inconvenience. The latter most definitely was the experience delivered by this franchisee.
25 March 2025
Unprompted review