gl.

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Saturday, May 06, 2006

 
10:05 PM: bittersweet [#] [2]

i cannot begin to tell you how much i loved saint cupcake, how many special events i've introduced their cupcakes to, how often i've referred them & praised them to others. i was horrified when they were robbed and have always thought they represented the best sort of portland entrepreneur. and how moist the cupcake, how luscious the icing, how cute the dot! the cupcake i adore. the company, however, is disturbing me, as its blog has become increasingly shrill and defensive.

in "i like mine without sprinkles," the owners equate suggestions with complaints and kindly tell us to shut the fuck up. as small business owners, it boggles me they think suggestions like "maybe you could keep a portion of your amazing cupcakes sprinkle-less" is somehow asking them to become corporate monsters. in fact, i suggest exactly the opposite: if you're just in it for our money, then you've become a corporation.

and it's not even like the requests have been mean, which i would be terribly sensitive to, and if i had sensed that i would have more understood this hugely defensive reaction. but it's been very gentle: "i really, really, really like your cupcakes and regularly buy them. you have a blog, which indicates you want to communicate with us. it'd be extra super cool if some of the cupcakes didn't have sprinkles on them, because sprinkles just don't do it for me. it's not like i'll stop buying your cupcakes; it's just a suggestion!" but instead saint cupcake snarks, "we can see right through complaints that are dressed up like suggestions."

you're not failing, saint cupcake, it's just feedback. when anything other than praise is considered a negative suggestion, then you might be a little overly sensitive. sort of like the bush administration. dissent is patriotic! if people make suggestions to you every day, maybe it's because they care about your future. LET US CARE! LET US WANT MORE rather than requiring us to line up single file, take our cupcake without looking you in the eye and meekly say yes, miss & thank you, miss. please don't implode, saint cupcake. please treat us at least as well as Pix or Sahagún or Simpatica. pretend we mean something to you. you say you love us but your actions are clear.

update may16: "devil's food"
update may22: "sweet tooth"

Comments:

oh my GOODNESS, i just went over and read their blog and now i'm never going there again. so sad.

my cupcakes were better anyway. though not as convenient.

# posted by  Anonymous : Tue May 09, 08:59:00 PM PDT

 

i'm torn because i still really, really love their cupcakes. i want them to succeed -- and i wish they wanted us to want them to succeed. but their attitude has soured, and if all they want is my money, they can't have my loyalty and goodwill, too.

i KNOW they're overworked & victims of their own popularity. but i'm sure there's a business rule somewhere about how to handle such things (add more bakers, raise the prices to decrease demand, etc). i'm sure one of the rules ISN'T to make your customers feel badly about buying what you're making.

# posted by  gl. : Wed May 10, 12:18:00 AM PDT

 

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