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JigpawsHi all,
I've just made a mistake I'll never make again 
I had a customer who had bought a couple of bears from me and paid for them ok so when she ordered another bear from me I STUPIDLY trusted her enough to send the bear before I had received payment.............BIG MISTAKE!!! That was now over 2 months ago and needless to say I've not had payment for the bear. I've tried emailing her to ask her to either return the bear or send payment but alas there's been no reply!
Please tell me I'm not the only person stupid enough to have made this kind of mistake!!
It's really disappointing when people you thought you could trust let you down 
Hugs
Janice
FenBeary FolkOh how awful, I have been bought up to do unto other as you would have done to yourself.
So in answer to your question NO you are not stupid I would have done the same and seen the collector as a friend and as such offered trust :hug:
Take heart I am a great believer in "what comes around goes around" :hug: :hug:
Posts: 8,574Awww Janice,
Good golly I am sorry this has happened to you. I imagine you are feeling very let down and hurt, and worse, it makes you less trusting again. Shame on that "buyer"!
OK, what's done is done, you have very very sweet bears 
and I am sure someone will want the next creation off the presses, and you are right, you wont ever make that mistake again. 
If you are like me you will certainly make others in the future. No shortage of goofs for us to blunder into, right? 
Others here have made the same mistake.....so have no fear on that point, my dear, and just chalk it up to experience. And try not to think about the lost revenue... 
And now? Back to work for both of us.....your next customer will be much nicer.
gollyhugs
dilu
I have never had that happen but once I trusted a woman who'd just had a cut and colour in the salon...which was £80 odd...to nip to the bank ..and pf course she did a runner, never seen again.
I hate that kind of dishonesty..you live and learn!!
JigpawsThank you ladies :hug: :hug:
I think I just feel more let down because we had been emailing each other fairly regularly since she bought the first bear from me so I did regard her as a friend (all be it a cyber friend). I know she definately got the bear ok as she emailed me when she got him to say he had arrived ok and that she was thrilled with him!!
I'm not going to dwell on it too much.....what's done is done, it's not the end of the world. I guess I just wanted to let off a bit of steam and see if I was the only person foolish enough to have had this happen to them!!
So thanks again for listening ladies, I really appreciate it 
Hugs
Janice
Bears by EdieOh Janice, I am so sorry to hear this has happened to you. I don't think you were stupid at all - just very trusting - and I have done the same thing many, many times but fortunately I've never been stung for it. Can you get the lady's phone number and give her a call - sometimes things are easier to sort out in person than through email. Do you know for sure if the bear did arrive at it's destination??? - you might be able to make an insurance claim if it didn't arrive????
Posts: 280Perhaps you could try sending her a letter through the regular postal system. While it seems like a stretch, she might be having computer issues. My own computer completely died without warning before Christmas. I ended up having to replace it, but it was close to a month before we were up and running again. Now, I find myself back in the same situation. The "windows" program crashed on my NEW computer last weekend. They still have it, and I'm at the mercy of my husband's laptop.
I had an "issue" with a collector, who promised to make payments on a bear that she took with her at the show. I had done business with her in the past, and felt she would pay. After unanswered phone calls and e-mails, she suddenly appeared when I threatened to have her served with a collection notice by the sherrif's department. I doubt she will buy from me again, but at least she knows where I stand on making payment.
Best of luck.
Luann
Past Time BearsYES, it has happened to me. This collector came to my house, picked out several bears to buy and paid with a check. Okay. Then she discovered "Lexie" - the first bear of mine that ever received a magazine competition nomination (TOBY, back in 2001) and wanted her. I had a show coming up soon and asked if I could take Lexie to the show, then mail her to the collector when I returned. She paid me with another check and I said I wouldn't cash it until she received the bear. Okay. The first check cleared, but the Lexie check bounced. Insufficient funds, the bank said. I called the collector several times, not ever getting an answer. Left messages each time. Then I wrote her a letter asking her to either make the check good or return the bear . . . still no response. THEN I sent her a certified letter saying if she didn't pay for the bear, I would take her to small claims court. No response. I did a search on her via the internet and found that she had several addresses, so guess she was not new to the scamming business. Didn't follow through on taking her to court because it would've cost much more than the bear. All of that took place over a year's time. So, Janice, I know exactly how you feel. I was horrified and disillusioned that there could be dishonest teddy bear people. Teddies are comforting, warm, and cuddly - but some people who like them aren't. Then there was the "Make-A-Wish Foundation" scam which involved the FBI - but that's another story. Janice, just use the situation as a learning experience . . . and you are NOT stupid! :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug:
Strange BearsJanice
I also have my trust abused but I have also had nice experiences. I had a similar experience of not being paid and after I had written it off and mumbled horrible things about the person she came up to me at show in a wheel chair. She had been in a car accident and been seriously injured. As a collector who spent way more than hubby realised on bears, she wasn't game to ask him to send me the cheque and had to wait she could see me again to fix it. Her husband didn't open her personal email address during this time and I admit I didn't send her a snail mail nor did I phone after hours but during the day at various hours as I knew she didn't work. I must admit I assumed she had moved or was using the answering machine to avoid me. The massages I left were 'call me types nothing about owing for a bear.
So I suppose what I'm trying to say is that you may not have been so silly to trust her, circumstances you don't know about may have happened. Learn from this about how to protect your business financially but don't beat yourself up about being a nice and trusting person as these qualities may not have been abused.
bearhugs
Aww I'm so sorry!! I had this happen with a swap - so I kind of understand how you feel
The thing is that 99% of collectors are thoroughly honest and open ...but like in everything you will get the odd one. Just 'coz one dog bit you doesn't mean they all will...I just think for those of us who have experienced this of kind thing have been unlucky , we need to set rules we stick to, that way no-one gets hurt.
Sorry to hear you've been had. How rotten.
I learned a long time ago to always receive payment before sending the bear ... it's a good idea to make sure the cheques clear first too and that can take up to ten days. Even now, with customers I've been dealing with for a long time, I still request payment up front and stick with that rule for everyone ... it's fairer to all collectors that way too.
I've had a few occasions when customers have let me down with instalment payments and had I sent the bear on trust, I would have been caught out financially, fortunately I've never yet lost a bear.
I do remember one very sad tale - several years ago, I had a customer who ordered quite a few big bears over a period of time and then kept ordering more ... they were all paid for prior to delivery, but I was getting a bit concerned about the situation because it seemed way outside the norm. Then the most recent bear arrived back at my door with a note from the lady's husband. The note asked me to accept the return as his wife had an obsessive shopping problem and they were faced with losing their home as a result. I phoned the man and he was absolutely distraught - told me his wife had been admitted to a psychiatric hospital and he was currently returning all deliveries. I accepted the return, refunded that payment and agreed not to accept any more orders from his wife in future ... I didn't hear from her for a long time after that, but eventually, she did try to order again.
KezjoyKritterzthat is annoying. I have heard that a way to get payment from some people is to send them a bill with a photograph attached. The photo can be your kids or pets sitting folornly around an empty dinner bowl saying something about how by not paying what you owe, youre taking the food from your kids or pets mouths..apparently it works on a lot of people to see what it is they are actually doing by not paying and makes you seem like a real person..i read about it in a business marketing book..of course its not going to work on everyone..but its worth a try..if you don't have kids or pets..you could do one of hubby..or do a search for a similar picture..hope that helps
Kerrilyn
Teddybears SwedenMaybe something has happend to her? I have been in the same situation. The person just stopped answering my emails and I was very crossed. But after a while, I got the news that the person had ended up in the hospital!! I felt very stupid
I hope it turns out well for you!
Posts: 8,574Oh Paula, that poor hubby and his OCD wife.....they do that, biopolars do it and so do border line personality disorders do it as well....sigh
...sad story.....
'dilu
