I am a lucky bride from Penang that married to a good husband, but unluckily signed up a bridal shop services that make us tired and busy in wedding preparation.
This blog is mainly telling about my story of bridal shop services, i signed up a wedding package with a bridal shop in Penang, Malaysia.
Recommended link : Sin Chew
You may see the current news with pictures here :
http://search.sinchew-i.com/node/336468?k=阮慧玲
http://search.sinchew-i.com/node/336235?k=阮慧玲
http://www.kwongwah.com.my/news/2009/05/18/109.html
http://www.guangming.com.my/node/48194?tid=7
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Tuesday/National/2560450/Article/index_html (Note for the news from New Straits Times - I DID NOT say "I was happy with the tribunal's decision". The reported story line is mostly different from my story.)
If you cant access above direct links, below links are my blog pages which copied from the above newspapers' article without pictures with faster access: (Recommended link: Sin Chew )
Kwong Wah , Guang Ming , New Straits Times , Sin Chew
This is my story to deal with this Penang bridal shop :YY - only a story name to represent the bridal shop.
XX - only a story name to represent the staff from YY who served us all the time.
We / our - me and my husband
Bride side wedding day : 2 May 2009, Penang, Malaysia.
Groom side wedding day : 10 May 2009, Kuantan, Malaysia.
1. Before we sign the PO,
YY verbally agreed to email us all shooting poses for us to choose in China. But after photos taken which we need to paid 90% of total amount in photo taking phase,
YY rejected the verbal agreement to email us the shooting poses in small pixel, and insisted we need to go the shop to choose. This change make me need to stay back to choose photos ALONE, this is a hard job for me, as i can't get any opinion from my husband cause he needed to go back to China to work. There is meaningless as photos for a couple only can be chosen by one partner and another half has no chance to choose.
2. YY amended PO items after we signed/paid the PO. In our next visit to YY (after the PO paid / signed) to choose gowns, the staff - XX asked me to give her my PO, this is my mistake to give her my PO.
The amended PO reduce 50% of thanks card copy.3. Based on PO, we supposed to get 120 shooting poses, and we eligible to own 100 poses from the 120 shooting poses. But in album / frame design phase, YY just notified us that our frames' & thanks card poses must same as albums' 47 poses, which meant that
we eligible to own 100 poses but we only can use same 47 poses for all printed albums, frame photos, cards. Meaning that albums are entitled to 47 poses, and frame photos' poses & thanks cards' poses must same as albums' poses.
* Some readers curious that why we can get 100poses for RM3K package. Yes, this is true that our package entitled to 100poses which is stated clearly on PO (74 poses in 72dpi and 26 poses in 300dpi). This was offered by XX when she tried to persuade us to sign PO and pay deposit.
4. We emailed YY the chosen 47poses for albums on 25 Feb, and asking YY when we can see the design review. We kept on emailed/sms/called to request for a "date" of design review start from 25 Feb, and we only able to get their reply more than half month later. Initially XX told my husband that YY needs 2 months for design (remark: the delivery date will be very closed to our wedding day, 2 May). After hard request from us, finally YY agreed to email us design review before 25 March. During 20 - 23 March, I emailed YY for reminder of Design Review. But unfortunately, we still not get any design review email from YY on 25 March which promised by YY. Thus, we were so nervous as our wedding day was getting nearer which we have short of time to do the amendment on design if the design is not fulfill our requirement. My friends & counsins & husband called XX, and tried to call YY shop phone, they asked to talk to YY boss/manager, but the receiver refused to pass the phone line to her boss/manager, and just cut off our call.
5. Finally we got the design files from YY in end of March which is NOT follow our requirement which we sent earlier in end of Feb, i had properly done our design requirement with Photoshop in Jpeg files and email to them to follow our requirement. But they did not follow, thus after receiving of the design review file, i took 2 days to do design manual (step by step on how to do our design in Photoshop) and email YY. I thought this is a clear and fast way which YY designer can clearly understand our needs and do it with directly follow our guidance. Then, this will make us and YY easier which we do not need to have second review as everything can be settle in first review. I tried my best effort to minimize mis-communication in design requirement, and tried to make job faster and easier. In fact, I only have 5 set design in each album, another 5 set without design which is only a copy and paste work needed from YY.
6. XX emailed to persuade me for additional payment for full design on each album in Feb and March (YY has time to do marketing but no time to reply my email on design review date). We decided not to pay any extra money for extra service as it will out of our budget. Thus, to ensure the albums can be nicely viewed (photo is either in landscape or portrait. if an album without design got landscape + portrait poses, then viewer need to turn album to see photos), we decided to categorise our poses into two groups, landscape poses in 18R album and portrait poses in 11R album. We emailed this request together with proper design file to YY in end of Feb. and we found that first design review files from YY is not follow our request. Thus, I took 2 days to do again the files in actually proportional size and email YY again. YY did not feedback to us for our 1st design files (Feb) or 2nd design files (March). I requested my friend, lg who is in Malaysia helped to call XX (as lg also getting the same package from YY and served by XX) to request for second design review date. XX just notified us that YY cannot deliver 18R in landscape album to us. There is only one month left for our wedding day, we have emailed YY our 18R landscape album request in end of Feb, and YY only notified us that YY cannot deliver this request in end of March after we sent our 2 design files (feb&march) and only after we got friend's help to called XX. What will happen if we did not have a close follow up? Will we only able to know this issue few weeks or few days close to our wedding?
*We insisted 18R album to be landscape layout is due to :
- all our poses that chosen for 18R album are all landscape layout,
- We have angel looks with wings and long-tail's gown which taken more wider space, it will be very messy and definitely design will not be nice if in portrait.
We could not tolerate for this request as we do not want our wedding album in a design that not acceptable by us. The design that given by YY is very simple and could not shows the feel of an image (such as angel should be peaceful feel). We were so sad to see the design for our long-tail gown poses are bound in small boxes (so-called "Index" design), it created a small box and copy&paste a great gown poses into the small box. Our opinion is - this is "Fast and easy" design, Not "simple and nice" design.
7. YY has the right to do marketing to earn more $, but we as consumer has the right to choose not to top up any $. Me and my husband had decided not to pay any extra money for photos. My friend, lg signed the same package with me in this YY, we signed for RM3999 package, in lucky draw, my friend got RM700 discount, thus her package is RM3299, and we got RM600 discount with package price is RM3399. We suspected YY does not have standard definition of PO terms, we compare lg's PO with our PO, we found that even though we have same terms, but what we got is different. My friend got two albums back cover photos(18R+11R) for free (she did not pay for it), and XX asked me for extra RM388 for the same two albums back cover photos (18R+11R).
8. XX tried to persuade us for additional payment for adding poses in albums, she gave me four options which from RM2000++ to RM888, the cheapest is RM888 which has extra 20 poses add in to album and full layout design. XX said if i get this RM888, she will give me FOC for 100poses in 72dpi in CD. I was only interested for full layout design, but not interested on adding poses, and also not interested on the FOC 100 poses. For me, an album with too many poses will be more messy and too small our face. Thus, i requested XX to quote me only full layout design (originally we entitled for 5 set design and 5 set non-design in an album), and XX said RM888 is the best can give to me. There are no other option available cheaper than RM888. While my friend, lg told me that she paid RM398 for [Extra 8 x 12 - 1pc + Frame] + [ 18R + 11R Extra Full Design Add 20 Poses] + FOC View cd (72dpi) Album Photo, this is printed on lg receipt.
We were surprised that why lg can get this best price and we emailed XX for this info, XX insisted that there is different where we can get 40poses for RM888. We are so surprised that YY staff can say something without refer to their earlier quotation, XX was quoted me 20poses for RM888, not 40 poses for RM888. which is the same amount of poses as what lg has in her RM398 package. but XX quoted me higher price(2.23 x layngor price) for same amount of poses. Anyway, the main request from us to XX is the cheapest price for full layout design, we are not interested on additional poses, and XX insisted RM888 is the cheapest option. We were so surprised that such a big $ different in YY pricing standard, and also their staff can change their quote at anytime. I am not sure why we were quoted higher $, maybe my husband looks like a big fish ?
9. In our first visit to YY, YY staff brought us around to show how great YY studio is, how big YY shop is, and also show YY gown room. At that time, YY staff told us that there is only two categories of gown, which our package will get the normal one and may upgrade to another better category if wanted. But when in choosing gowns phase, we just being notified by XX that normal category seperates into another two categories - wedding day category and shooting category. We understand that some gowns are new and might not be encouraged to bring out. But when my husband wanted to use wedding day category for shooting, we were asked to pay extra $. We were scratching our head and really cannot understand that wedding day category which is more risk to take out cannot be used for shooting in studio which is only few hours and less risk. Why did not tell us about these hidden categories before we sign PO?
We signed up YY because we like its photograph, especially the crystal gown, flower girl and angel image. We terminated the PO because we lost confident on YY services.
Can't be deny that YY has good photograph and make-up skill, but what is the point for a good photograph without a good design? The end product - album will not be nice too.
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