A great customer experience

I've been known to complain loudly when I feel I've had a bad experience with a retailer or service organization, so I think I should probably say something when I have a great experience with a company.

For the past couple of years, I've done the PR for the charity golf tournament run by former Wild (now Dallas Stars) player Mark Parrish. At last year's tournament, the gift bag for participants included a pair of shoes from one of our sponsors, Crocs.

Crocs have been around for a few years, and are the rubbery, vented, one-piece shoes (For those of you unfamiliar, here's a picture) that I always thought looked kind of goofy. Actually, I still think they look kind of goofy, but I've gotten over it. The first time I tried them on, I was amazed at how comfortable they were. I've gotten in the habit of wearing them whenever I think I can get away with it. They make a great summer shoe, when you can wear them with shorts, or even with a pair of khakis for a picnic or other casual event.

A couple of weeks ago, I was carrying some things down a flight of stairs and the strap got caught on something along the wall. When I tugged my foot loose, the plastic rivet that holds the Croc strap to the shoe broke and the strap popped loose on one end. I was upset at the thought of having to actually go purchase another pair.

But first I went to the internet to look for a solution. As with so many other things (car repairs, recipes, golf course recommendations, etc.) chances are that someone out there has had the same problem and decided to write about it. I assumed someone would have figured out how to repair or replace a Croc rivet.


What I was pleased to learn was that the good folks at Crocs were WAY ahead of me. Turns out that if you break a Croc rivet - or even if you break the Croc strap - all you have to do is visit their web site at http://www.crocs.com/, give them your style, color and size, and they will send you replacements absolutely FREE!

So I keyed in my information, and a few days later a package arrived at my house with a dozen replacement rivets. The new one snapped right into place, and my Crocs are good as new.

I also learned from the web site that Crocs is now producing a Crocs golf shoe. Same comfort, same style, with golf spikes set into the soles. Thanks to their great product - and even greater customer service - I'm ready to order a new pair today.