Shirin Delsooz

My Life Adventures and Thoughts

Banana Republic forgot ‘u’

I was passing by Banana Republic at Yorkdale Mall the other day (Toronto, Ontario CANADA) and was dismayed to see a lack of the letter “u” in the word “colour” posted on their display. It may seem like a small error, but its errors like these that make me feel like these companies have no respect for the country they are doing business in.  I assume it’s an issue of time constraints. It’s easier to smear American marketing around the world rather than taking the time to develop sensitivities around the communities they make money in. I e-mailed them this post. I hope that might be some sort of impetus for change. I will keep you posted.

* Update:

Hello Banana Republic,

I noticed that your recent display in CANADA didn’t include the ‘u’ in
colour (the Canadian way of spelling). It may seem like a small error,
but such errors just show the disregard you have for the country you are
doing business in. I wrote about this on my blog, and I will be happy to
write a happy ending to this situation.

http://www.vanessadelsooz.ca

Response:

On Tue, May 11, 2010 at 1:54 PM, BananaRepublic.com Customer Service <custserv@bananarepublic.com> wrote:

Dear BananaRepublic.com Customer,

Thank you for your comments regarding the use of the word “color” in our
store displays.  Please be assured, it is never our intent to cause any
offense.   We appreciate the time you’ve taken to contact us to share
your thoughts.  Please be assured, we have forwarded your comments on to
our marketing team,  as customer feedback is an important consideration
when planning future marketing materials.  Again, we do apologize and
appreciate the time you have taken to share your comments.

We appreciate your business and look forward to shopping with you again
soon.

If you have further questions or concerns, please feel free to call us
at 1-888-BR-STYLE, and follow the prompts to share your store
experience. We are available Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to
9:00 p.m. and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Please note all hours are
indicated in Eastern Time.

Sincerely,

Jennie
Customer Service Consultant

Drying My Hands in the Public Arena – the Environmentally Friendly Way

I was at Dora Keogh’s Pub the other day, puzzled at their hand drying system. I discovered this contraption in their washroom to be one of the most brilliant and efficient  way of drying hands in a public washroom. Its a reusable towel with a rolling system. After you dry your hands on this towel, you roll it down and a fresh clean space becomes available for the next person. After the roll is done, the owner will provide a freshly washed new towel roll, and the cycle continues. Here is a visual break down.

Step 1. Confront the contraption.

Step 2. Dry your hands.

Step 3. Roll it down for the next person to use.

For more information on where you can acquire this towel dispenser, check out http://www.darmanco.com/papertowel.asp. Encourage your local businesses to implement this brilliant idea into their washroom facility!

Nygard. Why did they work for him?

I applaud the CBC’s fifth estate for their work and courage in exposing Peter Nygard. During and after the recording of the show, he has been actively suing the CBC and the interviewees. It’s not easy to tackle on a guy that is one of the top 100 richest Canada.

My question is, how did he get there in the first place? He couldn’t amass a fortune of $817 million alone. Who were the employees that submitted to his treatment to boost him up to his fortunes? In Canada? Why did his employees put up with what they claim to have their pays docked and being routinely harassed? Why did the aspiring “models” stick around after they claimed to realize they were duped into prostitution? He’s been charged in the past, why haven’t more people spoken out against him?

I am not impressed with the people who got him there. McKeown raised the question to one of his disgruntled employees who said in her defense that she was really financially strapped and had no choice but to work for him. Did she really have no other choice? I realize finding a job isn’t easy, but maintaining your dignity isn’t either. Whether you are angered or apathetic to the story, I think the Nygard story serves as a lesson on how successful a person can be at the expense of push overs.

You can view the piece the fifth estate did on nygard here. http://www.cbc.ca/video/#/ID=1464891175

You can also join the Boycotting Peter Nygard facebook group here: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=114918605200938&ref=search&sid=48301978.3364622229..1&v=info#!/group.php?gid=114918605200938&ref=ts

And you can also just boycott his clothes. But to be honest, I’ve never heard of it until I saw the documentary.