What It Means to Be Going Out of Business
The realities of closing our store are complicated, but this week, I'm going to focus on what you need to know about our shop and how this will affect our business as we prepare for the inevitable.
There are many changes we've had to make to our store policies to accommodate the amount of work that needs to be done and the increased customer traffic to our store in San Antonio and to our website:
Unfortunately, it is no longer feasible for us to guarantee shipping or delivery times - we will still send emails confirming that your order has shipped along with the tracking numbers for your packages, but our promise to fill orders within 1 business day isn't one we can keep for certain. Our closing sale began only two days ago, and we have been quite busy ever since, so schedules are something that we're having to negotiate based upon availability of in-store staff.
All sales are final, and all items are being sold "as is." We will not be accepting returns, exchanges, or refunds. Sadly, we will also be unable to give partial shipping refunds. We have returned all of our online merchandise to our regular retail prices, but we have not increased costs for shipping. We know shipping is very high, and we will not be charging more for shipping and handling services; however, we will not be giving refunds to domestic or international customers, regardless of the actual shipping costs.
Our "billable" and "dimensional" shipping weights have not changed, and some of them, though seeming quite high, will fall far below the actual cost of postage, and some will be charged what will turn out to be more than actual postage. We are taking significant losses in order to clear as much of our inventory as possible. In the case of most orders, the coupon code will provide a discount that more than covers shipping charges or their excess, so technically, shipping should be a non-issue and in a great majority of orders, enough should remain of the discount to still benefit customers with a great deal on our wide variety of items. We apologize for this change to a policy we have always been proud to honor, but this is just one of many policies that do not fit with the harsh realities of going out of business.
Our policy from now on is that since you are able to review your purchase total, including shipping (and applicable tax if you live in Texas), then you are agreeing to buy and pay for the items in your cart without condition. The fact that we are closing and hosting a storewide clearance sale is plastered all over our news section and online shop, so it is also presumed that you know the circumstances of the discount and the disclaimers that accompany it.
Furthermore, we can no longer accept layaways or hold items. Everything is first come, first served. Though we will still be doing our best to maintain our online inventory, updating as often as possible, we cannot guarantee that an item purchased online will still be in stock when we receive your order. This is not necessarily because of lack of attention to the website; we will still be updating it from our in-store inventory and monitoring activity on it closely. But the clearance sale has attracted a lot of attention to our physical store; so, with higher volumes of sales, the odds are higher than even at Christmas time that we will sell something in store at the same time that someone buys it off the website before we have a chance to remove that item from our online shop inventory. In this case, we will of course cancel the order and refund your payment in full - this is the only situation in which we will grant a refund.
Also, we will most likely not have the opportunity to respond to requests for more photos of items, nor will we be likely to answer questions that require a lot of investigation, such as the nature of certificates of authenticity and other materials. We will absolutely try to respond to any such inquiries, but we cannot say with any certainty whether or not we will be able to answer your questions, least of all in a timely manner.
Likewise, we cannot guarantee any item will come with its original box, but as always, we will ensure your item is packed well and shipped safely. Again, all sales are "as is," regardless of condition, certificates, boxes, or any other circumstances. Every single item on the website is being offered at a discount that would more than account for any such discount we might have given based on condition or lack of original materials. The coupon code located on the banner above every page of the online shop provides a discount that exceeds what we normally offer for damaged or incomplete collectibles.
Currently, the plan is to keep the online shop running even after our brick-and-mortar location is closed. We will keep unsold merchandise online for as long as we can in hopes of clearing whatever remains in stock after May. We have already changed the shopping cart to accept only PayPal payments - we cannot accept credit cards anymore. The checkout process is simplified by the fact that you do not need to have a PayPal account to pay for your order using PayPal. Simply click PayPal to pay, and you will see the option to login, create an account, or checkout as a guest of PayPal. The system is safe, secure, and well-guarded against fraud. Response time to online purchases will drop off dramatically after our physical location is closed. This cannot be helped, as all of us have to find new jobs and will have new challenges and duties ahead of us.
We will give further details as needed.
And again, the coupon code can be found on the banner above every page in the online shop. If you do not enter this code, you will not receive a discount, and discounts will not be applied retroactively for an order that has been processed and paid. So please make sure you have the coupon code ready before proceeding to checkout.
Thank you for your understanding, patience, and support in this tumultuous time.
We welcome feedback on this article! Feel free to email us at monarch@dollsdolls.com, or call to speak with our in-store doll blogger Mary at 1-800-648-3655.
Another Doll Store Closing Its Doors
Even though Monarch Collectibles has managed to keeps its doors open through a harsh economic climate and the rapid decline of the doll industry, we regret to announce that we will be closing our doors forever in May. As we begin our Going Out of Business sale on February 1, I'm taking this opportunity to reflect on the path that led us here.
If you do a search for doll store closings, you'll find many websites and news articles detailing the last days at their physical location, and in some cases, a transition to conducting business exclusively online. The circumstances surrounding the decision to close a store are usually the same, if not identical - retirement, the rise of the Internet, the fall in demand for dolls, and the reality of today's economy as consumers cut back on spending. These are problems the collectibles industry is suffering universally.
First, we have the obvious, which is that small businesses with lots of overhead - our store is 6,000 square feet - are not surviving the competition with e-commerce stores with little to no overhead expenses. A brick-and-mortar location needs employees, and we run on a minimal staff of three; it also needs electric, heat, air conditioning, and water - all additional bills that Internet businesses do not have since they are usually run from home. These expenses overextend a small business like ours. When you can barely meet your monthly utilities, it's impossible to offer free shipping or deep discounts like many of the most successful Internet merchants. Even though so much of our stock is hard to find elsewhere these days, it's still very difficult to compete with the overcrowded online market.
Then, there's the fact that while many people visit and love our store, only a small percentage of those who come in actually buy something, and usually their purchases are within a tight budget, as is the case for just about everyone these days. People are spending less, and if customers are buying, they're cutting corners around every possible penny. Again, we cannot compete. Dolls, plates, and miniatures can run collectors quite a lot of money, and the first piece of any budget to be trimmed is often hobbies. But in a grander sense, collectible dolls along with limited edition plates and bears have been declining as a pastime for years; this has cost the world many of the stores that specialized in catering to those collectors. This is perhaps one of the biggest reasons a lot of doll companies and manufacturers have stopped showing at IDEX and other trade shows; doll stores and traditional merchants such as ourselves are disappearing, and it no longer makes sense for them to attend for the few doll retailers that remain.
Last but not least, many of the business owners who have been in the doll and collectibles business have been doing it for decades, and like our owner, Sandra Bradley, they are ready to retire. With interest waning and the revolutionary effect the Internet has had on sales and consumer trends, the business isn't what it used to be. Our owner has talked about the times when it used to be a lot of fun. It was simple too - buyers wanted dolls, and came in to get them. Now, there are all kinds of merchant processing fees that are constantly being raised as banks try to regain momentum by charging the small business more. Shipping incentives to small businesses aren't much better. And now, there are hundreds of setbacks that can befall you in a global online market where fraud and thieves are completely anonymous and have discovered new ways to scam small businesses with no recourse.
The world is changing, and so goes the doll world with it. We have done our best to keep up with it, but like so many others before us, we feel this store has come to its natural end. We have loved being here to bring dolls to generation after generation of children and adults, but now we too must succumb to the reality that has claimed so many others.
Starting February 1, we will begin our closing sale, and we hope you will take advantage of our storewide clearance. Please pass the word along to everyone you know who might be interested. And if you see anything on our website that you would like, our advice is to grab it while you can, because once it's gone, it's gone. We will not be restocking, accepting any layaways or holds, and everything sold must be taken home or shipped immediately.
Going Out of Business Sale Details:
http://www.dollsdolls.com/news/going_out_of_business_sale/
So what does this mean for the future of our online shop and remaining merchandise? The website will still be maintained until everything is sold. More on that in next week's blog.
We welcome feedback on this article! Feel free to email us at monarch@dollsdolls.com, or call to speak with our in-store doll blogger Mary at 1-800-648-3655.
Going Out of Business Sale
After 29 years, Monarch Collectibles will be closing its doors in May. Starting February 1, we are having a huge "going out of business" sale - everything in store and online will be 30% off! Store fixtures are also available for sale and will be available for pickup in June. Thank you to everyone for being a part of our lives; we have all thoroughly enjoyed being a part of yours.
Netiquette for the Doll Enthusiast
Springing from last week's New Year's Resolutions, this week, we have some ideas about how your net etiquette, or "netiquette," could make or break your experience in today's online community of doll artists and collectors.
In my previous article, we discussed the online buying and selling virtue of patience - a quality that it's worth exploring more here, because as I said, it goes a long way. But how? What does being patient prove? What could possibly be gained from being patient in a situation where you are upset or uneasy? It can be very difficult, but when you exercise the graciousness and consideration that a little bit of applied patience will lend you, clearer heads will prevail. All of us have seen countless arguments and squabbles in the doll community, in groups and on message boards - at doll meets and conventions even.
Surely, we've all participated to some degree, even if just to act as peacemakers or try to be the levelheaded voice of reason and impart our patience to others when their impatience with one another reaches volcanic peaks. Still, bouts of verbal judo ramble on, often deteriorating to slam contests that sixth graders would deem beneath them - yet carrying the same kind of language and exhibiting all the communication skills of a text-obsessed, embittered tween.
What does this say about us? What does this say about dolls and the people who make or collect them? What kind of impression does it leave upon us, our loved ones, and newcomers to the hobby? We get disenchanted, our loved ones are convinced we're wasting our attention on being part of something that is mired in drama and grief, and newbies grow discouraged or lurk in silence for fear of tripping a virtual landmine. When did a hobby like doll collecting become so riddled with unrest? Such are the things that make dolls look ugly - far beyond any bad paint job ever could.
From a much more practical and less abstract standpoint, common courtesy goes a long way when investing oneself in any transaction as well. When one person keeps their wits and calm head, there's little room for interpretation if the situation turns sketchy or hostile. Now, there's no switch you can throw to turn off your emotions - you will be angry, outraged, frustrated, and hurt, specifically when something goes wrong with a transaction or someone seems to be doing something wrong to you. There is nothing wrong with feeling betrayed or infuriated. But when communicating with someone, even if you suspect them of trying to cheat you, the best thing you can do is respond firmly but politely with patience and maturity.
Do this if for no other reason than because it will make all the difference if a moderator, mediator, or administrator becomes involved. We've heard more than a few stories where a transaction went bad, and the victimized party maintained their civility while the party accused of pulling something shady went on a defensive tear or became belligerent and unfriendly in no uncertain terms. Every single time, the intervening body, be it eBay, PayPal, or forum administration sided with the one who kept their cool and handled the situation well despite the circumstances. It really does pay to be the bigger person.
Have you ever heard this expression? "Never argue with an idiot, because someone will come along and wonder which of you is the idiot." Chances are that you have heard this gem or some variation of it. Closer to its original version, it's about being dragged down to the level of a fool, leaving you indistinguishable from their limited degree of intelligence and infinite childishness. There's an insurmountable, yet absurdly simple kind of truth to this. Grace under pressure and in the face of ungraciousness is an admirable quality, and no one respects it more than when e-commerce is involved. As I pointed out last week, there's no looking anyone in the eye or shaking someone's hand online, so when you do business on the Internet, you must be prepared to put your best face forward. In this case, you are what you communicate.
If you are consistently hotheaded when it comes to questions, criticism, or trouble, then your character becomes one of ill temperament to those who interact or transact with you. When you allow pettiness, jealousy, or aggression to get the better of you and dictate how you react to bad situations or even someone attacking or cheating you, then no matter the catalyst, you lose credibility, and you may become liable for any problems since you seemingly cannot approach them with any tact or thought.
Don't give anybody the opportunity to wonder if you're the idiot. Walk away, take some time out and step back for a while, or just take a deep breath and come at trouble with a resonant but mature and patient response. Time and time and time again, I can almost guarantee that the one who exercises reason will be the victor rather than the one who relies on slight of tongue. Remember one of the lessons we learned watching Wile E. Coyote: the only thing a short fuse does is blow up in your face.
So next time you're disputing the description in someone's reborn auction listing or trying to explain that you cannot take less than your selling price for your limited edition ABJD, remember that every message, word choice, and the person reflected therein means the difference between being a respected and trusted member of the doll community and being perceived as someone who is unreliable, flies off the handle, and has an unfavorable consumer reputation. The view from the higher road is more than just personally rewarding - it leads to more business and better business standing all around.
The majority of people active within the online doll community already knows and understands these principles. But even the best of us get caught up in the need to argue back or fight for the integrity of our position, product, or practices. Of course, I’m not suggesting that we all need to be perfect, but we do need to be understanding and mature; patience, grace, kindness, and consideration will follow. My intention here isn't to lecture or preach - just to suggest that our community, and in turn our hobby, is better for us being better at participating in it.
We welcome feedback on this article! Feel free to email us at monarch@dollsdolls.com, or call to speak with our in-store doll blogger Mary at 1-800-648-3655.
