My letter to EarthSpeak in Kimberton
To the proprietors of EarthSpeak:
I have been a customer of your store several times and have recommended your store to friends on numerous occasions. However, given my experience in your store today, I will be reevaluating that relationship for the future.
I was grocery shopping at Kimberton Whole Foods, and decided to walk across the street to visit your store for two reasons: to ask if you'd post a flyer for an event, and to shop for a gift. I accidentally left my wallet in the car with my groceries before walking across the street; I didn't realize that until I brought my purchase to the counter. In looking around, I also realized that you don't have a place to post flyers, but still felt it was worth asking. The man at the counter told me that you do provide a community resource book, so I asked if I could leave a flyer in it. He replied, "It depends on what it is."
Before I finish relaying that interaction, please let me explain what my flyer was for, and my experiences elsewhere in the community with it.
The event is a one day Festival Sale of Ten Thousand Villages products being held at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Pottstown. It is a social justice event. As you may know, Ten Thousand Villages sells fair trade housewares, toys, clothing and decorative items. There is very little crossover with the products your store carries. They carry extremely few spiritual items, and those tend to be Christian in nature given their history with the Mennonite church. They carry no books, very few CDs (as far as I recall, only Putamayo, which I have not seen at your store). The few items I might consider to compete with your business would be greeting cards and jewelry - in very different styles, and in both your stores they are a small percentage of the wares.
Kimberton Whole Foods was very happy to post the flyer for me, and I've seen them post flyers for similar events and even businesses in the past. Earthmart in Phoenixville was also happy to post my flyer. Both stores carry a great deal of merchandise similar to Ten Thousand Villages. I would consider both of them, especially Earthmart, to be more clearly competitive with Ten Thousand Villages than EarthSpeak. Yet they both posted my flyer, not merely grudgingly but happily. As has been my experience in this community and elsewhere, the spirit of community support and the promotion of community-held ethical ideals (such as making fairly traded products available) readily trump personal concern. Likewise our UU Fellowship would gladly promote an event or class being held at a place like EarthSpeak, despite the fact that it competes with our own classes and events. These entities know that by participating in a cooperative network of likeminded businesses and community organizations, even if some of them are competitive with their own interest, they build ties of affection and respect that will only benefit them in the present and future.
At EarthSpeak, however, my reception was quite different. Perhaps the cold abruptness of the man's demand, "Depends on what it is!," should have been an early indication. As soon as I pulled out the flyer and he saw the logo, before I could even get the words "Ten Thousand Villages" out of my mouth, let alone "Unitarian Univeralist Fellowship," he proclaimed, "Absolutely not! You're our direct competitor!," and he turned his back on me, while I continued stammering the rest of my explanation.
At that point, I felt like it was providence that led me to forget my wallet - I was certainly glad I had not spent my money in your store that afternoon like I had planned.
I recognize that, in our democratic and capitalist culture, you have every right to protect your interest in this way. I do not contest that right. Having this legal legal right, however, is very different than making the ethical choice to exercise it - especially in such an impolite manner. I, therefore, will be practicing my right to take my money elsewhere in the future.
Tara Boroson
I have been a customer of your store several times and have recommended your store to friends on numerous occasions. However, given my experience in your store today, I will be reevaluating that relationship for the future.
I was grocery shopping at Kimberton Whole Foods, and decided to walk across the street to visit your store for two reasons: to ask if you'd post a flyer for an event, and to shop for a gift. I accidentally left my wallet in the car with my groceries before walking across the street; I didn't realize that until I brought my purchase to the counter. In looking around, I also realized that you don't have a place to post flyers, but still felt it was worth asking. The man at the counter told me that you do provide a community resource book, so I asked if I could leave a flyer in it. He replied, "It depends on what it is."
Before I finish relaying that interaction, please let me explain what my flyer was for, and my experiences elsewhere in the community with it.
The event is a one day Festival Sale of Ten Thousand Villages products being held at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Pottstown. It is a social justice event. As you may know, Ten Thousand Villages sells fair trade housewares, toys, clothing and decorative items. There is very little crossover with the products your store carries. They carry extremely few spiritual items, and those tend to be Christian in nature given their history with the Mennonite church. They carry no books, very few CDs (as far as I recall, only Putamayo, which I have not seen at your store). The few items I might consider to compete with your business would be greeting cards and jewelry - in very different styles, and in both your stores they are a small percentage of the wares.
Kimberton Whole Foods was very happy to post the flyer for me, and I've seen them post flyers for similar events and even businesses in the past. Earthmart in Phoenixville was also happy to post my flyer. Both stores carry a great deal of merchandise similar to Ten Thousand Villages. I would consider both of them, especially Earthmart, to be more clearly competitive with Ten Thousand Villages than EarthSpeak. Yet they both posted my flyer, not merely grudgingly but happily. As has been my experience in this community and elsewhere, the spirit of community support and the promotion of community-held ethical ideals (such as making fairly traded products available) readily trump personal concern. Likewise our UU Fellowship would gladly promote an event or class being held at a place like EarthSpeak, despite the fact that it competes with our own classes and events. These entities know that by participating in a cooperative network of likeminded businesses and community organizations, even if some of them are competitive with their own interest, they build ties of affection and respect that will only benefit them in the present and future.
At EarthSpeak, however, my reception was quite different. Perhaps the cold abruptness of the man's demand, "Depends on what it is!," should have been an early indication. As soon as I pulled out the flyer and he saw the logo, before I could even get the words "Ten Thousand Villages" out of my mouth, let alone "Unitarian Univeralist Fellowship," he proclaimed, "Absolutely not! You're our direct competitor!," and he turned his back on me, while I continued stammering the rest of my explanation.
At that point, I felt like it was providence that led me to forget my wallet - I was certainly glad I had not spent my money in your store that afternoon like I had planned.
I recognize that, in our democratic and capitalist culture, you have every right to protect your interest in this way. I do not contest that right. Having this legal legal right, however, is very different than making the ethical choice to exercise it - especially in such an impolite manner. I, therefore, will be practicing my right to take my money elsewhere in the future.
Tara Boroson