POWER TO THE PEOPLE--AGAINST the BAD BARNES & NOBLES

HERE'S AN EMAIL I WROTE
CHECK LAURIE & STEVE'S BLOGS FOR MORE INFO
WRITE YOUR OWN EMAIL TO B&N HERE AND STOP THE MADNESS!!! C'MON PEEPS, UNITE!!!

To Whom It May Concern:

I was recently saddened and shocked to hear about the treatment of a knitting group who used to meet regularly at your Barnes & Nobles located at 301 South Hills Village, Pittsburgh, PA. It appears for months, the manager as well as a regional manager have been unkind to this group and finally informed them they were "removed from their schedule."

I know several of these group members and find this puzzling and outrageous at the same time. While my schedule does not allow me to attend the group, I certainly shop in this store, buying knitting magazines and books along with other books to read and gift items for the people I love in my life. I saddens me to know the group's attempts to resolve any problems are not being met by people who are paid good money by your company to keep customers happy. What is the function of management if not to see that business continues to thrive and that customers keep returning? This group is not a motley crew of crazed sociopaths who destroy books and furniture, curse loudly and stare at people in rude ways. They are good people who use their hands and time to create beautiful things for family and friends. They even knit things for strangers sometimes. Think of the homeless person keeping warm under a hand-knitted blanket; a cancer patient wearing a snuggly lacy crocheted cap while receiving chemo treatments; preemies wearing little booties on their tiny feet that fit and are soft. These are people who contribute to this earth in ways you may not, who care about life and people and just want to meet with other people who do the same and have a good laugh. They come from their homes where they care for their children to enjoy a night with adults, or come from a hectic job to unwind. They do wonderful things and instead of being repected for this, they were looked down upon and kicked aside.

I wonder why this happened? Why was the space needed? Is there another group now occuppying this time slot? Do other groups continue to meet there? What other groups meet there and when?

It appears in the case of this particular store the management believes in making customes uncomfortable and this presents a dilema for me as a consumer. Sure, if I say I will stop shopping at Barnes & Noble, you may not care, may see it as a drop in the bucket. But I do have a blog and will post this information there. I belong to some webrings involving other knitters and the occasional non-knitter even looks at it now and again. This letter, thanks to modern technology, will reach thousands of knitters, crocheters, crafters, musicians, artists not to mention vegans and pagans. The message will grow: Barnes & Nobles cares not for the little folk. They only like for you to come in, drop the money down and be on your way. Which is fine, but you shouldn't tell groups they can meet there in the first place, then begin playing the "let's replace comfortable furniture with uncomfortable folding chairs and see if they stop showing up" gam e, followed by telling the group as they are meeting collectively they are no longer on the schedule. Why not have contacted someone in the group prior to this and discussed any concerns or problems? This is something most reasonable adults do and do well on a daily basis; you could probably find employees who will do this for you. If you need help in this area, I could also be available to you for further consultation.

So what can we do to resolve this? I am hoping for a reply regarding this matter and feel the group deserves an apology. I will be very fair about this matter and will not only post this letter on my blog, but will also post your reply. That way you have a chance to assure the general public at large that you are indeed a caring company who does believe that customers should be treated with respest, as it is the paying customer who provides your bread and butter at days' end. I hope this letter serves to enlighten your company a bit and remind you that you exist because of us, not in spite of us.

Regards,

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