I bought a Breville Blender back in umm I think it was 2006.  It’s been great – a powerful motor that met my needs and hasn’t conked out on me and it came with a quality glass jug.

All was great until a crack developed at the bottom of the jug, you may have seen it if you’ve watched any of my videos as I’ve pointed it out before.  Well recently it finally reached the top and voila – end of the jug’s life.  *Sobs*

I immediately went looking online for where to buy a replacement. Simple.

Ummm no.

It seems that although I have been able to easily buy parts in the past – I had to replace the lid once as the plastic bit accidentally got blended *cough* – it wasn’t going to be that easy this time.

Below is a copy of my correspondence with Breville.

I am NEVER going to buy another Breville product.

It is an interesting lesson for any business though on what bad customer service is, which is why I am sharing my correspondence with you here.

Key points of interest for me are:

• Listen to what the customer is asking for – sometimes this is not immediately obvious
• Acknowledge any concerns they have
• Make it personal – USE THEIR NAME and your name
• Be bothered. If you can’t give them what they want, offer alternatives.  This could be in the form of alternative products, contacts or information. And remember goodwill gestures such as discount vouchers can not only keep your customer but increase the chances of a new sale.
• Be helpful. If they need to contact someone else, if you can, send all the information you have so far to the person they need to be speaking to and let the customer know you have done this so they don’t have to.

If you do all this, you could not only KEEP your existing customer but generate more business and new customers when they tell their network about their experience.

Now on with the Breville Blender jug cautionary tale…

—–Original Message—–

On 7 Jul 2010, at 15:26, Ann Holme wrote:

Good Afternoon,

We are sorry but we do not recognise the model number you have quoted

With Regards

Customer services

—–Original Message—–

From: Sarah Cairncross

Sent: 07 July 2010 16:40

To: Ann Holme

Subject:  Re: breville cbl25 blender

Ok that has got to be one of the worst customer service replies I’ve ever had.

If you don’t know what your own product number is – then please google it

Breville CBL25 comes up in the search.

I’d appreciate a more helpful response as I need a new jug.

Thank you.

Sarah

—–Original Message—–

On 8 Jul 2010, at 09:36, Ann Holme wrote:

Good Morning,

Thank you for the link.    As stated this is not a Breville UK product it is a Breville US product.

All the Breville companies are independent of each other and do not sell the same products.

With Regards

Customer Services

—–Original Message—–

From: Sarah Cairncross

Sent: 08 July 2010 11:39

To: Ann Holme

Subject: Re: breville cbl25 blender

Dear Ann

I am presuming your name is Ann as Ann Holme is coming up in my To: field… I’m not sure though as you keep signing your name as Customer Services, which is a bit odd.

By the way, my name is Sarah.. oh I told you that in my first email didn’t I but you don’t seem to think it would be courteous and friendly to use my name hmm… even more odd.

Well your latest ‘customer service’ response is even more arse than the last one.

I did not give you a link.

You did not ‘state’ that the product is a US one and not a UK one.

I live in the UK.

I bought the blender in the UK.

To be honest I don’t CARE if Breville companies are independent of each other.  I didn’t know this before and knowing it now, makes NO DIFFERENCE.

I am a Breville customer.  I am asking a simple question that would probably not take you that much effort to contact someone to find out the answer for me.

If you are incapable / can’t be bothered to find this information out for me, please give me contact details for someone in your company who can be.

All I want is to find out the cost and how to replace a jug for the Breville CBL25 blender – please help me.

Thank you.

Sarah

—–Original Message—–

On 8 Jul 2010, at 12:54, Ann Holme wrote:

Good Afternoon,

We are sorry but the only thing we can suggest is that you contact askus@brevilleusa.com as stated it is an American product, which we found out by googling the product as you suggested below.

With Regards

—–Original Message—–

From: Sarah Cairncross

Date: 8 July 2010 13:03:39 GMT+01:00

To: Ann Holme

Subject: Re: breville cbl25 blender

Dear Ann

Thank you for completely ignoring my concerns and my request for contact details for someone in your company who can be bothered to help me.

I shall be publishing this ‘customer service’ exchange on my website and investigating who to send my complaint to at Breville.

Regards

Sarah

—–Original Message—–

From: Sarah Cairncross

Sent: 08 July 2010 13:26

To: Press Enquiries

Subject: Fwd: breville cbl25 blender

Dear Breville Press Office

I thought you may be interested in this ‘customer service’ exchange I’ve had.

I’m not impressed.

If I had been that customer service representative I would have:

* used the customer’s name

* used my own name in correspondence

* acknowledged the customer’s concerns

* made some effort to answer the questions

* if the product part could not be replaced, offered an alternative with a discount voucher as a gesture of goodwill

Ann Holme did not care – and that is putting it kindly.

I will be making investigations into who I can bring my complaint to as to say I’m dissatisfied with this ‘service’ would be an understatement.

Regards

Sarah

—–Original Message—–

On 13 Jul 2010, at 16:09, James Sizer wrote:

Dear Ms Cairncross,

I am sorry that you don’t feel that our Customer Service’s response to your enquiry was adequate. Of course we do aim to help customers wherever possible and our Customer Services team has a superb track record and an excellent reputation. I can only apologise that on this occasion you feel that your needs weren’t met, and your comments will be passed on to the relevant members of staff.

However, in this instance our Customer Services representative was correct in her response. The model number you are referring to (CBL25) is indeed a USA model. Breville UK and Breville USA are completely separate organisations with separate products, and separate customer services departments. As such our company is unable to provide a replacement part, and nor would we be in a position to provide a discount voucher in its place. We did not manufacture nor sell this product, and as such are unable to directly assist you in this matter.

If you bought this model in the UK, then it must have been purchased through an importer. May I suggest that you get in touch with the seller and ask what their customer services procedure would be? Alternatively you could directly contact Breville USA at the address we have already provided (AskUs@BrevilleUSA.com). They will be able to tell you how to replace the jug and what cost.

I am sorry that we are unable to help you further, but we simply do not have access to the replacement part you are seeking and therefore the best way we can help is by directing you to Breville USA who I am sure will be able to help you with your enquiry quickly and efficiently.

Kind regards,

James Sizer

Communications Manager

Breville, AWT by Breville, Nicky Clarke, Hinari, Dirt Devil

Pulse Home Products Ltd.

—–Original Message—–

From: Sarah Cairncross

Date: 13 July 2010 17:41:42 GMT+01:00

To: James Sizer

Subject: Re: breville cbl25 blender

Hurrah and thank you for an intelligent response.  It was a shame your customer service representative seemed incapable of giving me a response like this to my initial enquiry and thank you for passing my comments on.

I find it weird though that I can’t get parts when I have done before when I broke the plastic part of the lid about 3 years ago.

Anyway, I am not paying for a glass jug to be delivered from the states if it’s a ridiculous amount of money (probably) but ok, I will contact the stateside company.

If that’s the case then the Breville is going in the recycling and sorry to say I won’t be spending any more money with your company again.

Ever.

Thank you

Sarah

—–Original Message—–

From: Sarah Cairncross

Sent: Tuesday, August 03, 2010 10:04 AM

To: AskUs Breville USA

Subject: breville cbl25 blender

Hi

I’ve been having a real saga trying to find out the cost of a replacement jug for a blender I bought in the UK – a Breville CBL25 – as the original developed a crack which recently made it to the top and promptly fell apart.

As you can see from my email exchanges with the UK Breville company (who I understand are completely separate from yourselves), they advised me to email you direct as they don’t give two hoots about customer service.

If you are able to provide the replacement part, please let me know how much it would cost including price of shipping and tax to the UK.

Thank you for your help.

Sarah

—–Original Message—–

From: AskUs Breville USA

Subject: RE: breville cbl25 blender

Date: 4 August 2010 15:46:50 GMT+01:00

To: Sarah Cairncross

Dear Sarah,

Thank you for contacting Breville USA.   Unfortunately, due to Breville’s constant innovations, this product has been discontinued for several years and we no longer have replacement glass jars available. We apologize for any inconvenience that you may have encountered. Please visit our website at www.Brevilleusa.com for future product updates and to use the retail locator to find potential retail outlets with remaining inventory of this  part. You may also check Amazon.com.  Please feel free to contact us at 1-866-BREVILLE (273-8455) Monday-Friday 8am-5pm P.S.T. if you should have any further questions.

Regards,

Breville USA

Consumer Services Dept.

————————————————————-

THE END

And that, my dear friend, was the crappest customer service experience I’ve had in a long time.  What has been yours?

Hiya Ellie! I did a lot of research before finally choosing my juicer.  I bought it ooh way back in ummm 2005 I think it was and it was the best investment ever.  In fact, a few months ago I hauled it down to my friend Maggie’s in Devon with me and she was so impressed with it, she bought one too! *lol*

It’s a masticating juicer called an Oscar Vitalmax and you can buy them off Amazon – here’s my affiliate link if you want to go take a look – http://bit.ly/4oAcbB.

Why did I buy the Oscar Vitalmax?

• Well its motor is guaranteed for 10 years so it meant it was sturdy – handy as frequently I’m juicing 4 or 5 times a day.
• It juices wheatgrass.
• Because it masticates i.e ‘chews’ the vegetables slowly instead of being whizzed round at high speed like a centrifugal juicer does, it doesn’t heat the fruits and veggies up therefore your juice has a lot more of the nutrients in it.  If you get a chance to see – take a look at the colour of juice from a centrifugal juicer next to one from a masticating juicer, it’s startling how much brighter the masticated juice is.
• I find the juice from the Oscar is also a lot less frothy and it stays ‘good’ to drink for a lot longer because it hasn’t been heated – definitely 24 hrs if kept in a fridge or if you pour it into a thermos that has been chilled beforehand.  This is great if you need to go out for the day or weekend and are doing a juice feast – just make a huge batch and bung some ice cubes in the thermos and take your meals with you!

Any negatives?

• The chute isn’t very wide, so you do have to spend some time cutting your fruit and veg to fit but that doesn’t take long.  I spend heaps longer prepping and cooking a ‘normal’ meal for my kids than doing a juice for me
• It does struggle if you’re doing a lot of soft fruit or veg – pineapple I find challenging as the fibres clog the filter.  To help get round this, when I push the fruit and veg through the juicer, I alternate it all so i have some soft then hard to help push the mushy ones through.  Otherwise, I do have to stop it and give the filter a scrub with the brush to get it all moving again.

Would I buy the Oscar Vitalmax juicer again? Yes! Why?

• I like the way it looks *lol*  I have it in chrome but I think it comes in other colours and am happy to have it sat on the worktop all the time
• I find it easy to clean – alllll the time I hear people moaning about how time consuming or hard it is to clean their juicers.  This machine is made up of about 5 parts that slot together, the only ‘fiddly’ bit to clean is the filter and they give you a sturdy brush to clean it.  *TOP TIP* always, always, always, clean your juicer STRAIGHT AWAY.  If you can’t wait the two minutes it takes to clean it before drinking your juice, put the bits in a sink or bowl of water to soak in until you do it.  When I clean the filter, I do it with the brush under some running water.
• The juice it produces is excellent quality and the pulp comes out nearly dry and apparently can be used in raw recipes but I’ve not done that yet
• It’s not too noisy and very easy to use

There are a lot more juicers on the market now but please remember, any juicer is better than no juicer, so just buy the best you can afford now.  It may also be worth trawling classified ads for those people who had good intentions then never used their juicer and are selling them!  Always bargains around

If you have specific questions you need help with on getting started with either juicing or eating more raw, please let me know and I’ll do my best to answer.

Having porked out on my raw food goodies that came in my GoodnessDirect.co.uk box,  I thought I’d share what I thought of them with you in this video.

In the spirit of speaking more my truth this year, I also share a bit about what was going through my head today in response to a comment…

Ummm what else has happened? Well I’ve picked up my mini which is all working again now and am grateful for every day I have her until I she gets sold, maybe sometime real soon – will be hard not having a car maybe – or maybe I’ll just end up with a great ass and toned legs.

Funnily enough, looking through my list of things, I have yet again put back starting on my vision board – why on earth is this? Why do I find it so hard to think about things I want?  Ok that is going to be the only thing on my list of what to do tomorrow.  I just KNOW it is important not sure why it’s so important yet, but I know it.

So what am I going to do this evening? Munch on some carrot and hummous – I just cooked bangers and mash for my son, Spud, and had to have a couple of mouthfuls of mash and gravy… which is pretty good for me to stop there as I love it so much and it IS so cold today.  Can’t understand how my daughter continues to walk to her friends with no proper coat on – teenagers *rolls eyes and pretends she’s grown up herself*

Morrrrning

Well I started off today with a brief meditation, not as deep as yesterday – may listen to a cd later to go deeper.  I then went for a run – YES – two days on the trot! Well, maybe run is not quite correct a description.. I sometimes felt like I was travelling marginally faster than a speeding snail but hey, I did it despite all the frost on the pavements.

Got kids off to school – they had to use the bus as my mini is in the garage.  Dead battery and while it’s in there, getting the steering checked over after I had to do an emergency stop the other week and hit a curb… *cross fingers it’s not going to be anything major*.  They just rang me in fact to tell me that to replace the driving lamp that got nicked (ffs), will cost  me at least £50.  Errrmmmm… ok I shall look on the internet for that.

So, before I could think about it any more, I sat down and opened my post (after reading highly irritating email from soon-to-be-ex-husband).  Gawd, ignoring my post for most of December really was not a good idea – I’m being threatened with court action over non-payment of something.  ARSE.  Hey, I did say I was going to share everything with you this year… Hmmm.. ok I must face up to these things and phone them later.  Also need to check what’s happening with rent money before I end up homeless.  Mind you, the kids will have to go live with their Dad if that happens and he may appreciate what parental responsibility really means then… muhahahaha

Is it just me or does the fantasy of trying to run away from it all affect other people too?  Maybe it’s the time of year. And yes, I know, I know, it will all just follow me.

Anyway, I’ve decided to stop burying my head in the sand and sort myself out – new improved me for 2010 and all that.   And that means improved emotions, finances, confidence, body with an even greater spiritual connection.  The only way is UP baby!

So having devoured a smoothie, a bar of raw chocolate (maybe I was kidding myself when I said you can’t eat too much in one go) and also one of the nakd ‘premium raw fruit, nut & oat bar  (which was yummy) I’m just reviewing what I said I’d do yesterday to see what I’ve not done.   Making sense? Nah, I didn’t think so *lol*

Ok stuff I didn’t do yesterday that I have to do today:

• One step to move my business forward – I want to start earning money from doing this – following my passion.  Hmmm.. make a plan?
• Start my 2010 vision board
• Go food shopping – plan meals and buy lots of fresh fruit and vegetables please!  The kids don’t know it yet, but they will be getting vegetarian meals from now on.

Plus I need to:

• Phone creditors
• Check rent situation / make payment / maybe give notice?
• Go for a walk
• Phone Maggie and thank her and Paul for the present
• Respond to YouTube comments
• Twitter
• Smile!

Hmmm, I thought, it’s obviously something that I would like and knowing he’s as bad as I am for researching something to the ‘nth degree before buying a new gadget, it’s gonna be sexy.

And guess what, I was right. He’s gone and bought one of the Kyocera cermaic knives: The 7-inch FK180 no less. Arrrgh! How jealous am I!!! As everyone will know who has either been round my home and actually seen me prepare food, or seen the juice video I’ve done, I have knives but they are not exactly sharp.. which is not only a bit dangerous but is also extremely annoying for someone who is now chopping up assorted vegetables every day for a raw food diet.

He kindly sent me a video link so I could really appreciate what his new knife will look like and is capable of… (I made careful mental notes) . I am grateful, REALLY, as he has saved me a ton of effort in researching ceramic knives and I can now add this on to my dream board! Thanks Gary!

By the way, if you are thinking of buying one, they are available on Amazon – click here to take a look at the Kyocera High Tech Ceramic FK Black Zirconia Chef’s Knife 18cm >>>

I want to be fit and healthy and living my life at my ideal weight – whatever that turns out to be.

To do this I’ve been drawn increasingly to ‘eating raw’ as, not only will this stabilise my body weight to its natural state, it will also remove toxins from my body and clear my thoughts which will help me in my desire to work with the Universal Energy to live a life I love (also reiki / spiritual /angelic healing especially interest me and the clearer you are the better channel you can be).

I first started to ‘geddit’ about the difference between ‘going on a diet’ and ‘getting healthy’ when I bought (and followed religiously) the Fit For Life book after I had my daughter, Chloe, in 1994. And with a determination I’ve been striving to find again, I stopped stuffing my face with the wrong foods and got down to my pre-pregnancy weight (with some killer abs from doing Step Reebok video workouts no matter how bored I got), only to then fall pregnant again.

I’ve read with great delight the books by Jason ‘The Juicemaster’ Vale and this has had an impact on me to give juicing a go and I feel the benefits really quickly (when I do it) – loads more energy, clearer skin, sparkly eyes, no uncomfortable bloating, lowered body fat percentage, loss of unwanted fat and a desire to exercise as it suddenly seems like fun (bizarre !!!).

But as soon as people start to notice the changes in me I relax(?) and fall back into old habits. (I secretly wonder if I self sabotage myself as I have a fear that I’ll get pregnant again – even though I’ve been sterilised…)

Anyway, now I’ve acknowledged that fear (and my other biggy that popped out in a conversation with a friend – will my new self confidence end my marriage?), I’m telling myself that I have choices and that if I can love myself enough to treat myself well, what amazing things could I then do to help other people? After all – you can only give what you’ve got.

Inspired by Jason Vale, I read with great interest the posts of The Raw Food Coach, Karen Knowler, on my sister (Nicola Cairncross)’s support group for The Money Gym and Karen’s newsletter Successfully Raw (sign up to get it for free at Karen’s website www.TheRawFoodCoach.com). Karen is inspirational to me. She walks her talk and her enthusiasm for what she does and the energy she exudes makes me feel that ‘I want some of that!’ So when she told the group that she was launching her new ebook – How To Get Started With Raw Foods – I downloaded it immediately.

I’ve just finished reading it today and am amazed at …

…how the information has been presented in such a way that it makes a complete newbie (or thinking of becoming a newbie – which is where I am), have the confidence and knowledge to give it a go, a bit at a time if you want, while no doubt bringing new ideas (as well as delicious looking recipes) to the attention of the more experienced ‘raw foodie’.

She covers everything, from where your ‘head is at’, to the attitudes of those around you. This is sooo important if you’re looking, like I am, to incorporate more raw foods into your life for ever and not just a short term fix.

Karen also helpfully covers the benefits you may experience – mentally, physically and spiritually (which I would like to read more on! actually scrap that, I’ll do it for myself and share it with you lot) and I’m printing that list out so I can use it to remind myself of why I’m making these new choices until it feels ‘normal’.

Explained clearly are the many types of food you can eat (including ice-cream!) with some clever ideas on how to get the best produce you can into your kitchen without breaking the bank and even a shopping list to guide me in my new adventure.

When I first started looking at juicing, I spent many, many hours researching products to help me get the best result. Karen very thoughtfully shares info on what she uses and how to set up a successful raw food kitchen – and as she has been doing this for over 14 years, she’s tried and tested quite a few different pieces of equipment so I feel I can trust her judgement. What would be really helpful though, is if she put a comprehensive list, with links on where to buy specific items, on her website (so it gets updated – and if I was Karen, I’d make sure they were affiliate links) with the web address given throughout the book.

Overall, this has been an easy to digest (pun intended *grin*), well thought out and very informative ebook that is more than worth every penny. It delivers everything I’d hoped and more – including recipes and a one week kick-start pack to help get me going (I believe Karen is doing a limited offer support package at the moment as well – go to www.TheRawFoodCoach.com and click on the very fetching dalmation banana for more info).

If you’re interested in improving your health or want to clear a specific ailment, eating raw will no doubt offer you a key which is a lot more attractive than pumping your body full of synthetic chemicals. It’s worth a go and I intend on keeping a diary on my efforts to share what happens…

Thank you Karen for sharing the raw food way of life in a truly whole-istic and gentle manner! I wonder if I’ll be able to wear an outfit like your rather go-getting logo in a year’s time… *grin*