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==Business model==
==Business model==
Bloomex is a [[floristry]] business that ships flower arrangements and other gift related items direct to consumers.
Bloomex is a [[floristry]] business that ships flower arrangements and other gift related items direct to consumers.
The company was established in 2005<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bloomex.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=91|title=Bloomex Corporate Profile|accessdate=June 3, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ic.gc.ca/app/scr/cc/CorporationsCanada/fdrlCrpDtls.html?corpId=6489427&V_TOKEN=1370389928288&crpNm=bloomex&crpNmbr=&bsNmbr=|title=Federal Corporation Information - 6489427 - Corporations Canada|accessdate=8 June 2013|website=Industry Canada}}</ref> and maintains its headquarters and [[call centre]] in Ottawa. Bloomex does about 200,000 sales per year<ref>Ottawa Business Journal, [http://www.obj.ca/Local/2013-08-29/article-3369084/Handling-online-criticism/ Handling online criticism], August 29, 2013.</ref>; The company owns [[virtual telephone number]]s that connect customers to the Ottawa [[call center]] when they dial a number in their local area code.<ref name="RCC"/>
The company was established in 2005<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bloomex.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=91|title=Bloomex Corporate Profile|accessdate=June 3, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ic.gc.ca/app/scr/cc/CorporationsCanada/fdrlCrpDtls.html?corpId=6489427&V_TOKEN=1370389928288&crpNm=bloomex&crpNmbr=&bsNmbr=|title=Federal Corporation Information - 6489427 - Corporations Canada|accessdate=8 June 2013|website=Industry Canada}}</ref> and maintains its headquarters and [[call centre]] in Ottawa. The company owns [[virtual telephone number]]s that connect customers to the Ottawa [[call center]] when they dial a number in their local area code.<ref name="RCC"/>


==Controversy==
==Controversy==

Revision as of 18:11, 30 August 2013

Bloomex is a national Canadian floral company offering various floral and gift arrangements throughout Canada, Australia[1][2] and the United States via its online order system. The company, headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, is privately held by its founder and president, Dimitri Lokhonia.[3]

Business model

Bloomex is a floristry business that ships flower arrangements and other gift related items direct to consumers. The company was established in 2005[4][5] and maintains its headquarters and call centre in Ottawa. The company owns virtual telephone numbers that connect customers to the Ottawa call center when they dial a number in their local area code.[3]

Controversy

On March 1, 2008, Toronto Star business and consumer affairs columnist Ellen Roseman reported on Bloomex online complaints, offering one customer's experience with a promised same-day delivery as an example of company unresponsiveness. In a follow-up Star column the next week, company president Lokhonia examined Roseman's late-delivery example, explaining that the order was entered past the deadline for same-day delivery, it was delivered according to the company's published terms and conditions, and the company never refunds delivery charges in such cases in order to maintain its low prices.[6] Lokhonia also alleged that some complaints were actually written by small retail florists in competition with Bloomex,[7] a statement that drew fresh online complaints.[8]

In June 2008, Bloomex issued a press release admitting that the company had made mistakes in the past due to unexpectedly strong sales growth, and announced new systems to improve customer satisfaction.[9]

In April 2010, the CBC News television program Marketplace tested Bloomex's promises, reporting that the company "...sometimes substitutes one item for something completely different, without checking with the customer, or doesn't deliver at all". A "Chocolate Lovers" basket contained far less chocolate than promised; of three floral arrangements ordered, one failed to arrive and the other two were not as advertised, receiving a "thumbs down" from a professional flower judge.[10]

As of January 2013, the Canadian Better Business Bureau (BBB) continues to give Bloomex its lowest possible rating, an "F". An alert posted above the Bloomex rating states "BBB files indicate that this business has a pattern of complaints concerning delays and or non-delivery of goods, slow responses to customer inquiries and refund payments."[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ Australia Trademark Office
  2. ^ Business Profiles
  3. ^ a b Retail Council of Canada, "The VoIP advantage", May–June 2007
  4. ^ "Bloomex Corporate Profile". Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  5. ^ "Federal Corporation Information - 6489427 - Corporations Canada". Industry Canada. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  6. ^ Toronto Star, "Same price, but fewer tax returns" (second section), March 8, 2008
  7. ^ Toronto Star, Toronto Star, "'Wecare' doesn't tell the real tale", March 1, 2008
  8. ^ Ellen Roseman, "Online florist Bloomex pays attention to online gripes", July 15, 2008
  9. ^ Bloomex press release: "Online Florist Takes Complaints Seriously", June 2008
  10. ^ CBC News, "Online flower shop fails to deliver", April 9, 2010
  11. ^ Better Business Bureau, BBB Reliability Report for Bloomex, Inc., (January 15, 2013)
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