Sticking it to foreigners - ice cream company backs down after "Thais only" promotion

[webfact]

Sticking it to foreigners - ice cream company backs down after "Thais only" promotion

 

 

An ice cream company operating at the newly opened Icon Siam in Bangkok was forced to issue a grovelling apology after they started a promotion that excluded foreigners. 

 

Stickhouse - that sells specialist Italian gelato ice-cream on a stick - had a sign that said "For Thai Customers Only".

 

Thais were lucky to get 50% off their second treat in the promotion. 

 

But now the company has told Thaivisa that it was all a terrible mistake. Here is their apology in full:

 

To Our Valued Customers,

 

To celebrate the launch of our ICONSIAM location, we decided to offer a "buy 1, get 50% off your 2nd gelato" promotion. The promotion banner was printed in Thai because well, we're located in Thailand. Please keep in mind, local patrons make up almost 95% of our business. Most of whom, Thai is their native language. 

 

It wasn't until it was recently brought to our attention that our promotion banner had been altered that we realized the mistake of our communication to our staff. We had hoped to appeal to "locals" (see: residents of the area) but the promotion was always intended to be open to all patrons. 

 

While this promotion was meant to end on December 15th, given recent events, we will be extending it through January. If you were personally refused the promotion at our ICONSIAM location, we sincerely apologize and ask you to please contact us directly and your next visit is on us. 

 

Staff will be vigorously retrained to ensure there are no additional miscommunications and we look forward to providing you a level of service and product that we can be proud of. 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2018-12-28

[ChipButty]

You know what you can do with your promotion...........? 

We all know the way you think

[JAG]

A simple misunderstanding - the handwritten amendment to the sign looks clear enough to me!

 

I do like the euphamism "vigorous retraining"!

[Crossy]

Ah yes, "miscommunication" - The brake-failure of the retail business.

 

 

 

 

[Darcula]

Customers should tell them where to stick their apologetic extended promotion.

 

[YetAnother]

16 minutes ago, webfact said:

had a sign that said "For Thai Customers Only".

just shows how blatantly racist thais are

[colinneil]

Feel the love foreigners we love you....  NOT. There i was thinking all Thais loved us, wrong again.

[Bucko]

I have seen special priced Promotional Domestic flights  a few times ---for Thai only --  started to book one before I spotted that I did'nt qualify ????

 

[Odysseus123]

"In icecreamus veritas"

[KittenKong]

Stickhouse is a franchise operation so I suspect that the decision to limit the promo to Thais only was actually made by the franchisee and not "staff". And of course the brand name itself cant really be held responsible for actions taken unilaterally by one franchisee.

 

The most amusing thing for me is that if you Google "Stickhouse Thailand" the top two results currently read: "What a rip off. Three ice creams on a stick cost us 13 American dollars."
Presumably that customer didnt get the special offer either.

[KiChakayan]

Yeah.. Just one more proof that the whole country won't go anywhere without a serious attitude adjustment.

[JohnC]

Similarly AIS are running a free accident insurance offer at the moment, a couple of restrictions, age between 21 and 70 and Thais only! 

[KittenKong]

7 minutes ago, Bucko said:

I have seen special priced Promotional Domestic flights  a few times ---for Thai only --  started to book one before I spotted that I did'nt qualify

I dont know about internal flights as I never take them but when hotels do special offers here they usually apply them to anyone with a Thai driving licence. I certainly have benefited from such offers on occasions.

 

Of course many people running businesses here would follow the official government line of the Thai national parks service: foreigners can be charged 5 times what Thais are expected to pay.

[evadgib]

This practice gets my goat and deserves whatever adverse exposure it generates ????

[mok199]

Show boating and grandstanding to gain attention...''Well played Stickhouse ,well played''

[observer90210]

Does the TAT have shares in this lovely gelatti company ?

[upu2]

Certainly one company I wont be buying from

[upu2]

32 minutes ago, Bucko said:

I have seen special priced Promotional Domestic flights  a few times ---for Thai only --  started to book one before I spotted that I did'nt qualify ????

 

Which is why if I am traveling outside of Thailand I wont use Thai airlines

[Somtamnication]

Been here 17 years. I am not a local?

[Classic Ray]

Adding this to the list of companies I will never do business with.

[hansnl]

54 minutes ago, colinneil said:

Feel the love foreigners we love you....  NOT. There i was thinking all Thais loved us, wrong again.

They don't love us, it is a Chinese treat.

But forget the despised foreigners bring in a lot of money.

[stanleycoin]

The true face of Thailand shining through.

Well done, you never disappoint.

Nice backpedaling, they would do very well in a unicycle race. 

 

[Eligius]

6 minutes ago, stanleycoin said:

The true face of Thailand shining through.

Well done, you never disappoint.

Nice back pedalling, they would do very well in a unicycle race. 

 

Yes, and as always, when the Thais are caught out in something stupid or unjust - they come up with totally unbelievable and infantile lies, as in this case!

[BTB1977]

Discrimination at its highest. Just because they think we do not read Thai. So per them they just lost 5% of their customer base. But we all know it is much higher as their product is very expensive.  

[Bluespunk]

1 hour ago, colinneil said:

Feel the love foreigners we love you....  NOT. There i was thinking all Thais loved us, wrong again.

As part of your POTY campaign Colin, perhaps you could negotiate a thaivisa discount for us all.

 

Tell them it will be good PR...plus giving us a taste of what an asset, as POTY, you will be. 

[holy cow cm]

Racism is Alive and Well in Thailand. 

[nausea]

Their mistake was the "1" and the "50%" in Roman numerals, which are a bit of a giveaway that there's some deal to be had. Should've had it all in Thai. No one would've been any the wiser, and no need for the provocative sticker. We all know being born Thai is the most wonderful thing in the world and entitles you to look down on the rest with pity and contempt, but have some Buddhist compassion. Stick it to us foreigners if you have to, but do it subtly, discreetely. 

[DM07]

Shove your ice cream, where your head is obviously placed already!

 

 

[overherebc]

17 minutes ago, nausea said:

Their mistake was the "1" and the "50%" in Roman numerals, which are a bit of a giveaway that there's some deal to be had. Should've had it all in Thai. No one would've been any the wiser, and no need for the provocative sticker. We all know being born Thai is the most wonderful thing in the world and entitles you to look down on the rest with pity and contempt, but have some Buddhist compassion. Stick it to us foreigners if you have to, but do it subtly, discreetely. 

In comparison to the norm' this is discreet.

[Hockeybik]

That apology was not written by someone who is not a native English speaker.