CEO Rude To Bird Owners Who Inquire About Product

[jessicaboyer89]

Looks like someone needs to send this guy a copy of "How to Win Friends and Influence People". A must read for anyone going into or currently in the business world IMO. Why anyone in that position (and he got there for a reason...he must be doing something right) would respond in that manner is beyond me. That's a good way to alienate an entire client base (bird people and Californians). Looks like he's going to learn that the hard way too. He'll be lucky if he can keep his job.

[blueroseaviary]

----- Original Message -----
From: Kyle Sandler
To:
Sent: Friday, January 21, 2005 11:20 PM
Subject: [All_Parrot_Play] [Fwd: RE: PERSONAL ATTENTION: email about birds and teflon]




-------- Original Message -------- Subject: RE: PERSONAL ATTENTION: email about birds and teflon
Date: Fri, 21 Jan 2005 15:39:31 -0700
From: David Roberts <droberts@chefsplanet.com>
To: 'Kyle Sandler' CC: 'Michael Romley' <mromley@chefsplanet.com>



Dear Mr. Sandler:



Thank you so much for your phone call and letter addressed to me.



Please tell all of the Aviary people how truly sorry I am that I offended so many of them. The flip response I gave really was in poor taste and I ask that the bird enthusiast's to find it in their hearts to forgive my poorly chosen words.



I'm aware of the concerns bird owners have regarding Teflon and can say that the only information I have, is what is given out to the industry regarding Teflon's safety.



Since this product is one of the most tested products in America by the USDA and FDA, I'm surprised that the Government hasn't had companies issue warnings in regards to pet safety.



Please assure your readership that I truly am sorry for the misunderstanding and that I wish that I could take it all back after I pushed the send button.



Best regards,





David Roberts

President

Chef's Planet, LLC.

2120 E. Rose Garden

Suite E1

Phoenix, AZ 85024

Phone: 602.906.3600

Fax: 602.906.3603

email: droberts@chefsplanet.com

Website: www.chefsplanet.com




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Kyle Sandler
Sent: Friday, January 21, 2005 3:02 PM
To: droberts@chefsplanet.com; mromley@chefsplanet.com
Subject: PERSONAL ATTENTION: email about birds and teflon
Importance: High



Dave

I just got off the phone with Mike Romley. I really do appreciate his time from Hawaii that he spent on the phone with me this morning. I advised him that we at Bird Times (the second largest consumer bird magazine in the country) are not going to do a story on chefs planet, you or the email. However I did let him know that Teflon is a hot button topic right now and we are running a story on the EPA's findings and Dupont that I referenced in a previous email to you.



I also advised him that I personally own three bird email list servers with a total of over 10,000 members. While I didn't spread your email onto those lists, it made its way there on its own. Unfortunately as we've come to know first hand these things spread like California wild fires on the internet.



In my phone conversation with Mike he did say that while he wished he could chalk it up to hacking or something like that, that you in fact did reply the way that you did and you and the company apologized for misspeaking.



Birds are highly intelligent creatures. A lot of the species that us bird people keep can live 40-70 years some surpassing us as we get old and outliving us even. I'm sure you've seen movies with talking birds, they really do talk, they can even hold conversations and theres research constantly going on about whether they can comprehend what is being said. Some bird owners don't even have children and have birds in their place (imagine a child you can legally put in a cage for being bad)



Mike swears that you are a very very nice guy family oriented and an overall great guy. I know that Chefs Planet is a relatively new company and that you don't want this little teeny tiny mistake to amount to anything. I'm with you on that.



Not to toot my own horn or anything but when I talk bird people listen and together im sure that I can make this go away. I would suggest you emailing me back some sort of apology eluding to the fact that you didn't understand the dangers of Teflon and bird respiratory systems or didn't consider it and hastily replied to that email. Or something to that effect, give me something I can send out and stop this madness for you



After spending a great deal of time checking out your website and company my wife and I would love to try your cutlery, hand soap and Prep Taxi and probably will after we get this situation taken care of.



Of course Im not the end all however I have had success handling things of this nature for a couple of other people in situations such as yours. I don't actually keep any Teflon anything in my home, I saw the general theme of your email reply to everyone that you're always better safe than sorry.



As it is 5pm here feel free to email me anytime I have access to this email 24 hours a day via blackberry also feel free to call me anytime at 336- which is my cell phone number





Thanks!







Best Regards,

Kyle Sandler

Pet Publishing Inc
Bird Times, Dog & Kennel and Cats & Kittens Magazine

336-(direct)

336-(cell)
www.petpublishing.com

[GypsyVisions]

Yeah, I bet he had a sigh of relief to learn Bird Talk is not going to publish an article about them.

IMO, the only thing the guy is sorry about is the fact that he's received so many emails from angry bird owners.

[blueroseaviary]

From:
To: "Michael Romley" <mromley@chefsplanet.com>
Sent: Friday, January 21, 2005 2:12 PM
Subject: Re: Apology from Chef's Planet


> I am not upset about the *intrusion* but was just curious as to how my
> E-mail address was found.
> If you are on vacation, how did you come about being notified of this
> situation you have on your hands?
> I am sure, you know, word of mouth is the best seller for products, and
the
> internet is a very large way of spreading word of mouth, but how could one
> send out such a nasty and hateful E-mail to so many people in this world?
> There are quite a few Bird Owners, and there are no days that go by that I
> do not get at least one E-mail regarding teflon and the safty of our
birds.
> You may recall last year the whole Quizno's commercial that only aired for
> what 30 seconds on the superbowl and it showed a dead parakeet in the
bottom
> of a cage due to the importance of Quizno's making their subs, well alot
of
> people were outraged for this even being allowed to be viewed on national
> television, some went to the extreme of reporting it to the ASPCA.
> I would think that one adult would have a little more taste and tact then
to
> send out such nasty hateful E-mails as did your President of your company.
> Now, you tell me, would you be so happy to ocme home and find this little
> darling (attached) dead on the bottom of the cage, if you thought for a
> minute that teflon was dangerous and a silent killer.
> Take a close look, we raise these lil darlings, some from day one, others
> from day 10, but none the less, we care and protect them, and until we
know
> 200% their safty, we all stick together like a flock of Birds flying free.
> The one is when this baby was 26 days old, and the other is when he was
less
> then 3 hours old:
> Thank YOu for taking the time to read this, and again I apologize if I
> sounded rude, but just wondered how you got my E-mail, feel free to
contact
> me anytime,
>>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Michael Romley" <mromley@chefsplanet.com>
> To:> Sent: Friday, January 21, 2005 1:53 PM
> Subject: Re: Apology from Chef's Planet
>
>
> ,
>
> Absolutely not! We have NO tracking technology. Your email address was
> simply listed on another email that I received. In doing my best with
> communicating our apology, I am sending this note to any email address
that
> is attached to another, regarding this issue. Your was one that was
> attached by somebody else.
>
> I sincerely apologize for this intrusion. We will not contact you again.
>
> Michael Romley
> Chef's Planet, LLC
>
> ---- wrote:
> >
> > How on earth did you get MY E-mail address?????
> > I did NOT contact you or your company, all's I did was visit your
website.
> > Are you telling me that you have some type of tracking info on your site
> as
> > to who visits?
> > This my friend is NOT cool.
> > Now, I expect a response as to how you got my E-mail address.
> >
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Michael Romley" <mromley@chefsplanet.com>
> > To: <mromley@chefsplanet.com>
> > Sent: Friday, January 21, 2005 1:42 PM
> > Subject: Apology from Chef's Planet
> >
> >
> > Several disrespectful emails from Chef's Planet have
> > been brought to my attention. Unfortunately, I am on
> > vacation with my family and have not been able to get
> > to the bottom of this until now. I have looked into
> > the matter and want personally to extend to you this
> > statement. These emails are terrible misstatements
> > and should have never been sent. They are a direct
> > contradiction to our corporate policy. I was outraged
> > to learn this was happening at Chef's Planet as it is
> > my responsibility to run the day-to-day operations.
> > It is extremely unprofessional and if I received one
> > of these emails I too would have been very angry.
> >
> > We founded this company to operate in the most
> > responsible manner and with the utmost sense of
> > integrity, even in situations where the company will
> > not profit due to decisions that maintain this sense
> > of integrity. As a business professional, it is only
> > my integrity that I have at the end of the day. With
> > that said, I apologize on behalf of Chef's Planet for
> > the actions of one. This is simply not representative
> > of our company. Please know that this behavior is not
> > acceptable nor is it tolerated at Chef's Planet.
> > Prompt action has been taken to correct this situation
> > internally within our company.
> >
> > In response to the original question, yes, our product
> > contains Teflon or PTFE. It has not been proven to be
> > harmful to birds and the FDA has not issued any
> > warnings. We have researched this and are
> > disappointed in the lack of scientific evidence.
> > However, we recognize there has been considerable
> > discussion on this topic. Teflon® was originally
> > developed by DuPont® and is now able to be reproduced
> > by other manufacturers. You can review DuPont's official
> > statement regarding the use of Teflon on their website at
> > www.teflon.com. I hope this helps you evaluate our product
> > and using this in your home.
> >
> > Again, on behalf of Chef's Planet, I apologize. I will
> > return from vacation on February 2nd. At that time, please
> > let me know if I can answer any
> > additional questions. In the meantime, if you'd like
> > to discuss this matter in more detail please call
> > Kathy Martin, in our office. We can be reached
> > directly by calling 602.906.3600.
> >
> > Best regards,
> >
> > Michael Romley
> > Executive Vice President
> > Chef's Planet, LLC
> >

[blueroseaviary]

Originally Posted by GypsyVisions

Yeah, I bet he had a sigh of relief to learn Bird Talk is not going to publish an article about them.

IMO, the only thing the guy is sorry about is the fact that he's received so many emails from angry bird owners.

In any case I'll bet he thinks twice before he sends out any more RUDE emails!

[blueroseaviary]

Originally Posted by jessicaboyer89

Looks like someone needs to send this guy a copy of "How to Win Friends and Influence People". A must read for anyone going into or currently in the business world IMO. Why anyone in that position (and he got there for a reason...he must be doing something right) would respond in that manner is beyond me. That's a good way to alienate an entire client base (bird people and Californians). Looks like he's going to learn that the hard way too. He'll be lucky if he can keep his job.

Who knows about his job security, but he has embarassed his entire company. I am sure he won't live it down any time soon.

PS: does that book apply to dealing with teenagers? LOL

[GypsyVisions]

Originally Posted by blueroseaviary

In any case I'll bet he thinks twice before he sends out any more RUDE emails!

I hope so, Jill.

And thank you for posting the apology emails ChefsPlanet sent out. I had planned on posting those too, but got called away from the computer this afternoon. It's a shame the company vice-president had to take time away from his vacation to try and smooth this over.

[blueroseaviary]

Originally Posted by GypsyVisions

I hope so, Jill.

And thank you for posting the apology emails ChefsPlanet sent out. I had planned on posting those too, but got called away from the computer this afternoon. It's a shame the company vice-president had to take time away from his vacation to try and smooth this over.

Poor guy, he probably isn't enjoying his vacation very much now! I wrote a note to the VP this afternoon. I'll let you know if I hear back from him. Oh and I did point out that I am one of those far left California wacko's... LOLOL

[GypsyVisions]

Originally Posted by blueroseaviary

Poor guy, he probably isn't enjoying his vacation very much now! I wrote a note to the VP this afternoon. I'll let you know if I hear back from him. Oh and I did point out that I am one of those far left California wacko's... LOLOL

Good for you! And yes, I'd be interested to know if they respond. I hope they get tons of mail. Like I said before, it's not the fact that their product contains teflon, but the way the company president responded. What a jerk!

[jessicaboyer89]

LOL...sure you could apply it to teenagers and any human interactions for that matter. It really is a great book! I was very impressed with Kyle Sandler's (of Bird Times) email. Now that is a wonderful way to diffuse a situation where he could have easily said "you're an a$$...blah, blah, blah." I'm impressed!

Originally Posted by blueroseaviary

Who knows about his job security, but he has embarassed his entire company. I am sure he won't live it down any time soon.

PS: does that book apply to dealing with teenagers? LOL