They didn't even understand the terms they agreed to. The distributor didn't "grift" them. They weren't swindled, it was just bad business decision making and lack of understanding their terms.
We normally got a copy-paper box or two of these at a time, which lasted for a few months. However, one day one of my colleagues, who did not grow up speaking English, placed the order and asked for a huge number of cases, thinking "case" was a synonym for the individual plastic boxes that they came in.
It...was not, as we found out when a delivery man appeared up with a motorized pallet jack. He's a bit miffed too: "Is there an easier way to bring up the rest?" The order ended up filling an entire closet and then some. They were still working through them when I left a year later.
In retrospect, the price was obviously too high, but it was a small part of a big equipment order--and science stuff is often eye-wateringly expensive anyway.
Perhaps not a grift, but surely the guy who arranged this deal (who they have since ceased doing business with) could have more clearly communicated to them to what it was they were agreeing. There are multiple points of failure, and it seems the company accepted the crippling responsibility on their end.
I understand that but unless he is an attorney he has no business explaining contract terms to you. Always read contracts yourself or have an attorney read them.
mattkrause|3 years ago
In college, I worked in a lab that used disposable pipette tips to measure/move samples around, which come in small "racks" like these https://www.coleparmer.ca/i/thermo-fisher-molecular-bioprodu...
We normally got a copy-paper box or two of these at a time, which lasted for a few months. However, one day one of my colleagues, who did not grow up speaking English, placed the order and asked for a huge number of cases, thinking "case" was a synonym for the individual plastic boxes that they came in.
It...was not, as we found out when a delivery man appeared up with a motorized pallet jack. He's a bit miffed too: "Is there an easier way to bring up the rest?" The order ended up filling an entire closet and then some. They were still working through them when I left a year later.
In retrospect, the price was obviously too high, but it was a small part of a big equipment order--and science stuff is often eye-wateringly expensive anyway.
ArmandTanzarian|3 years ago
yellow_lead|3 years ago