A nice story about Farrow & Ball

Farrow & Ball have been on my radar for years and years as I have seen their products mentioned in countless design magazines, books and blogs. Sure, their products are pricey and therefore out of reach for many homeowners (including myself, so far), but I have no doubt the prices are justified. I greatly respect their long history and dedication to producing top quality paints and wallpapers, which are still manufactured in England.

I was recently reading one of my favorite blogs, 1912 Bungalow, and was dismayed to hear about all of the problems Heather was having with her kitchen renovation project. It would be a nightmare for anyone, but she happens to be nearing the end of a high risk pregnancy to boot. Among the many crazy things that have gone wrong, a contractor had taped plastic to her beautiful hand-painted Farrow & Ball Lotus wallpaper in the dining room. When it was time for the plastic to come down, the tape ripped off patches of wallpaper.

The wallpaper couldn’t be repaired, and the only solution would be to take it down and replace it. The thing was, Heather only needed one roll, and everyone she contacted cited the Farrow & Ball three-roll minimum order policy. Having worked with many companies through my blog, I knew there had to be a way that Farrow & Ball could make it happen, if only the right person knew her story. So, I sent a tweet out into the twitterverse:

I don’t have a huge amount of so-called “influence”, so I wasn’t expecting much, but it was worth a try. I was thrilled to learn that Rob from Farrow & Ball promptly contacted Heather and she later received the single roll of wallpaper she needed! In addition, Farrow & Ball will be ending their three-roll minimum order policy. It’s a smart move because design trends have changed and now a lot of consumers like to do smaller projects, like wallpaper on one wall only, or luxurious but small bathrooms and laundry rooms. Hopefully the change means they will reach customers who couldn’t have afforded (and didn’t need) the minimum order before.

I am by no means a proponent of publicly shaming companies via social media–I have seen some of the most ridiculous complaints and demands from customers on Twitter and Facebook. But every once in a while you might have a problem that you know could be resolved if only you could reach the right person who would cut through the red tape instead of rattling off some one-size-fits-all quote from the customer service manual. Often that person is the one behind a company’s Facebook or Twitter account.

I am very impressed that Farrow & Ball paid attention to my tweet and took the time to help Heather out. They are a well-established company with products used in some of the poshest interiors, and they don’t need to care about the “little guy”. I’ve been following their Facebook page for a while, though, and I’ve noticed that they celebrate projects large and small, including front doors and even chicken coops sporting their paint.

Thank you to Rob at Farrow & Ball for helping this pregnant mama play a small role in helping another pregnant mama–it really made my day!

Jennifer Roberts

is the founder, designer and author of Jen Spends Less. Formerly an architectural drafter and designer, Jen cut her spending and embraced a frugal lifestyle to be a stay at home mom.