Howard McEwen, CFA

Here’s my Yelp review of Schneider’s Sweet Shop:

I really don’t like this place.  I’ve lived near it for over 10 years, but I find the staff to be rude and grumpy.

The candies and ice cream are fine, I guess but I can take a short drive elsewhere and get the sweets without the salty attitude.

Here was my experience: years ago my wife called them for me to get gift certificates for my clients. I’m a big believer in supporting local business.  They said they’d have to call her back because they didn’t think they did it.  Ooookay!  I just happened to be driving by an hour later and popped in to check myself.  The clerk took my head off with a “I told your wife we’d call HER!”

Ok, bad day, I reasoned.

A short while later my wife took my 3 year old daughter into the shop.  This is a candy shop – you know, kind of suppose to be kid friendly.  My daughter had a “Mommy, I have to go potty NOW!” moment.  My wife asked to use the bathroom and was given a solid NO!  She tried to explain the situation as my daughter started to cry and dance. She was told “We don’t have one.”

Between a stern clerk and a crying toddler my wife gave up the fight and rushed home.  There was a mess.  There was more crying.

We never returned.  We hated the place.  But  the years passed. …and we mellowed.

My youngest daughter got a $20 gift certificate (which I guess they now have) as a gift.  We said “let by-gones be by-gones” and stopped in one night.  All she wanted was a scoop of ice cream.  I forget the cost but let’s assume $2.  I told my daughter to keep the certificate in a safe place so she wouldn’t lose the $18 when the clerk pointed out that the certificate was good for 1 visit only “and one visit only”.

“So if we don’t buy $10 worth of your stuff, we’re out the $8.”

“Yes,” was her reply.

“So the person who gave my daughter the gift gives you $20 but if we only buy what we want now and not $20 worth of stuff we’re out the $18 and you keep the $18 .  That’s kind of a con isn’t it.”

“That’s the rules.”

We bought some junk that we didn’t really want and spotted my daughter $18 but told her she couldn’t spend it here…..we’ll head a couple blocks west and visit the UDF.