Complaint Review: Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics

In September 2012, when I was on a MUA assignment job in Los Angeles, I went into Nigel's Beauty Emporium (authorized retailer of OCC makeup), and purchased the following lip tars: NSFW (red), Tarred (Black), Feathered (White), Rx (Blue), Anime (Pink) for my professional makeup artist kit.

I went home and opened the products to test their pigmentation and discovered that both Black and White (Tarred and Feathered) were not nearly as pigmented as when I had tried the testers in store. I looked up what they should look like online and noted that mine are very sheer, even if applied in several coats, and they should be quite opaque. I contacted Nigel's Beauty Emporium, but since products were opened, they could not do a return. They did, however, tell me that I should contact the manufacturer (OCC), as the product was defective and they should take care of it.

I contacted OCC (via info@occmakeup.com) on September 14, 2012 (1 day after purchase of said lip tars), inquiring as to whether or not I could get replacements for the defective lip tars. I had not received reply to that email to this day. I waited a while, then attempted contacting them again on Twitter (hoping that they will respond to at least one of my inquiries), but they did not. At this point, I started noticing that the two lip tars that are not pigmented (black and white) are separating into oil and pigment in their tubes. Upon research, and comparison to the other lip tars and samples at Nigel's Beauty Emporium, I concluded that it is not normal. I was, however, still waiting for a response from OCC.

During IMATS (International Makeup Artist Trade Show) in January 2013 (MONTHS after I sent email, tweeted OCC and still had no reply!), I decided to come by their booth and confront them directly. I started a conversation with one of the representatives at the booth and informed her of this situation. She told me that yes, unfortunately some of the lip tars are defective like that, and they replace them from their displays if that happens, or replace them if customer has gotten one by chance. She offered to swap mine out right there and then. However, since I had not brought my professional kit with me, I did not have the lip tars on hand. She informed me that it should not be a problem and I should contact OCC via email and they would replace them for me. When I informed her that my emails were ignored for months, she suggested I try once again and this time "demand more stuff for inconvenience." Her exact words.

I went home from the event and decided to email OCC one last time, before filing reports with BBB and RipOff report, as well as making this situation go public. I explained my situation, however, I made it clear that I do not want "more stuff," as the associate suggested. I just want what I paid for - a product that is not defective and that works.

A day later, I received a response from a customer service representative (Veronica), which made me incredibly mad. As it appears, she had not even read my email fully, because her pre-set response had nothing to do with my situation. It was the following:

"Dear Alina,
Thanks so much for your e-mail! We are sorry to hear that you have run into some frustrations and hope we can come to satisfactory conclusion. I noted that you are a beauty professional and were interested in potentially trying out more of our products. At this time we'd like to extend to you an invitation to join our Pro Community with an opportunity to shop our products at a discount of 20% all products excluding Airbrush Systems or Equipment as they are already discounted, so you may purchase new lip tars as well as purchasing other products from our line at a discount price.We ask that you please respond to this email with your full name, shipping address, phone number, and email address so that we have a way with which to contact you and enter you in our system. Also, please be sure to include a link to your website/portfolio, or a call/tear sheet, or a scanned and attached copy of your cosmetology/esthetician's license so we may verify you use makeup in a professional capacity. When we have finished processing this request we will inform you so that you may start shopping our products with your new discount. I hope with this we are able to come to a satisfactory resolution for you.If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact us and we will be more than happy to help. Have a wonderful day!

Thanks Again,
Veronica 
Customer Service
Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics, Inc.
http://www.occmakeup.com/ 
info@occmakeup.com 
PH: 212-675-2404
FX: 212-214-0636"

My issue was not even not addressed, they instead are trying to get even more out of me. If I wanted to join the Pro Program, there are links on the website. That was not anywhere NEAR what my email was about. She had not addressed any part of that. When I replied with my concern about getting a pre-set email without anyone actually reading my concerns fully, I finally got something slightly more personal:

"Dear Alina,Thank you for your prompt reply. I did take the time to read your e-mail and have re-read your e-mail again. I note that you purchased your lip tars from Nigel's Beauty Emporium and if you would like replacement lip tars, you would have to contact them directly. We accept returns, exchanges, or provide replacement lip tars when purchased directly through us with proof of purchase between 14-30 days from date of purchase.

If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us. Have a wonderful day!

Thanks Again,
Veronica
Customer Service
Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics, Inc.
http://www.occmakeup.com/ 
info@occmakeup.com 
PH: 212-675-2404
FX: 212-214-0636"

At that point, I requested for this to be forwarded to someone higher up, who knows what they are talking about and who can actually take care of this frustrating issue. It's been a week, and I've received no response.

I've tried being civil, I tried explaining my situation, I've been given completely conflicting information by every other person I had spoken to about this (Nigel's assures me that OCC takes care of defective products, since they are the manufacturer, the associate at the OCC booth tells me that they always take care of defective products as well, even if not purchased directly from them, and then "Veronica" essentially telling me "too bad, I know we ignored you for months, but we can't help you, even though our product is defective. But hey - you can join our pro program and buy more stuff!").

From a company that takes pride in their product and customer service, I have gotten nothing but headache and disappointment. I paid for something I can't possibly use in my professional kit, as they are defective, and they refuse to take the responsibility to fix the issue or to replace the defective items. I am NOT asking for freebies or even them just giving me those two lip tars. I am happy to send mine back, so they can figure out what is wrong with those. However, I've been tricked and lied to along the whole way and I am not happy about that. Not only is this unprofessional, it's also insulting.