An Open Letter to Mpix

I placed the order on April 23rd. I received a shipping notification on April 25th. Priority mail?
It took one full week to arrive.

It showed up with damage caused pre-shipment.
OK, I'm sure you probably can't see the damage in this shot. But it's there.

Since my goal is to sell these prints as art, damage of any kind is detrimental. I was irritated. Very.

So I sent off the following last night:

My order finally arrived - a full ten days after I placed it - and three of the four 8x12 prints are damaged, and appear to have been damaged prior to shipping. The three prints (but not the fourth) have matching creases in one corner. Two of the prints have extra white along the edges that does not appear to be a sizing issue, but, rather a cutting error. There is also damage on one print that appears as though a cut was started, repositioned and then cut, and the crease from the first attempt was still there along the edge.

Judging from the ads on your front page, you clearly understand that there are many artists using your service. As these prints constitute art and not simply personal snapshots, a higher level of quality is required. Prior to this, I have been very impressed with your speed, service and quality. Before I chose Mpix, I sampled prints from a number of printers and found yours to be of the highest quality.

However, I cannot sell prints with damage like this. I would not purchase art with damage like this. Further, I could not even imagine drop shipping a print to a customer and having it arrive damaged like this. It would reflect poorly on ME in that case, not YOU.

I wonder if you have perhaps become too popular too fast? Fortunately these prints were for personal use, because I cannot imagine making a customer wait another ten days for a reprint and reship.

Can you convince me that you're still capable of handling my prints with the care and attention they deserve, or is it time for me to find a new printer?

I'll let you know what happens.