Although the Malaysian government emphasises on ‘Keluarga Malaysia’ which aims to convey the notion that Malaysians embrace their rich cultures, this slogan hides the sad reality of the unfair treatment towards the minority groups since 1957, some things have never really changed.
Yes, you read that right?
Recently, Thevisha A͏p͏p͏a͏r͏e͏l͏ who is known as an Indian traditional outfit entrepreneur has faced an anecdotal experience after being hoodwinked by Steel & Wood Fabricator company. Her plan of renovating her dream shop has been shattered due to an irresponsible vendor in the name of ‘EXPERTS’.
Let’s take a look at how the case of Thevisha unfolded:
11th April – 13th April 2022 – steelowoodydesign pay a visit to Thevisha’s shop
In the midst of deciding on which woodwork is the best for her dream shop, Thevisha had come across steelowoodydesign Instagram page and dropped a message to enquire about the pricing of wall dividers, etc. Apparently, after their chats via Insta, the vendor decided to drop by the shop and do the necessary measurements to provide her with the exact details for pricing.
Thevisha trusted the vendor’s work and agreed to pay the first deposit to the business account based on the invoice shared by the company on the 13th of April. With much assurance, she had ordered a few more items including 4 doors, 3 glasses, 2 cabinets, and 1 wall divider from the vendor.
A deposit for each item was made right after each invoice was shared, a 70% deposit according to the company’s T&C. Hence, the final deposit for 3 doors and 1 hanging cabinet was fully paid by Thevisha on 20th June.
All the deposit payments were made ON TIME!
10th May 2022 – steelowoodydesign acknowledged the deposit payment which was made by Thevisha
On 9th May, Thevisha sent the receipt of the deposit payment which was made to the vendor. The next day, steelowoodydesign acknowledged the deposit payment and informed her that he will be dropping by again to take the final measurements. To date, the vendor had visited the shop three times.
Let’s stay patient for a few more weeks – that’s how Thevisha convinced herself. Besides being a woman, she stayed positive despite facing a lot of hurdles that she could never imagine.
26th June 2022 – ZERO updates from steelowoodydesign
As per the last conversion, steelowoodydesign had promised to begin the installation for the glassroom and counter cabinet. It came to Thevisha’s surprise when there were NO UPDATES from the vendor in regards to the renovation progress and also not a single picture of items that have been ordered was sent to Thevisha.
More excuses were given whenever Thevisha urged the vendor to give an update. Hailing from Cheras, she has never failed to keep her promises towards the vendor. Each time when the vendor says he will be dropping by, Thevisha heads all the way to her shop in Klang. All she got was disappointment!
4th July 2022 – NO phone calls were answered and NO replies to any messages
This was the real ‘getting into the nerves’ moment for Thevisha. As per the screenshot (3rd July), the vendor promised to do the installation on the following day (4th July). The hope of getting the door installation done went down the drain after the vendor texted her saying he was out of town.
Thevisha was asked to contact the person who was in charge of the door installation. From faking and lying about the installation that should have been made on that day, the person who was supposed to drop by to do the installation called off the plan as well.
Just imagine, the moment when Thevisha went clueless as to what to do after her attempts to contact the vendor went to deaf ears.
All her messages were left seen instead of replying. Her brother tried calling the vendor but he refused to answer the calls. After much delay, the vendor sent a letter stating all the earlier conversations that took place at the shop and on Whatsapp chat. As per the letter, the vendor stated that he’ll be starting the installation on 20th July at 2 pm.
20th – 29th of July 2022 – Time Management ZERO
Promised to be there by 2 pm and he turns up at 5 pm. After almost 4 hours of waiting, the vendor claimed that the frame size was wrong. From faking, lying, and blaming Thevisha, steelowoodydesign is just being so irresponsible. Too many issues and the final deal that he made was to settle it on Monday which was (1st August 2022)
1st Aug 2022 – FAILED to turn up, NO replies & refusing to answer calls
The most heartbreaking moment for Thevisha, was when her last attempt in believing this vendor has simply vanished with her deposit. Multiple calls and messages were made but there was no reply from the vendor. And when the refund was asked for, the vendor simply ignored her plea.
Thevisha decided to lodge a police report against the crook on 2nd August. Upon receiving her complaint, Sarjan made a call to the vendor who seemed unfazed by the whole situation without any form of guilt.
The vendor finally admitted that he had overlooked Thevisha’s orders by having other important orders that he had to prioritise.
So-called experts in fabricating steelworks and woodworks, but it clearly shows that the vendor seems to be applying all tricks in the business to take their customers for a ride without a pang of single guilt!
Racial Discrimination Involved
Surprisingly there was another DULL-WITTED statement given by him.
You know how INDIANS ARE!
Well well, here we are again with some idiotic statement from the vendor, a non-Indian. You’ve ruined a woman’s dream and you’re bringing in the matter of RACISM here?
We are in 2022, yet racism and racial discrimination remain the most serious nuisance in Malaysia and standing in the way of progress toward a high-income society at peace with itself. Born and bred in Malaysia, we have our fair share of minorities who are experiencing ongoing discrimination whether it’s because of where they hail from or the colour of their skin. It’s possible to fight for several issues at once.
Let’s not be so hypocritical to support the #BlackLivesMatter movement while turning a blind eye to the issues that WE as a minority have been facing for ages.
The writer would like to emphasise one thing in this article. Thevisha is here to create awareness among all netizens out there. Spending nearly RM 15.5K to turn her dream into reality has been ruined by the vendor and we can’t assure you how many of them out there might be facing the same incident as Thevisha is facing right now.
What happened to me should never happen to anyone else!
If NO ACTION can be taken against Steel & Wood Fabricator , let’s join hands together to STOP the vendor from discriminating other races and also STOP CHEATING customers for the sake of money.
Let’s make this news viral and help Thevisha to get her refund money back as her hard work and dedication to her business is indescribable.
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