Hurwitz Mintz Furniture Case Study PDF

A First Data Customer SUCCESS STORY
Customer Service and Employee Satisfaction Provide
a Comfortable Combination for Hurwitz Mintz Furniture
g Client
Hurwitz Mintz Furniture
g Challenge
Maintain unmatched
service in the aftermath
of Hurricane Katrina
g Solution
First Data Credit/Debit
and TeleCheck processing,
implementation services
g RESULTS
Problem-free service,
easier reporting, customer/
employee satisfaction
g First Data ensures an unmatched experience
during a time of crisis.
Family-owned Hurwitz Mintz Furniture has been a New Orleans institution
since 1923, built on a reputation of quality and service. Dissatisfied with the
customer service of its previous payment processor, the company found a
more able partner in First Data.
Then disaster struck. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, with
unprecedented demand for essential furniture, Hurwitz Mintz was forced
to rebuild its payment processing infrastructure from the ground up.
First Data was on the scene to get the store back in business, ensuring
an unmatched experience even during a time of crisis.
firstdata.com
© 2010 First Data Corporation. All rights reserved.
Page 1
A First Data customer SUCCESS STORY: HURWITZ MINTZ FURNITURE
THE CHALLENGE
Family owned and operated since 1923, Hurwitz Mintz Furniture prides itself
on being The South’s Largest Furniture Store. A fixture in New Orleans for over
three generations, the Mintz family has built an unmatched reputation for quality
and service.
But when it came to payment processing, Hurwitz Mintz was less than satisfied
with the service it was receiving. Approvals were a problem and customers were
getting frustrated. “Customer service played a key role in our selection process
and First Data had the other providers beat,” says Susan Hibbs, Operations
Manager for Hurwitz Mintz.
Couple that with First Data’s credit/debit and check processing solutions, which
proved invaluable in COD transactions, and the choice was obvious. “We were
ready to go, everything was set up,” remembers Hibbs. Then disaster struck.
THE SOLUTION
“Katrina hit and we had 41 inches of water. We were one of the first stores in
the area to reopen. People needed furniture, just the bare necessities, and
First Data was there when we needed them. They helped us move the credit
department upstairs, got us new equipment, made sure it was up and running,
even helped us run transactions.
“We had to do a lot of COD after Katrina, drivers phoning in transactions, so
another big thing for us was approval turnaround. It was immediate, even for
checks. We never had check processing before, and when First Data offered us
TeleCheck, we jumped on it.
“Even with all the commotion, implementation was easy, it was just flawless.
One thing I like about the equipment is that it’s one machine. We had limited
space, so that was a big help. First Data came in, did the training and we were
good to go.”
“People needed furniture,
g
just the bare necessities,
THE RESULTS
and First Data was there
“Working with First Data has been a dream,” reports Hibbs. “With all we’ve been
through, we’ve never had a problem with down lines. Can you imagine 30, 40, 50
people waiting in line to make a purchase? From a customer service standpoint,
that’s a big decision to make. So to me, you can’t even measure that.
“Reporting, too, is so much easier because it’s batched that day and funded
the next. We just know our money is going to be there. Accounting goes online,
compares First Data’s reports with ours, and if everything matches up, we close
in one day.”
when we needed them.”
- Susan Hibbs
Operations Manager
Hurwitz Mintz Furniture
“Most of all, if the customer is satisfied, and the employees are satisfied, then
I’m satisfied,” says Hibbs. “First Data really makes it a lot easier on everybody
in the company – and the customer. You can’t ask for better customer service
than that.”
firstdata.com
© 2010 First Data Corporation. All rights reserved.
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