Gift Certificate Complaints

Some angry customers who didn't get the Christmas they'd hoped for have contacted the News on 6 asking for help. They say they bought gift certificates at a Jenks spa as Christmas presents, but

Friday, February 2nd 2007, 8:07 pm

By: News On 6

Some angry customers who didn't get the Christmas they'd hoped for have contacted the News on 6 asking for help. They say they bought gift certificates at a Jenks spa as Christmas presents, but by New Year's, the spa closed up shop and there was no forwarding address. The News on 6â€™s Lori Fullbright reports on the unexpected closing of â€œSkin Deep Indulgence Day Spa.â€

Selah Whitlow's daughter gave her a gift certificate for a massage at the Jenks spa for Christmas. They were shocked to see the store empty by New Year's.

"The look on her face, she went white and said, â€˜Mom, I'm so sorry,â€™â€ said customer Selah Whitlow. â€œI said don't worry about it, don't worry about it, I'm calling Lori. These small businesses need to be accountable for their bad deeds."

Selah says they called the number on the gift certificate but got no answers, then called the landlord who told them, he'd had several similar calls.

Mike Lloyd says he bought a $99 gift certificate for his wife. He'd never been the spa, but it was close to home.

"I figured, do this for my wife, she can come back to the house and relax, keep the money in Jenks, then this happened, it was a dirty thing," customer Mike Lloyd said.

Mike says he also called the landlord and tried to find the owner. He contacted his credit card company, so he was not out the money.

After getting no answer at the owner's home, the News on 6 got her cell phone number. She agreed to meet with us, Her husband said she would not talk to us until we talked to him in person first. The spa owner says she was evicted after Christmas and has been honoring gift certificates by making house calls.

"I was surprised, very shocked that people were unable to get a hold of me,â€ spa owner Brenda Patterson said. â€œI'm very apologetic. I wasn't doing anything dishonorable. I'm honoring everything I sold."

"What if they want their money back?" asked reporter Lori Fullbright.

"They can call me and I'll make arrangements," said Patterson

"Does that mean they can have their money back?" Fullbright asked.

"Yes," Patterson said.

Patterson says she now works at â€œSnips Salonâ€ at 3119 South Harvard and will honor the gift certificates there. She says she did not leave a forwarding address at the spa in Jenks, because it took her awhile to find a new location.

Patterson's husband called the News on 6 Friday night and said his wife sold 11 gift certificates in December for $900, had refunded two and redeemed all but three. One of those is a woman whose son is serving in Iraq. He had asked his girlfriend to buy his mom a spa gift certificate for Christmas. His mom hopes the girlfriend gets her money back.

Public court records show Patterson has a 2001, misdemeanor bogus check charge pending against her. She told us she knew nothing about that.