'I am a man of my word': Durian Hub seller says he did not lie to customer who said he taunted her

As the durian season rolls around, many would be looking to buy their favourite king of fruits to savour.

Recently, however, one durian lover complained how a seller from Durian Hub taunted her after sending her a box of King of Kings durians when she requested for Mao Shan Wang durians.

Stomp contributor Mingli said that when she accused the seller of cheating and that she would report him, the seller directed her to his "attorney", sending her a screenshot of Covid-19 recovery hotlines telling her to wait for their call.

Andy Tan, the durian seller of Durian Hub, contacted AsiaOne yesterday (June 9) explaining that it was all a misunderstanding.

He told AsiaOne that "I am a man of my word. If I make a mistake, I will accept it" and that he delivers what he promises.

On that incident with Mingli, he said that he told the buyer that they didn't have Mao Shan Wang durians then and offered her D24 when she said she prefers bitter and sweet durians.

She did not respond to his message then.

Tan told AsiaOne that on May 20, he informed Mingli that their durian supply had arrived, sending her via WhatsApp an image which says 'King Of Cats' which stands for King of Kings durians and that this delivery was confirmed for May 22.

After the durians were delivered, the buyer messaged Tan and asked if the durians were Mao Shan Wang and the seller replied the previous order had been King of Kings. 

He offered to fix the problem by offering an exchange of the boxes she had left. It was from then that the conversation turned stale.

Tan told AsiaOne that he had only offered Mingli what he had since he did not want to lose the business.

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"She said she wants bitter taste which is the King of Kings. So to pacify her I don't mind losing money to gain an audience (a customer)."

Tan pointed out that Mingli had ordered five boxes but said she only had a problem with three of them.

He told AsiaOne that by giving her the King of Kings durians he was even losing money.

Four boxes of King of Kings costs $119 compared to five boxes of Mao Shan Wang for $98. This would mean one box of King of Kings is about $30 and one box of Mao Shan Wang about $20.

"All my customers know my policy, if anything is wrong with the durian, I will put it aside and I will change it for them," Tan said, adding that the one-for-one exchange will be free.

Tan also claimed that he would always try to give the best service to his customers, by giving them free gadgets or free delivery.

He said that his customers have been encouraging him to move past the situation and have shown him their support.

While his business is still doing okay ever since the report, he has been receiving some not-so-nice comments online.

He said: "If they still want to talk too much, I will take legal action."

However, Tan has also told AsiaOne that he wants to let this issue rest.

shanmugap@asiaone.com