Amber Johnston
TickPick CEO at Blackrocks
Marquette resident Amber Johnston enjoys pasties with TickPick co-CEO Brett Goldberg at Blackrocks Brewery. Brett flew into town from New York City to apologize after a customer service incident.
New York company wins over Yoopers after map gaffe
Lesson learned: Don’t slight Michigan’s Upper Peninsula unless you’re prepared to apologize with a lot of beer.
The saga started when New York City-based ticket reseller TickPick irked Yoopers by omitting the U.P. from its map of the United States. It happens with some regularity, unfortunately, and it rankles every time.
When a Marquette resident pointed out the error, a customer service rep decided to get snarky – and set off a social media firestorm.
“We got the important part of Michigan, isn’t that good enough?” the message read. The rep doubled down later: “We’re sure the Upper Peninsula is a lovely place to live, and I assure you we didn’t intentionally leave it off the map. But seriously, it’s just a bunch of forests...”
As you might expect, proud U.P. residents didn’t take kindly to the poor attempt at humor. On social media they vowed to boycott the company and flooded TickPick’s Facebook page with one-star reviews, driving its 4.5-star rating down to 1.6 out of 5.
But the story has a happy ending, thanks to the company’s admirable response.
The same day the comments surfaced, TickPick co-CEO Brett Goldberg issued an apology, fixed the map, created a special YOOPER discount code and, to top it off, flew to Marquette to personally apologize. He spent that very evening mingling with Yoopers at Blackrocks Brewery and bought drinks for anyone who came out.
Amber Johnston
TickPick CEO at Blackrocks
Brett Goldberg poses with his “Honorary Yooper” sticker.
Brett even embraced the local culture, donning a U.P. T-shirt and Stormy Kromer hat while chowing down on a pasty. By the end of the evening – with 903 beers on his tab – he’d won over the town and turned many of the angry reviews into glowing accolades. The Facebook score had climbed back to 4.2 by Friday, and the company picked up positive media attention across the state.
To thank the U.P. for its understanding, the company announced a Yooper Blooper Giveaway on Wednesday. Anyone who leaves a five-star Facebook review in June will have a chance to win a vacation in Copper Harbor, a Pictured Rocks paddling excursion, a dozen pasties or other local prizes.
Marquette resident Amber Johnston, who works for Bottom Line Marketing, had initially joined the online charge against TickPick. But after seeing Brett’s “above and beyond” response and meeting him at Blackrocks, she had a change of heart and even helped TickPick create the giveaway.
Amber had this to say about the whirlwind two days: “I have never been SO proud to be a part of the Upper Peninsula community than I have been in the last 48 hours. Loyal and passionate about the home we all love, but understanding, forgiving and kind when it’s needed most. THANK YOU to all of you who stepped up, did the right thing, and showed the world that Michigan is filled with some pretty great people.”
Emily’s in Knife River revived
Brady Slater has an update in the Lake County News-Chronicle about the former Lighthouse at Emily’s restaurant:
The landmark along Scenic Highway 61 about 15 miles northeast of Duluth has been a general store, filling station, bed-and-breakfast, post office and, multiple times, a restaurant. The last people to operate it were three sisters and one of their daughters. They closed their restaurant in October 2015 after a popular four-year run.
Beginning in July, the restaurant located a few hundred yards upstream from Lake Superior is being reimagined as Emily's Eatery on Knife River.
A young Knife River couple will run the eatery.
+ In other restaurant news: Wild Rice Restaurant in Bayfield announced that 2017 will be its final season. The owners are “exploring a partnership with Artspace, to be reborn as A Center for Arts and Well Being.”
St. Luke’s breaks ground on new clinic in Ashland: It’s being built on the lakefront and will allow the healthcare provider to offer more services, reports Danielle Kaeding of Wisconsin Public Radio.
Duluth makes The New Yorker: The city is the setting for a poem titled “I Now Pronounce You.”
Vintage cars are circling the Lake: Members of the Toronto Triumph Club were photographed in Wawa, Ontario, last week by Wawa News. They’re doing the Circle Tour to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday.
International Bridge Walk brings together the two Sault Ste. Maries: During the event on Saturday morning, the bridge will be closed to vehicle traffic for the walkers.
Nipigon kids pluck the heartstrings with music video: Choir students made a stirring video for the song “Currency of Love,” co-written by a seventh-grader and her teacher. CBC Thunder Bay has an interview with the songwriters and a link to the video.
Happy Take Your Dog to Work Day! If you’ve got your pooch with you today, our hometown of Duluth has many dog-friendly businesses.