A Statement from Modo & Modo S.p.a. on Quality Control and other Issues

While we were on vacation (yes, yes, Italians love vacations…and even more this year, since we had something to celebrate after the World Cup!) we received 37 several e-mails. There also has been some discussion on several Internet groups: Google and Flickr among others.

We just got back and here we are answering our customers having trouble with their Moleskine Notebooks. First of all, WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE SILENCE, but – like many Moleskiners may already know – we are a very small company: 15 people total! And we personally follow the customer care.

Since the beginning of this year we have received and answered 370 emails on different topics. We will answer each one of you, please be patient.

Quality Control

As always we’re checking, with almost obsessive care, the quality of our products. The notebooks details and characteristics require a lot of precision. This year, in particular, to improve the control on the production we introduced a new procedure to make sure that our notebooks are well hand crafted. Despite the small company size, we are manufacturing and ensuring quality of large quantities: only this year over 5,223,000 notebooks were released and are traveling around the world!

Starting last June we added a number printed on the Moleskine flyer (see image above), which allows us to identify the time, place and lot of production. This enables us to address any possible problems pertaining to a specific batch. If you don’t have this flyer in your notebook, you will, as soon as the inventory in the shops updates.

Online feedback form

We are putting in place a feedback form for you to specify precisely problems with paper, binding, print etc. This form will be very important for sustaining our efforts in keeping and increasing the quality of our products.

Thanks for your comments!

It’s you, the moleskiners’ community, which is the real strength of our brand and the warranty of quality of our notebooks.  You help us identify problems and address them. It is also you who bring ideas and help us discover new ways of using Moleskine.

In the next few days we will be in touch and talk about:

1 - production in China
2 - company plans with the new owner Société Générale Capital
3 - prices

We would like to keep the dialog going - we always welcome your suggestions and comments.

Modo & Modo S.p.a.
30 August 2006 1.15 PM CST
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Full text of the image shown above:

"QUALITY CONTROL N° 6484

Every notebook is handmade and it has been carefully checked for quality. If, despite our best efforts, we have overlooked a defect of any kind, please let us know. Send an e-mail to: info@modoemodo.com, and include a digital photo that shows the problem you found, the quality control number (that identifies the notebook in your hands) shown here, along with the model name and your mailing address. We will send you a new notebook.
Together, we can prevent mistakes in the future. Thank you."
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Also discussed at Moleskinerie/GoogleGroups.

Comments

[PIF]

What a great news !
Thank you.
I'm a new Moleskiner from France and I hope Modo & Modo will continue to make a great job !
Viva Italia ! (Et vive la France ...)

[Americo Gomez]

Great news!

I am a moleskiner from a longwhile, which is rather difficult since M's are not sold in my country (Venezuela) and I have to order from the US. My last one (bought January) got dettached from the spine after only one month of "normal" use... Now It seems that modo is aware and is doing something. Every company may face quality problems now and then but the difference is made in how they aknowledge and deal with the problems.

Regarding the China issue, I don't care if they start manufacturing M's in Mars providing that they keep the quality and stay away from sweat shops and China is not necesarily synonim of bad quality and sweat shops (see the Ipod-china manufacturing issue)

Well again, good news for the moleskiners!!!

[George]

Glad to hear it. I'll wait to see before I purchase in bulk again, but it's a very encouraging letter. This personal, chummy approach with users is part of what made them so successful in the first place.

[Josh]

Armand -

Should we still be thinking about sending photo documentation of problems we've had with our Moleskines?

Thanks! (thanks for all of it!)
-Josh

[Armand B. Frasco]

By all means. Email them with the photos here: info@modoemodo.com

[Chris Meisenzahl]

Very happy to read that.

[Nat]

I was certainly impressed with their response to me and customer service provided so thank you from me as well!

[Patrick Ng]

I've always been amazed by this weird combination: So many Moleskine produced, just 15 or so employees, millions of users.... My feeling was Modo e Mode was not so responsive but that's only because of the huge difference of workload vs. resources. I've never heard of their commitment this vivid before, so I guess it is a great sign and they do keep their promise. So far I haven't heard of any customer complaint but this is already a great mechanism to report to Modeo e Modeo if there is any.

[JoshD]

I'm curious: did Modo & Modo email this to Moleskinerie and the Google Groups as part of responding to the unhappiness in the blogs and groups about their product?

If so, that shows a certain cluefulness about their brand management.

[Armand B. Frasco]

Yes, Modo e Modo sent this statement to me for posting here on Moleskinerie.com and on the FLICKR and GOOGLEGROUPS discussions. They routinely do when there are important announcements to make.

[Chew]

"In the next few days we will be in touch and talk about:
1 - production in China
2 - company plans with the new owner Société Générale Capital
3 - prices"

Whatever happened to the updates on the above?

[Tom]

"In the next few days we will be in touch and talk about:
1 - production in China
2 - company plans with the new owner Société Générale Capital
3 - prices"

We still have no information on these items. I am highly interested in #1 being fully addressed. Anyone know if they're going to let us know more?

[Armand]

I have forwarded your comment to Milan for their response.

[Americo Gomez]

Still waiting for comments on 1-2-3!

[Armand B. Frasco]

Sir,

You may wish to contact the company directly though the information on their website:

http://www.moleskine.com/eng/_interni/contattaci/default.htm