was life for small brands was better then or now

In a column in a recent edition of @couriermedia I talk about what passed for customer service when I launched my first brand compared to now and argue that Cancel Culture is a step too far.⁠⠀
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'...our customer service was cheerful but patchy. In those days the stakes were low and the worst that could happen was a telling-off over the phone that grovelling and some free product would always make go away.⁠⠀
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...In the past half a dozen years though the voracity of the outraged social media user has grown exponentially and the whole landscape of customer expectation has transformed. Negative feedback is something that business owners live in fear of; cancel culture ir real.⁠⠀
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...I'm not sure if life for small brands was better then or now. The old way enabled founders to fly by the seat of their pants but also, sometimes get away with murder' I really can't defend some of the sloppy practice and sleight of hand that I witnessed and partook of where consumer complaints were something to be met with an entitled eyeroll...'⁠⠀
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Read the whole article in issue 38 of Courier