Snacking on a box of popcorn while watching a movie at a popular Gqeberha cinema, a teenager bit off more than he could chew when he nearly swallowed a pearl earring.
The irate father of the boy says for more than a month now Ster-Kinekor at Baywest Mall has refused to take responsibility for the incident.
The family have vowed not to visit the cinema again any time soon.
On June 28, Clint Lippert, 40, of Bridgemead, took his wife, Siaam, and sons Dillon, 17, and Kyle, 11, to watch an 8pm movie at Ster-Kinekor.
After purchasing some refreshments from the kiosk, the Lippert family took their seats in the theatre.
But moments later Dillon made the discovery of the pearl earring in his box of popcorn.
“We were shocked and didn’t know what to do at first,” Lippert said this week.
After the initial confusion, Lippert said he had decided to report the matter to a manager on duty.
Lippert alleged that after being unable to locate a manager, he spoke to a supervisor and calmly explained what had happened.
“She, without explaining what she was going to do, walked over to the kitchen where they were making the popcorn and started asking the kitchen staff questions in a language I didn’t understand,” he said.
“I followed her and saw that the staff were all wearing hair nets, but some were not covering their ears.
“One particular lady was missing an earring, though it did not match the one we found in the popcorn.
“This all happened in front of the other patrons who were in the queue for popcorn. The way it was handled made me feel as if I was in the wrong and complaining unnecessarily.”
According to Lippert, the situation became worse when he was sent from pillar to post in an attempt to lay a formal complaint.
“Trying to report the issue through their customer care number was almost impossible as the phone kept on dying on me after being transferred from pillar to post,” he said.
About a week after the incident, Lippert said, he was eventually able to get hold of a Ster-Kinekor representative with the help of a former employee.
“It was by a stroke of luck that I received the contact number after talking about the incident to an ex-employee of Ster-Kinekor,” he said.
“After reporting the matter, an investigation was launched and feedback was provided, which I am not entirely happy with.”
According to Lippert, the person he communicated with, a senior employee of Ster-Kinekor whose name is known to Weekend Post, informed him that an investigation had been concluded and that there was no evidence of his claim.
“We are extremely disappointed in the manner in which it was handled, and also by the response we received from Ster-Kinekor,” Lippert said.
“The stud could have pierced my son’s gums, causing an infection, or he could even have swallowed it.”
He said a Ster-Kinekor representative had invited him and his family back to the cinema free of charge, but they decided to turn the offer down.
“Needless to say, we don’t wish to visit the cinema again, which is quite sad, seeing that we live so close to Baywest [Mall],” he said.
Since the invitation, Lippert said, he had not received any further correspondence from Ster-Kinekor.
Contacted for comment this week, a manager on duty at the cinema complex took down the reporter’s number and said a representative would be in contact.
After sending several emails querying Lippert’s claims, a representative finally contacted Weekend Post, but declined to respond to the allegations.
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