Hey all. For me, the communication experience has been ****** with these guys and with my order. I wouldn't trust them at all, especially given the amount of work I have put in just to try and ind out what the hell was going on with my order. And it wasn't just their conflicting dates.
It was them not recognising how frustrating it has been. It was them not committing to trying to do better next time. It was giving them an opportunity to improve - and not seeing improvements. And it was hearing that they had lied to other customers, by saying they had emailed them about delays. I didn't get any email about delays, not until I had to work hard to find out where my order was. I wanted to get a straight answer from them - and I don't feel I actually ever got one.
So below is their response to my recent email, and then my response back to them. In short, out of principle I want a refund. I really don't want to support a company like this, and it really has made me think about the sort of companies I will purchase from in the future. This may not be the best decision or the easiest one - as I like the looks of their products. However, for me this decision has been very influenced by their poor communication.
I wish everyone the best of experiences with them, both now and into the future. But I wouldn't buy anything from them ever again. Thanks for reading, and sorry if you don't agree with my stance or perspectives. My decision is based on really poor efforts in their customer service, which to me is important.
Their reply:
Hi,
Thanks for your note, and again, my apologies that our notes have been confusing to you.
As I mentioned yesterday, we're doing our best to work through the queue of people who have ordered 15" City Slickers. We make these by hand and sometimes we get more done in a day, sometimes fewer.
We've gotten to your order ahead of our estimated ETA and it's ready to ship...but only if you want it. I'll hold on to your case until I hear back. If you'd prefer to cancel your order, we'll credit back your PayPal account for the full $179. If you decide you'd like the case, we'll have it on its way.
I'm sorry that this has been such a bumpy introduction to our company. I do understand your frustration, especially since this is your first order. I'm standing by to do whichever you'd prefer: ship or cancel.
Best regards'.
My final email to them:
'Hi,
Sorry, but with the frustrating experience of poor communication between your company and not just myself - but with other people that have ordered from your company, I want to take a stand and say that service isn't good enough - and I won't accept that this.
So what I want - being clear in my communication - is for a full refund from your company, and for you to not send what I ordered. And I would also like confirmation that this will be done, and for when the payment will be made to me via PayPal, the same method for which I paid for my order back in June.
I can't believe that your company has suggested to other people that ordered this same bag, that you emailed them about delays. You didn't email me about delays, and only provided several conflicting dates via email - after I emailed your company and posted my experiences online. There is nothing else to call what you have told other customers that have shared their own experiences online, other than a lie.
Yep, it has been a bad first time experience with your company. I would not recommend your company to anyone. Even after emailing your company and expressing my frustrations on the poor communication between your company and customers re delays, there was not even the smallest offer to say, hey when your order is ready we will email you. Nor was there any recognition from your company that said you know, we could have handled his better, and in the future we will learn from this.
I will again be sharing me experiences and thoughts on your company's service and communication online. And I hope that this serves not just as a warning to other potential customers, but more importantly that your company needs to improve its communication. I might have been fine with delays, had you promptly told me. But with the amount of work I had to do to even approximate a straight answer (which I don't feel I ever actually got), I felt like I was dealing with some two bit amateur company who just couldn't get their **** together.
I appreciate that you also told me that it's expensive to make bags there in your city. But put yourself in mine and many other customers shoes, including those that don't live in America. I don't know the geography and social and economic conditions of various cities, and to me this just sounds like some lame ass cop out. If that's an issue for you, deal with it. Not all customers want to hear excuse after excuse, especially those that shouldn't have a bearing on their orders. Sure, if there is an issue with not getting materials or the wrong ones, share it. But cost woes are not something all customers want to hear about, and these just sound sadly pathetic'.
