Tag Archives: floor model

Colder's, customer service, fraud, furniture, half back, home furnishings, incompetence, Milwaukee, Milwaukee Area, promotion, ripoff, scam, shame on you, Wisconsin

Colder’s Is Doing It Wrong – And Not Just in Grafton

15 Comments

The following comment was submitted by Tim on 21 March 2009 in response to our post “Colder’s Furniture ‘Fan’ Calls US Extortionists “. We reply immediately afterwards.

Tim’s comment:

I absolutely hate colders pricing methods.

The main issue with the full back or buy back program is that the “retail” price or higher price on their tags is SOOOOO expensive, that it’s inconceivable that anyone would be stupid enough to buy an item at their “retail” price.

The other price they have on the tag is “floor model” price which means that you must take the item off the floor. This to me is not consumer friendly. Also, with the economy the way it is, the floor model price is now the same price for a new item in the box. Colders is starting to realize how uncompetitive they really are.

Their sticker pricing is so ridiculous, that any good consumer who does his or her homework should be able to spot these ridiculous prices and not be fooled.

Please do your homework before you make an expensive purchase and you will not get burned.

I honestly believe that the Colders in Grafton will not be open much longer. The store is never busy, and even the Sales Associates who are 100% commission have commented to me on how ridiculously over priced their “retail” price is.

Thanks for sharing, Tim.

We believe Tim is spot-on about Colder’s pricing. We’ve had people defending their pricing, being OK with paying hundreds more for an item because they were getting “money back” toward “something more”. We admit we don’t quite get it. That “something more” has to then be purchased at Colder’s regular-retail price, which we’ve often seen to be high compared to competitors, so where exactly are the big savings? And even if you do manage to score a deal and save, say, a couple hundred bucks…if you end up having problems or need something after the sale–we’ve read enough reports of Colder’s showing absolutely no interest in fixing items or otherwise taking good care of honest customers–was it really worth it?

Not Colder's Merchandise...Yet?Once they have your money, apparently, that’s it for them. Some deal that is, right? And your cash-back credit? That’s money in their pocket, too, if you end up not cashing it in…

We drive on I-43 and Hwy 60 past the Grafton store quite often, sometimes several times a day, and definitely agree with Tim’s won’t-last-much-longer assessment. The parking lot is almost always embarrassingly empty. We can recall only a few times where there was more than one other party of shoppers in the store at the same time we were. That can’t be sustainable for too (much) long(er)…

We also don’t get how Colder’s sales associates deal with it. We’re not surprised to read Tim has heard sales associates complain, either. Colder’s salespeople are paid on a 100% commission basis, as Tim mentioned; we can’t imagine any sane person taking such a job at a virtual ghost town, or lasting very long there if they did. If they’re busy, at Colder’s normal prices, it certainly has the potential to be lucrative, but the lack of customers means lack of sales, which in the case of a 100%-commission position means a total lack of income…

It’s crazy to stand around all day earning nothing. Maybe that explains the behavior of the saleslady that’s stalked us through the Grafton store so many times, too.

The Colder’s Northshore/Grafton problem will become more exacerbated or maybe even solve itself by way of store closure if/when Steinhafels builds more or less right across the street; Steinhafels allegedly owns property right off that same I-43 exit and it’s assumed they will eventually build a store/showroom there. (Disclaimer: this is not in any way an endorsement of Steinhafels.)

We definitely think there’s demand for a bigger-box-variety retail furniture store in that part of Ozaukee County. But Colder’s isn’t it, by our own estimation, and it’s increasingly clear it’s their own fault–brought about by terrible pricing, ridiculous promotions, unethical sales behaviors, general rudeness, poor customer service all the way up their corporate ladder to Colder’s corporate head of “Customer Service” Sue Lewicki, and likely beyond. Before, during and after the sale. And not limited to just the Grafton/Northshore location, either.

Company-wide, they’re Doing It Wrong.

Really, about the only thing we think they do right is provide a relatively large selection of merchandise (which does not, to our knowledge, include the Inflatable Toast Mattress, pictured above…). Nearly everything Colder’s sells you can find–and buy–elsewhere in the Milwaukee area or even online, easily enough.

Colder's, customer service, fraud, furniture, half back, home furnishings, Milwaukee, Milwaukee Area, promotion, ripoff, scam, shame on you, Wisconsin

Colder’s Furniture “Fan” Calls US Extortionists

4 Comments

We felt the need to respond more directly to the following comment, submitted by Brett on 08 March 2009 in response to our post “Colder’s ‘Half Back’ Promotion Might Be A Scam” (added emphasis is ours):

the half back credit can save you money in the long run. the promotion should be used all at once. if you walk out of the store with a credit for a future date, then why didnt you purchase the item at the lower price in the first place? the way the promotion was explained to me is that it can save you money on a “package price”. that means that buying multiple items and issueing/redeeming all at once can save money. it saved more money on the multiple t.v.s we bought than anyone else would try to save us. plain and simple, if you want to use the credit to extort a sale item, then dont be surprised when they dont like losing money so you can save a dollar.

just my $.02

We’d like to reiterate that we truly appreciate every legitimate comment we receive, regardless of its position or opinion.

That said, we’re not going to let stuff slide like calling us extortionists. Re-read what we’ve written here; we’re not the swindlers.

We sat on the above comment for a while. We’re still not sure if this was from a Colder’s employee feeling the need to ‘reach out’ on the defensive as Unpaid Company Cheerleader, but it certainly has that kind of feel. There’s simply too much about the comment that doesn’t ring true for us based on our own Colder’s experiences and comments we’ve received or seen/heard elsewhere.

Of course, we may be wrong, and we’re willing to admit as much if it’s actually true. And we do realize, of course, that the possibility may truly exist that:

  • We have a comment from a legitimately-happy customer of Colder’s who had a positive experience with their Half-Back promotion, and
  • He enjoyed that experience so much he had to share it with us, and
  • He also enjoyed it so much he ALSO believes our bad experience can’t possibly be true, and
  • The only logical, possible explanation for all of our Colder’s posts here is because we’re trying to extort money or merchandise from Colder’s.

Imagine. You can draw your own conclusions.

There’s really very little else to say here. We’re not at all shocked that Colder’s “dont like losing money so [we] can save a dollar.” Clearly, from Colder’s completely arrogant and indifferent dismissal of our concerns, particularly by Colder’s corporate Customer Service manager Sue Lewicki, that’s all this is about: the money.

For us, it really boils down to one thing: a principle. Something that’s one of the most basic tenets of good business. Something that anyone not only versed in basic customer service should know, but as a professional in charge of same at the corporate level, should completely understand–live and breathe–and want to aspire to, as much as possible: keeping promises. Telling the truth. Honoring commitments.

Colder's Which Side?We’re not here saying “the customer is always right”, because the customer isn’t always right. We’re here saying “if a customer gives you money, and you say you’re giving them X in return, you damn well better give them X like you said you would.”

It’s that simple. Honesty. Integrity. Pick either one; Colder’s seems to lack it. But, according to Brett, we’re the extortionists. You and me. All of us, dirty thieving consumers. For trying to get companies like Colder’s to give us what we paid for. Riiight.

Colder's, customer service, fraud, furniture, half back, home furnishings, incompetence, Milwaukee, Milwaukee Area, promotion, ripoff, scam, shame on you, Wisconsin

Colder’s Furniture Tries Hooking Yet Another Victim?

8 Comments

Hook Line and SinkerWe received the following comment last night, left in response to our post “Colder’s ‘Half Back’ Promotion Might Be A Scam”, from a kind but apparently unfortunate reader, Lisandra, currently caught up her own Colder’s Mess.

Here’s the full text of that comment, reposted here so it hits our RSS feed and gets as much online reach as possible:

hi alex,

boy, i sure wish i had come across your blog before i went shopping at colders! jeez, where do i start?

on 3/5 i went in to take advantage of their serta ‘full back’ offer. i bought a matteress set for about $1750 (reg price). so then i was able to pick out $1750 in ‘free’ stuff…at reg price. i bought a bed frame (850) a blue-ray (409) and a ‘19 tv (400) . not too bad of a ‘deal’. i had to pay less than $50 difference., no big deal. i priced the serta set (online and on sale) for about $1200-1300. so i feel i got a good deal. BUT…..(hear comes the problem) ………..

……that night i also purchased a floor model tv for $1150. (reg price was around 1600?) i didn’t receive any cash back because it was clearenced and a floor model. ok, no problem. i took home the tv that night and the next morning when i hooked everything up and turned it on, a blue vertical line from top to bottom, a quarter of the way in from the left, appears on the screen. wtf? i played around with the remote and all the settings to see if that might have fixed it…nope. i called colders and they told me i is probably the cable reception. so i called time warner and set up a time for them to come out and ‘fix’ it. that was on 3/10. just as i though, it wasn’t any problem with the signal. so i called colders for the 2nd about the issue and was told to talk to the salesperson who sold me the tv. of course, he was not there at that time. so i called the next day and was able to speak with him and he said i needed to speak with someone in service, so i was transferred. the person in sales told me i needed to speak with, yet another person, jim who has already left for the day! and won’t be back until monday!! ugh!!!!

so now, over a week goes by, and its the 6th time i call about this situation with no results. i finally was able to get ahold of ‘jim’ on 3/16 and told him what is going on and basically told him i want to just return the tv. he then has me transferred to another guy, whose higher up, and when he gets on the phone he basically tells me i can’t return it and its per manufacturers policy and that the tv needs to come in to be serviced. they would be able to come to my house to pick it up on the27th or 4/2…lol you have to be kidding!? i told him that i’ll be in that night to bring it in. so, i take it back to colders and told them i’m returning it. the poor girl in customer service/pick-up location didn’t know what to do. she was calling to 3-4 people to get an answer about taking a return and all each and every one of the people she talked to seemed like they didn’t want to ‘help’ or get involved…….

so, i left the tv there to be repaired, but was told to call the next day (which was today) and talk to the cust. serv. mgr. was told she works from 9-4:30. i called around 1pm and aked for her and was told she ‘left for the day’. boy, if i’m not getting the run around, wtf gives!!!!!??????? now i feel foolish because they have my money AND my tv!

Colder’s, shame on you–again and again and again.

We’d call this unbelievable, but unfortunately, stories like this are apparently entirely common. So sorry, Lisandra. :(  Which Colder’s location? Do you have any more details regarding the names and exact positions/titles of people with whom you’ve spoken? We’d be happy to out them all.

As we mentioned in our comment reply to Lisandra, there may be other options available to you, if you feel you’ve been swindled by Colder’s (or anyone else). You may have recourse if you paid with a credit card (including many debit cards, Visa/Mastercard-logo’ed or not). You can dispute charges with your bank/credit card provider and possibly get the item(s) charged back and off your account. Your bank/card provider may offer other buyer-protection options as well. Call them and ask; it’s good information to know anyway.

Additionally, you can always contact your state’s Attorney General’s office and file a consumer complaint. Here’s the Wisconsin Attorney General’s site for filing:

http://www.datcp.state.wi.us/cp/consumerinfo/cp/complaint-form/file_complaint.jsp

Please, good readers, help us help the rest of you. Get the word out. We hate reading these stories (this one was definitely not the first). We hate that Colder’s business model seems to predicate heavily upon an ability to play hard-working Milwaukee-area consumers for suckers. Talk to other people. Share your experiences here. Milwaukee, southeastern Wisconsin, northern Illinois… they all need to know about this bad-apple retailer.