Just Placed My First Order Too, But Not A Happy Camper....

[Colin]

Hmmmm, good idea Mudd, I do like to eat...

Got an email from them today suggesting I spend another $34 with them to put the order over $100 and they'll do free shipping....ever marketing...I'm sure a logic professor would have a field day with that offer...but I'm looking at it.

Ron

That's about the same response I got when I asked them why free shipping wa sonly for over $200. It was suggested that I spend another $150 to get the free shipping. They even included links to everything I could buy to get it to that point (ghilles, sporrans, shirts, jackets, etc). I was just trying to buy a kilt for my 5 year old.

[Blu (Ontario)]

Not a fan of the sword/clan/other types of pins available. I just picked up a bunch of the 'ole standard safety/diaper kilt pins at Walmart for about $1 each for casual wear. On my more formal kilts I'll have a panel.

I bought a card of those a while back. Found them to be very light and the wire was roughly 1/16" dia. and made a large hole on the fabric. I like a heavier pin than those.

.

[Blu (Ontario)]

... It was suggested that I spend another $150 to get the free shipping... I was just trying to buy a kilt for my 5 year old.

The upsell is alive and well!

[Riverkilt]

Boy Blu,

I'm hoping they're the same as pictured which seem the same manufacturer as a bunch I bought at the Mesa, AZ games from vendors...don't need any more rude surprises.

Latest twist is I thought what the heck and decided to order a Jacobite shirt...but when you get there they say only 2 sizes are available in one color and only 5 sizes in another...BUT THEY DON'T TELL YOU WHAT SIZES???:confused:

And I don't know if they've shipped the kilt pins yet. Also not sure what they mean by XXL in terms of inches or centimeters...have bought from Scotland before and received XXLs that were more like a large in the U.S.

So emailed all those questions, but there seems to be a 2 to 4 day delay in getting an email response.

Guess we'll see. Its always an adventure dealing with a new vendor on line.

Of course they are being VERY helpful to me in laying down a track record so I can decide to do business with them or not in the future...I ignore the hype and pay close attention to the actual behavior.

Or, as we say in group counseling, "Don't listen to what I say - watch what I do."

Ron

[mudd]

Hmmmm, good idea Mudd, I do like to eat...

Perhaps I was being to subtle. I should have added the quote;

Grumble grumble grumble.

My wife tells me that I am often so subtle that nobody knows what the hell I’m talking about.

BTW, I ordered a Jacobite shirt from them in size XL because I wanted it to fit loose. I usually wear XL in T-shirts because I like them loose. Anyway the shirt was so big you could have fit two of me in it. I gave it to my wife's cousin and ordered a L and it fits fine.

[Riverkilt]

Okay, got my order today. Kilt pins were as expected. Shirt fit. So happier.

Postage said 0997 so not sure what that is in USD and how much I spent to save it.

A recap of the adventure.

4/17 ordered 4 kilt pins on line
4/18 got a thank you from James Turnbull
4/18 asked why shipping for four little kiltpins was $22.92 1/3 the cost of the 66.64 for kilt pins.
4/18 Kerry Tucker says sorry, nothing they can do
4/21 Stewart Robinson suggests I spend $100 and get free shipping.
4/21 try to add a Jacobite shirt but website doesn't say what sizes are in stock and ready to go with the kilt pins. Also doesn't say what XXL means in inches.
4/22 Julie MacRitchie tells me I need to spend $33 more to get free shipping and sends what sizes are in inches.
4/23 give them my choice of sizes and color if in stock.
4/24 Kerry Tucker tells me to check the website which doesn't show what I need to know about being in stock.
4/24 I say again the size and color I want
4/26 Second day with no response I ask what's up.
4/27 Julie MacRichie acknowledges. Thanked her, said I asked for an acknowlegement that the size and color shirt I wanted sent with the kilt pin order to get free shipping was actually in stock.
Julie responds that their business is going through a "growth spurt" and that they have many new staff they are trying to get trained.
5/2 Order is shipped from Scotland Via Royal Mail as requested. Nathan Jedrej acknowledges by email.
5/8 Order arrives in Page, AZ USA. Everything is there. No clue about the bonus point deal they have and how many I "earned" or where to find out about that. Suppose on their "club" deal on the website.

Bottom line for me...ten days of emails to get simple basic information that I'm guessing would have been easy to put on the website - there's so much other stuff on their website...what sizes mean in inches seems simple.

After all this I could buy all of these goods at most any Highland games, or from a U.S. jobber of the same goods.

Did wanna support the kiltstore as an advertiser on this board. Not sure I will again...maybe let the staff get trained up first.

Not sure how much I spent since there was no financial information on the packing slip and no seperate bill. Guess I'll have to check my credit card statement when it comes in this month.

I did get an acknowledgement on the four kilt pins that showed prices, but in Pounds, which I don't understand. Since I ordered from the U.S. and paid with USD and the prices were in USD on the website, it would have been nice to receive the acknowledgement in USD that I could understand.

Never did get an acknowlegement of the additional shirt cost and verification that the shipping was now free until the order was shipped...and again, the costs were shown in GBP.

So, don't know if that helps Kiltstore in their many storefronts improve their customer service to the USA any, or if helps anyone else.

Just my experience with my first order.

Ron

[Hamish]

Just to throw in my sixpennyworth here.

For the last 32 years of my working life I was in senior management of a 260 years old English perfumery house, based in London's West End. The enormous world-wide mail-order business represented a significant part of the company's turnover and, in those days was generated by our glossy paper catalogues - the internet had not, at that time, penetrated our 18th Century HQ in Jermyn Street!

The only workable system of charging for packing and posting was one based on the value of the total order, although the actual postal cost was unrelated to that charge. The charge made for mailing a small bottle of expensive perfume was therefore much higher than a heavy and less expensive box of soaps, but I do not recall ever receiving complaints about the additional costs. It was a system that worked extremely well, especially with mixed orders for several different products, and was one that was easily calculated by our customers at the time they placed their orders.

I have not looked at the KiltStore site recently, but perhaps they do something similar. Just a thought.

[Riverkilt]

That must be the difference.

I worked as the shipping department manager of a large cut and sew factory. We charged our customers the actual amount of the shipping fees, didn't try to make a profit on it. The packaging and boxing and handling were built into the cost of the product. Shipping we just passed on at cost.
Ron

[Jerry]

Okay, got my order today. Kilt pins were as expected. Shirt fit. So happier.

Postage said 0997 so not sure what that is in USD and how much I spent to save it.

A recap of the adventure.

4/17 ordered 4 kilt pins on line
4/18 got a thank you from James Turnbull
4/18 asked why shipping for four little kiltpins was $22.92 1/3 the cost of the 66.64 for kilt pins.
4/18 Kerry Tucker says sorry, nothing they can do
4/21 Stewart Robinson suggests I spend $100 and get free shipping.
4/21 try to add a Jacobite shirt but website doesn't say what sizes are in stock and ready to go with the kilt pins. Also doesn't say what XXL means in inches.
4/22 Julie MacRitchie tells me I need to spend $33 more to get free shipping and sends what sizes are in inches.
4/23 give them my choice of sizes and color if in stock.
4/24 Kerry Tucker tells me to check the website which doesn't show what I need to know about being in stock.
4/24 I say again the size and color I want
4/26 Second day with no response I ask what's up.
4/27 Julie MacRichie acknowledges. Thanked her, said I asked for an acknowlegement that the size and color shirt I wanted sent with the kilt pin order to get free shipping was actually in stock.
Julie responds that their business is going through a "growth spurt" and that they have many new staff they are trying to get trained.
5/2 Order is shipped from Scotland Via Royal Mail as requested. Nathan Jedrej acknowledges by email.
5/8 Order arrives in Page, AZ USA. Everything is there. No clue about the bonus point deal they have and how many I "earned" or where to find out about that. Suppose on their "club" deal on the website.

Bottom line for me...ten days of emails to get simple basic information that I'm guessing would have been easy to put on the website - there's so much other stuff on their website...what sizes mean in inches seems simple.

After all this I could buy all of these goods at most any Highland games, or from a U.S. jobber of the same goods.

Did wanna support the kiltstore as an advertiser on this board. Not sure I will again...maybe let the staff get trained up first.

Not sure how much I spent since there was no financial information on the packing slip and no seperate bill. Guess I'll have to check my credit card statement when it comes in this month.

I did get an acknowledgement on the four kilt pins that showed prices, but in Pounds, which I don't understand. Since I ordered from the U.S. and paid with USD and the prices were in USD on the website, it would have been nice to receive the acknowledgement in USD that I could understand.

Never did get an acknowlegement of the additional shirt cost and verification that the shipping was now free until the order was shipped...and again, the costs were shown in GBP.

So, don't know if that helps Kiltstore in their many storefronts improve their customer service to the USA any, or if helps anyone else.

Just my experience with my first order.

Ron

Ron, I keep this website bookmarked for when I'm looking at an item online and the price us in Pounds or some other European currency.

http://www.xe.com/ucc/

Of course some of the sites have their own converter on the site.

[GlassMan]

That must be the difference.

I worked as the shipping department manager of a large cut and sew factory. We charged our customers the actual amount of the shipping fees, didn't try to make a profit on it. The packaging and boxing and handling were built into the cost of the product. Shipping we just passed on at cost.
Ron

Kilt Store has an 800 number that works from the US to allow you to call them directly during their business hours (have to factor in time difference) and they are very good about handling phone requests. I'm waiting for my fitted jacket to be finished for my order to ship but they were great about adding items and helping out when everything is done by phone. The phone number was on the e-mail I received confirming the order.

An interesting aside, one of the ladies with whom I spoke commented about how wonderful it was that so many American Scots love and wear kilts. She asked me how many total I had and she was thrilled. She commented that she was having trouble convincing her Scottish boyfriend to even buy a single kilt. I asked her what seemed to be the cause of his reluctance and she offered his two arguments. One, it was too expensive; and two, wearing a kilt was something his grandfather would do. She joked that if she wanted a kilted boyfriend she might have to take a trip to the US to find one!