Pissed off With Atlantic Cigars!!!

Started by whodeeni, 05/25/2010 01:24 PM

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whodeeni

Hi,

My name is Excel F. I ordered a box of puros indios from your website. They were shipped
by ups, i happened not to be there when they were delivered due to having to go back out
of town for a family emergency.

I put instructions in the shipping for the box to be left at the hub if no one was in the office
for pickup. I buy a LOT of cigars and with those instructions i normally get a call from UPS
that the package will be held for 7 days and we can pick it up! I didn't get a quantum shipping
email, nor did get a call from the hub letting me know that I could pick the box up. Instead they
continued to deliver the package.

My driver NEVER does this! I receive a lot of packages in this same manner! I didn't get an
email me notifying me of the delivery attempt because Atlantic cigar must not have utilized
the shipping confirmation feature! I never have UPS emails go to spam and it didn't in this
case because it wasn't sent out in that manner! Other companies, 5 minutes after they key
the order # in you get a UPS Tracking Number. Not this order with Atlantic!!!

The person helping me at the phone # 570-476-5718 was rude, obnoxious, and kept trying
to place the blame on me even though he read my instructions in the comment box!

I wont' be shopping with you again, and i'm a member of 6 different cigar forums, you can
trust and believe that I will detail my experience with each and every one of them warning
others of what they can expect.

What pissed me off was the guy wanting to charge me an additional 5.95 for shipping! Are
you serious? If i didn't leave instructions fine. I bought some cigars from Twins Smoke Shop,
a similar situation handled, I called up, spoke to Kurt, he sent them right back out, and i'll
continue to do business with him.

Disgusted,

Excel F :mad:
If smoking cigars is on the Darkside, I don't ever
want to see the light!!!

ROTHNH

Everyone has a bad day.

In such situations and usually early on, it's quickly obvious there's a problem.  

At that point and before things get out of hand, cut them off at the knees -- ask to speak to their supervisor -- and don't take no for an answer.

Nine times out of ten -- as Inspector Clouseau used to say -- Problem Solve-Ed.

nwb

Thanks for the feedback.  I've never ordered from them before, so let us know if it eventually gets resolved.  They have some great deals from time to time, but if their CS is suspect, I don't want to do business with them.

nwb
Chief of Shaft

gitfiddl

Didn't someone have a go-round with them a while back?
Self-appointed Guru of Pass Container Sizing,  All Things Midgetly Stripperish, and general "Stirrer of the Puddin'".

Dave S.

Quotenwb - 5/25/2010  11:38 AM
Thanks for the feedback.  I've never ordered from them before, so let us know if it eventually gets resolved.  They have some great deals from time to time, but if their CS is suspect, I don't want to do business with them.
nwb

Ditto!
"There are not enough Indians in the world to defeat the Seventh Cavalry."

George Armstrong Custer


vetman03

I am confused. Sounds like you are pissed off with Atlantic for errors made by UPS????

I have made quite a few purchases from Atlantic and their shipping and service were fine. I guess people are not allowed to make mistakes wether it was Atlantic or UPS????

lowpro75

Quotevetman03 - 5/25/2010  2:48 PM

I am confused. Sounds like you are pissed off with Atlantic for errors made by UPS????

I have made quite a few purchases from Atlantic and their shipping and service were fine. I guess people are not allowed to make mistakes wether it was Atlantic or UPS????

That was initially what I was thinking too, vetman, but I think what really pissed off Excel was that when he called he was given the run around on the phone.  Good companies tend to work with you to fix problems, mediocre ones tend to blame the customer or someone else for the error.
Guru of Sensitivity.  

The Herf of Havertown.

Ken Kelley

I've ordered from Atlantic twice in the past month and have had no problems at all.
Guru of Benign Curmudgeonliness, Imperfect Patience, and Reluctant Toleration.



ROTHNH

Quotevetman03 - 5/25/2010  2:48 PM

I am confused. Sounds like you are pissed off with Atlantic for errors made by UPS????

I have made quite a few purchases from Atlantic and their shipping and service were fine. I guess people are not allowed to make mistakes wether it was Atlantic or UPS????

Yes, appears to be a shipping problem -- but who's at fault doesn't matter.

The answer, as every retailer knows, is to keep the customer happy.

Apparently in this case, the Atlantic Cigar Rep argued over a $5.95 shipping charge which resulted in his company losing a customer who subsequently told all his cigar smoking friends "Atlantic Sigar SUX" and posted his frustrations on at least 5 internet cigar forums.

Now who won that pissing contest?

Cigary

Feelin your pain there 'Deeni.  I have ordered from Atlantic several times over the last few months and mine went ok but the point is they don't seem to be trying to keep their customer satisfied.  They are the company who use shipping companies and they can rectify it from their end alot easier than you.  I'm with the other brother who is saying they need to take care of their customer in this as that is just the cost of doing business.

vetman03

I guess I would discuss the problem with someone higher up than the low level CS people that answer the phone first. It should have been easy to resolve. If my newspaper delivery person throws the paper in the garden, do I burn their whole office building down? I dont sweat the little stuff.

Beegerply

CS is what keeps me with companys, if it's not good I don't do business with them.  :mad:
Byron

Guru of small balls and big sticks
--------------------------------------------------

"If there are no cigars in heaven I shall not go" Mark Twain

smoke 1

Excel,

Thanks for the heads up.  I appreciate how fellow members here post their experiences, so I have an idea of how a company treats it's customers.  At my job I am responsible for providing end user support for over 100 clients.  It has always been my belief that the customer is never wrong.  These are the people who are responsible for me having employment.  When I decide to give a Cigar merchant my business I do expect to be listened to and have my needs met.  The problem may not be your fault, but at least treat me with value.  That being said I have done the majority of my business with Cigars INTL and they are outstanding.

-Brian



lowpro75

Quotevetman03 - 5/25/2010  3:33 PM

I guess I would discuss the problem with someone higher up than the low level CS people that answer the phone first. It should have been easy to resolve. If my newspaper delivery person throws the paper in the garden, do I burn their whole office building down? I dont sweat the little stuff.

I tend to stick with the same vendors unless there is a really good deal because they have treated me well in the past.  If you have 20 different ways of obtaining your newspaper, and he throws it in the garden, maybe you just get someone else to deliver it.  That is the beauty of having choices.  BTW, welcome to the site, glad this discussion encouraged you to post.
Guru of Sensitivity.  

The Herf of Havertown.

NES Tek

I've never ordered from them, but this makes me not jump to do so.
"A good cigar is like tasting a good wine: you smell it, you taste it, you look at it, you feel it - you can even hear it. It satisfies all the senses." - Anonymous

"You play five years in a Jimmy Buffett cover band and see what your freakin' wardrobe looks like, butthole!" - gitfiddl

Cigary

Quotesmoke 1 - 5/25/2010  12:36 PM

Excel,

Thanks for the heads up.  I appreciate how fellow members here post their experiences, so I have an idea of how a company treats it's customers.  At my job I am responsible for providing end user support for over 100 clients.  It has always been my belief that the customer is never wrong.  These are the people who are responsible for me having employment.  When I decide to give a Cigar merchant my business I do expect to be listened to and have my needs met.  The problem may not be your fault, but at least treat me with value.  That being said I have done the majority of my business with Cigars INTL and they are outstanding.


I can only imagine how successful your company is to have somebody like you in their employment.  25 years as a Plant Manager myself and I used the same CS Plan of Action you have and it served and saved the way we did business more times than I can tell you.  We earned their trust and we got their business.  If we sat on our hands when problems arose we'd have gone out of business all to soon.  Did some customers take advantage of this policy?  Of course they did but what we lost in those cases we doubled contracts with those who always used our business.  The Cost of Doing Business is not just a motto...it is a real and defined way of seperating how you do business compared to your competitors and our reputation in business was...if you are not happy with the product and service you received from us we will double what you lost as long as it was verified.  Our way of production was actually enhanced because we were very careful not to send out bad product and our customers were not only given back what they lost but extra as well.   No wonder our future contracts with them went so easy?

BlackIrish

QuoteAlphairon - 5/25/2010  2:57 PM

I've ordered from Atlantic twice in the past month and have had no problems at all.

I've ordered from them a lot and have had good service and responsiveness.  I'm surprised by this, and I hope that the vendor steps up to fix the problem.
(__
  • ___{{{~[/B]

sam a

sounds to me like UPS screwed this one up... i work in shipping and this happens from time to time. in my limited experience atlantic is a great company w/ great cust. service. try and contact them again... i'm sure they will do everything they can to make this right. good luck!
Any cigars portrayed in this post that appear to be Cuban in origin are completely fictional in nature. Any resemblance between these cigars and actual Cuban cigars is unintended and purely coincidental.

gitfiddl

I spent a good ten years or so in retail auto parts management.  The very first thing I told new employees was the guy across the counter isn't buying that starter or water pump because he wants to.  He's buying it because he's got to make sure he can get to work tomorrow.  His day's already bad enough; don't make it any worse by being a douche.  The bottom line is is the customer pays your salary.  It's a shame more people don't get it...


Self-appointed Guru of Pass Container Sizing,  All Things Midgetly Stripperish, and general "Stirrer of the Puddin'".

smoke 1


[/QUOTE]

  The Cost of Doing Business is not just a motto...it is a real and defined way of seperating how you do business compared to your competitors QUOTE]

Excellent point Gary  :word:


-Brian



whodeeni

Update,

Apparently Paul the president of Atlantic received the email and proceeded
to tell me that his rep was half right, and in lieu of the situation that he would
reship the package sans shipping fees.

One of his employees went on two of the other forums that I posted on and
pasted Paul's response onto them to tell their side of the story.

In retrospect, had I looked at the email  (or waited to see if i would get a response
from Atlantic) before posting this thread, I definitely would have and it
would have been just that. Issue resolved. We even came to the conclusion
that it would probably be best that they change my shipping address to the
UPS Hub for all future purchases from them. (And I wholeheartedly agree.)
UPS delivery times are not guaranteed like the post office/fed ex and we run
a small sized operation here.

So as far as I'm concerned, Paul did a much better Job of handling the issue and
Larry, Pete, other Mod's you can lock this if you see fit to do so. No need to continue
throwing Good Ole Atlantic Under a Bus! :lmao:
If smoking cigars is on the Darkside, I don't ever
want to see the light!!!

gitfiddl

A least there was a resolution that both sides seem to be happy with!  Thanks for keeping us updated.
Self-appointed Guru of Pass Container Sizing,  All Things Midgetly Stripperish, and general "Stirrer of the Puddin'".

Brlesq

I'm glad things worked out for you (after a little public pressure!)  Good for you. :thumbsup:
Bruce
Chief Enabler 
Guru of Decorum & Sarcasm


Hey! How come Habana is written on here with a Sharpie ?!?

A day without whiskey is like . . . just kidding, I have no idea!


nwb

Very good the hear.  I think I remembered BlackIrish saying it was a good outfit, so I was surprised to hear about your experience.  Thanks for the update - now I have one more vendor to watch  :shades:

nwb
Chief of Shaft

smoke 1

QuoteBRLESQ - 5/25/2010  6:45 PM

I'm glad things worked out for you (after a little public pressure!)  Good for you. :thumbsup:



Nice to see for sure  :-)   Now if the government listened this well....  Glad they took care of you Excel.  


-Brian




   
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