Hobby shop rules, customers rights

unless you hit a small shop or a shop where the owner is exceptional i dont think you will find that type of service here. places like toy r us and the other larger retailers only seem to care about moving the product out the door. quality and service are next to nonexistant. quantity is the most important aspect, that determines what is on the shelves and how much is on the shelves.

i would suggest to you contact the mfg. at times they will have you return the product to the place of purchase for a replacement or refund. this doesnt help you much but unfortunately the industry is not concerned with one customer they are more concerned about the overall and the bottom line.

joe

Honestly, I would have never thought that anyone would open up a kit to show you it....I would actually be a bit weary of purchasing anything that has been opened. That's just me though.....I'm a bit picky when I purchase things. I just never realized that some people did that for their customers. Maybe, I'm not going to the right shops!! Sorry to hear about your decal mess, but I'm pretty sure that Toys R Us is not the best place for returns.....or perhaps even customer service, as they are most likely too big of a corporation to be concerned with one person's kit. Like Joe said....they are out for #1 and the majority.....

thanks for the answers guys. I miss my LHS back home. It works like this you get a kit that you like bring it to the store clerk. She asks you if you're sure of buying it. Then she gets the kits manual and a pencil and marks the parts list. pretty cool huh?

Keep my trusty pocket knife with me just for this reason. Like to open my products and make sure that everything is there and in good shape. Avoids those nasty confrontations later when you try to bring something back and you get that slack jawed dirt eater for a sales clerk. As for trying to get the mfr. to replace the part...good luck. Thats a 50/50 craps shoot and I'd much rather be happy at the time of purchase.

If the big companies want to put the little guy out of business, they'll have to assume some of the burden and responsibility that the small business owner did. That includes delivering a satisfactory product and customer service.

My local hobby shop keeps a tape dispenser handy so he can retape the box closed after you've perused the kit contents. Understands the sales technique of opening a box of styrene to allow the aroma of new styrene to make the sale for him.

I have the same problem with book stores that shrink wrap their books and get upset when you remove the shrink wrap from them.

Mike

The shop I went to on Okinawa has all the boxes tied with string, and when you went up to pay, the owner would open the box and you could look through to see that everything was there. I'll be honest, the first time he did it, I didn't know what was going on, but after that, I thought it was pretty cool. I loved that place, one of the things I really miss from my time there.

Now, I barely had time to even find LHS in the Camp Lejeune area, so I don't know if they are like that, or more of the shrink wrapped, can't open it until you've paid types. Something to look forward to once I'm home...

Reggie:

Sorry to hear about that. I guess we are still lucky with our LHS here. If the clerks know you, they will even open the box just to let you compare kits before you decide to buy. And opening/checking inside the box is a standard operating procedure prior to any purchase.

Besides, if I am going to buy a toy worth 3-days wages then I would like to be sure that I get the complete stuff.

I wrote to Bandai about my problem with the decal sheet. Here's their email.


Dear Reggie,

Thank you for your interest in our Gundam Models. Please note that our
models are considered a hobby, not a toy, and as such are excluded from
our repair/replace policy.

If you have a broken model and do not wish to pay full purchase price
for a replacement, you may order individual sheets at $4.00/sheet for
the 1:144 scale models, and $5.00/sheet for the 1:100(HG and MG) scale
models (California residents please add 7.75% sales tax.) Decals are
$1.00 for the 1:44 and $2.00 for the 1:100. However, be advised that we do
not currently have all models in stock, and you will be placed on a
waiting list. When we get the items in, they will be distributed to
customers on a first-come/first-serve basis. The other alternative is to
periodically check with us about specific models, and ask us to hold a
model that we do have in stock.

If you decide to order replacement sheets, please send us a letter
specifying which model and which pieces you need, and enclose a money order
(no cash or checks please) for the number of sheets you wish to
purchase. If the parts are in stock, please allow 6-8 weeks for processing
and delivery; if they are not, we cannot make an estimate on the
processing time. Thank you for your understanding, and we hope that you will
continue to enjoy our Gundam Models.


Regards,

[Your Name]
Consumer Service

-----Original Message-----
From:
Sent: Sunday, May 16, 2004 3:06 PM
To: CustomerService
Subject: Bandai.com Contact Form: Gundam defective dry transfer

I use to frequent a hobby shop that had a shrinkwrapper. If I wanted to purchase, say a $200.00 ship kit, the owner had no problem opening it up and we both went through it. I really miss that shop. I don't see many like those anymore.

the guy at my LHS knows customer service inside and out. he has no problem letting you look in the box and if you don't take it, he'll just tape it up again. he knows his good service is a major factor in the business he gets.

he knows his regular customers by name and phone number. how many of you, when you call your LHS, hear the phone picked up and "what can I do for you today, Chris (insert your name)"??

I'm shocked that I'm obviously in the minority here. One of my favorite parts of modeling is getting home and opening up a new kit for the first time. It would just lose something to open it in the store so somebody else could sort through the parts and mark up the instruction sheet.

I've also never had a problem with getting replacement parts. I've actually had a lot of luck. I remember I bought this large scale ATM/Ertl '57 Corvette, with working lights, a few years ago. It was supposed to come with a piece of material for the carpeting, but it was missing. I wrote a letter to Ertl (this was before email) and a few weeks later received another complete model, sealed and everything.

I'm floored at the response that ReggieFrancia got from Bandai. That's just unbelievably poor customer service, especially given that the product was defective. I don't know how many time I wrote to Revell or Monogram, openly admitting that I messed up a piece while building the model, and still received a replacement part.

Anyway, sorry to hear about your lousy experience ReggieFrancia. You might try taking the model back to Toys R Us to see if they'll replace it for another kit. Although I'll agree that they're usually more concerned with getting product out the door, they're usually OK with returns. Give it a try. Oh, and welcome to the boards!

-Jonathan

jblittle: thats EXCELLENT service. now, ertle doesn't even respond to anything. good luck with tamiya and hasegawa

If anyone lives in the Vancouver Canada 604 area, here are some shops that do that, some you need to request.

Gundam Workshop
VanHobbies
Magicbox Hobbies

thats all i can think of, gundam workshop is the best of them, the guy helps you pick, if you ask kindly, he will sometimes throw in some glue or paint, or a 10% off. he tells you the most recient kits released, which he gets WITHIN 1 WEEK OF RELEASE, prices are rock bottom for gundam, he can tell you which models are the most suited for low/med/high skills, most popular models sold, stuff to beware of when you are building, and if you buy a lot, he sometimes (Rarely) throws in a small gundam.
His name's Joey

Oh, and he gives free lessons, using airbrushes, tips, for 3 days, 1ce every week, 3 hours.

great little shop