Are Premium Juice Vendors Taking Advantage of us?

[drysprocket]

Would you care to expound on your customer service experience ? Have you brought up the issue in the vendor thread and given them a chance to respond ? I am not saying your problem is not legit and that they weren't at fault, but a little more detail would be welcome before you attempt to sully the reputation of a well established registered ECF vendor with a legion of fans, the vast majority of whom rave about their customer service.

As to your overall question, no i don't think so. You can not be taken advantage of ( more than once anyway ) if you don't let it happen. As vapers we have a tremendous amount of choice ranging from DIY ( as low as 4 cents a ml ) to budget vendors like MBV, vape Wild, ITC etc... all the way to so-called high end boutique vendors that charge close to a $ 1 per ml.

Good point, but I don't think it's worth going to the thread about it...I just can't imagine what good can come from it. It's clear from my communications from them that this is a policy issue, and nothing unique that happened to me. Which is why I'm bring up the larger point. And even from this vendor, I've had positive support experiences in the past, with minor questions etc.

The short version (and I'm sure other vendors do this as well) If you get a unsatisfactory tasting bottle of their juice- they require the customer to send it in on their own dime, then the juice is tasted and decided if something's wrong with it- and if they find it's fine- which is totally subjective: tough luck, you then have to pay for shipping back. So in effect, they now have my $40 bottle held for ransom, that I have to pay 4 dollars more for....just to get back this bottle that tasted bad. And it just gets more complicated from there.

I'm just trying to imagine what other industry where a no-return, exchange, and pay both ways to ship would be in effect. It's about as anti-consumer as it gets, and a sign of a lager problem with these vendors. I don't think a vendor like this feels like are doing anything wrong with this policy... in fact, they are apparently used to us putting up with it. It was clear that I might have been the first kid in the class to raise my hand and call shenanigans.

And I'm doing my best to not outright point the finger at them, because I do think this goes beyond any one place. Hence the thread.

 

[AttyPops]

My local B&M vape shop (I'd consider them premium juice) doesn't take advantage of me. I don't have to buy anything from them.

Take, for example, today. I'm low on DIY materials. Going to order more next month. Will squeak by this month. But I thought to myself..."Let's see what they have and pick up some for fun." So I got 30 ml for 15 bucks. Not DIY prices, but not a rip off either. And they are a local walk in and talk/buy place.

Now, I don't do that very often. I'm more likely to buy coils in a pinch than juice since I have 6 months to a year of supply per DIY material order. But it's nice once in a while to try some flavors they've invented when I get burnt out on my usually unflavored DIY mix. Maybe that's just lazy of me. But it's fun too. And it supports local businesses.

So IDK how you take that. Shopping around for price is always a good idea. Also quantity often matters in an order...higher price per ml for 10 ml than 30 ml for example.

 

[swaycleveland]

Yeah, a few days ago, I would have grabbed people by the shoulders and shook them, telling them how great their juice is (My ADV is their Blueberry). But after my experience with their customer service today, I am voting with my wallet and giving them another dime again. This is just a racket, and it's so depressing. I might have to put some serious time and effort into learning DIY; I'm just not sure there is another answer.

the other answer is Go buy a pack of camels, hows that for gouging

 

[Mazinny]

Good point, but I don't think it's worth going to the thread about it...I just can't imagine what good can come from it. It's clear from my communications from them that this is a policy issue, and nothing unique that happened to me. Which is why I'm bring up the larger point. And even from this vendor, I've had positive support experiences in the past, with minor questions etc.

The short version (and I'm sure other vendors do this as well) If you get a unsatisfactory tasting bottle of their juice- they require the customer to send it in on their own dime, then the juice is tasted and decided if something's wrong with it- and if they find it's fine- which is totally subjective: tough luck, you then have to pay for shipping back. So in effect, they now have my $40 bottle held for ransom, that I have to pay 4 dollars more for....just to get back this bottle that tasted bad. And it just gets more complicated from there.

I'm just trying to imagine what other industry where a no-return, exchange, and pay both ways to ship would be in effect. It's about as anti-consumer as it gets, and a sign of a lager problem with these vendors. I don't think a vendor like this feels like are doing anything wrong with this policy... in fact, they are apparently used to us putting up with it. It was clear that I might have been the first kid in the class to raise my hand and call shenanigans.

And I'm doing my best to not outright point the finger at them, because I do think this goes beyond any one place. Hence the thread.

Yeah that's a tough situation and i don't know what the correct way to go about it is. While i understand ( them saying the juice is fine ) is subjective, you thinking it's not is also subjective. At the very least though they should ship it back to you on their own dime. And if there is indeed something wrong they should replace the bottle and credit you for your shipping. I have a similar issue with them ( i suspect the nic level is too high, although i am not certain ). I am sending it back ( on my own dime ), but they said they will take care of me if i am correct.

 

[slinco]

yea they are sticking it to you ,but they have overhead and such so thats the name of the game

after getting into DIY i realize the actual cost ,,and only buy premium for curiosity's sake nowadays

What he said....

 

[swaycleveland]

My local B&M vape shop (I'd consider them premium juice) doesn't take advantage of me. I don't have to buy anything from them.

Take, for example, today. I'm low on DIY materials. Going to order more next month. Will squeak by this month. But I thought to myself..."Let's see what they have and pick up some for fun." So I got 30 ml for 15 bucks. Not DIY prices, but not a rip off either. And they are a local walk in and talk/buy place.

Now, I don't do that very often. I'm more likely to buy coils in a pinch than juice since I have 6 months to a year of supply per DIY material order. But it's nice once in a while to try some flavors they've invented when I get burnt out on my usually unflavored DIY mix. Maybe that's just lazy of me. But it's fun too. And it supports local businesses.

So IDK how you take that. Shopping around for price is always a good idea. Also quantity often matters in an order...higher price per ml for 10 ml than 30 ml for example.

so your ...... because they wont pay shipping???? Ok i like orange, ship it oops more like candy orange send me that one NO more like the candy orange in the skittles box cant you get anything right.
how does that work ?

this may be the only industry that sells this kind of product
you didnt order a Honda and they sent you a soap dish
you ordered a flavor profile that in their opinion taste like xxxxx
you roll the dice you might like that flavor or you might not

 

[alicewonderland]

Most juice vendors' stuff tastes like gasoline. Good juice is hard to come by, or else it would cost $20/120ml from all vendors. Maybe I am wrong though. I have never done DIY, but I will give it a shot, and I will do it right now. Tell me exactly what to buy, right this second, and I will go buy it right now. I will make the juice like you tell me and I will report my honest opinion. If I like it, I'll love you forever. If I don't, well, then I guess I can keep spending lots of money on juice.

I'm serious. Tell me what to buy right now. Make it easy though. No high concentration nic or anything, just ready to go 12mg base will be fine and tell me some flavors to buy.

unflavored 12mg nic: 12mg Unflavored Nicotine Base - ecigExpress

then the flavors I tried and liked so far are:
Flavor Express: Blueberry
Natures Flavors: Strawberry Shortcake
Signature: Cinnamon Sugar Cookie
Loranns: Watermelon
Capella: Blueberry Cinnamon Crumble
Flavor West: Gingerbread

and I use these as additives/sweeteners:
Signature: Malted Milk
FlavourArt: Condensed Milk
FlavourArt: Vanilla Tahiti


thats what I have right now that I mix and vape with. I use around 10/90 or 20/80 flavoring/juice ratio. Have other flavors that I dont like too much but these are my faves. Good thing is though if you dont like the flavoring, it was only 2-4$ for the bottle rather than 15-30$ for the bottle of juice.

 

[Moonbogg]

unflavored 12mg nic: 12mg Unflavored Nicotine Base - ecigExpress

then the flavors I tried and liked so far are:
Flavor Express: Blueberry
Natures Flavors: Strawberry Shortcake
Signature: Cinnamon Sugar Cookie
Loranns: Watermelon
Capella: Blueberry Cinnamon Crumble
Flavor West: Gingerbread

and I use these as additives/sweeteners:
Signature: Malted Milk
FlavourArt: Condensed Milk
FlavourArt: Vanilla Tahiti


thats what I have right now that I mix and vape with. I use around 10/90 or 20/80 flavoring/juice ratio. Have other flavors that I dont like too much but these are my faves. Good thing is though if you dont like the flavoring, it was only 2-4$ for the bottle rather than 15-30$ for the bottle of juice.

Thanks. I will try this.

 

[drysprocket]

Yeah that's a tough situation and i don't know what the correct way to go about it is. While i understand ( them saying the juice is fine ) is subjective, you thinking it's not is also subjective. At the very least though they should ship it back to you on their own dime. And if there is indeed something wrong they should replace the bottle and credit you for your shipping. I have a similar issue with them ( i suspect the nic level is too high, although i am not certain ). I am sending it back ( on my own dime ), but they said they will take care of me if i am correct.

Yeah, it's totally subjective for both of us, that's why I'm frustrated. And so that's the catch...if you're correct. If they would have found something wrong with it, they would have made a new bottle, and paid the shipping back, I have no doubt. The problem is back to the subjective thing. I had my friend try it too before I sent it back (she often takes hits off my vape when I use this flavor) and she said it tasted like swamp water, and I'm not being picky. So hopefully I'm not just you in the future. I truly hope you have better luck than I did :/

 

[Mazinny]

Yeah, it's totally subjective for both of us, that's why I'm frustrated. And so that's the catch...if you're correct. If they would have found something wrong with it, they would have made a new bottle, and paid the shipping back, I have no doubt. The problem is back to the subjective thing. I had my friend try it too before I sent it back (she often takes hits off my vape when I use this flavor) and she said it tasted like swamp water, and I'm not being picky. So hopefully I'm not just you in the future. I truly hope you have better luck than I did :/

My issue is something that has an objective answer. I have vaped Legend many times before with no throat issues, but this bottle is really hard on my throat. I am either correct and there is too much nicotine in it ( easily tested ) or i'm wrong and i need to go down on nicotine level ( at least for NETs ) !

I mean if it really tastes so bad that it's unvapeable, just spend the $ 2 and send it to them. Don't know who you spoke with there but there are at least a couple of people there that came across reasonable enough.

 

[drysprocket]

My issue is something that has an objective answer. I have vaped Legend many times before with no throat issues, but this bottle is really hard on my throat. I am either correct and there is too much nicotine in it ( easily tested ) or i'm wrong and i need to go down on nicotine level ( at least for NETs ) !

I mean if it really tastes so bad that it's unvapeable, just spend the $ 2 and send it to them. Don't know who you spoke with there but there are at least a couple of people there that came across reasonable enough.

Yeah that should be easily tested....but I don't think they tested the one I sent back, they said that they tasted it, and that it's fine/normal (No soup for you)

They were reasonable enough until I told them about my dissatisfaction. I would ask them to check the nic levels specifically. I couldn't quite pinpoint what was wrong with mine.

 

[ukeman]

If a juice isn't any better than most could make themselves with available DIY flavors etc, then its not worth it.

If its something that is artfully put together, like a chef who has a talent for blending ingredients, then yes, at current prices.

What I'm saying is yeah, if you can't make a better juice, and also they are in competition with a wide range of vendors so that seems to dictate price points.

edit: oh yeah, wanted to say that a good juice, especially one that has like a new and interesting slant on a flavor or combination of flavors, can perk up your whole mood its awesome!

 

[DeathBYzombieZ]

Are you Siri? Read the context.

I did. Like 4 times over. Saying of course you do doesn't make since. You should have said "of course you could".

 

[love coffee]

Good point, but I don't think it's worth going to the thread about it...I just can't imagine what good can come from it. It's clear from my communications from them that this is a policy issue, and nothing unique that happened to me. Which is why I'm bring up the larger point. And even from this vendor, I've had positive support experiences in the past, with minor questions etc.

The short version (and I'm sure other vendors do this as well) If you get a unsatisfactory tasting bottle of their juice- they require the customer to send it in on their own dime, then the juice is tasted and decided if something's wrong with it- and if they find it's fine- which is totally subjective: tough luck, you then have to pay for shipping back. So in effect, they now have my $40 bottle held for ransom, that I have to pay 4 dollars more for....just to get back this bottle that tasted bad. And it just gets more complicated from there.

I'm just trying to imagine what other industry where a no-return, exchange, and pay both ways to ship would be in effect. It's about as anti-consumer as it gets, and a sign of a lager problem with these vendors. I don't think a vendor like this feels like are doing anything wrong with this policy... in fact, they are apparently used to us putting up with it. It was clear that I might have been the first kid in the class to raise my hand and call shenanigans.

And I'm doing my best to not outright point the finger at them, because I do think this goes beyond any one place. Hence the thread.

Sprocket,

I feel your aggravation and agree that you should speak with your wallet. I had a similar experience with a different vendor that was recommended on ECF. I ordered some juice and one, in particular, tasted NOTHING like their description. It was supposed to be a tobacco "flavor" (before I discovered NETs!), and it tasted like sugar water. I sent an inquiry to the vendor, wondering if it was possible that something was left-out of my bottle. The response I got was basically "we don't accept returns on e-juice. If you are THAT unhappy, I'll make an exception this time, and send you another if you'll return the bottle in question." I never responded because I wasn't willing to give them one more chance at anything with that kind of "customer service". I've never ordered another drop from them and won't.

OTOH, there is another vendor I discovered on ECF and after many, many, many orders, I ran across a bottle that seemed to be missing the flavors of my previous bottles. This vendor asked nothing of me except to choose whether I wanted a bottle of the flavorings to mix in my existing juice, or a completely new bottle. I opted to have the flavorings sent with my next order, and I can tell you that there will be MANY more orders with this vendor. That kind of customer service, along with excellent juice, has earned my business and loyalty far, far into the future.

The moral of these two tales, perhaps, is that "Feavenly" is being penny-wise and pound foolish. It would be different, IMO, if you placed ONE order and complained that the juice didn't taste the way you expected. But, from my understanding, you had been vaping this particular juice for some time, and can clearly tell when something isn't right. Just like I did with my excellent vendor.

Anyone can make a mistake. It's how they handle that mistake that makes all the difference.

 

[duc916]

I did. Like 4 times over. Saying of course you do doesn't make since. You should have said "of course you could".

No worries, man. Vape on.

 

[drysprocket]

So well said Love Coffee, so-well-said. Thanks for that. And yeah, I might have given them close to $1,000 this year, and it's one of my 2 ADV's of theirs (I primarily only vape their stuff now, and even buy extra for my friend) I truly don't understand their thinking.

I guess voting with our wallets is the bottomline. Great examples.

 

[KLR650Tagg]

Heres an idea. How much would it cost a diy'r to make 3 juices consistantly and sell it all over the world? Im betting you would have a dollar a ml juice real quick, or be dead azz broke even quicker.
Not to diminish diy, but trying to compare costs from your kitchen, for your use, to juices marketed worldwide is ridiculous.

 

[Scotticus93]

you want good price use MBV. great prices. decent flavors and good customer services. DIY seems like it would be a good hobby to get into. would be some work for sure. but yeah just looking for different vendors with good service and prices. your really cant beat mbv prices tho. i cant even imagine they are much higher than DYI. its like 5 dollars for 15ml of their juice and when you buy 30 like 8.

 

[KLR650Tagg]

you want good price use MBV. great prices. decent flavors and good customer services. DIY seems like it would be a good hobby to get into. would be some work for sure. but yeah just looking for different vendors with good service and prices. your really cant beat mbv prices tho. i cant even imagine they are much higher than DYI. its like 5 dollars for 15ml of their juice and when you buy 30 like 8.

+1
I buy from MBV, ITC, as well as Nicoticket, and 5 pawns. I guarantee, if i started from scratch, and duplicated the juice i buy from those vendors alone, just in time delegated, it would be 2 to 3 times what i pay for them, and i wont have to wait to vape!

 

[stevegmu]

The juice I buy from my vendors is worth what I pay for it. If it weren't, I wouldn't buy it...