AVE's now a thing of the past in my book...

[Kenho21]

After what I have been through because of the credit card fraud fiasco stemming from AVE's website I have sworn them off as a juice supplier. Hours on the phone with the bank (BOA), switching multiple accounts over to new number, submitting help desk tickets, stress, time out of my busy schedule, the list goes one...anyone else in the same boat?

Misery shared is misery halved....

 

[MonsterTKE]

Yep, I think they are out of business and no one knows it yet. No contact or statements from the owners for weeks now, doesn't sound like people who are planning on continuing to run a successful business.

 

[Jackinkc]

Unfortunately I would have to agree. Their level of communication is unacceptable. It does not seem to me like they are trying to keep a customer base. I'm wondering if they have liability for all the credit card purchases their site was responsible for.

 

[Fog-life]

I 2nd that... Ordering juice shouldn't be this hard.
AVE has let down their customers/fans time and again, and they've pushed their luck a bit too far lately.
Up till their last closing, I've been a good customer and defended them and stood by them in their time of grief.
I been vaping their juice exclusively for more than a year now and never thought of switching to another vendor, but I've reached my limit.
AVE has IMHO the best juices out there, but being able to actually buy some juice from them has become an agonizing process.
After checking out the 2012 best juice award thread, I've placed orders from a couple of the top ranking vendors and couldn't believe how easy and hassle-free that was, I just hope I'll find a juice that'll help me get through my BB & GJ separation.
Ben & Cristy... If you're reading this... You've just lost another loyal customer.

 

[Jshill520]

Yeah I think they are out of business. I know we have been kinda hard on them but maybe it's not worth it anymore to them. It's too much hassle for us to order, and maybe it's too much hassle for them to jump through hoops to make e juice and keep the site running.

 

[Rymarski]

Let's be honest here. AVE is a staple of the vaping community. I HIGHLY doubt Ben is closing up shop. This business is way to profitable for him to close. I'm sure they just took a break/vacation and are building a new website as he mentioned.

Again, there could be other reasons for the long inactivity and no feedback, but I just cannot fathom him closing up shop. From a business perspective, I just don't see why he would. Everyone bashes Ben about his customer service, lack of feedback, etc. But when the shop is running smoothly I have never had any problem with getting a hold of him or any of the product.

Let's hope the above posts are not a reality at this point.

 

[Levitas]

Have you guys truly moved on? Or is this a plea?

I'll wager that those who say they're done with AV will place another order once they're up and running again.

I took a break from AV for nearly 6 months because I couldn't get Boba's on the regular. Started making my own juice, and I'm better for it. I didn't make a farewell thread, perhaps that would of made the juice get to my mailbox faster? I guess I'll never know.

 

[Jshill520]

I mean these are just speculations. No one but Ben know for sure. But he's already made a crap ton of money. I'm sure it wouldn't hurt him financially at this point; he's probably made enough to live happily ever after and more power to him. And yeah Lev I'm pretty sure I've moved on, but I can't say for sure till I actually run out of Boba's and gj lol. I still have enough to last couple weeks of heavy vaping but I get nervous if I get anywhere near low so when the rubber meets the road I may be waiting in line at AVE just like everyone else.

 

[BentWookie]

When/If they open up shop again I will hopefully one of the very first to order a very large order (let the hoarder bashing begin). I don't care if they are closed 2 days or 2 months. They can take a break, redesign their website, make babies, or whatever. In the mean time I will explore some of the other great juice vendors out there and when AV reopens I will be happy to be able to order some of my favorite juice again.

I get you all are frustrated. I guess it's akin to be a marlboro light smoker and every time you go to the liquor store they are never in stock, or the liquor store is closed, or they are renovating. But the reality is that Alien Visions is not a giant corporation like Philip Morris. AV is more like a mom and pop botique that sells good ..... Any time you deal with these smaller shops you will inevitably encounter these stock and store closure frutrations.

I am willing to deal with it because I knew to expect it. Hell I wanted to order some Backwoods Brew and they are closed, I wanted to try some Copper Creek and they are closed, Mrs T's always has silly lead times, and many of the more popular juice vendors are the same way. Anyone ever heard of Pluid? That juice is 1/2 as good and twice as hard to get. So even if you do find another juice vendor there is no guarantee that you will not have to deal with these types of inconveniences. For me I would prefer to look at these times as an opportunity to explore other juices rather than to bash a vendor for not doing enough to keep the payments from getting hacked, or for wanting to redesign a website, or wanting to take a vacation.

 

[base234]

The Good
AVE makes great juice. Ben and Christy are good people. I used to place an order and get it here in Virginia in two days.

The Bad
There was a major hitch when they moved, Ben had some health problems, they had flavor supplier problems and just couldn't keep up with demand. They got hacked. I had to get a replacement credit card.

The Ugly
I asked for an alternative way to place an order and pay with a money order after the order was accepted. ZERO response to help desk tickets, an email and a PM.

All businesses have the Good and the Bad, including my business. There is no excuse for the Ugly.

 

[zapped]

I can understand peoples frustrations here.Ive been a loyal AVE customer and staunch supporter since the first time I tried them. The lack of ANY kind of communication has me really worried, especially since that hasnt been the case in the not-so-recent past. We were kept informed of Bens hospital stay and also during the move but its been 2 weeks since weve heard anything at all from them. Im not even sure Ben has logged in here or on Alien Visions facebook page where people are starting to get really irate.

If you guys have gone out of business then let us all know so we can move on and hopefully find a replacement.Some of us vape AVE exclusively and theres a VERY real danger/temptation in that absence for some of us to go back to smoking.

Im going to wait another week to hear something either here or on the FB page and if nothings forthcoming then Im gonna be forced to start looking somewhere else.

***Ben (Porphy's) last activity on this forum was on 4-24...15 days ago.

NOT trying to be harsh here but it shouldnt take 2 weeks to build 1 website....even from scratch.

 

[Fog-life]

What bugs me the most is that AVE has several retailers who can keep the juices flowing, but these retailers are always out of AVE juice and they are also clearly expressing their frustration with AVE on their websites.
To me, that shows that there are serious issues at AVE

 

[MonsterTKE]

NOT trying to be harsh here but it shouldnt take 2 weeks to build 1 website....even from scratch.

I would be willing to bet that they cannot get a credit card processor. When your site generates 10-20-50-100k worth of fraud on 10s or hundreds of accounts, they dont just say "Oh well chaps no big deal, just fire up another server, we still trust you."

As I have said elsewhere, this is probably the end of AVE, at least as we have known it. Hopefully they can come back under a different banner, or at least sell out to someone.

 

[Jshill520]

I would be willing to bet that they cannot get a credit card processor. When your site generates 10-20-50-100k worth of fraud on 10s or hundreds of accounts, they dont just say "Oh well chaps no big deal, just fire up another server, we still trust you."

As I have said elsewhere, this is probably the end of AVE, at least as we have known it. Hopefully they can come back under a different banner, or at least sell out to someone.

Yeah and finding one that doesn't outlaw e cigs ain't gonna happen. They should just label themselves as candle makers or perfume retailers to keep the cc processor people from finding out lol.

 

[Pathology]

I wish there was an acceptable Boba'a Bounty & Bee's Knees clone out there..

 

[Jermania]

I know of a few good clones, but it wouldnt be right to introduce them here until we know whats up with AVE. It will always be easier to purchase straight from the source, and it ensures quality control, which is why I am waiting. If you are really in dire need, do some searching and you will find them.

 

[bgail]

I know of a few good clones, but it wouldnt be right to introduce them here until we know whats up with AVE. It will always be easier to purchase straight from the source, and it ensures quality control, which is why I am waiting. If you are really in dire need, do some searching and you will find them.

I don't know about that 15 days of no communication is questionable business ethics when it's known to be such a sought after product.
Folks are very understanding and loyal but at least give a message that they are still working on the issues or have left for a siesta and when they will be back.

I just wonder why it use to be in the "old" days no vendors accepted credit cards we all had to use paypal. Slowly it became credit card friendly and now paypal is not accepted anywhere. You would think some at least would still accept paypal. Brick and mortar stores are accepting paypal now, Home Depot for one.

 

[Jermania]

Well thats the thing, this is just a dude that created an awesome recipe, and decided to sell some of it. He isnt a big business, and obviously doesnt aspire to become. The only thing that is going to change this situation is his sole decision to do so. With everything thats been happening, I dont blame him for walking away for a while. The more dramatic people are about this, the more it will push him away I'm sure. Its just ejuice, there is plenty of it out there, like i said you can even make it yourself. No one is going to die because of what one man decides to do with his recipe. Everyone just needs to chill out, and work a plan b.

 

[Jshill520]

I wish there was an acceptable Boba'a Bounty & Bee's Knees clone out there..

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/diy-e-liquid/353176-my-bobas-clone-42.html

Read the top post on page. Or read the whole thread religiously for months like I did lol. Slohand's work on this was excellent and very much respected. Try it, #7 you won't be disappointed. I think this should be put out there for everyone to try. You may not agree. It's not the recipe anyway; it's a clone and a really good one!

 

[Izan]

If I had been making the most popular "XXX" for a while, and had some issues, health/move/CC/fraud...I might just disappear for a while to rest and breath... life too short.

I think sales to the public should only be open to buyers that will take a full days production. One buyer, one day..10-20 litres? Done and done.
You want to try a few drops.... support the local distributor. ( he had to buy a full days run...)


I will continue to support AVE, directly or through a reseller.

I