Backwoods Brew - Some of the worst customer service I have ever experienced, period.

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Dauslyn

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Jul 20, 2011
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I apologize in advance for the following wall of text:

I've always loved BWB's products, but have never cared much for their lack of service or communication, as well as their inattentiveness. After my most recent experience, I will never order from Don again.

I usually check the BWB site every week or two to see if the famous RY4 or Ejoker's blend is in stock. Two weeks ago, I was lucky enough to successfully order each of these juices. I'm well aware of the '1 per customer' limit on these products, and had emailed Don to inquire if I could purchase an extra order for my wife (we share the same credit card account). Don didn't respond to my email, and the juices went out of stock - no big deal, but I would have liked to get some sort of response whether it be yes or no.

About a week later, I checked the site again. Knowing exactly where to look on the site for the juices, I don't bother reading any messages on the landing page and skip straight to the e-juice section. I was pleasantly surprised to see that another batch of RY4 and Ejoker's were available, and so I of course ordered again, as well as ordering a few different juices that I had never tried.

I received an email a couple of hours later, and although I realize I'm not allowed to quote it directly (as per the forum's TOS), Don had verbally attacked me for ordering the juice again. He didn't simply say that I wasn't eligible to order, but sent an email in size 24 font, bolded, telling me he was not sending my order at all, and essentially calling me greedy for ordering a product from him. I was absolutely appalled by the tone of the email - never have I been so insulted by a supplier (in any industry) for simply placing an order to buy their product. He didn't mention anything about the flavours that I had ordered for which I was eligible, or anything about a refund - just that he was refusing to send my order.

I went back to his website, and saw a notice on his homepage indicating that anyone who had successfully ordered these juices the first time around (which I had), was not eligible to order again. Fair enough.

I emailed Don back apologizing that I had not seen the message, and explained politely and professionally that I was quite offended by his email and that this was no way to speak to a long-time customer. I also mentioned that he had never responded to my last email about purchasing for my wife, and despite repeatedly adding my email to his subscriber list to be notified of when out-of-stock products are available, I have never once received a notification.

He responded with an email that I would expect from an angry teenager. He made no mention of his previous email being offensive and rude, and simply berated me with insults. He said if I was in fact a long-term customer as I had claimed, then I should know not to order these juices again (even though they had gone out of stock, and this was an entirely new batch). He called it 'rediculous' (yes, he spelled it that way) that he has to 'babysit' his customers, and complained about the amount of work he has to do in monitoring purchases. He said that he's been 'nice about it for way too long with his customers' and that he will discontinue the product if this keeps up. He blamed it all on me and his customers, and made absolutely no attempt to rectify the situation - he was essentially trying to provoke an argument from me.

Are you kidding me? I had already apologized for ordering the juices for a second time, and my main complaint was about the offensive tone and wording of his email - and this his response? He didn't address my concern, put the onus entirely on his customers (while insulting them at the same time), and complained about the amount of work he has to do. If this is is regular attitude toward customer service, I'm quite surprised he's in business at all.

If you want an example, see his response to this unhappy customer here:

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...064-backwoods-brew-rude-customer-service.html

Is that any way to conduct business?

Regardless, I'll let my dollars do the talking (along with the group of vapers that I socialize with who are privy to the exact emails sent between Don and I - they were equally disgusted and are also taking their business elsewhere).

Now, does anyone know a suitable juice to replace BWB's RY4 and Ejokers? :blink:
 

Dkrom68

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Nov 17, 2009
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Backwoods NY USA
All I can say is I warned everyone in regards to it and the double orders. It was posted on the site, facebook, all over the forums, mailed in a newsletter so to just disregard it and have to constantly babysit to make sure all get a chance to get it even knowing I was going to be releasing more for EVERYONE again its all my fault. I have dealt with this long enough and this is the reason why i will be doing away with these liquids cause I refuse to have my reputation tarnished cause the rules as bold as they were posted cant be followed.

I could have handled it better and in regards to the other post you reference to was a rediculous effort to tarnish me and only post what they wanted everyone to see and not the whole story. Sorry you feel this way but being a customer for the time you were should have been enough to know the rules around it. I told everyone I will not even respond to any emails about the ry4 the rules about it were posted anywhere and if you couldnt figure out on your own you were ineligable to get it on the second batch why should I have to constantly deal with it.

Moral of the story is I have made it perfectly clear I would refund any and all orders of anyone without warning if the rules werent followed. i did exactly what I said I would do and made it publc from the very beginning so dont act like it was something new. Anyone can take this as rude or whatever but Ive tried to be fair to everyone in regards to this and it gets old having to treat it like I do. I answer more emails about this in a days time and it becomes very old, So in light of everything its things like this that ultimately make my final decision to end the production of them cause it is more headaches than its worth and you proved my point with this post.

Pretty amazing that in the couple years doing this there is only 2 negative things about me and my customer service side of thing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
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Dauslyn

Senior Member
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Jul 20, 2011
174
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Vancouver, BC, Canada
Somehow, you're still missing the point Don. My complaint had nothing to do with the fact that I couldn't order those juices - it was about the way you handle your customer service (your post here being a shining example).


All I can say is I warned everyone in regards to it and the double orders. It was posted on the site, facebook, all over the forums, mailed in a newsletter so to just disregard it and have to constantly babysit to make sure all get a chance to get it even knowing I was going to be releasing more for EVERYONE again its all my fault. I have dealt with this long enough and this is the reason why i will be doing away with these liquids cause I refuse to have my reputation tarnished cause the rules as bold as they were posted cant be followed.


I don't have facebook, I don't subscribe to your newsletter, and I rarely visit these forums except in circumstances such as this. Yes, you had it posted on your website - I proactively emailed you apologizing that I didn't see this, and you still berated me for trying to give you my money.


I could have handled it better and in regards to the other post you reference to was a rediculous effort to tarnish me and only post what they wanted everyone to see and not the whole story. Sorry you feel this way but being a customer for the time you were should have been enough to know the rules around it. I told everyone I will not even respond to any emails about the ry4 the rules about it were posted anywhere and if you couldnt figure out on your own you were ineligable to get it on the second batch why should I have to constantly deal with it.


You're on to something - yes, you could have handled it better - this is what you should be focusing on, and not the rest of the drivel you just posted. No Don, it was not a 'rediculous' attempt to tarnish you. This sub-forum is for negative supplier reviews, and I reiterated in exact detail my experience with you and your company.


Being a long-time customer of yours does not infer that I'm fully aware of all of your rules and restrictions, it simply means that I've ordered your products several times over the past year. As I stated, I'm aware of the '1 per customer' limit on certain juices, and I abide by it - I simply didn't see the landing page that had the eligibility requirements this time around. That's it, it's that simple. For you to turn this into the customer experience nightmare that it's become, is all the incentive I need to never order from you again, and to recommend a different supplier to my fellow vapers, as well as the plethora of new vapers in my community that come to me for recommendations.


why should I have to constantly deal with it


Because it's your business Don. You decided to go into a service-based industry where dealing with people is integral to your success. You can't simply blame your customers when you're unhappy - you're going to have to learn to deal with it in a professional manner.


Moral of the story is I have made it perfectly clear I would refund any and all orders of anyone without warning if the rules werent followed. i did exactly what I said I would do and made it publc from the very beginning so dont act like it was something new.


No Don, that's not the moral of the story. In fact, that's not even what my complaint was about - please re-read my original post as well as our email communication. I've stated several times that my complaint is in regards to your service, and has nothing to do with whether or not I was eligible to order the juices from you.


Anyone can take this as rude or whatever but Ive tried to be fair to everyone in regards to this and it gets old having to treat it like I do. I answer more emails about this in a days time and it becomes very old, So in light of everything its things like this that ultimately make my final decision to end the production of them cause it is more headaches than its worth and you proved my point with this post.


That's completely up to you, but cancelling your flagship product because you're unable to handle your customers' inquiries seems like a bold move. It's your business, run it how you see fit. Just remember that it's your customers that keep you in business, and I promise you that if you treat everyone the way I was treated, you're going to learn the hard way.


Pretty amazing that in the couple years doing this there is only 2 negative things about me and my customer service side of thing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


What's amazing as that you pulled out this statistic as if it was some sort of reaffirmation of your being correct about this whole issue. I don't care how many complaints you have, how long you've been doing this, or whether you succeed or fail. I'm not here to 'tarnish your reputation' as you accuse me of - I'm here quite simply to make available to other forum-goers my most recent experience with your company, and to hopefully open your eyes so that you don't treat future customers in the same manner. Happy Vaping.
 
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