"This is the most abysmal excuse for a Company I have ever tried to do business with. They will not return emails, give you a runaround on the phone. Ordered a recumbent exercise bike and it took emails to the BBB and my cc Company to finally get the purchase sent to me and as you would expect from someone like Mercantila, broken parts. This is truly a BUYER BEWARE COMPANY. There is not a rating low enough for these people, they should be shut down. "

"Overall, a terrific experience. We called before ordering and spoke with a very helpful and friendly customer service rep who helped us work out a price match on a (big) piece of furniture we were buying. The item shipped as expected and arrived even earlier than we thought it would. The item was high quality and arrived in perfect condition.

We were anxious about ordering such a big item from an online merchant, but took a chance and feel we were rewarded. We got emails every step of the way, from order confirmation to shipment, and we got a phone call to arrange delivery.

Would definitely recommend Mercantila to others. The disparity between reviews here (they seem to be one star or five stars) makes me wonder if it's a function of the suppliers that Mercantila deals with. I know that our item was drop-shipped, so maybe we got lucky and it came from someone good?

Either way, VERY happy with the experience!"

"I ordered a Zocalo Noir canopy bed in July 2009. This was in fact my 2nd order from Mercanttila. My previous order, for stereo speaker stands, went through with no issues. I received the speaker stands in good condition. So I felt confident to order this bed even though at $1100 listed price, it is a lot more than the speaker stands. Well let me say that this has been the VERY WORST ONLINE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE I HAVE EVER HAD! As of today, November 14, 2009 I still do not have a finished bed.
We're going on 5 months since I placed my original order. Yes, they did ship the bed and did arrive after about 3 weeks. That's when the problem(s) began. The bed requires construction. Not too difficult if one follows the directions, which were understandable if not exactly well laid out. However, one of the side rails was mis-drilled; it would not line up with the posts. So, I contacted their customer support. I did manage to speak with a human being, at least initially. I was told to rewrap the side rail and await an email RMA shipping label. Never happened! In fact, I made at least 5 calls within 10 days to confirm the arrangement and not once did I ever get the same response.
And then it got worse. Seems as if Mercantila decided that they really didn't want to have any human contact so they changed their customer support procedures so that the only way to communicate is via their websites. I was told by a customer support person that they also have no way to directly speak to whomever pays their salary; they can only communicate by email.
After about 6 weeks of this abuse, we received an email saying that a replacement side rail was being shipped to us.; It did arrive and unfortunately, the shipping container was so damaged that even the shipper adviser my wife to reject delivery. We did.
However, the only way to communicate with these people is via their website, which naturally, only addresses the issues they want to handle, and not necessarily what the customer is trying to communicate. In fact, one must click the "agree with their return policy" checkbox to even send them a message at all.
I was forced to contact the credit card issuer and dispute the payment. Visa (Chase Visa actually) did issue me a refund, but eventually Mercantila figured out that they weren't going to get paid and emailed me to "wrap up and return the item". Are you kidding me???!! It weighs 700 pounds, came in five boxes and oh yeah, took 3 hours to assemble (as far we were able to complete the construction). I went back to their website and found a space on their predigested response space and wrote that they could hire someone at their expense to come to my house and dismantle the incomplete bed and package and get it the hell our of here. Of course I received no reply to this offer.
So here we are nearly 5 months after placing the order and I have a very large, partially completed, canopy bed taking up most of my bedroom and no bed to sleep on. All I wanted to do was to get a functional replacement piece, or failing that, have them offer a reasonable refund and I would hire a carpenter to complete the job. But unfortunately, THERE IS NO ONE TO SPEAK TO! NO ONE AT ALL!!!
STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM THIS SITE. I don't know if they're thieves or just monumentally incompetent, but the end result is the same.
Too bad too, because it's a nice looking piece of furniture. "

"Mercantila is an example of the ideal internet vendor and purchasing experience. Their site is attractive with an excellent search facility. The item descriptions contain pictures, descriptive text and product reviews by customers. You may expect competitive prices, same day order processing and free shipping.
Mercantila is fully automated and while you can reach a real live person, it is normally not necessary. Placing the order on their secure website was straight forward. There are many easy methods of payment available, including major credit cards, Paypal, Bill Me Later, eBillme, Google and others. All sales come with an unconditional satisfaction guarantee, and 110% price protection.
Communication is first rate. I received email at each step along the way. The first email explained what to expect and how their system worked. Another email arrived when the order was processed. Still another email arrived when the shipping company received the shipping information. Another email arrived when the package was picked up. The last email contained the tracking number and a link to the shipper's tracking site. The standard free shipping is with Fedex or UPS Ground service unless the item is very heavy or large.
My order was entered into their secure system on 9/29/2009. The package was shipped from California. It arrived on 10/6/2009 in New Jersey. That's only five business days later. Bravo Mercantila!!

Addendum: Recently purchased an excercise machine. Same fine service as the first purchase."

"I placed an order for a cedar chest from Mercantila on October 12, 2009. Within 20 minutes I got an email confirm for my order. Was told it would then go to the warehouse to prepare shipping. The next day I got an email telling me that the warehouse has received my order, and that it would likely ship within 8-9 days, and they gave me a tentative ship date of Oct 30.

On the 16th of October they emailed me telling me that my order had already shipped and they gave me a fedex tracking number. When I checked the number it said my chest would be here on the 20th. Wow!

Not only did it come way sooner than I thought it would. It came 10 days BEFORE they told me it would even get shipped out! So like 2 whole weeks sooner than I had expected it. When I bought it, it even stated that processing and shipping can take a long time, but from start to finish, this only took 8 days, and that included an entire weekend!

When I got the product this morning, there was a missing part, but that's not Mercantila's fault. So I called the company that made the product (Coaster Furniture Co. ) And they had a very polite apologetic lady tell me that tomorrow they would ship me out the missing part.

Completely satisfied with my purchase. Especially since I googled Mercantila and found a 10% off coupon code that worked on my order and saved me over $25!

I would recommend them to anyone buying furniture from the Coaster Company. But judging from the other things they sell.. It may be iffy.


UPDATE**

Mercantilla sent me the product piece I was missing, I was able to complete my chest. ALSO, their website said the chest had a lock and Key, however it did not. When I called them and complained about this, they refunded $75 of my purchase because it did not have a lock and key. I couldn't be happier with my experience.

I honestly think a little kindness goes a long way. People get on here and read terrible reviews and then call the company in a huff, and they tick off their customer service rep.. I work in Law Enforcement, and I can tell you, attitude goes a long way. If someone is kind and polite to me, I am less likely to ruin their day. I am pretty sure these CS reps have a similar power.

Be patient, polite and kind, and you may be surprised at how willing this company is to help you.

"

"This company is an absolute joke! Ordered a net for our trampoline, they charged my card, never received an email confirmation or ANY type of correspondence. I had to call and wait 30 minutes with no order number, they found the order and couldn't explain why it hadn't been shipped. Said they would get back to. 2 weeks later, STILL never received correspondence had to wati 30 minutes again, and said they were checking with the warehouse. I canceled the order. The people who answer the phone have no position and any knowledge of anything, and they want you to go to the website. Which is a joke! The website does not allow to track nor do they respond to emails within 24 hours like they state. Worst online shopping experience ever!"

"By far the WORST Customer Support I have ever experienced online.
1. Despite a verbal assurance that the item was in stock, it in fact was not.
2. It took nearly 3 weeks to be told that the item was not in stock. My credit card, however, was billed on day one.
3. Despite online assurances of "1-2 days" for a response, an online response took more than a week.
4. It took more than 30 minutes to get through to customer support by phone. The agent could not give ANY information on the issue."

"Worst seller ever. Item arrived (air purifier) and it did not turn on/did not work at all. I have been waiting over 2 weeks, and after several phone calls to their "cust. service department" (actually a hired third party vendor), they still have not sent me a return label or RMA#. So I returned the item myself and I paid the shipping (about $20!), to their address on file in San Francisco, CA. They refused return shipment! So, I just filed a dispute with my credit card company. One is only required to return the item with track #, and if the vendor refuses shipment, then I have already done everything I am legally required to do. It is their problem now. Will never order from them or any of their "merchants" again. "

"Found this merchant through Microsoft's Bing so I trusted them. Mistake #1.
I orderd a $1200 BBQ Grill on July 31, 2009 and they charged my Credit card the next day. My item was in stock and I was told would ship within about three business days. I followed up on my order after 7 days since I had not received any e-mail about shipping status. I was told that I should allow 7 to 14 days from the date of the order. You cannot really talk to customer service because there is no such department. This is someone that might be taking credit card payments and floating the money for 3 - 4 weeks while they pay for items (ie. they don't have good credit). After experiencing the problems, I began to research Mercantilla and found most others had the same poor shopping experience. Do not buy from this company. They advertise free shipping, but they said it would cost me $95+ for shipping. There has been no communication other than the first e-mail confirming my order. On August 24, 2009 I had to call the order desk in order to be able to talk to someone. They are now telling me that the item did not ship because it was missing parts (maybe that's why the price was low).They now told me that they will cancel my order but it will take three to four weeks before I see a refund on my credit card.
Buyer beware.
"

"Do not use this merchant. They brag about free express shipping but never tell you that that only applies after (if) it leaves their warehouse. I placed an order on Aug 3, 2009, called on the 12th since I had not received a tracking number and was told that it left on the 11th and I would receive a tracking number within 24 hours. Nothing. Called on the 14th and was told to call back that evening, I waited until Monday the 17th and was told that it never left on the 11th and asked if I would like for them to check on my order. I asked them to cancel my order and when I asked for a confirmation number, I was told that I would receive an e-mail with the confirmation number within 3 days. I am now calling mastercard to make sure that I get my credit. A very bad experience!"

"Overall, a positive and successful experience. I had already placed my order with the Mercantila storefront Desk Superstore before coming to this site to read reviews. After reading the bad experiences of others, I fully expected to have trouble. But, on balance, I didn't - a few minor quibbles but not major in any way.

Order to Delivery Time: 31 days (incl weekends & holidays)
**The web page said the item was in stock and would ship in 1 to 2 weeks. In fact, it shipped just shy of 3 weeks from order date.
**The order confirmation said I could expect shipment notice by July 10. When that didn't happen, I emailed and received the stock reply about checking with the warehouse but no tracking number available.
**However, the next day, I received email saying the desk had shipped. They missed the July 10 date, but only by 3 calendar days.

Delivery: No damage to shipping box (& it was heavy, at 91 lbs.) From the paperwork, it looks like it was air freighted from LAX to SAN, then put on a truck to the house.

Summary: As others have noted, Mercantila is just a front end web presence portal for apparently hundreds of sellers. My vendor was The Coaster Company (specializes in ready to assemble furniture like desks.) As such, Mercantila has a certain degree of customer service responsibility to the customers. But I believe most of Mercantila's negative ratings can be traced to poor fulfillment by the actual vendor. In my case, I had a reputable vendor with a long business history. Others maybe not.

My advice to future buyers: check out the ratings of Mercantila, but also try to find the ratings for the actual vendor. You'll be more fully informed and can act accordingly."

"Bottom line: Absolutely not, buyer beware, read reviews from other websites, some slick online companies like Mercantila use shill accounts and fancy webpages to build false confidence and every marketing trick they can. This review is unfinished, because I am still waiting for the delivery of my product, a $350 exercise bike. I didn't do enough research on this company before I made my purchase, and I regret it now. This was my first purchase from Mercantila, they are the parent retailer or sponsor of nearly 250 other small online marketers. They don't seem to actually make or do anything, just another middle man to act as go between with customers, an increasing common practice in online marketing and sales. I searched around online and couldn't find any price deviation so they may exclusive rights to sell to the product I am still trying to receive. I'm will put enough specific information in this review that they will know who I am, and I have no issue with corresponding with them directly if they wish to follow up. I am placing this review on several such websites including the one that Mercantila (and about 260 other merchandizers pay to host reviews for them). I placed my order through Mercantila directly, although several of their affiliate companies also display this item, in hopes that I might get better or faster service since I couldn't buy directly from the company that designed and has my product (which is actually made in China). I ordered my bike on 19 May, it showed 'in stock' online. During the order I received an anticipated delivery date of 27 May (I now believe this is a totally false date, to give the allusion that something has been done with the intent to reduce the chance you will do your homework after purchase and cancel the order immediately). Mercantila charged my credit card, moments after I placed my order, most company's wait until your order is shipped, so I found this a little alarming. Within a day or so I received several phone calls from a Mercantila marketer trying to get me to buy the extended warranty (another common gimmick). They got my number by making it required during checkout, they got me again. I called and left several messages asking them to please just ship my item, but they didn't stop calling until I actually got someone on the phone and spoke with them. About a week after the anticipated delivery date, there was still no tracking info, so I filled out their online form, no response. A couple weeks passed and I send in another request for any information. It's been nearly a month now, and just today did I receive an email response, it said the warehouse (remember they drop ship, so this is odd), doesn't have a tracking number, but they are looking into it. I can't reply back to that email, it bounces back, deliver fail, and no other email or phone number is provided. This company now has my email, phone number, home address, billing address and credit card number and security ID from the back. I'm starting to get a sick feeling, and will be watching my accounts like a hawk. I went back to their site and navigated my way through to find where they leave a place for you to respond and told them my complaint and asked them that if my product wasn't delivered by 27 Jun to cancel my order and I will seek reimbursement through my credit card. While doing this I read some of the fine print, and it appears that if for any reason I have to ship the product back, I have to pay 'full shipping' even if it is damaged upon receipt. If you look around enough on their site, you'll find that they also Do Business As: The Internet Superstore, DriveSPEED Designs, The Brown Box, Red Carpet Shopping. If they make this right I will update this review. One little test you can try, go to buzzillions owned by powerReviews (the company Mercantila pays to "deliver... product reviews") and see if you can find this review, if not, they deleted it, and if that's no worse that paying people to write false positive reviews to "drive the highest sales uplift", you can read about this at Reuters, May 21, 2008 article. I'm only partially relieved knowing that I may have saved someone else from going through what I have, and the slim chance they will actually make this right. I do have some hope because I have read one account of this kind of thing happening, so stay tuned, I promise an update."

"I ordered a twin stroller from them on the 21st of April, 2009. On the website they stated that the stroller was in stock and was ready to be shipped in 2-3 business days. Well, a week later I had no stroller or any shipment confirmation email from them. I contacted them, and got an email back saying "I have contacted the warehouse that is shipping your order to request a tracking #. The representative at the warehouse was unable to give me an exact tracking number, but I will be following up with them to get it for you.
I will be in touch as soon as I have more information, but I just wanted to let you know that I am actively working on getting you an update on your order." I didn't hear back from them until a few days later I threatened to cancel my order after which I got exactly the same email as the one above. I had to cancel the order because I couldn't wait any longer and ordered the stroller from another store. Mercantila sent me another ridiculous email saying that "I have contacted the warehouse and requested they cancel your order. The representative at the warehouse was unable to give me confirmation of cancellation at that moment because she needed to check into the current status of the order to make sure it hasn't already been shipped out. If it has already shipped, of course we are still more than happy to process your order as a return, but the first step is to find out its current status." A few days later - not a word from them. They do not answer my emails. Thankfully I paid with PayPal, so I filed a claim against Mercantila. The company is a fraud! Never shop there!


"

"The most HORRIBLE experience ever. I purchased a bed on Jan. 4, 2009. After about a week, the email said the bed would ship on Jan. 12. After that date I called to see if the bed had shipped. I never got an answer after being on hold for hours. They later email me that the bed is not in stock and will not be delivered. I requested a refund and to this day they have not given it back. I have sent about 20 emails and called about 50 times. The three times that I am lucky enough to speak to the idiots in customer service they say that the refund has not been processed and that I should get it within 24-48 hours. It has not happened. Luckily for me I payed with PayPal. DO NOT BUY FROM THEM! They make online shopping the worst experience ever."

"Echoing the other dissatisfied customers. I purchased two items from Mercantila, one of which was satisfactory. When I tried to return the second item within the 30 day satisfaction guaranteed time limit, they said a 15% restocking fee would be charged (although the website advertised "No Restocking Fees"). They also said I would be charged for outgoing and return shipping fees. According to their policies, these charges are to be assessed when an item is shipped free. However, I had already paid $10 shipping on this item. Together, the fees they zapped me with added up almost to the price of the item, so I tried to contest their charges.
I made numerous phone calls asking for return calls from managers who "were out", and received no calls in return. They never gave me the Return Authorization Number I requested, and the 30 day window expired.
I contacted the BBB of Oakland, CA, and they never received a response from the company, so they closed the case and added it to many other Mercantila complaints. I am stuck with my item, which I cannot use.
DON'T BELIEVE THE WEBSITE PROMISES, AND DON'T ORDER FROM MERCANTILA!"