"I was a regular customer of Pottery Barn. In the past few years, I have witnessed a noticeable decline in the products, quality and service. We purchased a teak outdoor table and chairs. which has rotted despite being stored indoors during the winter and regular care. We purchased towels, which have frayed after a few washings and have purchased sheets, which have ripped and the the embroidery thread has unraveled. The worst part is that Pottery Barn refuses to stand behind their products. The customer service agents are dismissive and, while following corporate protocol of return periods, are not willing or able to make any exceptions. As a consumer, if I buy a table for over a thousand dollars I expect that it will last for more than the 30 day return period. After my most recent exchange with customer service after towels purchased for a guest bathroom unraveled along the edges and the quality was thin and coarse and could not be returned because they were monogrammed, I stopped being a customer of their store and all of their subsidiaries. I just wish they would stop sending me the catalogs. "
"I spent 6 months and over 8 hours on the phone with customer service trying to get a couch delivered correctly. I would be promised something and then it would not be delivered and I would face another round of phone calls and holds with customer service. When the couch was finally delivered it did not have the slipcovers on it. When I tried to have the delivery of slipcovers expedited they told me it was impossible even when someone before said I could have them in 2 weeks. There was a total lack of interest in trying to help me. I will never order from them again, and my advice if you have to have something order from the store where you can speak with someone face to face. "
"We bought a rather expensive tile patio table in July, covered it tightly with a thick outdoor furniture cover for the winter in October or November, and uncovered it in March to find large cracks and big chips detaching from the table. Notified Pottery Barn, totally taking for granted that they would recognize it as defective and replace it free of charge. Instead, they said this is "outside their return window" and the damage is "normal wear and tear." (I.e., the item is disposable garbage, apparently). They offered me a measly 15% off a future order!! I now have to pay to somehow dispose of my $650 patio table that cost me well over $200 a month to use, not to mention buy a new patio table less than a year after buying this one in late July!!! What a joke. Clearly quality is a major issue, and Pottery Barn DOES NOT stand behind their products. With so many great options available for furniture, I am kicking myself for not reading the many bad reviews about Pottery Barn before making my purchase. I had been planning on buying a leather recliner from them--so glad I know better now!"
"I have to admit that they advertise well and their products look quite beautiful. We ordered the benchwright extending table and it was stunning when we first received it. Well, 3 months later with very minimal use (maybe 3 times?) and the use of things like coasters, pads, etc, I've noticed that along the seams of the table, it's like the finish is degrading. When I called the company the first time, I was told to send photos including of what I've been using on the table. No response for a month. I called again and this time, sent the photo immediately. Upon "review" she said that according to the website, we weren't supposed to use any chemicals on the table (it's a dining table for goodness sake- how do we wash it?!) Regardless, given I used it so infrequently, I hadn't needed to wash it. However, I noted that I used a polish, which she promptly went to blame for the damage. I went on the website care instructions and clear as day, it stated: Use a non–silicone and non–wax polish; do not use soap, water or wax. Wouldn't you know it...the polish I was using was exactly that (I remembered these instructions when I was first purchasing the polish).
She said, but this isn't a polish we recommend. I noted, but you don't recommend any SPECIFIC polish, only non-silicone non-wax polish, which I used. She said, well, we don't recommend the one you used. (the argument still makes my head hurt).
I think they will say ANYTHING to get out of taking responsibility for their low quality products. I wish I listened to the reviews about the company more. I won't make that mistake again.
"
"Twice now I have ordered online with PB and been charged for items plus tax and shipping. One item from both orders ended up being out of stock it was credited back, and both times within days of original purchase the system re-ordered the item again with additional taxes and shipping and same day the item is credited back, however at a lesser amount than the second charge. I have called numerous times to ask why I was charged one amount for an item that never shipped and am only credited back a few dollars less than charged amount. After a twenty minute fuzzy math explanation of total credit versus total charges and subtracting charged from credit, they say they don't owe any money. What a scam."
"Let's just say that one attempt to modify the material for a furniture order resulted in the order being cancelled while I was told for months that the order had shipped and everything was fine. Finally the associate told me, "I guess everyone else you spoke to just didn't read the notes." Seriously?!!!! Just a horrible experience from end to end. Ultimately I will just go to a furniture store, which is what i should have done to begin with, and get something probably nicer for half the cost.
Never...again...."
"I purchased a dresser for my grand daughter. The paint on the top bubbled up and began to mark after plastic and rubber toy items were placed on top. She chose to display a duck collection, which had a chemical reaction with the paint. Pottery Barns response was to offer a 15 percent off coupon for us to purchase another dresser! ????"
"I ordered a dresser on 12/15/15. I was promised a delivery window between 12/24 and 1/7. Here we are 6 weeks later and still no dresser. I called 5 times, once on hold for 45 minutes, only to be told that 4-6 week waits are more typical. Today was delivery day so when the window passed with no delivery, I called again, and after a very lengthly hold time was told they are running 60-90 minutes late on the delivery window. I guess I just get to sit at home all day long and wait. I really wish I had ordered elsewhere, I could have had the dresser one month ago. In addition, PB items tend to be very expensive but of low quality. I guess the extra expense is for all the expensive catalogs they mail. Rugs are tufted, not woven, so beware of those. Furniture is oddly proportioned and mostly not real wood. "
"That a company that fancies itself "high end" can sell you an item , charge a ridiculously high shipping/handling fee, then not notify you they have made an error and that it is out of stock for over a month? Two twenty minute waits on the phone for a customer service rep later still no contact from them...though the second customer service rep did read the tea leaves, saying the item is "likely out of stock" and would "not be available for six months"! (Confirmed today when I checked the order- though heaven forbid they send an EMAIL letting me know!) She also noted I could purchase it for a higher price in-store, where she sees plenty of the items! (But conveniently they can't ship from there to a fulfill a catalog commitment!). Really?!? What a racket. I've had better service from Walmart!"
"So angry and disappointed in PB. I ordered a gift for my out-of-state friend and was horrified when I found out they sent the wrong items. I emailed at first to see what happened. No response. After about almost a week after getting no email response, I call and find out that the items were out of stock and they didn't even notify me. I mean COME ON. I give you a TON of information at the checkout so you can "contact me if there's a problem" with my order, heck, they can look up everything about me with that type of information, yet they choose to ignore every single piece of info about how to contact me. Why would you just pick and choose random items to send to my friend? And then try and lie about it by putting item numbers on an invoice that don't match your products? Did ya'll really think I wouldn't figure it out? To make matters worse, you choose items that may give the wrong impression to my friend and cause super embarrassment. Never again PB, never again. I'll definitely be going to your competitors from now on. GO GO WEST ELM AND HORCHOW!!"
"HORRIBLY disappointed with this company. My first time making a purchase from them online. December 21st I ordered a 14oz beer mug and a large customized glass pub mug with initials on it. As everyone knows, initials are ALL CAPITALIZED. I paid $17.50 for next day shipping. My confirmation email said that the initials were "Wsr" (not the all capital letters like I specified). I called immediately after to ask about that before they started on the order. The rep I spoke with said she couldn't look up the order but that it was probably just how it appeared in the email and that my order would not come like that. Wednesday, Dec. 23 rolls around and I had not gotten either of my items OR any email updates about the status of my order. I called and asked about it, the rep said that I pad for the expedited shipping, and their deadline is Christmas Eve so se GUARANTEED my items would make it to me the next day. Did not show up. I called to check on the status the evening of Dec 24 and the rep said that they screwed up and my items were still at their distributor's warehouse and they would arrive Mon, Dec 28th and I would be refunded the $17.50 for shipping, which I still have not received. Here we are Monday Dec 28, my items arrive and I'm furious. They engraved the initials "Wsr" on the pub mug instead of "WSR". Never will I shop with this company again and I will make sure that none of my friends or family do either. Complete disappointment in their customer service AND their products."
"Up Front - extremely dissatisfied with order fulfillment, shipping, and customer service. In the past I've been very satisfied with Pottery Barn - the majority of my furniture is Pottery Barn, and for well over 10 years it has endured multiple moves/kid/dogs and still looks great. I have ordered from the online store many times and never had such a third rate experience as I did this time. My recommendation - do not order from PB during the Holiday Season and expect your items to arrive on time. And my recommendation to Pottery Barn so they do not lose more faithful customers like me is to let customers know IN ADVANCE when their order fulfillment and shipping will be significantly delayed - not just send them a notice once something ships late and then tell the customer they have two options: 1) deal with it, or 2) contact the shipper and reject delivery in order to receive a refund. In fact, the responsible corporate action would be to contact the customer and offer expedited shipping. For the prices Pottery Barn charges, they could certainly provide better service and communication. "
"Pottery barn charged me twice and they justify this process by calling it an allocation charge. I was unable to get a straight answer from any of the very rude customer service representatives. I contacted my bank and they informed me pottery barn held the funds to make sure the funds were there while already charging me for the agreed upon price.
This makes no sense what so ever and is just another example of unfair practices with huge retailers in order to squeeze a few extra dollars from the consumer.
What out for Pottery Barn"
"Pottery Barn is supposed to be a premium service company but let's get real...their customer service sucks. Their online support team is completely incompetent and to top it off they delivered damaged product to me. I called to have it replaced and they are out of stock of that item for good. So I asked for a scratch and dent discount and they want me to take pictures and send them to a supervisor who will then send it to their supervisor all so I can get a lousy 10% discount.
No thank you. Pottery Barn sells CRAP at a premium and offers CRAP service to match. I will NEVER order online from PB again!"
"Wow! Purchased a headboard from PB. The piece is lovely. HOWEVER!! when we ordered, we were not told we needed a 'kit' to make it fit a frame only...it's made to join ONLY to their whole bed. Even for their own metal frame, you need a 'kit'. The guys came to do 'white glove' install, and could do NOTHING, since we did not have a 'kit'. Bought a kit online after the fact. Tried to do it ourselves, and had to jury-rig it something fierce. Good thing my husband's good with a hand drill. The headboard is up and the PB duvet we got with it is gorgeous. BUT NOW... I purchased some shams to coordinate on sale. So flimsy, I can't believe it. If I had paid full price, I would not have even opened the second one, but since I got them half price, I took 'em for a test drive. As I ripped off the tag (to be removed only by purchaser), it ripped off the binding on the sham!! Seriously!! They are cheap, cheap, cheap. I went to PB website to review the product, only to find you can't review anything in PB's website. We are pretty new to PB, as it has been out of our price range generally. Will probably pass on it in the future."