WWYD- problems with ThinkGeek?

[MSNative]

Thinkgeek is my go to store for most gift giving. I know Im not the only thinkgeek junkie on this site. My kids love that sort of stuff. I've never had a problem..until this year. I ordered all my gifts on Thanksgiving night. The box they sent had broken items and half of the items missing. Then they sent an email came last night they they were sold out of two of the items and wouldn't be sending them. They sent this email three weeks after I ordered. Grr. But I get it. Companies get slammed, shipping issues happen, surely they will fix the problem, right? Nope. I was on hold for over two hours then got disconnected. Then I went on live chat and waited an hour and a half. The guy who finally responded told me he was pretty dismissive. He said he could resend the missing items - though not expedited so I don't know if they'll even get here before Christmas. Then said that he might be able to get me a $20 gift certificate but wasn't even sure he could do that.

So, how many of yall were on hold with me? Lol. Seriously though, did anyone else have this experience or know if something happened with thinkgeek (like did they get bought by some other company, have ridiculous growth, something?). Also, what would you do? In my grrrr, I feel like they should do something to make up for the multiple errors and issues with the order- especially the long delay in letting me know. Am I just overreacting though?

[catz]

I actually have a story about Think Geek live chat I can share later when I am back at my big computer.

[Tess in the Burbs]

Wow never had that with them. They are slow to ship normally.... But broken and missing?? I would try to get someone higher up in the pecking order

[catz]

And I do not think you are over reacting!

[SparklyUnicorn]

That's some seriously lousy service.  And disappointing for sure. 

 

I think I'd cancel the order and ask for my money back.  Then I'd order them elsewhere.  But better do the ordering today to get it on time.

 

 

[Mrs Mungo]

I haven't had issues with them in the past. But, one of the boxes I have received so far had a necklace in a box with a lid, but it wasn't wrapped or anything. So, the box was just knocking around in the big box with very little packing material. I can easily see things getting broken in that situation.

 

I was supposed to receive a box yesterday, but tracking has "updated" to say that it should arrive tomorrow. But, it is still in Kentucky right now. I am not holding my breath, and the box contains items that I actually have to ship back home after I get them.

[happi duck]

Wow, that stinks.

 

I've not had trouble and we order every year.

 

Today from 2:30-3:00ish I was on hold for think geek chat because I forgot to use my coupon code. They were very nice and helped me out quickly.

 

I hope you can get to someone higher up and get your stuff!!

[MSNative]

Thanks for making me feel like I'm not crazy for being frustrated. I asked a manager to call me but um, not holding my breath. And surprise, surprise, no call yet. I guess I'll call tomorrow and see if I can get a hold of someone higher up. I'm terrible at that though. I'm a pushover. Lol.

WoolySocks- looking forward to hearing your story. ;)

[mom2samlibby]

I've read on another message board about issues with them this year too.  Not sure if it's different management or growing pains, but there seems to be a lot of stories about shipping problems this year.

[Mom-ninja.]

That stinks. I hope it's resolved for you.

 

I once left a negative review for an item. They emailed me the next day to apologize and sent me a replacement without asking that I return the broken one. So my experience was good. I didn't expect them to do that, nor did I ask. They just did it.  

[redsquirrel]

I don't think you are over reacting. If something arrived broke it should have been replaced and your money refunded etc. And spending that much time on hold or waiting for live chat is just bizarre. That shows me they don't have any intention of actually helping anyone.

 

I am sorry.

[mamaraby]

Maybe they'll come through in the end? I had a similarly frustrating chat with Audible over a c/s issue complete with dismissive rep, etc. Out of the blue a couple of days after the experience, a superviser swooped in and fixed it. I suspect the second rep I spoke with escalated the issue. Maybe someone at ThinkGeek will swoop in and fix yours? One can always hope.

[MSNative]

I've read on another message board about issues with them this year too. Not sure if it's different management or growing pains, but there seems to be a lot of stories about shipping problems this year.

I feel like something must have changed. I have always had good experiences with this company until now. Hope they figure it out or that it is just growing pains. Definitely hoping a supervisor swoops in and fixes it so I can go back to loving the company. I am big into customer service though. I haven't shopped at best buy or toys r us for a decade because of bad customer service. There are just too many other companies out there. I like to reward companies that do the right thing.

I really appreciate all the replies!

[catz]

Ok - I'm at my real keyboard now.  :)  I do wonder if something has changed over there too.  They used to get rave reviews on customer service.  Anyway - I made this story way too long!  Sorry!  :)

 

SO ... I had ordered 4 things from Think Geek a couple weeks ago.  Shipping was kind of slow.  I got one item in a separate box last week just fine.  Delivery was set for Monday of this week via UPS for the other 3 items in one box.  We've been getting lots of package from Amazon, etc, so I have been watching tracking info closely on what I'm expecting.  I've been watching labels closely because my DH has ordered some stuff too. 

 

So I drove my  daughter to dance on Monday at 5 pm.  I saw the UPS truck around before I left.  My son was home and my husband came home while I was out.  Nothing came that night.  I triple check and then checked tracking, thinking UPS just got behind.  Says it was delivered at 4:54.  Thought maybe it could be with one of the immediate neighbors.  Usually they get stuff back to me immediately if they get it. 

 

So in the morning, I check in with the one neighbor I think most likely would have got it.  Nope.  Wait another hour or so to see if I hear from anyone else, nothing.  So I get onto Online Chat with Think Geek.  My entire Think Geek online chat experience was over 2 hours with wait time and chatting.  It was absolutely ridiculous.

 

So after waiting forever, I get someone on the chat and I tell them my story.  She says when the box is out of their care it's the shipper's responsiblity.  You need to contact UPS.  I typed "really lady?  Amazon would never say that and I'm super glad I waited for online chat for an hour to hear that.  My kid's Christmas presents were in there.".  So then she's like hold please.  In the meantime, I get UPS online chat.  Luckily I get on in a few minutes with someone over there.  She checks my tracking number and says the address was correct and it was delivered.  I'm like ok, I didn't get it.  UPS says that the shipper needs to file for an investigation.  Helpful!

 

In the meantime, Think Geek is hemming and hawing and taking forever.  I have to assume she spoke with a manager.  In a nutshell, she did ship the items back out to me AND she gave me a $10 gift certificate for my trouble.  I got my tracking info later that day.  So I'd keep on them.  I'd be shocked if you don't get a gift card out of the deal, although maybe we want to all be avoiding them now!

 

So I do not have box #2 yet.

 

When I typed my first post on this thread, that would be the end of the story.  However, late this afternoon my most annoying neighbor e-mails me and says "Ooops - I've had this box at my house for 3 days and opened it and it's yours.  Come and get it.".  Their address is not even close to ours, so I'm not sure why they got it.  But now I'm also completely annoyed with this neighbor and feel violated that she opened a package addressed clearly on the top to me.  But there's a long back story with this particular neighbor so I'll spare you.  :)  So now I have to decide, do I wait X hours for online chat again to see how to return?  I refuse to pay for return shipping - that should be on UPS IMO. 

 

Anyway - I'm sure that was entirely too much info, but it's not just you with the bad customer service experience.  I do feel bad it was not Think Geek's fault in this particular situation, but other businesses have just immediately shipped new product when I don't get a package.  

 

ETA - don't be afraid to be snarky/mad.  I didn't feel like they were going to do anything for me until I started in on her.  I was snarky to UPS lady too!  Do your jobs people!  I have been on hold for various things many times this week and my tolerance for this type of idiocy has gone WAY DOWN.

[MSNative]

I have spoken to a couple of other friends who are also thinkgeek fans and they have had horrible experiences recently too. Sorry some of yall have too. Boo. It used to be a favorite store but the more stories I hear, the less optimistic I am that this was just a fluke.

Honestly if I'm on hold listening to that same awful song over and over for a couple of hours again, I don't think I'll have to work hard to get snarky. Lol.

[Mrs Mungo]

When I typed my first post on this thread, that would be the end of the story. However, late this afternoon my most annoying neighbor e-mails me and says "Ooops - I've had this box at my house for 3 days and opened it and it's yours. Come and get it.". Their address is not even close to ours, so I'm not sure why they got it. But now I'm also completely annoyed with this neighbor and feel violated that she opened a package addressed clearly on the top to me.

 

I will say that recently we got an envelope with our address, but somebody else's name. Dh opened it because the name was similar to eldest dd's name, and he thought it was for her at first.

[Mrs Mungo]

I have spoken to a couple of other friends who are also thinkgeek fans and they have had horrible experiences recently too. Sorry some of yall have too. Boo. It used to be a favorite store but the more stories I hear, the less optimistic I am that this was just a fluke.

Honestly if I'm on hold listening to that same awful song over and over for a couple of hours again, I don't think I'll have to work hard to get snarky. Lol.

Yeah, I am thinking either new management or growing pains. Hopefully it isn't the new normal for the site because we have never had problems before now. :/

[catz]

I will say that recently we got an envelope with our address, but somebody else's name. Dh opened it because the name was similar to eldest dd's name, and he thought it was for her at first.

 

I actually did get my box back in the last 10 minutes.  It was labelled perfectly with my name and address right on the top.  It was even well packaged with bubble wrap, etc.  My neighbor didn't close it up well after opening it, but it did look like Think Geek did a good job with packaging anyway.  There was one breakable item in perfect condition.

 

If any other neighbor would have accidentally opened it up, I probably would not be nearly as annoyed.  ;)   I know it can happen.  Mail/UPS mistakes happen reguarly around here.  Package errors like this from private shippers seem rare though, so I really thought this thing would not turn up.  We have had packages stolen off our front step - we are urban and near a college campus.  I absolutely though that was what happened. 

[MSNative]

Did you take photos? I would take photos. Was there an option to email customer service (vs live chat or phone?). I have not ordered from them lately. That really stinks. I had something similar happen with another website last year. I ordered an item during a Black Friday special and sometime later they informed me that the item was sold out. I thought well um you shouldn't sell it and then tell the customer you don't have it. Hmmph

I have photos. The box was in horrible shape- an entire side was ripped and just taped over. I also have screen shots of the obnoxious online chat exchange. I just reread it to my husband and he agreed it was awful! I guess Im back to waiting on the customer support line for another couple of hours tomorrow though that is such a waste of time. I emailed twice and have only gotten a form response that they have received it. No actual response. I wish they would just run their business appropriately - sell what you have, deliver it, resolve customer service issues that arise. You would think it wouldn't be that difficult.

[Slartibartfast]

DBL Post

[Slartibartfast]

I have photos. The box was in horrible shape- an entire side was ripped and just taped over. I also have screen shots of the obnoxious online chat exchange. I just reread it to my husband and he agreed it was awful! I guess Im back to waiting on the customer support line for another couple of hours tomorrow though that is such a waste of time. I emailed twice and have only gotten a form response that they have received it. No actual response. I wish they would just run their business appropriately - sell what you have, deliver it, resolve customer service issues that arise. You would think it wouldn't be that difficult.

 

 

I am now a bit worried about the box I have in transit.

 

ThinkGeek has always been great, I have ordered thousands of dollars worth of items from there and never had a problem with an order. 

[Word Nerd]

My first order is currently in transit. Hoping it arrives intact!

[MomatHWTK]

I think they had something go wrong over Thanksgiving, I received  a $10 certificate for my "trouble."  I didn't have any trouble so I don't know what happened, but I guess it was site-wide. 

[MSNative]

Heads up. Mrs Mungo just posted this on another thread. Ftr - I emailed the new address and got the same auto response- we will contact you in 48 hours - response. Their other customer service email said that too and I have heard nothing for three days. So, not sure if it will do any good but at least the company knows there are a lot of problems.

 

Posted Today, 03:34 PM

They just posted this on their facebook:

 

To our Friends, both old and new:

 

It's the holiday season and for many of you that means ordering gifts for yourselves and others. A great many of you have already received your orders from ThinkGeek and we hope that you enjoy them. That said, we also understand that there are those of you who have had issues and we want to take a moment to address them and let you know we're doing everything we can to make things right.

 

If you have received an item that is either incorrect or broken - Our resolution team would like you to contact them at tgholiday@thinkgeek.com. Please provide your name and order number in your email.

 

If your order is showing as shipped, but hasn't arrived or you haven't received a shipping notification - We recognize the urgency of the holiday season and are still working on shipping from our warehouse as quickly and efficiently as possible. Customers who were impacted by an issue we recently discovered were contacted already and we will resolve the status of their orders within the next 24 hours. If you need to make a change to your shipping information because of timing or travel plans, please contact us at with your name, order number and request at tgholiday@thinkgeek.com.

 

For those of you who have tried to contact customer service and experienced egregious wait times - we sincerely apologize. The above listed email (tgholiday@thinkgeek.com) exists outside of our standard customer service queue and goes directly to our escalation team. Our customer service management here at ThinkGeek HQ will contact you with a resolution within 24 hours.

 

In the end, we want to work with you to come to a solution that works best for you. If you have been affected by any of the challenges above, please contact us as soon as possible with your order number so that we may have the opportunity to make it right.

 

We know that this doesn't fix everything, but it is the first step in our plan prove to you that we are still the company that you trust us to be.

[Lizzie in Ma]

nevermind, someone already posted it.  :)

[Word Nerd]

My first order is currently in transit. Hoping it arrives intact!

I got my order just fine. The tape was partly open, but everything was there.

[Slartibartfast]

Instead of a moleskin Hobbit notebook I received a Batman Tshirt. Those are not related. It is a nice Batman Tshirt but I did not order a Batman Tshirt.

 

The rest of my items were correct and the box was well packed.

[happi duck]

Instead of a moleskin Hobbit notebook I received a Batman Tshirt. Those are not related. It is a nice Batman Tshirt but I did not order a Batman Tshirt.

 

The rest of my items were correct and the box was well packed.

Trust them. Timmy knows what you really need.

 

:)

[Mrs Mungo]

I received all of my things. My package arrived Friday instead of Tuesday. One of the pairs of PJs that I ordered was a large instead of a small though, so I am going to have to figure that out. :/

[plansrme]

Instead of one Tardis blanket, I received two. When I emailed to let them know, they sent me another. I was afraid to tell them they have sent me three, lest I end up with four, so I sold the two extra on my neighborhood's Facebook page for $20 each and my promise to deposit the proceeds in the benevolence offering at my church on Christmas Eve. The blanket is out of stock on their website, which is what happens when you send everyone three times as many as they order.

[MSNative]

Instead of one Tardis blanket, I received two. When I emailed to let them know, they sent me another. I was afraid to tell them they have sent me three, lest I end up with four, so I sold the two extra on my neighborhood's Facebook page for $20 each and my promise to deposit the proceeds in the benevolence offering at my church on Christmas Eve. The blanket is out of stock on their website, which is what happens when you send everyone three times as many as they order.

Oh my goodness! Yall have me cracking up!!

 

My update - after 4 emails, an online chat, way to many hours on hold, etc. I finally got someone at thinkgeek to call me. She was wonderful - tried her best to fix the problem, was kind, professional, etc. Seriously this woman was so great I was pondering ways to get her to join my company. Lol. Anyway, I just got in from being out of town to lots of thinkgeek boxes. Off to open and see what surprises await.

 

Update-It looks like I am still missing items. Sigh. Perhaps they will come later. Even more troubling, there were no tardis blankets or batman shirts in any of my boxes. I guess Timmy doesn't think I need them. ;) So the saga of thinkgeek continues. Thank you all for making it so amusing. At least we are getting some funny stories out of it.

[JFSinIL]

Instead of one Tardis blanket, I received two. When I emailed to let them know, they sent me another. I was afraid to tell them they have sent me three, lest I end up with four, so I sold the two extra on my neighborhood's Facebook page for $20 each and my promise to deposit the proceeds in the benevolence offering at my church on Christmas Eve. The blanket is out of stock on their website, which is what happens when you send everyone three times as many as they order.

 

Last year they sent me two, too, instead of one. So dd's boyfriend got one, too. They were thrilled.

 

This year I got duplicate orders of the R2D2 soy sauce dispenser AND the Handbag of Holding (a $49 dollar item) and I did contact them to be sure no third shipment came. I was only charged once (I checked that with my Visa).  They told me keep the spare.

 

The only missing item is the R2D2 bottle stopper.  I got a refund and a $10 gift certificate when I called - early Sunday morning, only had to wait a couple minutes on-line.  I mean, 5am early (hey , I was up anyway).

[MSNative]

I received all of my things. My package arrived Friday instead of Tuesday. One of the pairs of PJs that I ordered was a large instead of a small though, so I am going to have to figure that out. :/

If you cannot figure this out, just send the large pjs to me. I'll wash them once and promise they will be size small and I can send them back. Messing up laundry is my special gift.

[Word Nerd]

Good gravy, no wonder they're out of stock on multiple items I would have ordered if they had been available!

[plansrme]

Oh my goodness! Yall have me cracking up!!

 

My update - after 4 emails, an online chat, way to many hours on hold, etc. I finally got someone at thinkgeek to call me. She was wonderful - tried her best to fix the problem, was kind, professional, etc. Seriously this woman was so great I was pondering ways to get her to join my company. Lol. Anyway, I just got in from being out of town to lots of thinkgeek boxes. Off to open and see what surprises await.

 

Update-It looks like I am still missing items. Sigh. Perhaps they will come later. Even more troubling, there were no tardis blankets or batman shirts in any of my boxes. I guess Timmy doesn't think I need them. ;) So the saga of thinkgeek continues. Thank you all for making it so amusing. At least we are getting some funny stories out of it.

Clearly, I have your Tardis blanket. I feel bad about having sold them, but I hope you are comforted by the fact that the benevolence ministry at my church will benefit.

[MSNative]

Clearly, I have your Tardis blanket. I feel bad about having sold them, but I hope you are comforted by the fact that the benevolence ministry at my church will benefit.

Lol! I hadn't ordered either of them. yall had just cracked me up with your stories about them. Glad your benevolence fund is benefitting from the crazy at thinkgeek.

[Slartibartfast]

Trust them. Timmy knows what you really need.

 

:)

 

[Slartibartfast]

i had written in the above post but the quote feature hates me.:(

[Mrs Mungo]

i had written in the above post but the quote feature hates me.:(

It is really wonky lately. Sometimes I can quote and/or reply from my computer or iPad, but sometimes it doesn't work.

[TeenagerMom]

I can't believe the issues many of you had! There were SEVERAL orders between my Mom & I and we had NO issues. Everything ordered came in perfect condition with no duplicates (Darn).

[Slartibartfast]

I can't believe the issues many of you had! There were SEVERAL orders between my Mom & I and we had NO issues. Everything ordered came in perfect condition with no duplicates (Darn).

 

I have ordered from them many many times for years and this is the first time I have had an issue.

[TeenagerMom]

I have ordered from them many many times for years and this is the first time I have had an issue.

I kinda wish we would have had issues because I would've loved to get duplicates! Lol. It's my very favorite place to shop for my Geek kids and everything we want tends to be pricey!

[Slartibartfast]

I kinda wish we would have had issues because I would've loved to get duplicates! Lol. It's my very favorite place to shop for my Geek kids and everything we want tends to be pricey!

I keep an eye out for sales. There was 25% off and free shipping when I ordered.

[Slartibartfast]

I still have not heard anything from ThinkGeek regarding the errors in my order.

 

Now I am annoyed.

[happi duck]

We gave two thinkgeek hoodies and need to exchange the sizes...with one of the new sizes being out of stock. I'm not looking forward to dealing with it based on everyone's lousy experiences this year.

 

Even the size thing is annoying. My kids have other thinkgeek hoodies that fit so that's the size we ordered. With the new ones both are size small but one is huge and one is tiny...not consistent with each other or last year's size small.

 

I hope thinkgeek gets back on track!

[Slartibartfast]

I heard back from Thinkgeek. They are sending me my item that was missing. It was for a Christmas gift exchange, I am  glad it is something I would actually like and not something I got to be silly. :lol:

 

They also sent me a GC.

[mommymilkies]

Wow, I'm glad I didn't order from them this season!  I usually do, but I'm glad I held back now.  I had two extremely terrible ordering issues with Walmart and a co-op sale, though.  Tis the season for order screw ups, I guess!

[Mrs Mungo]

I heard back from Thinkgeek. They are sending me my item that was missing. It was for a Christmas gift exchange, I am  glad it is something I would actually like and not something I got to be silly. :lol:

 

They also sent me a GC.

 

At least they sent you a GC for your trouble!