CRK Customer Service. Am I off base?

[A-MAC]

I have a question..

Rather than coming on the internet with this unfortunate story, do you think it may have been a good idea to wait until someone of some authority came back from BLADE to discuss this situation?
Really, it does sound like everyone with any authority was out of town..Do you know when things run the smoothest? When everyone is around, but nobody is really needed to make decisions. Consequently, when the decisionmakers are absent, the world falls apart.

I don't think anyone lied to you at all- The most likely scenario is that they were up to their eyes in work, which by the way, gets deeper when there are fewer people to help out. Tip; Don't throw a drowning man a bucket of water.

I did wait until after everyone returned from Blade. Angela is supposedly Alycia's manager. I asked before even bothering with her. I got no useful resolution.

If telling someone you will follow up with information and then not following up twice isn't a lie then what is it? If telling me twice they would overnight it and then not isn't a lie then what is it? Intentionally or unintentionally they lied. Also, it's kind of a slap in the face that they would ship mine 3 Day after I just got done rushing a 2 Day package back to them.


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[loon#r]

Hope this isn't too off topic. Unless CRK changed manufacturer they use American Apparel shirts which are excellent shirts IMO. They're commonly used by some of the better bands for concert shirts. I have a few Ray Lamontagne shirts and a couple U2 and Tool shirts, also American Apparel, loved them, and was happy when I saw my CRK shirt. Not sure of their actual price tag. This is not a plug for them by the way. I believe Chris Reeve Knives selected a great manufacturer for some of their CRK apparel.

For what it's worth I'm 50/50 with the OP's post. Valid points all around. Not necessarily the proper way to handle the frustration until the entire thing is resolved (offer the bad and end it with the positive), but many of us use this forum as a sounding board and it's understandable considering the sense of community developed here. As someone mentioned this could be a great opportunity to talk to a higher authority at CRK whom might expand on the CRK CS topic with you. If this turns out to be the case then you could bring this thread full circle.:thumbup:

 

[A-MAC]

OP- what makes you think that "nobody seems to care"?

Also why do you think they would "lie" to you?

Do you believe that Chris Reeve Knives has a company policy of lying to their customers?

I have been a dealer of their products for almost 20 years and I have never experienced any of this behavior - no natter who was on duty there.

Finally what are you so proud of yourself for doing the right thing and informing them that they sent you the wrong knife which you believed to be worth more money than yours?

Neil Ostroff / True North Knives
Hollywood, FL

I'm not even sure how to respond to this. Did you read any of the last two pages? It makes absolutely no difference how many customers they see/talk to/sell to a day. When they have messed up two customer's order (mine and the Classic owner) you do damage control and resolve the problem as quickly as possible. You don't continue to make it worse. It also makes no difference how long you have been selling CRK knives, this is my first and only experience with CS so far and it has not been great.


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[A-MAC]

Holy moly. We should all be thankful CRK continues to offer the spa service, for free mostly. What a great offering to their customer base! How many other manufacturers offer this??? Sure it is slow, and a low priority for a business that is kept afloat by selling new knives, but the fact they offer to refurbish your second hand Sebenza, even with a little hassle all around, shows them to truly value their customers, even if you are not the originsl purchaser.

Bravo CRK.......thank you for supporting your product line with such depth and caring!

PS. Try sending your Slysz Bowie to Spyderco for the scales to be retumbled and have a new blade fitted. Really this service CRK offers is precious and should not be defamed based on a little trouble from time to time. Do the math: if they make 100 knives a day, and 5% come back for spa treatment each year, with each passing year there is over 1000 more knives needing spa service.......they have been making these folders almost 30 years, that's 30,000 knives a year coming back........lets go easy on them already!!!! It's a miracle the service is still offered.

Yes, I agree the services they offer are much different than others. That is why you buy them though. Saying "oh well, they are nice enough to offer it, you should be thankful" is a terrible argument. It was part of the reason I took a chance on it second hand. The service is built into the price and I expect to be able to use the service as advertised.

I don't expect to be made a priority but I expect them to do what they said and handle my order responsibility it doesn't matter if it was a service request or a new knife purchase.


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[A-MAC]

^^Well said.

I applaud the OP for returning the knife promptly and doing the right thing. But unless I have mis-read the thread this is all about having to wait a few extra days to receive his knife back versus overnight shipping........??

Come now Sir, anyone can make a silly mistake like that during the Blade Show. Your knife will be arriving soon and it will be in pristine condition. Cut them a little slack. (no pun intended)

Again, please re read the last two pages. A mistake is understandable, a comedy of errors isn't.


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[A-MAC]

Well, as of this morning the knife should be here today, not tomorrow like tracking indicated yesterday. Either they got the shipping upgraded or UPS is running fast. Either way I'll post the result.

 

[flipe8]

It sucks when you happen to be on the receiving end of a mistake(or two), but I seriously doubt there was any malice intended. CRK has built a reputation of producing very high quality products and offering stellar customer service, overall. This less than stellar experience, while disappointing for the OP, is pretty minor, overall. Let's try to keep this in perspective in the grand scheme of things.

 

[91bravo]

It sucks when you happen to be on the receiving end of a mistake(or two), but I seriously doubt there was any malice intended. CRK has built a reputation of producing very high quality products and offering stellar customer service, overall. This less than stellar experience, while disappointing for the OP, is pretty minor, overall. Let's try to keep this in perspective in the grand scheme of things.

I agree. I don't think CRK made this mistake on purpose. People get in a hurry and forget things sometimes. We all do it! It's human nature to be imperfect, but in today's society, everyone wants it now now now! I've said I was going to do something on a few occasions and literally forgot to do them! At least the OP is getting his knife back and this can come to a resolution! Personally, I've never had any problems with CRK customer service and I'd care to gander that 99% of folks haven't either!

 

[arskrg]

I have a question..

Rather than coming on the internet with this unfortunate story, do you think it may have been a good idea to wait until someone of some authority came back from BLADE to discuss this situation?
Really, it does sound like everyone with any authority was out of town..Do you know when things run the smoothest? When everyone is around, but nobody is really needed to make decisions. Consequently, when the decisionmakers are absent, the world falls apart.

I don't think anyone lied to you at all- The most likely scenario is that they were up to their eyes in work, which by the way, gets deeper when there are fewer people to help out. Tip; Don't throw a drowning man a bucket of water.

Come on, man.
CRK was in the wrong here, not OP.
I get busy at work sometimes, I make mistakes sometimes.
When that happens the first thing I do is apologize, the next thing I do is try my best to make it right.
Making it right with an unsatisfied customer becomes top priority for me, no matter how much is on my plate.
This was a real and potentially costly mistake on their end.
From OP's description (which is all we have to go on) it sounds like the mistake to apology/make it right ratio is way off, IMHO.

Hopefully this is just an anomaly and not a harbinger.
CRK is by far my favorite knife brand, I sincerely hope that their customer service doesn't begin to slip regularly.

I do agree that it may have been a better idea to ask to speak to someone higher up upon their return before posting this thread.
But sometimes emotions can get the best of us.
That's why I think it's important to make it right ASAP with a dissatisfied customer.

 

[A-MAC]

I definitely don't think it was intentional, there was no malice involved. If there was this would be a completely different post. Angela emailed again this morning and apologized again. I was just heated, chances are pretty good I'll pick up a few more CRKs moving forward.


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[bhyde]

I did wait until after everyone returned from Blade. Angela is supposedly Alycia's manager. I asked before even bothering with her. I got no useful resolution.

If telling someone you will follow up with information and then not following up twice isn't a lie then what is it? If telling me twice they would overnight it and then not isn't a lie then what is it? Intentionally or unintentionally they lied. Also, it's kind of a slap in the face that they would ship mine 3 Day after I just got done rushing a 2 Day package back to them.


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Believe me..I am not saying that you received good service..not at all..What I was stating was that there is one person that makes all the decisions; Anne- I am certain that she definitely wants to know if there are hiccups that need to be corrected.

On the second part concerning lying,..Really, I don't think that you were lied to as much as a victim of circumstances that happen. They are not robots, but humans and as such they are subject to the same mistakes that we are all capable of.

Come on, man.
CRK was in the wrong here, not OP.
I get busy at work sometimes, I make mistakes sometimes.
When that happens the first thing I do is apologize, the next thing I do is try my best to make it right.
Making it right with an unsatisfied customer becomes top priority for me, no matter how much is on my plate.
This was a real and potentially costly mistake on their end.
From OP's description (which is all we have to go on) it sounds like the mistake to apology/make it right ratio is way off, IMHO.

Hopefully this is just an anomaly and not a harbinger.
CRK is by far my favorite knife brand, I sincerely hope that their customer service doesn't begin to slip regularly.

I do agree that it may have been a better idea to ask to speak to someone higher up upon their return before posting this thread.
But sometimes emotions can get the best of us.
That's why I think it's important to make it right ASAP with a dissatisfied customer.

Where did you read that I was blaming the OP for what happened?
My post was purely about going up the ladder before posting on the internet.. Sometimes, we all have our moments...I am in customer service myself and would never think of blaming someone else or lying for my failure to deliver.
I will take responsibility and corrective action so that the same mistake isn't made more than once.


Hopefully, the OP get's his knife back and is happy about having the knife...Customer service that he received? That is a bit hard to correct where the OP is concerned..It already happened.

 

[einsteinjon]

I don't think there was any malice, tomfoolery, or malarkey from Angela either. I think she and Alycia were/are probably ridiculously busy between Blade Show, Heather's departure, and trying to satisfy all us Knifenuts' cravings for totally bitchin' CRKs.

I had a shipping problem that lasted from late February through mid-April 2015 and she handled it very well. I sent a large CF 21 in to get double silver lugs, and when they shipped it back to me they accidentally shipped it to the wrong address (my old address which they had on file rather than the new one I gave them). Angela was very apologetic to me, and was happy to take my calls/emails every few days as I was checking in. It took about 6 weeks to get it back to me after CRK's service because of USPS bouncing it around all over the place (to warehouses and such...who knows why), but Angela was diligent about making it right, and she even sent me a leather pouch, sticker, blue cloth, and grease to say "sorry, and thank you for being our customer".

I was originally very hot under the collar when I realized this happened particularly because the knife was gifted to me by my wife for passing the Principles & Practice of Engineering Exam (i.e. the PE license test), but in hindsight Angela did a superb job making the situation right. OP, I very much think/hope you can and will be satisfied with your new knife and will continue to enjoy CRK in the future.

 

[BMCGear]

What happened was very frustrating and I'm sorry that it did. When you invest in a CRK you're investing in the CS and company reputation and to have it not live up to what you have heard and hoped for can be frustrating. While not an excuse it sounds like the company is going through a transitional period as well as BLADE which can cause some flubs. Should it happen? Probably not but as with anything human beings are involved in there will be flaws, mess ups, etc.

What you took as lack of care could be considered frustration not at you but of themselves. Who knows?

Hopefully having the right knife back in primo condition will help.

 

[arskrg]

Where did you read that I was blaming the OP for what happened?
My post was purely about going up the ladder before posting on the internet.. Sometimes, we all have our moments...I am in customer service myself and would never think of blaming someone else or lying for my failure to deliver.
I will take responsibility and corrective action so that the same mistake isn't made more than once.


Hopefully, the OP get's his knife back and is happy about having the knife...Customer service that he received? That is a bit hard to correct where the OP is concerned..It already happened.

I'd inferred from the part that I highlighted from your quoted post, "Tip; Don't throw a drowning man a bucket of water." that you were suggesting that OP was adding to CRK's burden while they were already shorthanded.
That's what it sounded like to me, anyway.

 

[Neil Ostroff]

I'd inferred from the part that I highlighted from your quoted post, "Tip; Don't throw a drowning man a bucket of water." that you were suggesting that OP was adding to CRK's burden while they were already shorthanded.
That's what it sounded like to me, anyway.

If that was indeed what bhyde meant then I agree with him - also the OP clearly called them all liars and said they did not seem to care.

Being a little "heated" is no excuse for poor behavior and bad etiquette and posting crap in the CRK forum to relieve his frustration while they regrouped after a show.
Concerning Angela, she was working double time at the show (no Heather) plus their booth was insanely busy - lineup around early in the day - she left the show Sunday afternoon and was at work at 6am Monday morning to start sorting out what went on at the show - perhaps a bit of patience and understanding on the part of the OP was indicated here and not grandstanding and trashing folks who were clearly at a disadvantage - for those of you who know CRK for a long time you know that situations like this are rare but do occur even with the best of intentions.

Neil Ostroff / True North Knives
Hollywood, FL

 

[ElConquistador]

4-8 week estimate is just that, an estimate. Give them 10-12 weeks then start emailing if your knife hasn't shown up. I can't see sending an email at exactly four weeks and expecting an update. It's unreasonable to expect that they'll provide you updates every few weeks.

They shipped you the wrong knife which was a mistake but then we all make mistakes. Most mistakes can be fixed. I have to wonder if rushing to get your knife out contributed to the error.

If CRK failed it was in not correcting their mistake. Shipping the wrong knife was their mistake not yours. They should make every effort to correct the mistake and not put the burden on you. They said that the would next day the order then didn't that's just sloppy.

CRK should apologize for dropping the ball in next daying the knife. You should lighten up. Send your knife in and forget about it until it shows up in the mail. What was hurt by the knife being two days later than you expected? Yes it's a $400 knife but you get what you pay for. You're not entitled to be focus of the entire customer service department.

You should apologize for suggesting that they intentionally deceived you.

I have to side with CRK on this one. You seem like one of those high maintenance customers who are difficult or impossible to please.

 

[gonebad395]

If that was indeed what bhyde meant then I agree with him - also the OP clearly called them all liars and said they did not seem to care.

Being a little "heated" is no excuse for poor behavior and bad etiquette and posting crap in the CRK forum to relieve his frustration while they regrouped after a show.
Concerning Angela, she was working double time at the show (no Heather) plus their booth was insanely busy - lineup around early in the day - she left the show Sunday afternoon and was at work at 6am Monday morning to start sorting out what went on at the show - perhaps a bit of patience and understanding on the part of the OP was indicated here and not grandstanding and trashing folks who were clearly at a disadvantage - for those of you who know CRK for a long time you know that situations like this are rare but do occur even with the best of intentions.

Neil Ostroff / True North Knives
Hollywood, FL

He has every right to post his bad experience just like you have every right to post your holy praise. They messed up not him he's the customer that was told his knife was on the way got the wrong knife. Then told to send it back which he did and was told his knife was going to be sent overnight which it wasn't. So where did he do something wrong ? Was it coming here and posting his complaint which he has every right to or was it that he upset the crk fans cause it was a negative post about the company? I would bet it's the second. Among all the praise that the company gets there will be some negative and the negative ones have a right to be posted even if it hurts some of the feelings here.

 

[arskrg]

If that was indeed what bhyde meant then I agree with him - also the OP clearly called them all liars and said they did not seem to care.

Being a little "heated" is no excuse for poor behavior and bad etiquette and posting crap in the CRK forum to relieve his frustration while they regrouped after a show.
Concerning Angela, she was working double time at the show (no Heather) plus their booth was insanely busy - lineup around early in the day - she left the show Sunday afternoon and was at work at 6am Monday morning to start sorting out what went on at the show - perhaps a bit of patience and understanding on the part of the OP was indicated here and not grandstanding and trashing folks who were clearly at a disadvantage - for those of you who know CRK for a long time you know that situations like this are rare but do occur even with the best of intentions.

Neil Ostroff / True North Knives
Hollywood, FL

There are two sides to every story, and unfortunately we only have one side available to us at the moment.
You and I both read OP's story from our own perspective, and gleaned different things from it.
I didn't take it as grandstanding or trashing CRK.

He was asking if he was justified in being upset, and asked whether the community agreed with him.
According to OP, he did wait to speak to a supervisor before posting here.

Your position is: "Being a little "heated" is no excuse for poor behavior and bad etiquette and posting crap in the CRK forum to relieve his frustration while they regrouped after a show."
What about: Most of our staff being out of town is no excuse for sending you someone else's knife.

I'm not, and have never been by any means anti-CRK.
I've made mistakes at work where a customer reacts ridiculously, I'm sure we all have..
I don't see this as a ridiculous reaction, though.

 

[Neil Ostroff]

He called them liars - more than once.

Also he said they didn't care.

If you feel this is acceptable then that's your prerogative.

Neil Ostroff / True North Knives
Hollywood FL

He has every right to post his bad experience just like you have every right to post your holy praise. They messed up not him he's the customer that was told his knife was on the way got the wrong knife. Then told to send it back which he did and was told his knife was going to be sent overnight which it wasn't. So where did he do something wrong ? Was it coming here and posting his complaint which he has every right to or was it that he upset the crk fans cause it was a negative post about the company? I would bet it's the second. Among all the praise that the company gets there will be some negative and the negative ones have a right to be posted even if it hurts some of the feelings here.

 

[arskrg]

He called them liars - more than once.

Also he said they didn't care.

If you feel this is acceptable then that's your prerogative.

Neil Ostroff / True North Knives
Hollywood FL

I went back and re-read the OP because I didn't remember where he specifically used the word "liar."
Maybe I missed it again, but I still didn't see it.
I did see the part where he was promised next day air and a tracking #.
He didn't receive either.
Then he called and spoke to Angela (the supervisor) who acknowledged the next day was promised, and then sent the tracking # without acknowledging it was actually sent 3 day. EDIT: just read it again and it was Alycia that finally emailed it.
According to OP, there was no apology for the (second) oversight.

Yes, it is a stretch to call this lying.
I think it's also a stretch to say that this is the level of service a CRK customer should be happy with.