Bad Survive! Deserves A Permanent Post In The Hall Of Shame

I called my credit card company and they said it was too long ago for a chargeback. I guess I am going to go with the AG route. Hate to do it but this is ridiculous that they expect customers to fund their business operation for years. I did not sign up to become an investor last I checked.
 
UncleBoots said:
I once got a CC chargeback on a never-delivered order that was at least 8 months old. It's worth trying.

The BBB is a glorified review site, sort of a pre-Internet Yelp. As far as I know, the only thing you can accomplish there is to add a bad review to the pile. Never heard of them actually resolving anything. I'd love to be wrong about this; if I am, please say so.

I think there's a rule somewhere about offering a refund if you can't ship within XX days, though. FTC, maybe. Could be worth a shot.
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The BBB can only take action with their members. They have zero ability to do anything to any business that isn’t a member of their private association other than provide a place to leave a bad review and I don’t think they post bad reviews of non-members and they probably shouldn’t given the litigious nature of many people. They do contact companies that they get complaints about and try to get them to join their little club. They’re not useless but they’re pretty close to being.
 
Huntsman Knife Co. said:
I picked up a Survive knife on the exchange and it was very well made and had great fit and finish. Very disappointing to see they are treating their customers so poorly because their knives are solid.

I read through this thread and I think the biggest issue is that their knives are underpriced. They are still filling orders from years ago when materials and labor were cheaper. I'm looking at making knives again and I'm shocked at how expensive everything is now... I did the math and I can't even make one of my machetes for the price I used to sell them for. I used to sell a 23.5in DHT 52100 heavy machete with a sheath for $199 shipped :oops:. Just getting a blade that big HT at Peters is $100 now.

They are probably taking a loss on all those old orders of 5in+ CPM 3V knives for ~$200 bucks.
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The biggest issue is that they’re not running a legitimate business. They’re operating a long con game.
 
fullswing said:
EDIT: This is not intended to be a shill. I do not encourage anyone to do business with this company unless they are willing to accept the risk of losing their money.

I recognize this is a thread where many have raised concerns about Survive's business practices. I hope I can add a constructive viewpoint to the conversation.

Based on my personal experience as a customer, I have found that while Survive's ordering and fulfillment process is not ideal, I have ultimately received all 7 knives that I have paid for.

While asking for full payment upfront rather than a deposit may seem risky and improper, I don't believe it constitutes stealing or fraudulent behavior. The company appears committed to delivering products to paying customers, even if there are delays.

I offer this simply as one customer's experience, in case it's helpful context. I understand others have had different interactions.
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And yet that’s exactly what you’re doing, shilling for a couple of con artists. The sheer amount of fraudulent and illegal actions they’ve practiced is staggering and you’re offering up excuses for that behaviour. You should stop doing that.
 
ncrockclimb said:
The liquidity problem is something that Guy and Ellie are completely unequipped to either understand or deal with.

ALL of the issues the S!K has faced since 2013 are 100% due to Guy and Ellie being incompetent.

Read that again.

They lie to cover it up, and make elaborate excuses. However, when you strip away all the BS, Survive! is failing because the business model was never viable and Guy and Ellie are just to ignorant to see it. I cold go into more details and make a lot of educated guesses to support what I am saying. However, the history and current state of Survive! tells you everything you need to know. I am pretty sure that this is not going to end well...
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I'm not sure this is quite correct. You assume that they are trying to run a business. I'm not sure that's ultimately what they are trying to do. If they are, you are correct, they're really terrible business people. If, however, they are running a sort of ponzi scheme they are quite good at it as their long track record attests. That would of course make them terrible people.
 
Triton said:
I'm not sure this is quite correct. You assume that they are trying to run a business. I'm not sure that's ultimately what they are trying to do. If they are, you are correct, they're really terrible business people. If, however, they are running a sort of ponzi scheme they are quite good at it as their long track record attests. That would of course make them terrible people.
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I don’t think they’re that smart to intentionally be running a Ponzi scheme, especially as long as this one would have been going. I think it’s just turned into that as a result of their total incompetence at running a business. I don’t know, I could be wrong, but if they initially set out to defraud people, they could have picked a much more lucrative business than making knives. Madoff used an investment firm as a ‘cover’, which earns big bucks even when it’s on the up and up. I guess I’d have to see what kind of lifestyle they’re living to really make that determination. They are turning out knives, just nowhere near as many as are being paid for. Regardless, they’ve got some kind of an operation running, which takes a good deal of time and effort, which I just don’t see as a worthwhile ponzi vehicle. Sometimes I think they’re terrible people, but sometimes I think they’re just in so far over their heads they can’t see their own bullshit for what it is. Or maybe it’s some combination of both.
 
Triton said:
I'm not sure this is quite correct. You assume that they are trying to run a business. I'm not sure that's ultimately what they are trying to do. If they are, you are correct, they're really terrible business people. If, however, they are running a sort of ponzi scheme they are quite good at it as their long track record attests. That would of course make them terrible people.
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I hear what you are saying, and don't totally disagree. Maybe the tried to run a business but discovered that they are better suited to run a ponzi scheme... either way, they are terrible people.
 
Danny Linguini said:
I don’t think they’re that smart to intentionally be running a Ponzi scheme, especially as long as this one would have been going. I think it’s just turned into that as a result of their total incompetence at running a business. I don’t know, I could be wrong, but if they initially set out to defraud people, they could have picked a much more lucrative business than making knives. Madoff used an investment firm as a ‘cover’, which earns big bucks even when it’s on the up and up. I guess I’d have to see what kind of lifestyle they’re living to really make that determination. They are turning out knives, just nowhere near as many as are being paid for. Regardless, they’ve got some kind of an operation running, which takes a good deal of time and effort, which I just don’t see as a worthwhile ponzi vehicle. Sometimes I think they’re terrible people, but sometimes I think they’re just in so far over their heads they can’t see their own bullshit for what it is. Or maybe it’s some combination of both.
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you posted while i was typing my previous post. I agree with everything you said. I think the key point is that they cannot run a business, and am pretty sure that the business model they created just does not work.
 
ncrockclimb said:
you posted while i was typing my previous post. I agree with everything you said. I think the key point is that they cannot run a business, and am pretty sure that the business model they created just does not work.
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That's where I fall on all this. I think they make great knives, but this is insane how they're going about it. They're always coming up with new models in new steels now. I'm all for trying to make a better product, but it seems like they could have had all the back orders filled by now, and had a little credibility going forward. I wish the would have just stuck to the GSO line, I thought they really had something there.
 
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kane22 said:
That's where I fall on all this. I think they make great knives, but this is insane how they're going about. They're always coming up with new models in new steels now. I'm all for trying to make a better product, but it seems like they could have had all the back orders filled by now, and had a little credibility going forward. I wish the would have just stuck to the GSO line, I thought they really had something there.
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All they needed to do was to fill orders according to first-ordered, be honest about times, deliver products, and actually respond to people. I think the new models are simply to get more money coming in with the same excuses. Really shitty business practices with shitty people.
 
S!K just purged their FB page. They removed a number of people and deleted a bunch of posts with customers complaining and asking for refunds. Interestingly, they also left a few very damning post. This is just another great example of S!K's awesome customer service...
 
Can confirm they are hiding/deleting comments on Youtube. If I go to Youtube logged in it shows 10 comments, one of which is mine, but the comment count is at 9. If I go to Youtube not logged in it shows 9 comments with mine missing. Which is better, contacting the State AG or filing a complaint with the local DA?
 
ffcol said:
Which is better, contacting the State AG or filing a complaint with the local DA?
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I’m no legal expert, but I’d say contact the state AG. For the local DA, I would think you’d need some solid evidence that a crime has been committed, which is more for the AG to make that determination. It’s our opinion that what S!K is doing is at the very least unethical; but you’d need an attorney investigating a whole lot of people’s complaints to determine if there’s an actual case for fraud. That’s my tv crime drama opinion.
 
Just filed with BBB and the State AG. Pretty easy process. I have emails from them stating they will refund my money so it's not just a matter of them missing the delivery date by a stupid amount of time. Suggest everyone just do the same if you want your money back and its too late for a credit charge back.
 
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