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marys1000

Smith Brothers of Berne - am I being unreasonable?

marys1000
15 years ago

I went to a retailer that carries this line among others. I have some questions they didn't know the answer to. I figured I'd just call the company myself.

Wrong.

1) they have very limited information on their website - particularly

no email link

no phone number

No way to even figure out where the dealers are.

Do they even want to sell furniture?

2) I get a number from a different furniture website (where many people were trying to figure out how to find a local dealer)

and call.

Nope. We only deal with dealers. The woman on the phone wasn't abrupt exactly but just said no. Long pause. Nothing else to say. No polite cajoling got me more than a pretty much one syllable response.

Does this seem a bit over the top? It really makes me wonder about customer service should I have a problem.

And last - do you ever just ask your question and get an answer and your done? Don't you usually get more information from follow-on questions, answers discussion? I'm not going to get this from the dealer here - they just don't know.

They don't list rubs on their fabrics, just Yes or No whether its suitable for motion or not. The dealer ensures me that if its good for motion it must be durable. 70% of their fabrics say suitable for motion - I'm not reassured especially when a couple of people on this other forum said their fabric didn't hold up.

I wish there were better furniture stores in this town. I have to travel a good hour to find anything better than Flexsteel.

Feeling grumpy.

Comments (4)

  • marys1000
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    sink

  • mogator88
    15 years ago

    This line is well regarded, a google search should confirm that.

    Why aren't you getting anywhere? You have real questions about the sofa but used most of this post to complain about the dealer and factory. What did you really want to know?

    OK, I'll respond to the questions you did pose.

    Do they want to sell furniture? Yes, through a network of retail dealers. This is different than buying a car, however, if you went to Macy's and wanted information about a name brand leather coat you were thinking of purchasing you'd probably have the same experience.

    Does this seem a bit over the top? On your end, yes. And what possible connection can there be between warranty service and responding to your questions? Really, there is no basis for that. If they staffed a help desk like Butterball does for turkey questions it would make their sofas even more expensive. They don't sell millions of units each year, they sell hundreds per month, and its just not in the budget.

    Regarding the last question, followup questions are good if you know where you're going with them. Where you're going with this isn't clear. If you want an ironclad 10 year guarantee on the fabric, well, buy HP Ultrasuede fabric or Herculon. Both look like crap (except for Ultrasuede on modern sofas styles.) If you're going to put the sofas through really heavy use (abuse) maybe you should buy the cheaper stuff and replace it as needed.

    Customers who ask for rub figures, compression ratios, spring gauge and other unpublished tech specs usually don't buy anyways. So maybe be surprised that you're getting treated with respect. And being treated with respect doesn't mean you'll get all your questions answered.

    A store that carries Smith of Berne IS a better furniture store. Use your better judgment and you'll be fine.

  • gerrie9
    10 years ago

    I was told by an acquaintance of a reclining chair made by Smith Brothers which also rotates and rocks. I tried going to their website, but as indicated, it's not user friendly. No phone no. to get model number, to find a dealer who carries the chair, and to check prices, etc. I googled the BBB there and Smith Bros. phone number came up. I called and couldn't get any information from them at all. In fact they were very rude. I finally asked to talk to a mgr and was told to find a dealer and 'goodbye'. SO, still no model number. I guess they don't need customers; they must sell enough chairs, etc. so they don't need to be customer friendly.

  • freethinker99
    10 years ago

    Smith Brothers does make a good product but they could be more accessable to their end use consumers, It is kind of typical of the business most furniture manufacturers prefer that you do not contact them directly and ask that you work through a local retailer, Most of the manufacturers do not have the added staff needed to perform direct service to the consumer.