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Thread: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

  1. #1
    sajehill Guest

    Default Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    I am having a problem regarding a Palettes by Winesburg dining table set ordered from Burke Furniture on July 12, 2015. The salesman told me that the set would be delivered in 6-8 weeks as it was made to order by the Amish. On August 10 I asked the salesman if it was too late for me to change my stain color choice. He told me he would call the Palettes rep who told him the furniture was "almost complete" but not yet stained. He said I had caught them just in time. After giving him my new stain color choice, he indicated that he informed the rep of the change, & he (the salesman) said that "no production time would be lost."

    I assumed the furniture would be delivered very quickly since the only thing Palettes had to do was stain it, but as of yesterday, August 31, I had not been informed of delivery. I again contacted the salesman who called the rep & then told me that the company was "backlogged" & I would not receive delivery until October. When I asked him how the set could be "almost complete" on August 10, & then 21 days later I am told that I have to wait another 6 weeks to receive it, he ignored the question. When I provided him with his email stating that no production time had been lost, he responded by saying that it was possible they moved the order when he called to make the change in stain color, totally ignoring the fact that he told me no production time had been lost.

    I told him to cancel the order. He said "I wish I could, but special orders cannot be canceled once they are placed." I was never informed of this when ordering the furniture, nor is this stated anywhere on my invoice. He said he talked it over with the store owner & there was nothing they could do. He also said he contacted the rep & was told "no cancellations."

    I did some research & it appears Palettes by Winesburg furniture is not made by the Amish. I cannot find any reviews of the company online, good or bad, which seems very strange to me. I contacted Palettes via their online contact form but they have not responded to me. Their address is in Dundee, Ohio but they are not listed on any Ohio BBB site. I did discover several complaints filed with the BBB against Burke Furniture in Lexington, KY. Nothing came of these complaints. Burke Furniture is not a member of the BBB so no action could be taken against them.

    What are my options here? The salesman lied to me in the past regarding some bedroom furniture I purchased off the floor at the same time I ordered the dining table & chair set & the store did take that back & refund my money. I do not know if he really spoke with the store owner or not. Should I send a certified letter to the store owner, explaining the situation & providing him with the emails the salesman sent me? Or should I just go ahead & file complaints against the store with the BBB & the state attorney general ... maybe get a lawyer involved? Should I send a letter to Palettes by Winesburg &/or try to file complaints against them? Or am I stuck with accepting delivery of the furniture in October.

  2. #2
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    Default Re: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    Delays in promise times in this business are nothing new, it happens all the time. 6 weeks is REALLY FAST in wood case goods, few orders are built that quickly unless the people are standing around looking for work. That whole 'built by the Amish" thing is the most over-played sales pitch in the history of furniture sales pitches. If there were as many Amish workshops as advertised you would see them all lined up end to end on RT 30 in PA - and they are not. In looking at the Palettes by Winesburg web site its a full blown production shop, it even has what looks to be a 5-axis CNC router! That's a complex and software driven bit of kit. I can guarantee you that is not an Amish shop.

    Neither the store personnel or the rep know if furniture is almost complete unless they pick up the phone and make a call. Sounds like they did not, but who knows? I don't understand why you can't cancel your order if its not in production, however. That's a pretty strict policy, but each store sets their own. If you placed the deposit on a credit card, it will be very easy to do a chargeback unless they can produce a signed order form stating their policy and you agreed to it. You will win a chargeback against the store on a credit card.

    If you paid cash or by check, its more difficult. But first step is to speak directly with the store owner, not the staff and no go-betweens.

    Your beef is with the store, not the maker, don't waste your time sending anything to the manufacturer of the product or getting them involved..

    BBB is a paper tiger, no teeth. An attorney is too costly. Small Claims you do yourself is where you want to be if it has to go to that point (cash/check deposit)....

    Good luck!
    Last edited by drcollie; 09-02-2015 at 01:10 AM.
    Duane Collie
    Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
    My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.

  3. #3
    Ci2Eye Guest

    Default Re: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    I would echo what Duane said. From my experience as a consumer, furniture is often very slow to arrive and quite unpredictable. Sometimes the company is shockingly fast and other companies are very slow. Usually the sales reps don't have a lot to go on.

    I think we are all used to a different standard in other retail segments where we order something, get an email two days later saying it has shipped along with a tracking number making it possible to know precisely when it will arrive. Furniture doesn't work like that.

    My car was custom made in Germany to my specifications and took three months to arrive but my chair custom made to my specifications in the next state over took twice that time. Duane has said it's an old fashioned business and that seems right to me.

    If you like the furniture and the only issue is the delay, I'd say why not wait. You'll likely have it a long time so what's a few more weeks. Trying to sue somebody is a huge headache and if the store didn't promise you a specific delivery time, you may not have a strong case. Just adopt the attitude that you can't control the timing and relax. As they say, good things come to those who wait.

  4. #4
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    Default Re: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    I had a H&M order I was working on today that shipped 32 days after placing it, and they had told me it would not be ready until Mid-October - it went out the door on August 28th. I have also had orders that I'm told will be ready in 6 weeks that don't ship for 5 months. It works both ways. A dealer can never control the speed of an order, all we can do is get best available information at any given time. I allow anyone to cancel an order right up to the time it goes into production and in the case of leather goods, when the cover is cut.

    Jeff is right on the money with his comments, especially the speed and tracking we have come to expect on shipped goods. Furniture DOES NOT WORK like that, for sure. Tracking dates and estimated delivery times are just that. Unlike UPS and Fed EX who ship every day to every area, truck delivery services don't roll a truck to a region until that trailer is full.
    Duane Collie
    Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
    My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.

  5. #5
    sajehill Guest

    Default Re: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    Duane & Jeff ... my heartfelt thanks to both of you. I am in my 60s & this is the first time I have ever ordered furniture that had to be made. I trusted the salesman when he said the furniture was built by the Amish. I trusted the salesman when he said it would be delivered in 6-8 weeks. I trusted him when he told me that he called the rep & was told the set was "almost complete" but not yet stained, & that I caught it just in time to change the stain color. I trusted him when he told me there would be no loss in production time. I am very angry that he has apparently lied to me throughout this entire transaction : (

    There was no deposit made on the furniture. I had to pay the cost in full (over $2200) & I did this using my credit card. I don't suppose I can have that charge reversed now since ... if I'm not being lied to about this ... the furniture is "almost complete" which means it would be in production, & since apparently the change in stain color did cause a loss in production time?

  6. #6
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    Default Re: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    If you put it on a credit card, you will have no problem on a chargeback. Credit cards always favor the consumer and they have violated several credit card policies based on what you have told us, as follows:

    1) Failure to deliver the goods. This alone is all you need. Credit cards REQUIRE timely delivery of product before a charge can be made. They should never take the full amount. In fact, technically your card cannot be charged in full until the goods are ready to deliver.

    2) Failure to have you read and sign conditions of sale. All the credit card companies are very strict about that, even the type face on the sales contracts has to be a certain font size. Thats why when you buy from my store, you DO get a sales order contract and you DO have to sign it acknowledging terms. Its to protect my store from unscrupulous customers (yes it works both ways).

    3) Misrepresentation of the goods.

    All merchants get a huge packet of rules and regulations for processing credit cards. Most never read the fifty or so pages and simply file them. There is a very strict protocol in accepting credit cards and if violated, the consumer has an out. Credit card chargebacks take time and are a big pain for the merchant...plus the pay more fees for chargebacks. Before you do that, write a short letter to the owner of the furniture store and advise them that you will be canceling your order and performing a chargeback on your credit card if they do not refund your credit card in full. Save a copy because your credit card company will want to see your letter and if the merchant has responded by issuing a credit. You have to act in good faith first and give the merchant a chance to correct it. Don't do it over the phone or via email. The merchant knows he can save chargeback fees by issuing you a credit immediately and they should also know they can't win that battle unless they are totally naive. Keep your letter concise and to the point, do not go on a rant. Two paragraphs is all you need.

    Whether the furniture is 'almost complete' is no concern of yours, that's their problem. Stick to the three points above and you can cancel via a chargeback, even if the furniture shows up in your driveway this evening you still have the three valid points above. Should you not want it, then stand firm and advise them you will not accept delivery.
    Duane Collie
    Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
    My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.

  7. #7
    sajehill Guest

    Default Re: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    Duane ...

    Before starting to write my letter, I once again retrieved the store's invoice & began looking for the order number so I could make reference to it. I did not find an order number, but I did find in smallish print in a box above my signature, under a section marked Layaway Policy, the following two points which were mixed in with five others about manufacturers warranties & such ...

    "All COM & Special Orders are non-cancellable."

    "Delivery Dates are approximate for non-stocked merchandise."

    ... so I was in error when I stated in my original posting that not being able to cancel an order was not noted on my invoice. However, I know that the salesman did not point this out to me prior to my signing the invoice, nor did he inform me of this verbally. Since I signed the invoice, is the letter now out of the question? I know you said that your #1 point alone was all I needed, but I want to make sure this new discovery does not alter things. If I can indeed still send the letter, should I include proof from the internet that this is not an Amish company as I was told, & proof the salesman's dishonesty via his emails?

  8. #8
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    Default Re: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    It all depends on how it is printed and if you signed it. Check with our card issuer for more details on what is required of the merchant and the chargeback proceedings. This is the extent of what I can advise you on a forum, they will have more details. Good luck.
    Duane Collie
    Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
    My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.

  9. #9
    sajehill Guest

    Default Re: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    Thanks again Duane ... I really appreciate all your help.

  10. #10
    sajehill Guest

    Default Re: Palettes by Winesburg - Burke Furniture, Lexington KY

    Duane ... Just following through with an update on this. I spoke with the credit card company. There is nothing that can be done unless I can prove misrepresentation which unfortunately I cannot. There is nothing stated on my invoice that this is Amish-made furniture, & the invoice does state no cancellations on special orders despite the fact that it is in very small print & hidden underneath the title Layaway Policy. The salesman telling me the furniture is Amish-made, that I will receive it in 6-8 weeks, & not telling me up front that the order cannot be cancelled is basically a he said/she said thing. The fact that I have his emails stating the furniture was "almost complete" on August 10 & that making the change in stain color resulted in "no production time being lost" means nothing because as far as delivery time is concerned, it doesn't matter if the furniture isn't delivered until sometime next month or sometime next year.

    I feel that I have been swindled & the store is getting away with it. I have sadly learned a very expensive lesson here.

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