WoodMaxx Order Concerns/Considerations

[TheOldHokie]

I will offer this little horror story as a comparative measure.

Back in early February I ordered a commercial gas range from a well established online supplier. The website said the range was instock and ready to ship. The next day sales called to inform me the optional backguard I had ordered was not in stock and was backordered. I was offered the choice of canceling the order or a partial shipment of the range with back guard to follow as soon as they received it. Expected in a " couple months". Since the range was on sale and canceling would cost me several thousand dollars I agreed to accept partial shipment which arrived in a matter of days.

A month passes and no sign of the back guard so I call for a status update. Sales is very cooperative and calls supplier to check. Supplier says they are in the process of moving their production faciilty and it will be several more months before they have anything to ship.

Several more months pass and I call seller who once again calls supplier. Now supplier says they wont even have an ETA on the backordered item until after move is complete and production resumes which they now expect to be early NEXT YEAR.

Woodmax is looking very good in comparison.

I dont blame anybody for my kitchen SNAFU but I am in possession of a range that I cannot install as planned because it is goes against a combustible wall and the high back guard is required for fire protection. After mulling the situation over I have decided to cancel the back guard order and give the kitchen wall a fancy new full height stone backsplash.....
..
Dan

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

I contacted WoodMaxx about a concern unrelated to the unexpected shipping delay of the flail mower so I don't want to side-track this thread and will simply say although it took a bit of back-and-forth they provided good customer service throughout, addressed my concern, and went beyond what was necessary. As far as I can tell WoodMaxx has consistently been a reputable company to deal with which sells high-quality products at reasonable prices. I think they could have done a better job up front of saying the flail mower was a pre-order and what the expected shipping date was, but beyond that one thing I'm happy with the company.

I noticed that WoodMaxx and other implement vendors with the practice of Pay-And-Wait have become a concern since EA's closing, but other non-implement vendors doing the same thing is not concerning. Just for example and not to pick on them, the first post in this thread mentions Summit Hydraulics expected ship date of two months later than WoodMaxx's expected ship date and that didn't register with members as a concern despite the amount of money paid and length of order delay--and that's really the point, EA's business practices (both good and bad) and their unexpected building situation resulted in their unfortunate closure; for other companies it is business as usual. (Thank you Summit for the prompt backorder notification and expected ship date.)

So if you are concerned about order delays, hopefully this thread provides you with questions to ask before making a purchase so you can make decisions you are comfortable with from companies you trust.

 

[DustyRusty]

It is an interesting business model, but I personally don't like it. A friend ordered a Kubota RTV1140C and was told that they have no idea when it would arrive. The dealer was offered a deposit and they said there was no reason to leave a deposit, and that they would call when the unit arrived. It too about 13 months before they got the call, and the prices on the machine had risen considerably, but the dealer honored the quoted price and delivered the machine. To me, this is the way that business is done by dealers that have enough capital to do business without asking for the customer to pay in advance for the item. I can understand asking for a deposit on an item that might not be a quick sale to the next customer that might want it, but asking for payment in advance tell me that they are operating from hand to mouth.