Park Cameras... first & last time..

Livin The Dream

Livin The Dream

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Kris
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I don't ever usually have a rant but used Park for the first time recently and can't believe how badly they've handled the order.

Placed an order for two large elinchrom umbrellas two weeks ago plus a reflector. All said to be ex-stock on the website. I receive the first delivery with just two umbrellas, the small versions, no paperwork. So had to return the incorrect brollies and upon enquiring about the missing reflector was informed on back-order. I requested a pre-paid envelope to return and was subsequently sent a bag that wasn't large enough. The reflector turned up yesterday, two weeks later and upon sending the incorrect items back over the weekend I have been mysteriously credited for the umbrellas with no explanation whatsoever? I mailed back late morning to find out what's happened and no response..
 
I think there may always be the chance of odd problems occuring when buying mail order but when you get consistent issues one after another then you have to think twice about using them again.

Plenty more traders out there that want our money.
 
Livin The Dream said:
I don't ever usually have a rant but used Park for the first time recently and can't believe how badly they've handled the order.

Placed an order for two large elinchrom umbrellas two weeks ago plus a reflector. All said to be ex-stock on the website. I receive the first delivery with just two umbrellas, the small versions, no paperwork. So had to return the incorrect brollies and upon enquiring about the missing reflector was informed on back-order. I requested a pre-paid envelope to return and was subsequently sent a bag that wasn't large enough. The reflector turned up yesterday, two weeks later and upon sending the incorrect items back over the weekend I have been mysteriously credited for the umbrellas with no explanation whatsoever? I mailed back late morning to find out what's happened and no response..
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I paid Park Cameras extra for next day delivery with My rx100v as I was going away for the weekend. It arrived after I left :(
 
I can handle one cock-up but there's 4 or 5 failings throughout here - just not good enough. It's all about communication too, which has been poor throughout. As Dave says, there's others that I will use. In today's competitive marketplace, you can't afford to get it so badly wrong.
 
Camera shops seem to fail in their stock management for online sales, with the website adrift from reality. I had the same problem with Wex over a sensor cleaning kit being in stock on the website but not actually on the shelf - discovered after I'd phoned my order through, payment taken & then followed up the following day with an OOS notice. Ended up having to leave that camera behind at the weekend instead of being able to clean the sensor & use it.

It's made me think twice about using Wex in the future too.
 
Many online shop systems have integration for online and offline sales so there's no excuse for poor stock control these days.
 
Jesus wept the lot of you whingers. You are dealing with small brick and mortar companies and you are complaining about this that and the other (my comment is not direct at the OP BTW).. Buy from Amazon and let is pay its 2% - if that - corporation tax in Luxembourg, My nearest "proper" photographic shop is 140 mile round trip, I am thankful there are still some shops left.
 
All retailers get it wrong osscaionally, some get it wrong more often than others. I have never had a problem with Wex and LCE and will continue to use them. The feedback on Park does not encourage me to,use them.
 
Whilst I believe it's only right that we poor service is highlighted , it's unfortunate that in many cases,the opposite goes unreported.

Upset one customer and he will tell the world ,please one customer and he may only tell a handful.
 
Never had a problem with Park Cameras, I've phoned them and reserved an item, then collect from shop.
They are the most knowledgeable and helpful shop I have used
 
I'd probably phone them up and see what's gone wrong. You bought umbrellas and sent back umbrellas so if the person dealing with the order didn't understand the difference between what you wanted and what they sent...
 
TLR-330 said:
Jesus wept the lot of you whingers. You are dealing with small brick and mortar companies and you are complaining about this that and the other (my comment is not direct at the OP BTW).. Buy from Amazon and let is pay its 2% - if that - corporation tax in Luxembourg, My nearest "proper" photographic shop is 140 mile round trip, I am thankful there are still some shops left.
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Appreciate what your saying about Amazon I do try and avoid them if I can on the basis of their tax affairs. But I think describing Park Cameras or WEX as "small brick and mortar" companies is well wide of the mark, they're both huge multi-million pound businesses.
 
I have no issues with Park, in fact once or twice they've gone above and beyond.

My one visit to the Sussex store, they couldn't possibly have been more helpful.
 
srichards said:
I'd probably phone them up and see what's gone wrong. You bought umbrellas and sent back umbrellas so if the person dealing with the order didn't understand the difference between what you wanted and what they sent...
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I've had to resort to email as work is just crazy busy at the moment, following a 13 1/2 hour day today...

Update: I've managed to have some better dialogue via mail today and they are going to order the correct size and send when in stock, I've waited two weeks so another will have to suffice.
 
Not used Park Cameras for a number of years. Sometimes their service was fine, but I got tired of ordering items from their website only to get a phone call after a while to let me know that the item was not in stock. That is not not acceptable in this day of online buying. Keep the website up to date or forget it.
 
arclight said:
Not used Park Cameras for a number of years. Sometimes their service was fine, but I got tired of ordering items from their website only to get a phone call after a while to let me know that the item was not in stock. That is not not acceptable in this day of online buying. Keep the website up to date or forget it.
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This. I also automatically avoid companies that do not explicitly state whether they have stock or not, unfortunately there are a lot of those when it comes to photography gear, their loss.
 
TLR-330 said:
Jesus wept the lot of you whingers. You are dealing with small brick and mortar companies and you are complaining about this that and the other (my comment is not direct at the OP BTW).. Buy from Amazon and let is pay its 2% - if that - corporation tax in Luxembourg, My nearest "proper" photographic shop is 140 mile round trip, I am thankful there are still some shops left.
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A "bricks and mortar" company should make less mistakes, not more, as they are less automated and more hands on.

That said, I wouldn't call Park a bricks and mortar company in the traditional sense, they're independent but a rather large organisation, that do a hell of a lot of online trade (kind of the opposite to 'bricks and mortar)!
 
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