Friday, November 19, 2010

Oh my Graco!

That's going to be my new cuss word!
Do you guys remember back in May when I posted about almost killing myself with ammonia fumes during a pack n play cleaning accident?
http://www.21stcenturydomesticgoddess.com/2010/05/mothers-and-mayhem.html

Let me jog your memory extremely briefly:

I own this pack n play:

Nothing fancy, not the one I wanted, but when you're on bed rest and someone else is doing your last minute shopping for you...beggars can't be choosers.  Well...they can be but they will likely get no help if they are.  It has worked just fine for us.

So...we own that pack n play.
Moose had/has reflux.
Moose barfs at night.
Barf gets on side of pack n play and ends up on mattress waaaaay down at bottom where I don't see it at the time.
I try to clean it off the next day, use Clorox Cleanup.
Almost pass out, have to evacuate house, mattress goes in garbage.
Barf + bleach = same as urine + bleach = deadly poison fumes.

When this all happened, I ordered a new pack n play mattress from Graco.  It was only $19 so I was stoked...until weeks later, it still wasn't here.  The website had originally said it would take 4-6 weeks.  When I went to check on my order, the order was no longer in their system and the pack n play mattress showed as  "back ordered".

So I call the Almighty Master of Recalls and they tell me that #1 it's back ordered indefinitely and that #2 they don't show any order for me in their system at all.
Yeah.  Headdesk.

Indefinitely doesn't work for me.  Losing my order really doesn't work for me.  I tell the chick to make sure it's cancelled, she reassures me that there is NO order to cancel...end of story.  Or so I thought.

Fast forward to a few months ago when I was ready to start using it again.  In the true hillbilly ingenuity that my husband and I are so famous for 'round these here parts...we fabricate a new mattress (well floorboard really since we only use it to wrangle him when vacuuming etc) using plywood, quilting foam, and a staple gun.  Not rocket science...really.  It works BEAUTIFULLY...the only real down side is that we can't fold it up the way the mattress intended for it folds...which means it's less portable...but we don't take it with us anywhere anyway, so who cares.

In all honesty, I do kinda wish it were easier to take apart and move, but it gets moved very rarely so it's not a big deal.

Fast forward to today...I'm starting to think that maybe it's the old ass hand pounded glass on my door that resembles the swat team more so than the Orkin man's knock, because the Fedex guy sounded like he was coming through the wall.  Of course, this WOULD happen when Moose is sleeping, and this WOULD set the dog off into a face eating frenzy which WOULD wake the baby...sending me into a face eating frenzy.

I ran out to see what fun thing we were getting because I know I haven't ordered anything lately, and low and behold, the side of the box says G R A C O in big green letters.  SON OF A SEA COOK!
My initial reaction was to run to the computer and check the bank account which I no longer use and keep a minimal amount of money in, and sure as shit, they ran the purchase through yesterday which overdrew the account...PLUS the mattress replacement is now $10 more than it was when I 1st called.  Totally asstastic!

After a brief call to the bank for their protocol, I decided that maybe it would be nice to have the actual mattress.  It took them FOREVER to get it to me, but now that it's here, I probably would use it.
So I open the box.  Color me shocked when the company who didn't show my order at all, sends me a mattress that doesn't match!


Old-green...new-brown

So I call Graco and get the most awesome customer service rep I have ever dealt with in my life.  Seriously, no sarcasm at all.  I explained my ludicrous story, to which she didn't bat an eye, thus further confirming my previous belief that they don't have their shit together over there, to her and she got right on it.  She told me she had to call me back but in the mean time, if I wanted to return it I would have to pay shipping.  So let me get this straight...

I order a replacement.
I wait the full term of the item's estimated shipping and then some.
I receive no contact from your company, so I call you.
I find out the item is now on back order...even though it wasn't when I ordered it.
I say I don't want it anymore to which I am told my order doesn't exist anyway.
I forget about it.
You miraculously find my order, ship it, charge me, and send me no notice of any of this.
I get said item on my doorstep and find out that my account has been over-drafted by an order I thought didn't exist; turning this $20 replacement into a $50 replacement.
I consider keeping it, only to find out it doesn't match.
You're going to make ME pay to return it?!?

Again I say, OH MY GRACO!

To be fair, I like the new design and color scheme better.  And it will likely be covered with a sheet most of the time.  I just think it's so pathetic when a company refuses to accept responsibility for it's incompetence.  I probably should have gotten some sort of confirmation that there was no order, though I don't know how I would have done that...
The lack of professionalism that Graco has shown me; between the constant recalls, this whole situation, and even little things like the fact that they sent NO return/exchange info with the mattress and the packing slip was  a torn off piece of paper (lazy lazy and not at all what I expect from a big company), has led me to the decision that I will not be purchasing from them in the future.  Ya get what you pay for, and I guess being on the lower end of the car seat/pack n play/gear range, I should have expected this.

After much deliberation, I have decided to keep the mattress.  After paying for shipping for the return, I will only salvage $15 of the overdraft charge.  It will, in the long run, pay for itself with the easy of moving the unit in the future and I can use the plywood from the home made board for another project I'm working on which will probably save me...about $15 in plywood.

I'm not anti corporate America.  I grew up as a child of corporate America, father of a CEO with a major company.  I don't hate Walmart.  I won't pay extra for something just to buy local (except rabbits).  But disappointed with this company...that, I absolutely am.  As of now, the term "Graco" is synonymous in my head with the term "Fuckass".

4 comments:

Abby said...

HA FUNNY...Graco is advertising below my post! LMAO!

Abby said...

Hey Tawna!
Thanks for following! I will definitely check out your blogs tomorrow (or tonight if my little man ever goes down to bed!). Hope you enjoy the site!
Abby

Nicole said...

I have to say the bes part of this particular post was the shout out for local rabbit! LOL
I look forward everyday to your blog, thanks for the laughs!

Abby said...

That's cuz local rabbit rocks my ass...well not really my ass, so much as my stomach & taste buds...