Baby's Dream and Baby2Teen - Poor service

[Kelee]

Wanted to share our not-so-good experience with Baby2Teen (retailer)and Baby’s Dream (manufacturer):

We purchased a crib & dresser in mid-October 2003 for our baby due in late December. Heeding the book's advice, we figured we had plenty of time (10 weeks) if the furniture was back-ordered. In mid-November they contacted us and told us that the manufacturer, Baby’s Dream, was discontinuing the finish (color) that we ordered and we would need to order any additional pieces by Nov. 30th. We added a crib-to-bed conversion kit and paid off the entire order. The crib arrived in 8 weeks-just in time for the baby. It is now April 2nd and we still don’t have the dresser or crib-to-bed conversion kit. Baby2Teen has never called us with the status of our order – not even for the crib that we waited 2 months to receive. We always have to call them. They can not answer any questions about our order unless we have the order number (located on the receipt) in hand. This is frustrating as sometimes we think of calling from work, during lunch, etc., and the receipt is at home. If we call on a weekend, Baby2Teen says they’ll call Baby’s Dream on Monday and get back to us with an update, but they never call back. We have been told “2 more weeks” or “end of this month” several times. It has now been 4 ½ months since we paid off the furniture and 5 ½ months since we placed the order for the dresser, yet we still have no answers. We are very dissatisfied with the manufactuer, Baby’s Dream, for the length of time they are taking to fill our order and wonder if they have discontinued the finish and are no longer processing orders even though we placed ours in time. We are also dissatified with Baby2Teen’s customer service and feel that a monthly update on the status of our order isn’t too much to ask.

[boomer]

I felt like I needed to support Baby-2-Teen after seeing the above response. We have bought furniture from their Manassas store for all 3 of our children and I could not be more happy with their service and the quality of furniture and bedding that they carry. Our furniture was delivered within the the time that they told us and the person that sold us the furniture even came out to our house when they installed the furniture to make sure that everything went together ok. I guess what happened to you can happen to anybody, but I feel that you were harsh in knocking their business on such a large forum. My advice to you is that you might want to call and talk to the owners. They are very friendly and always helpful. We always refer our friends to Baby-2-Teen because they give us open advice. Being a new mom, I was just plain ignorant, but they helped buy items that were practical and not a gimmick. We are all entitled to our own opinions, but I am sure they were doing their best to get the furniture in for you.

[strike71]

I too was concerned as I just saw a crib I liked at Baby 2 Teen...the Generation Next Dropside Crib (sleigh style). I was wondering if anyone was familiar with this line.

[strike71]

I too was concerned as I just saw a crib I liked at Baby 2 Teen...the Generation Next Dropside Crib (sleigh style). I was wondering if anyone was familiar with this line.

[Oregonmother]

I have the Baby's Dream Generation Next crib and changing table dresser combo and absolutely love them. My son is now 6 1/2 months and I have no complaints. It is very solid and I think the style is very beautiful as a crib, toddler and full bed. When I was looking in BB for suggestions on cribs I saw the poor ratings on Baby's Dream but I didn't like the looks of any of the cribs that they recommended as much. I ordered mine through a local store and had no problems with slow delivery. Hope this helps.

[firstbaby]

Did you pay your furniture off with a credit card? If so, it's possible to contact your credit card company and dispute the charges as you paid for merchandise you never received. Or you could let the store know that you will be taking that action if you do not have a firm delivery date / merchandise by X date.

We bought our furniture from Baby2Teen and although our furniture came in within the specified time and we've been happy with it, I had a different concerning experience...

My SIL and I went to look at strollers there - they have a nice variety. She had decided that a 3 wheel stroller was ideal for her but didn't know much about what was available. At the time, their "stroller expert" was at the Las Vegas Stroller Show seeing the new products that would be available for 04 - I think the Fields and StrollerQueen were there as well. The sales person took my SIL's contact info and promised that he would call her when he returned. She had narrowed down her selections to the Zooper Buddy and E3. Weeks went by and no call. So, we drove the hour plus back in there on another Saturday and the stroller guy was there. We noticed that the Zooper Buddy had "special pricing" and we asked why. He said because it was a 03 and soon the 04 Buddy would be out (this was about five weeks ago). I asked what changes there would be in the 04 Buddy (I thought I had read on this board that some changes were being made but wasn't sure). He said "Nothing - just the new year and that's why it's on sale". Now I know that a big change was made to the 04 - a front swivel wheel instead of fixed - and sadly I think he didn't mention the change to sell a stroller. I would expect a sales person that attended that show and an employee of a store with such a good reputation for being "in-tune" with baby gear would have known something like that.

Sorry my reply is so long winded. I guess the point I wanted to make is that these stores are in business to sell things. Sadly, some sales people will lose sight of the customer service that goes along with selling something and not just making a "quick sale". Although Baby2Teen may do well most of the time with customer service, there's bound to be issues. Hopefully they will start being more responsive to you and you will get your outstanding things soon - keep us posted!

[HoneymoonBaby]

I also want to stick up for Baby2Teen -- we ordered our stroller and carseat through them and were more than satisfied with the service we received. We had to wait a while for our stuff -- they estimated 4-6 weeks and it took about 6. I did call to check the status once, and was told that when they received the goods, we'd get a call (which we did). They're a very busy store serving a huge suburban area, and I wouldn't have dreamed of calling to check the status of my order without having all the necessary information at hand. They told us when we left the store at the time we ordered to hold onto the receipt and not lose it, because the order number was key to leeping track of our stuff.

It's not like they're a tiny mom-and-pop operation . . . they've got two huge stores with thousands of customers. I wouldn't expect them to have time to call me monthly to tell me "your stuff still isn't here." It does say plainly on the receipt I have from my special order that manufacturer delays are beyond their control, and do occasionally happen. I think your beef here is really with Baby's Dream and not Baby2Teen.

[dunwink]

I am having a very similar problem here with my local retailer and Baby's Dream. I feel caught in the middle but tend to think the problem is with Baby's Dream and not my retail outlet.

I ordered a crib and dresser/combo in October for my baby who was due at the end of March and I still don't have the crib. I talked to Baby's Dream who has implied that my retailer is at fault and "knows what they need to do to get it shipped" implying that my retailer is not in good standing with them. However, my retailer has assured me that they are in good standing and have had so many problems with them that they have dropped the line. He also said that some of his other customers have called the states attorney general on Baby's Dream because of similar problems.

If you end up getting some results, please share ideas. I've tried everything.