Anyone ever order from The Lakeside Collection?

[julieakc]

I just got a catalog from them and they have some super cheap stuff....looks the same as at other places, but the super low price makes me wonder. It could be that they deal in overstocks, but I don't see that indicated anywhere, so I'm just wondering if anyone else has any experience with them?

www.lakeside.com

TIA

[s7714]

Yes, I've ordered from them. I heard about them through my MIL, who has ordered from them numerous times. They are an offshoot of a wholesale catalog called ABC, that has really, really good prices on things. ABC changed it's policy so only people with resale licenses could order from them, but started up the Lakeside catalog version so non-resellers could still buy some items from them.

The brand name toys/items they sell seem to be the same thing you'd find for normal retail elsewhere. (Just watch the pricing, because sometimes things like the Little People toys can be found for the same price or cheaper in stores.) The clothing and furniture is more of a you get what you pay for type of quality, but some of the wood toyboxes my MIL has ordered from them are just as good of quality as the one we got at Target for almost 4x the price.

I've never had to return anything to them, so I can't attest to their CS. From my MIL I have heard that items tend to sell out quickly, so if you have to return something that's too small or wrong, you might only get a refund vs. an exchange.

HTH,
Jennifer
Mommy to
Miss Pure Energy 3/03
Miss Limit Tester 6/05

Our bones may be brittle, but our spirit is unbreakable.
Osteogenesis Imperfecta www.oif.org

[julieakc]

Thanks...that helps. One of the things I'm looking at is some toy organizers....I was thinking that even if the quality isn't top-notch it probably won't matter too much since they're just for some small toys, so at such a low price I'll get my money's worth if they just last a year or so.

Thanks again.

[s7714]

I almost bought a toy organizer unit from them a while back, until I sat down with a tape measure and realized just how small it was. I've noticed they make things look pretty decently sized in photos, but on closer inspection you realize they're on the smaller end. Like hey, just that one Dr. Seuss book is taking up that whole space, etc. There have been three or four things I've been surprised about when comparing the picture to the dimensions listed, so I just thought I'd mention it!

Jennifer
Mommy to
Miss Pure Energy 3/03
Miss Limit Tester 6/05

Our bones may be brittle, but our spirit is unbreakable.
Osteogenesis Imperfecta www.oif.org

[roysmom]

I think you might have ABC mixed up with someone else. I placed a HUGE order from ABC at Christmas. You don't have to be a reseller to order from them, you just have to have a company name and address. I had it shipped directly to my home, but the account is in my company name. You could just call it Name's Corporation, filling in your name, or anything else you want to. They just want to send their catalog to a company so that more people will order.

[s7714]

No mix up, the ABC company that owns Lakeside told my MIL she had to have a resale license to order from them after they'd changed their policy--but who's to say if the person she talked to was correct or just making up an excuse. I'll tell her to try your method and see if she can order too. Thanks for the tip! ;)

Jennifer
Mommy to
Miss Pure Energy 3/03
Miss Limit Tester 6/05

Our bones may be brittle, but our spirit is unbreakable.
Osteogenesis Imperfecta www.oif.org