SOOO Disappointed in Fleurville...looking for advice!

[twinkie]

Wow, this thread makes me second guess if I want a Mothership. I am pretty rough on my bags (stuff them into the stroller basket, put them on the floor, etc) and now I am scared that the vinyl will tear. I really don't want to pay $150 for a bag and then have to deal with crappy customer service if something happens. Are there any other cute large bags that people recommend?

[marnay]

Customer Service goes such a long way with me. I still refuse to buy anything from Baby Depot after hearing how horrible they were to someone on my baby board 5 yrs ago who lost her baby and they wouldn't let her return anything without the death cert....

I don't know why companies don't realize how one act can affect their business and their bottom line. This makes me never want another Fleurville product. The changing pad issue is especially bad, hello it was made wrong, fix it! I contacted Chester about buying a changing pad for a diaperbag I received that didn't have one, and they sent me a new one plus a ditty bag for free! I will forever sing their praises.

Shame on Fleurville, when a company gets too big for it's britches and loses sight of it's customers then it is time to move on to other companies out there who value and appreciate our business.

Naydene

[didi]

Good luck getting a response!
When I emailed the 2nd & 3rd time..I was also just asking for some advice on how to repair my bag, but no one ever answered. It's so frustrating! I kept thinking....maybe he is out sick, or on vacation.
But then when I called & HE (David) answered the phone...it really ticked me off. Especially because when I mentioned the emails he did not even apologize for not answering!
Hopefully you'll have better luck.

[didi]

Thanks everyone for all the responses! (I wish you all worked at Fleurville...:-))
I have not figured out yet if or how to pursue this.
My husband & I really do not want to contact the girls who gave this to me again...it's just too awkward.
I wouldn't mind trying to find a supervisor at Fleurville....but based on the experiences some of you had...I am guessing I won't really get anywhere.
I'll be sure to keep you all updated...I REALLY appreciate all the advice!!!!

[newmomto1]

What a BUMMER!
I am so suprised how bad the CS is at Fleurville!!!!
I thought they had a great reputation.
I recently purchased an A7. As soon as I got it I emailed Fleurville b/c I wanted to find out how to clean it. I never got a reply.
I assumed they just didn't really check their emails, or mine got missed or something.
I like my bag a lot. But if I had read all of this before ordering it...I don't think I would have got one.
I am pretty adamant about only giving my business to companies that will stand behind their products.
I hope you are able to get some resolution.
Good luck!!

[Lucian and Gabriels Mommy]

I had to send my Mothership back because of holes forming on the bottom of the bag after only a few months of use. I did receive a replacement, but I sold it - I just am not confident in Fleurville anymore. Even if you aren't rough on your bags, I think that the Mothership has a design flaw with the vinyl on the bottom of the bag. I would highly recommend Timi & Leslie. Awesome CS! Their bags are super cute and covered in vinyl, too. But, they use nylon on the bottom of the outside of the bag (avoids the vinyl rubbing on everything). So, the design is much better, IMO. Just make sure you get a newer model with the 2 outside bottle pockets and matching wristlet. There are a few for sale right now on the swap board!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/babybags/

I also love, love, love my Loom Marsupial. It is much smaller than the Mothership, though. Their CS is fantastic, too.

HTH

[samiam]

Shame on Fleurville. I had been considering an A7 but will now be sure to take my business to a company that gives a darn about their customers. I'm shocked at their attitude given the cost of their products. Pathetic!

[ShayleighCarsensMom]

I emailed fleurville and told them that I had heard bad things on their customer service...
I doubt I will ever hear back, but there are 15,000 members on this board, and Im sure if they keep up their attitude, it will eventually start to affect their business!
I am so sorry you are having to go through this...maybe you know the retailer it was purchased from and you can ask them to print you a reciept?

[fleurvillemom]

Hi, this is Catherine Granville. I am the designer who founded Fleurville, and I want to thank Abbie for letting me now what was going on on your message board. Our goal at Fleurville is to provide perfect customer service (and still stay in business :)!). Up until a couple of months ago any time someone called with a problem we automatically sent them a new bag, even when there wasn't a manufacturing defect! Unfortuately, this policy became widely known and was taken advantage of by individuals wanting a new bag when their's was worn out or even, in some cases, exchanging an old bag so that they could sell the new one we sent them. As a quickly growing company, this return policy became unsustainable.

While growing, we are still a very small, only 2 year old company. We have 3 employees plus my husband, Steve, and myself. With 2 little ones at home, I am no longer able to to get to the office as much as would be ideal, so I work remotely from home most of the time. It's quite a juggle, one that I'm sure most of you have much familiarity! The five of us do everything -- sales, shipping, accounting, production, customer service, trade shows, pr, and so much more! I miss the days when Steve and I answered every call from our guest room and shipped out of our garage, but almost a year ago we outgrew the garage and had to get office and warehouse space.

There are 2 things that I am most concerned about after reading these postings. First, manufacturing defects need to to be handled with more flexibility. Our research discovered that asking for proof of purchase was standard procedure, but I can see how that can be difficut if the bag was received as a gift. I have already spoken with David (who is the sweetest man in the world and tries so hard to make everyone happy!) about creating a bit more flexiblility around manufacturing defects, but we need to come up with a consistent policy, and that is the tricky part. I would love some suggestions from any of you about how to prevent abuses and still replace the bags that need to be replaced!

My second concern is around emails not being returned. This tells me that there is way too much on David's plate, so I am creating a new email address [email protected] that will come directly to me for the time being. I know we need another customer service employee, but can't afford to hire anyone else right now. California is an expensive place to do business, so we all wear lots of hats!

Lastly, I want to let you know that we have been working on a new and improved MotherShip for the last 6 months. We have listened to all the feedback we have received from customers like you and incorporated those ideas and more into an unbeatable diaper bag! We finally were able to find a material which is much more eco-friendly and durable to replace the problematic vinyl!!! We hope to have these PVC-free bags out by Spring 2005! The seams on these bags will be seamtaped for a waterproof (instead of water-resistant) interior, plus there will be several other major improvements to look forward to!

We are committed to creating products that work really well, look great and last. Great customer service is just one of the ways we show how much we appreciate our customers. We also are continually creating more products that make parents' lives easier. Recently we created our own wipe case that is included in every bag at no additional cost to the customer! It certainly helps that 24 hours a day, Steve and I are encountering those problems in our own life! If you have any ideas for more features you'd like to see in your diaper bag, we'd love to hear them!

Thank you for your continued support and feedback!
Catherine, mom of Margot (6 months) and Kai (3 3/4years),
founder of Fleurville, Inc. (2 years, one month!)

[cimberdog]

Hi Catherine-
I have to come out and say I am rather impressed with your response and your willingness to offer information as well as solicit feedback. I have owned three Motherships (two of which were sold so I could try new colors) and always recommend them to people as wonderful diaper bags. However, I've been very disappointed to hear of the recent quality issues being reported and was fearful that my brand new bag would soon begin to wear and tear unnesessariy. Luckily, that hasn't happened.

Many people enjoy giving the Mothership or A7 as gifts because they are such great bags. But I must admit, with the recent postings of defects and the difficulty in replacing a bag with manufacturing defects, I was beginning to re-think my strategy of giving a Mothership to my cousin, who is expecting in June. $150 is a lot of money for a diaper bag, and unless the recipient comes right out and asks for the receipt (which I personally have trouble doing when I receive gifts) it can make this process of repairing or replacing a bag very difficult.

Perhaps something you could incorporate would be a brochure\tag on the bag that explains the return policy (i.e. make it very clear the receipt must be retained). Another option is to urge your retailers to send a gift receipt or offer a gift receipt option when purchasing the bag. For other circumstances where neither is possible or a product wears unnecessarily over time, perhaps you could consider a 'guarantee' of sorts (i.e. 1-2 years against manufacturing defects) and then stamp the date of manufacture on the bag? It wouldn't be hard for a customer to send you a date of manufacture or a picture of the stamp\sticker. We see that with strollers all the time.

Anyway, good luck with your business and thanks for keeping us informed. I had no idea you were a smaller family-owned and run shop - that's really interesting!

Kelli