Hello Everyone; I posted in this forum a about a month ago on this same subjetc. Episode II:
I purchased a Viking Designer I USB machine in August. I LOVE my machine but have been very dissapointed with the dealer support. These machines are not cheap; therefore, any customer would expect a little bit of service.
As of today; I’ve had one “loosly” done class. The dealer sold items, answered questions and made phone calls during my class. Needless to say; I was left on my own a lot. I didn’t learn anything I hadn’t read on the manual. Haven’t had any other classes since.
I also purchased the software for the embroidery part of my machine. She told me it was on backorder and I would have it in a week or two. It has been 2 months!! I am always the one to call and ask about the software and it is always “next week it will be here”. Finally I called on Friday and she said; it will be soon. I said “well, it has been two months, if it is not here by Friday; I want my money back.” This software was close to $500.00!!
I am thinking about complainting to Viking, I think this is ridicoulus. Such a large company and they don’t have software??? I wonder how much they monitor their dealers.
I guess I just wonder how can they lack Customer Service when their products are not a small change item. These machines are several thousands of dollars.
Thank you all for listening and any advise is welcomed.
Olivia
Replies
I would certainly complain to Viking. Go on line and see what is listed for customer service. Or Google them and get a phone # and call their customer service. They should certainly have one.
Good luck
I totally agree with the other post!!
You invest (not buy) in a sewing machine such as yours you also get all that comes with it. And that is customer service and all the free usages classes you need!! As far as your computer program you still haven't received!! Well that is not even acceptable!
When you have classes with your machine that should be undivided attention! I would most definitely call Viking and tell them of your dissatisfaction!!
Your dealer is it a one store? Or does this store owner own many!! if so and it is just the manager deal I would go to the owner of the store as well!!
I am just posting this for you.. to encourage you to take action. This is your investment and you have huge power in making or breaking their business, because if you are not satisfied with how they treat you, then well you will not send all your friends their way!! And they need to know this!! I am sure it is not Viking, but they need to hear about one of their own distributors not doing their job and service to us the consumers!!
Take action this week!! You want to use your machine!!
Connie
I know the 3d Professional software was on back order for me, but it didn't take that long to receive it. I believe I bought mine in August.
Marcy
Olivia, I would start with an Email to the company. Here is the email from their corporate site. Tell them all of the details about when you bought your machine, from whom and how long you have waited for the software. I finish notes like this with, "I appreciate your looking into this matter and I expect to hear from you by the end of the workday tomorow and the best time to speak with me is between H - H". Then they know your patience is wanning and you want to hear from someone and when they can reach you. If you don't hear from them, then we go to a higher level. You can also call them but I like the ability to save every email i send to them and every one I receive from them. That way if you go to a higher level you have documented what has not happened. Also, if your dealer calls document the date,time and a brief note on what he says. Good luck.
VSM Sewing Inc.
31000 Viking Parkway
Westlake, Ohio 44145
Phone: +1 800 358 0001
email: [email protected]
Thank you very much for all of your help. You have no idea how much I appreciate this. This has been very dissapointing, to say the least. I will call the dealer on Friday and if the software still not in; I will ask for a refund.
I plan to email them today and will keep you posted on what they say.
Thanks Again!!
Olivia
I am glad to be of help, you can probably tell I have been through similar experiences. Life would be so much easier if people would treat people the way they want to be treated. And I know that isn't possibe every day, but he should have followed up for you.
jane
I have sent the email to Viking and I contacted the dealer on Friday. She said the software would be here on Tuesday. I told her that if itwasn't I wanted a refund. At this point, I feel she may be stringing me along.. tuesday, then Friday, then Monday and so on.... I will just buy it elsewhere or not at all.
I will keep you updated on the situation.
Thank you!!!
Hi, I sent you an email about all of this but I forgot a couple of things. I would call the dealer and ask her if she can check with the Viking distributor about the shipping number on your software so you can track the delivery yourself. If she balks about it and says she doesn't know when she gets deliveries, just document the telephone call, it sounds like she did not order your software specifically for you.
The other item is even if your software is there on Tuesday, take the time to report your problem to your state Consumer Protection Agency, the Better Business Bureau and the VP of Consumers or whatever his name is at Viking. If it doesn't come in on Tuesday then when everything is resolved you still need to write a letter to the three agencies listed above. I realize she/he doesn't have much control over the shipping part of this but it doesn't sound like she ordered it or followed up on it like she/he should have.
I did not realize Viking bough Pfaff in 2000. I wonder if there is a difference between the service the Pfaff owners received before they were bought and after they were bought by Viking. Anyone out there who has a viewpoint.
I have no information on Viking and Pfaff but I did want to get in my 2 cents on your other recommendations--I fully support all of them. It is the only way to get the customer service that you are entitled to. Moreover, I would add--give the forum the name and address of the dealer so others will be warned off. If there are other dealer options out there, people should know to avoid dealing with this particular business. Also, when contacting Viking find out what other dealers are available to honor the warranties
Hi I am just responding to the Viking/Pfaff merger.I did know something about this but being a Pfaff gal myself I have never had issues with the company or getting my items when ordered. Or my dealer for that matter. I have been very fortunate!!I know they both are great companies and I know I have said it in a past post and others have said it as well.This I believe is a huge dealer issue and the challenges you are facing are because of them. (If your program was backordered from the company she would've told you this) however that is not the case from what I have gathered in these conversations. I agree with everyone just take action and she needs to know your dissatisfaction and let her know you will take your business else where and this is the reason why. Also I again agree. The Viking company needs to know about one of their own distributors. That is huge. If they don't hear from us the consumers then they don't know of how we are being treated by the local venders Viking/Pfaff is putting to our care!!Again I am really sorry that you are going through this. Wow buying this wonderful equipment and extras always needs to be a great experience. Search out a new home so you can get all the attention you deserve!! Connie
Actually, the "Viking-Pfaff merger" happened a few years ago, but actually, it was just Viking buying the Pfaff name and distribution system from the receiver in bankruptcy. They did not even keep the main Pfaff factory in Germany.
The "newer news" is that the whole company which includes Viking-Pfaff-White is now owned by the same company that owns Singer. See: http://www.husqvarnaviking.com/us/media/Press_Release.pdf
Bill Holman
I also agree another thing is the name of the person you are dealing with and on your receipt is the the sales person and then you turn that into the company .
Hi, Remember that these dealers are authorized by the sewing manufacturers. If a dealer does not live up to the manufacturer's standards, the manufacturer can pull their agreement from the dealer leaving the dealer without a product to sell. Some dealers just want the initial sale and commission I'm sorry to say. I wish these dealers could be as nice as the rest of us are. I'm certain the manufacturer will get things hopping for you. You might try their Vice President of Marketing and Sales. Let us know your progress. Kate
Update.
I spoke with the dealer today. She said the software had arrived and would send it to my house UPS tomorrow. Due to locations; I should have it by Thursday.
I purchased my machine and software at the closest dealer; about 20 miles from me. The dealer (person) I spoke with was in two locations; the closer to my house and one about 1.5 hrs. from me. She told me today she has nothing to do (anymore) with the store where I purchased my machine. I searched in the internet and her webpage shows she is closing the "retail" part of her shop. So I am not sure what is going on.
I plan to go to the store where I purchased my machine and see what is going on.
I have not heard from Viking as of today.
Thanks!
If all else fails there are some wonderful after market dvds for the designer 1, on how to use it. look at http://www.sewmuch4retirement.com
I have a supportive dealer, but have a dvd too, because I hate driving the 45 minutes to get there.
Thank You "sew" much for the wonderful website! I really enjoyed it and added it to my "favorites". Mary
Olivia, I am glad the software is at the dealers. Did she say who the delivering company will be - post office, UPS, FedEx? Well, I just realized it is Thursday so I am hoping it comes today.
I have been thinking about this problem and other problems that occur. I tried to call Simplicity today for help with a pattern. Maybe we should set up a website that is titled something like; Sewing, Embroidery,Quilting - The Good, The Bad and the Very Bad. We could list the dealers, manufacturers of anything related to sewing, and anyone else we might want to identify. We could list our good experiences and our nightmares. I would even be willing to send an email to the companies we list and let them know that there establishment has made our (soon to be) Famous list.
I don't know that we could do it here on Gatherings, although we pretty much do it anyway without names of dealers or shops. Thoughts anyone...
jane
There could be two lists. The "famouse" and the "infamouse"
It could be an interesting site.. for all -maybe we should sccore the dealers like the olympics
I would love it if there was a site like this. I could of avoided a lot of headaches. :-)
Olivia
Hello Everyone;
Well, I received a box today with sofware. I think you are all going to laugh. I don't know whether to cry or laugh.
I tried attaching some pictures but wasn not successful.. here is a link to a webpage I did quickly to show you... http://home.earthlink.net/~opboyz/pictures/
The seal on the software box was open and the CD were inside a Zip lock bag.. yes.. a ziplock bag.
I asked my husband to call the dealer, because I am so mad that steam is coming out of my ears as I type..... (can you see it) He has much more patience that I do most of the time.
Thoughts....????
Olivia
Oh, Olivia!
I am so sorry that you are going through this. Software is about $2000. isn't it. I got mine a few months ago and it was not in a ziplock bag like that. Raise some you know what! I think I will ask my dealer what she would do, if it happened to her.
Marcy
I'm not laughing, I'm angry about the runaround you have been getting. My thoughts are: Better Business Bureau in both locations, do this no matter how it is resolved. (I understand this dealer has changed locations). Small claims court. If you don't know how to do this, call the closest library and they will look it up for you. Write a letter on paper to the President of the company that now owns your manufacturer, with a cc to customer relations (always go first to the person who has the authority to give you what you want). State what service and merchandise you have received, and tell them what you want--Most of the time you will get it if you start high enough in the company. Some newspapers have "problem solvers" for the public; investigate this. Believe it or not, where I live, you can call your state senators and other local politicians and a person from their office will send a letter of inquiry. You will have to provide a written request, but these get results. Once I contacted an attorney about similar non-service; he charged me $100.00 to send a letter and I received my merchandise and my $100 back! I know this will be a lot of mental and physical work, but you have been cheated and lied to and this is your chance to keep it from happening to some other woman. God bless you Galey PS If you want me to help you hunt someone down, I will lol.
I have the 3D software and the disc came in a square paper envelope. As someone who had the unfortunate experience of working for a retailer who wasn't very honest... and threw all the letters from the attorney general and BBB away without opening them and had letters from attorneys, none of which did alot of good....I would suggest going through your credit card company, if you used a credit card, return the merchandise and initiate a charge back, by writing a letter to your credit card company and they will deal with it the most effectively.. Since your dealer is closing, she has probably reached her credit limit with Viking and couldn't order new software, she probably recycled some, hence the zip lock bag.
Olivia, we will get this straightened out.
A couple of questions. Did you order the 3D Professional Software or another version of it? Are you in the United States, it is fine if you are not we will just have to attack from a different perspective. If you are in the US, in what state are you located?
Did anything else come in the box at all.. Shipping slip, anything? Did your husband talk to the dealer? What did the dealer have to say now? What is the name of the dealer? You have been very good at not disclosing the name. It is time to tell the name of this dealer. It may be other owners have had a problem with this dealer and it will help to have other complainants.
Hang in there and when we get done this dealers reputation will be done.
To other Viking Designer 1 with USB owners - can you tell me exactly what came with your software?
Thank you, jane
Olivia, I have been working on what to do next and I found a great solution.
The Executive Vice President of Consumer Affairs is Sue Hausmann; she has several sewing shows and from what I understand is a wonderful person.
So, here is the phone number that will get you to employees of Viking Corporate - I would call them tonight and go through the phone listing and find Sue Hausmann and leave her a voice mail. The reason I would call tonight or early tomorrow morning is most executives work at least Saturday mornings and if she does not I think she will check her messages before work on Monday morning.
The telephone number is 440-808-6550 .
So, leave her a message with a synopsis of the problem, your name and phone number and when (date, day, and time) she can get in touch with you. Execs do not have a lot of time, so make sure you leave a date and time when you are sure you can talk with her.
Keep us posted and call her, your dealer has had more than enough chances to correct the problem. I read an article on Sue in my research and she is credited with developing a new, better relationship between dealers and customers. I think she will be grateful to hear about this dealer from you because it gives her first hand knowledge of the problem. She probably does not an opportunity to speak directly with customers in her new position. (She was promoted 1/2006)
Keep the faith, jane
Thank you. I will give you a call today.
Here is an update:
Yes, I am in the USA.. In North Carolina. The Dealer (from the info I have) has closed down 2 of the stores and will close down the 3rd one on Nov. 4th. Another dealer is taking over at least 1 of the stores (The one I purchased my machine at, Cary, NC).
My husband did speak with her: Rosemary and she said she didn't know the software was opened and/or used. She said she would get a new copy to me next week. My husband said: "why don't you give me the phone number for Viking, if you are having a problem getting it from them, we will give them a call?" of course she said no, that she would get it squared away. She asked for us to return the package we had received. So my husband said we will gladly return the package when we get the new software. She did call him on Friday, and said she was going to get the software next week. We will see....
I spoke with the Dealer who will be taking over the store in Cary. He agreed to give me classes on my machine to keep the business but he made it very clear he was NOT obligated to do so. He is doing it just to keep me as a customer. I felt so bad about this whole thing I hardly slept the other day.
I have 2 machines.. a Brother PC and the Designer 1. I have asked around and the Babylock dealer will service all types of computerized machines. So when needed I will take them there for maintenance but from now on; I will just buy items off the internet. Personally, it really hasn't mattered buying any of these machines from a dealer.. I've had no added benefit; and I did pay more for them than if I would of purchased them on the intenet. Not much more but certainly more.
Ok.. back to the current issue. I will make the call this AM as soon as I wake up a little bit more (finish my coffee) I want to organize my thoughts and write a few words before I make the call.
Thank you!! You all have been so supportive and helpful. Jane... I hope one day we can to meet and I can thank you in person.
Olivia
I can't believe you are awake this early in the morning, but I am sure you haven't had a good nights sleep in a while. I do hope we get to meet some day. North Carolina isn't that far away from CT. I actually have a couple of friends that live in the northeast corner. I am glad to help you with this problem, so don't worry about it.
I used to go nuts when I would call about a problem and it felt like I was being ignored, and then when my ex-husband would call, all of a sudden they were helpful and willing to do something about it. I am sure Sue Hausmann will be glad to hear about the problems with the dealer and I would mention your new dealers attitude too.
I know you don't want to complain, it isn't complaining it is telling the corporate office about a possible problem they are going to have with a new dealer or a dealer with a new store. Believe me you are helping the next fifty women who go into that store with a problem that was caused by the previous dealer. They don't deserve that kind of treatment any more than you deserved it. All you can do is be grateful Rosemary is leaving the business. I won't get on my soapbox, but in the US today we have more companies that require service to customers than we have companies that manufacture products. Consequently, companies in the US need to be more vigilant about how their customers are treated. Once you buy the machine it is a purely service relationship.
I am curious; what is a Brother PC machine? Have you done any embroidery before the Designer 1? I was going to do embroidery today but I can't find my module that writes from the PC to the card for my machine. I had a class last Saturday and I thought I may have left it at the store. I called and they said it isn't there. It must be in my sewing room somewhere.
My Brother is a PC-8500D; I purchased it 3 yrs ago when I got serious about machine embroidery. It works great!!! I really like it. Actually ALL of my embroidery I have ever done has been embroidered on my Brother. Even now.
I purchased the Viking to get rid of an older machine I had; and because it was my dream machine and I had the oppourtinity to buy it. I have not done much on it yet. I haven't taken the embroidery unit out of the box. I did do a small quilted blanket for my niece and finished a baby blanket (that I embroidered on my Brother).
I have really enjoyed sewing. One of our spare rooms is now my sewing room and I love it. My husband built me a cutting/work table; which I love. It has storage on the bottom and the top is large for cutting or laying out. Running the legth of the wall he built me another table (which is lower in height) and that is where I sew. My brother and Viking machines are set up on this table. I also have a my TV and notebook here. So I have access to everything.
I haven't had much time to sew lately but I have some time off from work in the next month or so and I plan to catch up. I have several projects in mind.
I will update when I hear back from Viking.
Have a great day!
Olivia
OK, now I am getting angry about their treatment of you.
Hi, Have you heard from Viking yet? If not, have you called Sue Hausmann yet? You can't let up on them, it leads them to believe you are not very upset about the problem.
I know that sounds crazy, but I have seen it happen. I didn't call one company for a week because my life became chaotic. When I called back the woman said "Well, we didn't hear from you, so I thought the problem had resolved itself or you devised a work around".
It was a good thing she wasn't in this country. I would have parked myself out side her door and sat there until she saw me. And I probably would not have left until I had a solution and a guarantee in writing. I learned patience from a friend that spent 6 hours in a dealership getting the deal she wanted on a car.
So, call them....you deserve better treatment from Viking Co., you spent money on a product they produced. You can always use the "Please think about this for a moment, what would you do if you purchased a car and they forgot to give you the tires, I would bet you would be very upset". Before you say it isn't the same, the software is the foundation of what I purchased the machine to do, just like the tires are the base for getting the car to move along a road.
My favorite statement in these situations is "I am sorry but that is not acceptable". No matter what they tell you unless it gets the new software in the box to you within 24 hours, tell them it isn't acceptable. At some point they will say, "what is acceptable to you," and you tell them you want the software shipped overnight, insured with return receipt requested so they will know when you get the software.
When they squawk at that I get to the, "Did you know Big Blue has been known to reserve a seat on an airplane just to get a part to a customer who needs it."
Ditto That!! Another phrase I like to say and of course with a calming voice (even though you want to jump through the phone at them ) is " Is there any reason why.....(then you add your finishing whatever)Like.." Is there any reason why you will not have my software shipped to me within 24 hours?!!!"So again Ditto Ditto Ditto to all the comments and advice.
You can and you will make this happen!!
I know it is time....but that time will be to your benefit as well as others for the lessons learned!
Oh my word! Your software sounds like a recycled, second hand software or stuff the dealer had on the show room. (It may have already been registered and you may just have a demo.) It wasn't clear to me, but did you already pay $500 for this? Was the box your sewing machine came in sealed? I'd be willing to bet it wasn't. Further, are you positive your machine is new and not refurbished? I think you may want to call her one more time and give her a chance to come clean. Could be that your software # is already registered and you may not get the support you need from Viking. This is unacceptable. I urge you to follow up with Viking. You may want to threaten legal action. Check to see if your state's attorney general's office has a consumer fraud division. I sure hope you've been documenting things.
Are you getting any satisfaction from Viking? I bet your dealer wasn't a dealer. Are they listed on the Viking website as a dealer, or is that what the dealer held themself out as? (I'm ashamed to say that I bought a used Volvo on-line from a car dealer that held themself out as a Volvo dealer and wasn't listed on the Volvo website)
Gosh, good luck....! I was half thinking about buying my next machine from the best deal I could get (even if that meant travel to a bigger city). The dealer whose showroom I visit remembers me. In 7 years, i've only bought one machine from her. They have done numerous repairs for me. I'm not that good of a customer, but I think your ordeal just sealed a deal for her.
After you have tried the perm, and are satisfied with the results, I recomend that you use an iron on stablizer to set the pleats and crushing. Then you can cut out the parts for the costume. One other thing, since silk will water spot, wash all the fabric you intend to use then all will be the same color.
jdukes
Art Educator
Hi Olivia,
Have you not e-mailed Viking Husqvarna? I certainly would have no problem doing it if it was me. I have the 3D Prof. software and I had to wait maybe 2 or 3 weeks. My dealer is wonderful. I took my machine back because it would lock down and it would do the bird's nest. They sent it off to the factory after they tried to figure it out. I e-mailed Viking and they said I didn't have the bobbin thread clicked into the tension. I didn't even realize it had a place to hook into tension. I was in a hurry, I guess, and just looked at the pictures. Well, if I had read the instructions, instead of just looking at the pictures, I would see where it tells me to click it into tension. After my dealer loans me her demo and the demo embroidery, I call her and tell her I have found the problem. She said she felt to blame and I told her that she went over so much to check and see if I had threaded the machine wrong, etc. and I felt bad. She said that this was a good thing and that she will call them and tell them to send mine back. They wanted to sent it back before and she asked if they found the problem and they said they couldn't find a problem. She told them that I was too good of a customer and she wanted it fixed. She will give me lessons anytime, but she does suggest that I write down any questions I may have. She will call in one of the software techs, if they are not there when I want to come in, but I work until after they close, so the only time would be on Saturday and I am usually playing catch-up on that day. My point is that my dealer is wonderful and I think Husqvarna Viking would like to know about your problem.
Marcy
Marcy, Olivia did email Viking about her problem with the software and dealer and she had not heard from them last time she wrote. I am getting a little concerned we haven't heard from her. Maybe our army of sewing buddies preparing to take on Viking made her nervous. I am hoping she received her software and has been happily sewing or embellishing her time away.
Hi Jane,
I hope she got this straightened out. I picked up my machine Saturday and told my dealer about Olivia getting her software in a baggy. She said something definitely was up and she said to be patient, that Husqvarna Viking would take care of it. I am surprised, if she hasn't heard from them. When I told them something must be wrong with my memory stick and told them of the problem, two days later they wrote back and told me there was nothing wrong with the memory stick that I didn't have bobbin clicked in the tension. I didn't even know it had a click. I then had to call my dealer and tell her what I had done. She was just happy that it was resolved. She said that they wanted to send my machine back. They said nothing was wrong with the machine and they were right. Oh well. I'm just glad they weren't sending out faulty new machines.
What are you sewing?
Marcy
I am so sorry to hear of your long standing stressful plight. I join the others on this forum in praying that your issues are resolved quickly. It is unconciounable that you have waited since August and ended up getting robbed. I wonder if you can find out if this "thief" has filed for bankruptsy, if so, you need to get on the list of complainants. Since she has several stores, it really does sound like deliberate fraud. She may be playing dumb but could not have gotten as far as she has without some cleverness. I bet the district attorney fraud unit would have a field day with her.
Best wishes, let us know if there is any way we can help. I am a satisfied owner of three Husq/Vikings. I now have a wonderful dealer but still kick myself for not taking legal action against the one who lost thier Viking license a month after DH surprised me with the machine. I empathise with your situation, good luck. God bless You! Mary
This post is archived.