RANT: Cory's Drycleaning will ruin your clothes & make you pay

[KBear]

Hey, Sarah’s post gave me an idea… Maybe you could return the jacket to Nordstrom…

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[JustSarah]

LOL. There is that old myth about the old lady returning a set of tires to a Nordstrom store, not noticing that it was no longer a tire store… and supposedly they refunded her. Nordstrom FTW, yes?

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[moxilot]

Actually, Mrs. Mom, if you bought that jacket from REI and are a co-op member, you can take it back to REI and they will refund your money. They have a true ‘Satisfaction Guaranteed’ philosophy and I’ve seen folks return boots after several seasons of wear with the reason being “hurt feet”.

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[Genesee Hill]

This is hard to believe! Perhaps your eight year old jacket has just worn out. Unbelievable!

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[EmmyJane]

Moxilot- I think even if a store will take a return, it is not always ethical to return it. In your examples, and this example, I don’t think it would be the right thing for someone to take advantage of a store’s liberal return policy.

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[dhg]

That Nordstrom story has become legend and whether true or not certainly does not reflect their current policy. I once tried to return a shirt that was an Xmas gift and, even though they were currently selling that shirt and this was pinned (but no Nordy tag, no tag of any sort), they refused.

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[KatherineL]

I had an R.E.I GoreTex jacket that I wore for 15-20 years. I machine washed it and waterproofed it from a spray can. I only gave it up because it (ahem) shrank. I passed it on to someone else.

Corry’s got a low rating from ‘Consumers Checkbook’ magazine.

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[Mrs.Mom]

I know that REI would likely take it back, but it would not be right to return it when it was Corry’s that ruined it and not REI who failed to provide a quality product – especially after so long. I did take it into another cleaner’s earlier today and they stated that although the waterproofing can wear out on GORE-TEX, causing you to need to re-spray it with a waterproofing product such as Scotchguard, the fabric itself should never fail. They suggested that Corry’s had likely used too high of a heat to dry it, causing the fabric itself to fail. :(

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[JoB]

MrsMomn..

i am with you. i wouldn’t take it back to REI..

but i would be pissed. There is no excuse for ruining a customer’s clothes…

i for one am sick of businesses that blame their failures on their customers.

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[dyn99]

Did you pay the cleaning fee with a credit card? If so, you could likely at least contest the charge with them…that would get your $27 back, which would be better than nothing.

BTW, I fully agree with the OP, if a business ruins something they did work on, even if it was old, they should at least pay for a comparably used replacement, at Value Village or another comparable thrift store’s pricing. I’ll definitely think twice before taking all of my very nice work clothes to Corry’s in the future.

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[charlabob]

I agree about REI; however, if you tell them honestly what happened they might still want to replace it — to compensate for what less customer-centric businesses do.

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[Carson]

Bummer that Corrys hasn’t chimed in yet and I hate to White Knight for them. They claim the coat was in poor shape and made the customer sign a waiver before they agreed to attempt to clean the coat. As always, 2 sides to every story!

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[Kevin]

And to think that a business would be so narrow minded as to be willing to get this much NEGATIVE attention over $27.

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A cheerful refund and a sincere apology and this matter would likely have never gone this far.

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I have never used Corry’s before, but stories like this are what make people use OTHER businesses. They will certainly never get my business!

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As for “old” clothes – I have a $99 Wilson’s leather coat that dates back to 1996. All it needs is a new lining to be in perfect condition. I plan on having it repaired and I’m sure it will last another 14 years!

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I also have a 10 year old pair of Nike flip flops where the insoles came unglued over the years. A quick trip to “37 Shoe Repair” on Fauntleroy and they were fixed while I waited for NINE dollars!

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Anyone out there ever shop at Value Village, Goodwill, and other thrift shops? Just one more example of just because something is old does not mean it is no longer any good.

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As they say in the car business – everyone drives a used car…

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[Ken]

I have t-shirts older than most of you. I have a hunting vest my father bought in 1952. My stadium coat was my father in laws.

My computer store polo shirts are from the early 90’s and still look new.

I don’t dry clean anything and only use an iron to attach glue on edging when woodworking.

Admittedly, I am no fashion plate… but

if you think 8 years is a long time for a coat, then the textile industry did not improve by moving to China.

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[Mrs.Mom]

Carson – I most certainly did not sign a waiver and I would love for you to ask them to produce any such waiver when you go in the next time! As a matter of fact they didn’t verbally warn me that the process could damage the coat either and I even inquired as to the process they use since it was very specific on the care tag. To the contrary, Lizzy informed me that they use the label to decide the process to use and it was perfectly safe. I understand them defending their position of not giving a refund but lying about it is suspect and unforgivable! My jacket was actually in great shape, with the exception of a tear in the mesh lining on the inside left (you know, above where it snaps inside to keep snow out) and the Velcro closures had come loose on the outside. I have gone from mad to infuriated knowing that they would blatantly lie, but sadly I am not surprised.

Dyn99 – I did dispute the charge and have just received a refund through MasterCard. At least now I won’t have to pay someone to damage my property.

I am saddened by the whole experience and I agree with JoB, I too am sick of being blamed for being provided an inferior service or product.

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[Carson]

Mom, I don’t really have a dog in this fight. I just know what they told me and I know about my past experiences. I told them about this post when I went in, so my guess is they don’t really care.

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[johnnyblegs]

Go to House of Kleen next time. They’re awesome.

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[Mrs.Mom]

It is obvious that they do not care, but they really should care if their customers are this unhappy. They should also care if they damage your item, regardless of it’s age.

I spoke to the manager earlier today about the waiver; she thought I had signed a waiver regarding the tears and Velcro (or had given a verbal release). She stated that should have been done in case the tears worsen or the Velcro comes off completely, etc. She maintains that the actual fabric damage was due to age (no waiver would have been needed or even possible for that as it was not there when I dropped it off). I did not sign any waiver even for the tears/Velcro either – which she claimed was an oversight, as it is their policy and should have occurred. I am still not sure how that would even relate to the fabric damage or how that would prove that they warned me about GORE-TEX fabric being unreliable and fragile (which I do not believe anyway), since they are in no way related. Oh well, what’s done is done. I will miss my jacket, but it is gone and I must now move on.

I will definitely try your recommendation johnnyblegs – I have other stuff that needs to go in soon & everyone needs a good, reliable drycleaner.

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