[damily]

I've been living here in TV for 5 years and have ALWAYS found vendors, clerks, waitresses and salespeople to be quite friendlyl and honest. However, I recently took my sewing machine to Yely's Sewing Gallery to be cleaned and serviced. After two weeks, I received a call stating it couldnt be fixed. It was too old. It needed a new belt that was no longer available. HOWEVER, she could give me $100 off a new machine that was approximately $1500. I told her no and went to pick up the old machine. She wanted $50 to pick up the machine she could not fix. I asked her if I were to buy a new machine would I still have to pay the $50? Answer NO. Also, if I were to buy a floor model I'd receive another $100 off. wow - what a deal. I said I'd have to talk to my husband. My husband is an angel and, although reluctantly, he agreed to buy the new machine. After sleeping on it, I didnt like the way the entire deal was handled, I felt pushed into buying a new machine and I told my husband, thanks, but no thanks. We went to pick up the broken machine and had a $10 off coupon for cleaning and service which she refused to accept. when asked why not? she simply stated that it wasnt valid on what she did. well, what did she do? cleaned it? yes? serviced it? yes. Repaired it? NO. I couldnt believe the ripoff that was in progress. We ended up paying $50 to get a broken machine back! We proceeded to shop at other sewing centers in the area and ended up with a wonderful new machine that did everything the Viking machine did at half the price. I would've bought a Singer before giving her any business. I have been so angry about this that I simply had to post. Please keep in mind that although it is convenient and easy to do our shopping with TV, sometimes the better deals and sales people are outside the immediate area. Thank you for letting me vent!

[ilovetv]

We hear you. It's always mind-boggling to see business owners/managers who put everything but the customer first. Some are clueless as to how much new business can be brought in with just one happy customer who was treated like their current or future patronage is valued.

Attitude is everything in business. She could have offered upon pick-up to reduce the cost of cleaning etc. since it wasn't fixable, and because there was a coupon in circulation that you didn't have with you.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by damily

I've been living here in TV for 5 years and have ALWAYS found vendors, clerks, waitresses and salespeople to be quite friendlyl and honest. However, I recently took my sewing machine to Yely's Sewing Gallery to be cleaned and serviced. After two weeks, I received a call stating it couldnt be fixed. It was too old. It needed a new belt that was no longer available. HOWEVER, she could give me $100 off a new machine that was approximately $1500. I told her no and went to pick up the old machine. She wanted $50 to pick up the machine she could not fix. I asked her if I were to buy a new machine would I still have to pay the $50? Answer NO. Also, if I were to buy a floor model I'd receive another $100 off. wow - what a deal. I said I'd have to talk to my husband. My husband is an angel and, although reluctantly, he agreed to buy the new machine. After sleeping on it, I didnt like the way the entire deal was handled, I felt pushed into buying a new machine and I told my husband, thanks, but no thanks. We went to pick up the broken machine and had a $10 off coupon for cleaning and service which she refused to accept. when asked why not? she simply stated that it wasnt valid on what she did. well, what did she do? cleaned it? yes? serviced it? yes. Repaired it? NO. I couldnt believe the ripoff that was in progress. We ended up paying $50 to get a broken machine back! We proceeded to shop at other sewing centers in the area and ended up with a wonderful new machine that did everything the Viking machine did at half the price. I would've bought a Singer before giving her any business. I have been so angry about this that I simply had to post. Please keep in mind that although it is convenient and easy to do our shopping with TV, sometimes the better deals and sales people are outside the immediate area. Thank you for letting me vent!

That is JUST awful. Apparently they are trying to pay their rent by overcharging people. It is the unfortunate truth that sewing is rapidly becoming a skill of the past. Time for them to close, not rip off the few who do sew.

Sewing machines can now be had for quite a bit less than they used to be. I bought one at Sams for just a little over a hundred bucks and it does what I need to do. I made new drapes for our house on it. Not great, but adequate.

I now buy my piece goods from Fabric.com. Much lower in price than Joann's.

[batman911]

Damily,

I really doubt that a replacement belt could not be found. I would bet that if you called the manufacturer's customer service they could either supply the belt or direct you to a retailer who could.

One of my employees recently told me that she needed to go to the Lexus dealer to have the battery changed in her key fob. You can only imagine what the dealer wanted to charge for that service. I found a new replacement battery on the web for $2.98 (free shipping), Googled the procedure to open the key fob and replace the battery, found a YouTube video that showed exactly how to open the fob and replace the battery.

I never believe anything vendors tell me unless I research the info myself.

[wendyquat]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

That is JUST awful. Apparently they are trying to pay their rent by overcharging people. It is the unfortunate truth that sewing is rapidly becoming a skill of the past. Time for them to close, not rip off the few who do sew.

Sewing machines can now be had for quite a bit less than they used to be. I bought one at Sams for just a little over a hundred bucks and it does what I need to do. I made new drapes for our house on it. Not great, but adequate.

I now buy my piece goods from Fabric.com. Much lower in price than Joann's.

And thanks for that tip Gracie! I got some great fabric from fabrics.com at a fraction of the prices locally. Service was great and I got it in just a few days!

[Happinow]

I'm going to look up fabrics.com right now. I used to sew a lot. When my daughter was a toddler I sewed quite a few of her outfits. Made mother and daughter Christmas dresses, halloween costumes, curtains.... Haven't sewn in many years after fabric became so expensive. I really liked creating things so that may be a hobby I'll take up again! It'll give me something to do when I'm board....

[pqrstar]

I bet, with searching, you could find a replacement belt for your sewing machine.

I found one for grandmother's treadle sewing machine.

[damily]

Thank you all for your input. I, too, have used fabrics.com and recently found a couple other great sites: thousandsofbolts.com and bugfabrics.com. They both have some great prices and unique prints.

[damily]

I agree. That just gets me angrier!

[Whatever]

Damily, why are you so concerned?
First, where is Yely's? Secondly, by posting your most negative experience on this site, you have probably cost Yely's a lot more than the $50.00 you spent. Get a good nights sleep and look to a brighter day with your new machine on which you admittedly saved mucho dinero.

[buggyone]

I would suggest you contact Seniors vs. Crime. It is a free service and in Sumter County is at the Sheriff station at Morse & 466. They have recovered about $2 million in overcharges for citizens.

[damily]

Dear Whatever, you are right. Here's to a good night's sleep! By the way, Yely's is on 466 across from Walmart and next to Bargains and Treasures. thanks for your post.

[CaptJohn]

Originally Posted by batman911

Damily,

I really doubt that a replacement belt could not be found. I would bet that if you called the manufacturer's customer service they could either supply the belt or direct you to a retailer who could.

One of my employees recently told me that she needed to go to the Lexus dealer to have the battery changed in her key fob. You can only imagine what the dealer wanted to charge for that service. I found a new replacement battery on the web for $2.98 (free shipping), Googled the procedure to open the key fob and replace the battery, found a YouTube video that showed exactly how to open the fob and replace the battery.

I never believe anything vendors tell me unless I research the info myself.

Double ditto for this. I have found that you can find almost any part on the web these days as well as how to fix things on video.
I prefer to spend money with local businesses but if they're not customer oriented then I'm gone to the web.

[CarolSells]