Orvis

Full review
For years I've wanted a pair of Gokey pull-on boots, but at $325 a pair, it was always a little to rich for my wallet. I was surfing around March 16 and saw that the boots were on sale for $199, so being that I recently got a big job promotion, I took the plunge. Ordered a nice pair of size 11, E width. The Web site said they were in stock, and I'd receive them in 7-10 days. I got a nice e-mail confirmation with tracking.

Cool.

Well, a week later, I was beginning to wonder about my order, and, checking online, it said "Will ship when available." I didn't like the sound of that. I called customer service a few times, then finally got someone who leveled with me and said there was NO EXPECTED SHIPPING DATE, which likely meant the line was being discontinued, and I would never get my boots.

Turns out the reason for the sale was because the company was eliminating its old stock preparing for a different version of my boot, but didn't let the customer service people know, and, apparently, had no plans to let me know, either.

I did some digging, found the Orvis headquarters number, and finally got to talk with Clay, the man in charge of Gokey (which Orvis owns), who told me the old line was indeed not being restocked, but the company was making a better, improved version of the boot. He told me the magic size number to give customer service (sizes for the new styles are designated 54, 55 and 56, instead of 64, 65 and 66 for the old style) and said the new boots were being made now, and if I placed an order, I could get my boots in a matter of a couple of weeks.

I placed the order with the new secret numbers, but the customer service person wanted to charge me the full price of $325. Her supervisor approved a 20 percent discount after I described my ordeal and my belief that Orvis should honor the original agreement. I reluctantly agreed to a $61 increase in the $199 price I originally ordered online (and got an "in stock" confirmation number for). Orvis, which sells high-quality fishing and outdoor gear (at high-quality prices) charges shipping by order price, not by weight, so when they raised the price of my boots, they also bumped up my shipping costs from $12.95 to $15.95.

To pour more salt on the wound, the tracking status now shows they aren't expected to ship my boots until MAY 20, a full two months after I placed my original order. I called customer service and Clay at Gokey, but got no satisfaction.

My point is, if a company offers to sell you something at a certain price for receipt by a certain time, and the item is listed "in stock," they should honor it. I've never encountered a customer-relations situation like this with a private company before. You expect this from a bureaucracy like the VA, the IRS or Social Security, but not from a high-end retailer.

I've done some surfing around and noticed that other reviewers are having EXACTLY the same problem. Orvis used to have a strong reputation for customer service. They had better do something quickly before its reputation tanks.

***** UPDATE ******

April 14, 2005

After posting the above entry, I was contacted by an Orvis representative, who apologized for my experience, and saw to it that I got my boots at the previously advertised price. I got them today, not May 20, which was the original ship date. They are great boots. They fit like they were made specifically for me. Heirloom quality.