Special Orders - how long do they take to get here?
 

I put in an order for an Escort Mp5 with Mark at A&A in July. It's been almost 3 months and I've never been given an explination for the 'delay' beyond "it's not here yet".

I'm fast approaching the 3 month anniversary of this order and Mark hasn't been replying to my e-mails which basically say "tell me whats going on or give me my money back". That's right I've got the full amount down for the gun and taxes and shipping.

Has anyone else put a special order (for a gun) through Mark or any other retailer? Do they usually take months and months to come in?

Zi-Xiao

I placed an order for a TM G36C through 007 Airsoft. Took four months.

And yes, that's an average amount of time to wait for an imported gun to reach you, so calm the fuck down and be patient.

Yep, I put a special order for the Tanaka M500 from Mark and took just under a month - hasn't arrived yet, but its with Canada Post. *Fingers Crossed*

I've read the similar things about delays on special orders, so before I ordered, I made sure Redwolf had them in stock. I figured that if I knew they had them in stock and asked Mark to order via that company, it would arrive faster. From my experiences with Mark (I've had several orders with him) he's a reliable guy. Perhaps you should try calling.

Not sure about this, but can Mark's shipments get delayed by customs?

It takes as long as it takes
 

A&A is a reputable retailer... if you don't have it yet its because he does not have it yet.

importers have to be wary of brining too much in... they do not want CBSA sending the RCMP over to see where all the replica guns are going.

In today's import environment... if you want something special... pay for it.. and wait.. even forget you ordered it so that when it arrives... its like a stranger sent you a present..

Posting on a public forum that you are loosing patience with A&A like its his fault.. is likely only to result in a further delay...because he could really care less if you get tired waiting... its not like there is no market for the gun when if finaly does arrive.

He can list it in stock and sell it inside a week... cool your heels... its coming

and now i know

...and knowing is half the battle.

Just to hit the topic everyone always ignores: Explication of why the e-mails are not answer?

I don't know about you guys but when i get worried after spending $600+ for something and when i e-mail the guy 2-3 month after and i get no answer... well i personally don't like that. Unless it's stated on the site that the seller might not answer in a timely manner because of X issue then i understand.

Edit: Before the trolls/flamers forum rape me, i have nothing personal against A&A or anyone, i'm just just stating something. Also this doesn't only concern A&A but also other canadian seller's/retailers that do not answer pm's or e-mails.

I wouldn't worry too much at this point. As everyone else has said these things can take some time. Do a quick bit of research on the "issues" involved with importing and you'll quickly see these things can be time consuming.

Aside from that, I have dealt with A&A and was very pleased with his service and he was quick to reply to my emails. He has also been on vacation so maybe that's why he didn't get back to you yet.

It's coming.

Again.... the remaining retailers are servicing ALL OF CANADA.. if you were running a business.. who would you answer.. they guy who wants to give you money... or the guy who has already given you money and is waiting for delivery?

Keep in mind its a sellers market.. they can sell all they bring in ... so customer service to preserve market is not a significant factor in the decision.

Great service requires significant effort... of you could make the same money without expending the effort.. what would you do?

Look at it this way... there are 2 tables with a donut on each one... you get to have one donut... one table is 300 yards away on top of a hill ... the other three steps away... they are the same donut.... will you climb the hill and cross the 300 yards... or take the three steps to get the donut?

Answering your e-mail about when you will get your gun... is like climbing the hill and walking 300 yards for the same donut you can have by walking 3 steps..by answering the e-mail from the guy who wants to order a gun...

now if there were 8 retailers... and competition for market... well then the situation is reversed... then service becomes more important.

I've dealth with A&A dozens of times too and they've been great... until now.

I NOW know A&A can take several months to get a custom order in but you guys arn't running A&A; I shouldn't have had to hear it from you guys Mark could have just said "4-6 months" on any of the five occassions I asked for an ETA.

Anyways I'm not impatient, I'm just worried.

Answering a PAYING customer question's is part of business. Not doing that in a timely fashion is bad business practice. When it comes down to it it means A&A is a bad business. Now personally i couldn't give more of a fuck since if i have a big question i will call him or ask the people here. But it does put some kind of uncertainty when you spend $600+ on something and the seller doesn't answer you. Last time i check, the customer is the one keeping the business alive. Treating him like shit (and to me thats what not answer e-mails/phone calls/pm's etc etc) is.

It's like... i go buy a car, i ask the dealer questions about the car and he just looks at me and doesn't answer. I don't know about you but i wouldn't deal business there and i would tell everyone i know about it. Now it's true in Canada you are very limited with airsoft business, but from personal experience 007 answers all my questions pretty fast. Even if (for say) he is $50 more expensive, i would prefer going to him.

Just my little 2 cents.

Ronan's quite right on this point. If the customer paid, and haven't received their stuff in 4 months, they SHOULD reply in a timely manner to let the customer know. After all, time IS money.

So you are advocating crapass customer service and bad business practice?
Wow, I certainly hope thats not how you run things with your business.

Also just because only you and another business can provide X service, it's NO excuse for having bad customer service and practices (not saying anyone is doing that just answering Brian McIlmoyle comment).

For all it's worth, I find around noon to be the best time to email him. Every time I've ever emailed him around then has gotten me a reply within five minutes. Emails are easy to lose when you get about ten every second throughout the entire day, I'd imagine.

Not at all, however... If I was the only person selling something... and I could get 10 a month and I had 100 people who wanted them... I would not be too fussed if people have to wait, fact is .. you have to wait...because you can only get want you want from me.

Now... If I tell you when you order and pay, I will contact you when the item arrives and is ready to ship.. I have given you an expectation of what will happen( I know for a fact that this is exactly how A&A operates )
If you subsequently e-mail me asking if it is in yet... YOU are the one who is now going outside of our agreement and bugging me so I feel quite ok about Ignoring you until I get a moment to let you know that I will contact you when the item arrives and is ready to ship just like I told you when you purchased the item. If you subsequently contact me again asking " how bout now? is it in yet?" well now you are just wasting my time... of which I have little...Again... if I get time I will contact you and remind you of our deal..
Otherwise.. our original deal holds... you pay me.. I order what you want.. and I let you know when it comes in and I am shipping it.

It is not bad customer service to meet the obligations of a deal as established at the time of purchase.. Neither is it bad business to do exactly as you promised to do.. despite the fact that your customers feel things are taking too long.. and they need to be "petted" to make them feel better about waiting.

The one thing that sours someone to even continue in a retail by mail business is the inordinate amount of time that you waste hand holding customers who can't seem to remember what the original deal was and somehow want you to make a process that you have no control over move faster...

Err just another quick note, the Escort MP5 is an extremely rare piece, it's been sold out at Redwolf for ages. I've been looking on and off for about half a year as I've been getting accessories for my CA MP5 and every time I do a "MP5" search, it's out.

Perhaps you should email Redwolf to get an ETA on their availability, at least then you know what Mark has to deal with. Unfortunately then you have to tack on the regular importation time period, it's certainly going to try your patience. Oh ya, if emails don't work, call Mark. A few $ in long D can save you a lot of headaches.

People forget that sending an email doesn't necessarily mean he gets it. He told me himself that he gets so many emails every day that it's impossible to keep track of them. Furthermore, if half of them are emails asking "where's the fucking gun I ordered, bitch!?", whereas the other half are actually important, he has twice the work, and so he'll probably prioritize which ones to answer first, and thus, lose track. That aside, he probably doesn't know any better than you when the guns will reach him, and sending out a thousand "Sorry, I don't know for sure" emails cuts into his Ordering and other duties.

If you have an issue with this, I suggest you email him (around noon, heh) and offer to volunteer yourself so that he does have the time to send out a thousand "Sorry, I don't know for sure" emails.