Abe’s of Maine High Pressure Post-Sale Tactics

122 Comments

1. These greaseballs are still up to their old game. Got the call from Roy. He tried to sell the warranty and special freight, and wires, and a surge protector. Then as I said no, no, he kept going down and down and down in price. After stewing on it a little more, I called back, spoke to Tony, explained that I didn’t appreciate the high pressure sell. He acted surprised. I explained, “I know this is how Abe’s of Maine operates. This is how you’ve been operating at least 3-4 years.” He offered to give me the special shipping free. I declined, and insisted on canceling.

   I should have remembered this place, because I got the same line of BS from them back around….2003 or 2004 with a camera. I also canceled that order too.

2. I wish I had read this blog before I ordered. I ordereed Friday and got “THE CALL” on Sunday. I was out and returned the call less then 20 minutes after it was made to my home. Outgoing sales calls worked ! Incoming customer service calls NO! I got the high presssure talk call on monday morning. Guy said he wanted to see if I wanted to have UPS leave a package if I wasn’t home and then tried to upsell me. OK I can see the purpose of the call but I hate sales pressure coming from a online purchase. Now they are closed for the Jewish holidays this WEEK and I cant even find out why Ive been charged but my camera hasnt been shipped. I wished I would of ordered from Amazon. BTW there was no notice of the business being closed for religious holidays on the website. I respect choice to close but as a customer I should have the choice of ordering from someone who will get me my goods faster. I have my sons martial arts competition coming Friday and no fracking camera ! NEVER AGAIN !

3. I ordered a Canon printer on April 17th. After I received confirmation e-mail, I received another e-mail from a Roy Rivers at their customer service. The message was “Please call us as soon as possible at toll free 1-800-992-2237. ext# 208”. I actually called this number and luckily just got his voice mail. I e-mailed back to him and told him to e-mail me again if he has any question regarding my order. He never e-mailed me or called me again. Then they sent me a notice saying that my order has been shipped on the 18th. It should arrive here in Washington State on the 25th. We’ll see if it really arrives.

4. I did a reverse look-up on the phone number when they called to “confirm” my order and saw this blog… THANK GOODNESS. I went in prepared to just keep saying “no” to the very fast talking guy on the other end who was INTENT on selling more and more stuff. This is why I shop online… to avoid salesmen like this one! I still went ahead with my order, though I likely won’t use this company again. I’m weary of them and will still read my packing slip VERY carefully when I get my product, to ensure they didn’t add any superfluous charges.

   This “calling to confirm” on an internet purchase, only to try and fast-talk someone into spending more money is a TERRIBLE business practice. I saw that someone from Abe’s commented on here a while back. I hope they’re still reading these messages, as they helped me as a consumer and hopefully (if they heed some of this advise) it will help them as a company.

   Here’s hoping my order comes and I’m only charge for what I want!

   KC

5. I bought a sony DSLR A200 w/ Repairtech 5 yr Warranty on 9-9-08 and when the card slot failed I learned repairtech was defunct so I called Abe’s and got the bad news. I was told I was SOL since the repairtech serial# did not begin w/ 4. The invoice did not itemize the cost of camera and cost of warrantymerely a package price. The fast-talking rep at Abe’s said the warranty was probally only about $20 — But I know it was a lot more than that. I have a feeling that Repairtech was a scam from the onset and Abe’s was in on it. I have since sent it to United for repair. It was $116 and in all fairnees I think Abe’s should reimburse me for this amount.

6. BEWARE PLEASE READ IF YOU BOUGHT AN EXTENDED WARRANTY.FROM ABE’S OF MAINE. THE POST BELOW IS WITH THE BBB in NJ. I bought an extended in- house 3 year warranty for a Samsung 52 inch LCD TV. The total invoice with warranty was $3733.30 and it expires May 2011. I have issues with the TV and is in need of repair. when I called for service I was told the account info was old, lost,and they had no record of my purchase. I have my receipts and gave them all the dates and invoice no’s and then they disclosed that the warranty Co has gone bankrupt and tough luck to me. I was never notified of this nor I believe the many of their customers. I believed they have covered this up, with employee participation to keep this matter unknown. I want a full refund for the cost of the warranty $329.95 and a refund sent to all of the other customers who are effected by this. I also think a letter of apology is order.I also feel the AG for NJ should be notified and look into this matter as consumers may be being ripped off. I think in my opinion this is criminal and not a simple warranty or service issue. I will consult with my attorney to determine the best course of action.
   I have asked that all the customers who bought an extended warranty, who in reality do not have one be notified with a full refund and a letter of apology.

   As far as my TV, well I’m out of luck… It’s my loss , not there’s… heck I’m just a stupid customer…. TO THEM.

   T.M.

7. Wow! I was very close to ordering a new home theater system from Abe’s due to the huge price differance from Newegg and Crutchfield, when I ran across these postings. I don’t know if Sarah is a good person stuck in a company of bad apples, or just a good actor. But based on how long these posts date back to, I’d say the bad apples still are employed. Thanks for all the informative comments!

   Chris.

8. I just purchased a Lenovo Thinkpad from Abe’s of Maine. I was also disappointed with my service. After spending $550.00 i recieved the same “verification of purchase” call from some joker named Alfred S (that’s probably not even his real name). He tried presuring me into buying more ram for the laptop. He said that it was normally $150.00 plus installation for this upgrade but for me he’ll “throw the cherry on top” and give me free installation – how nice of him. I mean, i wonder if he feels good when he goes home and sees his kids, knowing he is feeding them with stolen money. Anyway after rejecting this “great deal” multiple times he told me to “think it over” becuase he’ll be there for only another 5 minutes. I told him i definitely would and then deleted the number. What a fiend. My Lenovo has not come in yet and now, after seeing everyones posts, i am worried that the crew of knock-offs that i bought this off of will just forget about it. These people are worse than used car salesmen; what a disgrace!

   Thanks to everyone else for posting something about these guys. We need to get consumer awareness up and this is the first step: DO NOT BUY FROM ABE’S OF MAINE.

9. I’m beginning to believe, after all the comments that other users have given, that Abes of Maine just uses tricks to get you to commit to a purchase (classic bait and switch). I ordered a Samsung 50″ plasma tv from Abes on November 20th. Their price was a good price, but not the lowest on the internet. I decided on AbesofMaine over lower priced competitors because they were listed as 5 star on cnet.com. I too received a phone call from the high pressure salesman (mine was named Fred) selling me warranties and cables and white glove shipping. That doesnt bother me as much because in sales its the name of the game. My opinion is if you dont want it just say “no”. What did bother me was that my order wasnt processed until November 24th, 4 days later. But on the 24th I received an email from Abes saying that my order was processed and my package (TV, cables, wall-mount) shipped on November 24th. I was given a tracking number that showed that my package would arrive on December 2nd. Days passed and after checking the status of the package on the UPS site I happened to notice that UPS listed the weight of the package as 10lbs (plasmas weigh much more than 10lbs). So I called Abes of Maine on November 30th, a week and a half after placing my order, to verify the status of the TV. Turns out that the notice on their website about them shipping my TV was false. They’ve shipped out the wall-mount and the cables via UPS but the TV hasnt shipped yet. They’ve been busy and couldnt get to my order! But my TV will ship tomorrow! They guy offers me $50 off my purchase and says he’ll make sure the TV is out the door in one to two days. Two days later I get a phone call from Fred who tells me that the TV is on back order and they are not sure how long it will take to come in. Needless to say, i pulled my order, but WHAT A COLLOSAL WASTE OF MY TIME AND PATIENCE. Two weeks of yanking me around! Abes you will never get any more of my business.

10. #####################################

    I guess all the fuss over Abes is just an Exercise in Futility… “They Are What They Are” and always will be…
    IF you want to order from a reputable online retailer,
    I ALWAYS have great results from the following :

    http://www.Amazon.com
    http://www.buydig.com
    http://www.provantage.com
    http://www.electronics-expo.com

    Live and learn. I know I did from my LAST/FINAL order with Abes.
    “Sarah, If you’re Not part of the solution, then YOU’re part of the problem”

    http://tiny.cc/abesofpain
    #######################################

11. So it looks like i need to post a informative blog here about a recent camera purchase i made. I tried to give Abe’s of Maine a chance to contact me. I posted a review for the camera and shocker it did not make it to the site the camera still has a 4.5 star rating. My 2 star rating would certainly affect that and hinder they’re sales!! So their not informing their buyers accurately. The camera is now on backorder! Customer service rep i spoke with, well to say you listen in to the calls is BS! You must have been off that day, because the rep acted as if he couldn’t here my questions. And just told me send it back to the manufacturer! Listen they made the product and your selling it! i was just past the 30 days, and well as indicated in my review only wanted a functional camera, not a refund! I was nice enough to give the camera a 2 star rating for the 5 times it worked.

    THIS IS WHAT REALLY PISSES ME OFF ABOUT YOUR SERVICE!! I asked in my review, and stated hopefully someone will contact me to resolve this matter, and i be happy to change a post a positive review. I GOT NOTHING and the review didn’t make the website. So don’t sit here, and act like you solve customer problems, and tell people to calm down. People pay money for products that work! when it doesn’t they get pissed! Now you have my money and i have your broken camera, Fair???

    Abe’s word of advice!! I only bought this camera until I was out of contract for my cell phone! Cell Phone’s such as Android devices, and iPhones have much better capabilities, just as good of a lense and guess what warranties are much easier to get through your cellular provider. So I hope you don’t think this business will last much longer for you! It’s outdated! the point and shoot business is just about dead! So way to piss off customers, and make them not return to you for anything else! I will be posting this everywhere and maybe you’ll find what i write this time!! Thank you Google, and Thank you Apple!!

    1. Update:

       I was able to get in touch wish a Marketing Manager by the name of Sarah. I’m very pleased she was able to make the necessary arrangements. It appears there is hope after all. So i sent the camera back, and I’m awaiting a refund as this particular camera is back ordered. Upon receipt of my refund I will be very happy, and despite having to go through hoops may return to purchase again.

       Thanks to Sarah

       Joe

12. Purchased a new Nikon D90 on Tuesday on the website and received an email to call them concerning the order. I didn’t call (intended to) but they called me before I got a chance. Guy I spoke with asked me if I had any questions about the camera. Shortly thereafter he proceeded to try and upsell me on a battery, extended warranty, etc. Not a problem and I politely declined. He said that I should expect to receive the camera within 7-10 business days (which was the free S&H offer when I bought the camera).

    I actually received the camera today (3 days after my order). I’m happy and now a satisfied customer of Abe’s of Maine!

    I’ve read some negative things so I thought I should post my very positive experience with this company.

    Craig

13. Chalk up another bad experience with Abe’s…

    I orded a plasma TV, they had a good price and free shipping. After I order I get this sinking feeling I should have checked into them more, after some Googling around I get really nervous. So the next day I call “customer service” just to find out the status of my order. I give a woman my order number and she says “Oh ok, your on Larry’s desk, let me transfer you.” Larry, who referred to me as “dude” (real professional and confidence-inspiring on a high-ticket item, “bro”) goes into his sales pitch. I need cables.. I need an extended warranty.. blah blah blah, I decline. Now, the TV was advertised as coming with a FREE Wall Mount ($149.95 value!). Turns out you don’t get a free wall mount, you get a 149.95 CREDIT for a wall mount, and the wall mount he suggests is around $300. I decline, figuring they are just going to send an $80 dollar wall mount that I end up paying $150 bucks for (minus the $149.95 credit, of course :P )

    As expected he tries to sell me on upgraded shipping. Making it sound like if I go with the free shipping they are going to dump the TV on the side of the road. From reading around the internet, research tells me their free shipping and “White Glove” delivery service is one-in-the-same, so again I decline. He puts me on hold to talk to his “manager” and comes back with some more “great deals”. I emphatically state I just want the TV , and repeat my mantra of “I’ll take my chances” in regards to not having an extended warranty and not using upgraded shipping. I finally get off the phone. A couple hours later I get some badly-formatted email that is supposed to resemble an order confirmation.

    The next day I get an email from “Sean” who informs me that the TV is not actually in stock, and it won’t be in stock for another month. He offers me two choices: wait until they get it , at which point they will ship it via air for free, or cancel the order. I’ve had enough at this point, so I tell him to cancel the order. He replies back that he cancelled my order. All this was over the course of 3 days, and was a giant waste of time. I go to another site, suggested to me by people I trust, make my purchase and it is shipped the next day.

    Abe’s of Maine, like a bad STD (are there good ones?), won’t go away. I get an email that my TV has in-fact SHIPPED. How can this be? I was told that it wasn’t in stock, and I was told my order was cancelled. I email them back and tell them not to ship it because I will refuse delivery. I’m in California, so it’s too late to call them. So the stench of Abe’s will hang over my head for the weekend leaving me with a possible dilemma of having to send a TV back while my money is tied up in this mess.

    Please, if you are going to order any kind of electronics online, look elsewhere. No should EVER have to speak to a high-pressure salesmen just to place an order online. Abe’s of Maine is the complete opposite of what your shopping experience online should be. Abe’s of Maine is the “Jersey Shore” of the online retail world, dude.

14. listen i use to work there and to be honest mostly everything if defective.there is no returns on tvs what so ever. if you buy a 2 or 3 thousand dollar tv and you plug it in when u get home and it doesnt work you cant send it back they make you call sony or samsung who ever you got the tv from and fight with them about it. and yes the sales call they try to get you to add on all this bull crap that you dont need but see thats how they make comm they barely make anything off there cameras and tvs but they do on the add ons. best to go to best buy they price match with abes i got a friend who works there and he let me know. i wouldnt buy from them at all. there just a bounch of wana be jew mobsters over there honestly. tony is the biggest wana be call abes of maine you’ll see dont know how they stay around so long maybe all the jews buy from them

15. Wow… thanks for all that feedback… i live in Canada and noticed that Abe’s offered free shipping up here (which is unheard of!) so i was about to order a TV… if you guys are having trouble with cameras i shudder to think what might have happened had i gone through with my order… thanks so much for the info… you guys are life savers!

16. Obviously, it was more than two days from my post here that I ordered from Abe’s. Don’t know why I wrote two days, but I reordered from 17th Street Photo and they sent the camera out the same day.

    Joe

17. WOW! Looks like Abe’s hasn’t changed! They seemed reputable, so two days ago, I ordered a Panasonic ZS3 camera and a 16GB card. The next day, they called “To make sure my experience went well” and left me a message to call them back. I called and left a message, asking them to email me if there was a problem with my order. I then emailed the rep. back, and the emails were undeliverable. I emailed them using their information email and was ignored. Five days later, I noticed they had delayed sending out my order, so I called and cancelled. I got a bit nasty. They had wanted to sell me a faster card and a spare battery, both at double the price of the competition. I reordered off ebay, saved money and got the card and camera shipped out immediately. Abe’s will give you the hard sell and you will not save money buying from them. I recommend against buying their products.

    Joe

18. Wow…was going to order a D90 from Abe’s of Maine because they were cheaper, but have decided to go back to Cameta instead.

    Thanks for saving us some grief!!!

    Sincerely,
    RainyDayMagazine

19. This stuff happened to me a couple of years ago and I’ve since been astonished by the reputation Abe’s of Maine has online. They are aweful. Giving them your credit card no. is like handing your checkbook to a criminal on the street corner and hoping for the best. They “take your order”, then depending on how much more cash they can haggle out of you on the follow up call, they will either find the item you ordered (stolen,refurbished, whatever, but usually not in stock when you order it), or they will just never send you anything at all!. If you want your item or your money back, you have to go through the BBB and your bank etc. I actually got the follow up call and then was so turned off that I cancelled my order. They proceeded to charge my credit card hundreds of dollars anyway and when I called, the representative tried to offer me cash to keep the item and not return it. Once I got the item that I had canceled, I sent it back having photographed it and documented everything with my bank. Once the post office confirmed that Abes received it I got *some* of my money refunded. Then I had to go through my bank to get the rest of it put back. These people will literally steal your money, ignore your calls, lie to you, not send you the item you ordered (based on what I’ve read) and anything else you can think of. They are absolutely aweful. In fact, I got to know some of their names in this process and I can tell you that a lot of the positive reviews you see online are actually fake reviews put up by Abe’s employees. I am surprised these people are still in bus. I’d have thought based on everyone’s experiences that I’ve read, that they’d be gone by now…too bad.

20. I’m probably in the minority here but I’ve been dealing with Abes of Maine now for about 2 years, I’ve ordered both via the web and been to the retail store in Edison NJ and have had very positive experiences.

    Yes I was called back on each of the Internet orders (camera lenses) and I was asked to verify my address and then asked if I needed any filters, my response was “no thanks I have filters from other lenses that are the same size” and that was the end of the conversation.

    I purchased my Nikon D80 from them in the retail store and again I was asked if I needed any accesories or a warranty, I explained that this was replacing a D50 so all my old accesories would be compatible and again that was the end of conversation, no hard sell, nothing just have a nice day and that was it.

21. Just another GRRREAT experience with Abe’s of Maine. I have to admit I’ve heard of them and will NEVER purchase from them again. They pressured me into every accessory there was on the video camera I purchased, at least tried. i’ve used cameras before and I know what it good and bad and what cuts down on performance of the factory lens. That being said, the guy (Ted, salesman) is pushig me into purchasing a $29 lens to ‘protect” my camera lens. I purchased an Hd camera and would like to get as much quality out of it as possible, not degrade the OEM lens by putting junk glass or platic in front of it! Then the warranty sell, just like the author of this post..bad news. After Ted told me the BS benefits of the plan such as, they would stop out to my house and pick it up from me, he would not stop of selling it but sure came down in price by 40% in a hurry. I ended up rwith a warrantly plan for computer peripherals, NOT a video camera. I then called Repair Tech..they sent me back to Abe’s, that’s fine, not their fault. Once I get through to customer service, after 8 mins of hold, I am told that i should send it back in for an exchange. I lost it and told him NO, send the new one to me so I don’t miss the 30 day window of getting it registered with Repair Tech. CS Rep tell me don’t worry then will offer you an extension. I obviously raise my voice and ask him how he can speak for a company that he does not even work for. His answer is that they’ve been doing this for 10 years, they offer extensions all the time. Does this mean they have been attempting to shaft people over for 10 years and I’m lucky i caught it before I received the shaft? To go on, they CLAIM they are sending me out the new one and an RMA to send it back…as I requested earlier with him.

    Saved $15 for all of this on a $595 camera that I just should have purchased via Amazon like I do most other things. If it’s cheaper at Abe’s do yourself and favor, search these notable online dealers and pay the extra money! Amazon, NewEgg, Buy, BHPhotovideo (awesome for camera stuff), Overstock.

    We’ll see if I ever get that warranty and how many more times and minutes I will spend on the phone with Abe’s before I clear this up.

    More to come soon…hopefully.

22. Well, I haven’t finish reading all the complaint here, but I am 100 percent agreed with the first post as it describe the frustration I went through with their sale department today. If I wasn’t rush to get my thousand dollar camera I could have done more research before dealing with this company!

    At last, If I don’t see my order ship by tomorrow, I will definitely cancel my order. I hope Abes’ Maine hear this.

23. I have been trying to contact someone at your store concerning a DVD drive that I ordered three weeks ago. It still has not arrived. However, all I get is either voice mail that says all operators are helping other customers or voice mail that gives me office hours then says good by. And, yes, I am calling during office hours.

24. “It is interesting how these ‘positive reviews’ directly address all the complaints against you. And you are telling me you are not rigging the reviews?”

    Did anyone notice all the reviews up now out of the blue on both sites that praise Jason? Right after I say what a terrible guy he was. They must really take their customers for idiots, its pretty insulting if you ask me. Just one thing Abes, just like you spelling words wrong on your praise comments, you also have to watch your dates, how a comment from March is put ahead of an April comment on reseller rating is beyond me, but I guess you guys didn’t think your customers would ever notice the discrepancy. I’d go fix that now if I were you.

    And Bill, I completely agree with you and know that if I went into a place like say circuit city, they would say your going to need such and such, for your camera, my husband and I had a customer service rep from I think it was best buy help us with our purchase of a kodak easy share a while back he told us, the cameras going to need a memory card, which it did he then pointed us to the memory cards and gave us his recommendation, there really wasn’t any pressure, but if you look at Johns original post he states how he was pressured and lied to by Abes, as well as many others, I’ve read so many reviews that state that Abes tells them that the battery the camera comes with is a “demo” battery and that they need to upgrade which is a TOTAL lie, or them saying that the warranties are only 90 days (john can also vouch for that lie) its obvious if you take the time and research that Abe’s lies to get you to buy over inflated items that you don’t need in the first place.But Sarah said they are handling these salesmen immediately, how people with similar horror stories are still posting after all this time is beyond me…

25. The “call backs” sometimes serve a purpose. The intention motivating the calling is important to consider. A good company should be concerned, interested enough to sell a customer what that customer really wants and sometimes the buyer doesn’t fully understand what they’re purchasing or what they need – in the way of accessories – to make their purchase work properly or to their expectation. It’s a fine line – when to ask and when not to. Most companies I’ve dealt with want to build customer loyalty, not only because it’s the “right” thing to do, but because it’s the easiest way to build a repeat-customer base.

    I worked at Circuit City once and we were trained to “qualify” our customers, many of whom were – it was repeatedly deomonstrated – not fully-prepared for their purchases. People didn’t know that their purchase would work best or better or not at all unless they purchased certain accessories. We seriously wanted people to buy what they really wanted, what they needed – and we didn’t want them returning purchases because they later determined whatever it was they’d purchased didn’t meet their expectations. Returns are often sold at a discount and the seller earns less of a profit reselling the products. So I think there is justification for the further qualification of internet purchasers. A fine line, yes – between salesmen trying to truly assist a buyer and one who seeks to pile-on accessories (including extended warranties) because of spiffs or other higher-commission-paid accessories in situations where a buyer is uninterested.

26. You know, this ‘calling back to make sure’ is indeed an insult to every order placed online over the Internet. Gee, if everybody that I ordered something from online would call me back, I would not get off the phone all day. I ordered some vitamins yesterday, do you think they should make sure I got all the vitamins I need? Or the good people at Dell that I order a custom computer from – they certainly should call back as this is a delicate matter?

    And then you are telling me ‘you do not have access to your web site’. You are kidding me, right? How else would you update the product information?

    Finally, displaying the BBB logo without their permission is fraud.

    Bizrate.com may give you a smilie but I encourage everyone to read the reviews there – about half the customers gave you a thumbs down – Not sure how you can still wind up with a smilie but compare this for example to Beach Camera that also has a smilie with maybe one in 20 unhappy campers. (BTW – your Bizrate link is broken)

    In addition, to post ‘CNET certified’ or ‘ShopWiki’ is misleading. These are your affiliates.

    Resellerratings has some interesting info on you as well. I would encourage potential customers to have a look there. The first one to spot the bogus and real reviews gets a cookie. It is interesting how these ‘positive reviews’ directly address all the complaints against you. And you are telling me you are not rigging the reviews?

    Gee, I have written positive ratings before but here are some quotes:

    “Abe’s will be the first place I look next purchase.”
    “I love the store….Ever since I discovered it….I will now go there and buy certain things. Shipping prices are good and most of the time it may come a day early. Never a problem. I am a very Happy customer and will continue to shop with Abes and I will tell my friends & family” (Ok, which ‘certain things?’)
    “You can be sure that I will choose Abe’s for shopping online”
    “The delivery is way too quick. ” (Really? How quick is too quick?)
    “My order was taken quickly, and there were no pressure tactics to buy accessories for the camera.” (Why would there be pressure tactics?)

    Sounds like a commercial!

    Ok, enough of that. I’d suggest to the guy that writes these reviews for you that ‘definitely’ is spelled ‘definitely’ and not ‘definately’. He/she keeps getting it wrong.

    You guys are scammers with methods that are outrageous. Considering that some of the gear (take the XH-A1) is hardly cheaper than a certified reseller with a factory warranty, I cannot possibly imagine why someone would fall for you.

27. An incubation period of 8 years? Ive never heard of such a thing according to the bbb report you guys have been moved since 2000 you say 2006 but even a 2 year incubation seems like a long time, excuse me if I’m wrong, I get that you cant reply to every person but you keep replying to everything I say…within minutes of me writing anything again I ask why not Rolf? Theres no need for me to email you , I have nothing that needs to be solved privately,I am publicly asking for an explanation of things that I am finding out about your business, I’m sure people want to know the explanation, and with you wanting to uphold the name of the company you proudly work for you should have no problem defending them publicly.You brought up the BBB did you not?

    The thing about you guys calling to “make sure” the customer hasn’t missed anything is incredibly flawed.First off when someone places their order online and choose expedited shipping you guys don’t even process the order until you “call to make sure”, but theres a reason why people get expedited shipping, they need there stuff! they don’t want their order sat on and wait for you guys to call to “make sure”, and then theres the fact that the consumer isn’t stupid. I know, I know the camera I choose to buy doesn’t come with a memory card or an extended warranty, I don’t need a salesman to come “make sure” I know this. Not to mention the practice of calling after an order is made is KNOWN to be what shady businesses do to try to upsale you, so why on earth would you want to do something that is tied to such terrible business practices? The back and forth will continue on my end because I want people to know the answers to these questions, as well as me wanting answers, because the thought of you guys continuing to do this to people sickens me. I want to believe that you guys are a good business and that my experience was a once in a blue moon occurrence but its not looking that way Sarah, people keep coming with new stories very similar to mine only worse I think, people like Jason are still working with your business… so I have a hard time believing you guys are on the up and up and trying to fix things.

28. best buy doesnt call you to ask if you want to add things you may have missed. We do. We do not condone lying or depcetion to do so.
    I am not in the position to defend every attack made here. i am just tryign to balance things out. I am also giving John P’s Readers an opportunity to contact me if nessesary. I dont want to continue this back and forth. I am sure there are MANY reviews, both bad and good you can find.

    We are Listed in the BBB- we are not members, because there is an Incubation period after we moved to NY. We did not have acess to our website and the BBB logo was displayed incorrectly. The “pattern” of complaints that the BB is referencing are all over 1 yr old. The amount of complaints, compared to the Volume of business we do, is far. The fact that most, if not all of the complaints made via the BBB are resolved ASAP once again proves that we DO CARE. Again, i IMPLORE you to look up Don Wiss’s Images of our CLOSED brooklyn store front.

    The Discounts given BY ME are generally at a loss for the company. but i do it to satisfy customers. i have permission from the managers to do so when the situation warrants it.
    We Contact the customer to see if they forgot to order an extra battery or a case. We do not seel you things that already come with the camera. that is a tactic of the Shadier/Bait and Switch Companies out there. our policy is not high pressure, and we do try and train our employees as such.

    In addition. We have been in business for over 30 years. We do sell our products at low prices, but we do not lose money on every sale. we have opened MANY new departments in the last year, with None of the stigma that “mail order cameras” have had in the past.

    Unhappy mother, I am doing my best to give you any information you need, but this back and forth is best suited for email, Not Blog comments. The blog is well aware of your situation and the others that have posted before you. if you have any Questions, Or want to discuss this further, email me.

    Sarah M.

29. Exactly Rolf and look what I found on the web about the BBB since you said I should look it up.

    Name: Abe’s Electronics Center, Inc.
    Phone: (732) 225-1777
    Fax: (732) 379-5026
    Address: 5 Fernwood Avenue
    Edison, NJ 08837
    Website: http://www.abesofmaine.com
    Original Business Start Date: January 1979
    Local Start Date: October 2000
    Principal: Mr. Abe Mosseri, President
    Customer Contact: Mr. Abe Mosseri, President – (732) 225-1777
    TOB Classification: Electronic Equipment & Supplies-Dealers
    BBB Accreditation: This organization is not a BBB Accredited business.

    Additional DBA Names
    Abe’s of Maine

    Customer Experience
    Based on BBB files, this company has an unsatisfactory record with the BBB due to a pattern of complaints and has failed to correct the underlying reason for the complaints.

    The current search results for ‘abesofmaine.com’ with the BBB only shows two results. The above file in Edison, NJ and the original file in MA which states,
    Mail sent to the company on 12/23/2005 was returned by the U.S. Postal Service as Undeliverable as Addressed.

    The address once listed by the BBB for ‘Abe’s of Maine’ in NY no longer appears in the reports or the record searches.

    However, Whitepages.com still shows a business there,
    Family Photo & Video
    1959 Coney Island Ave
    Brooklyn, NY 11223-2328
    (718) 645-1298
    Company:
    Family Photo & Video

    This address at ‘1957 Coney Island Ave. Brooklyn, NY’ no longer appears in the BBB records as I stated above. So per BBB records these two businesses, ‘Abe’s of Maine’ and ‘Family Photo & Video’ do not appear to be affiliated.

    Care to explain Sarah? Thats an old finding , I found nothing with the BBB New jersey site for any Abes of Maine today.I’m trying to give you the benefit of the doubt I really am thats why I’m doing my research. So can you explain this and explain why you guys do up sales? Many people report being tricked into buying “extras” that the camera already comes with or warranties that are crocks, I cant say whether or not this is true its just what I’ve been reading,I can vouch for the up sales though.Hey you gave someone here 250 off the things he was up sold, but how can you possibly take that much money off of those items unless the prices on these items are already incredibly inflated? How can you guys afford to take such a hit and be able to continue to sell items so much cheaper than any reputable company,it just doesn’t add up Sarah,I’m sorry it just doesn’t and why aren’t you responding to Rolf? He seems to know his stuff yet keeps being ignored.

30. Puleease…

    Best Buy and/or Circuit City *never*, *ever* call you back after an online order to peddle other gear.

31. Thank you For your input maam. I appreciate it. I have forwarded every complaint and these issues ARE being addressed. I am not trying to silence you OR this blog. And I work Every day on customer policy/salesman training/personnel managment.

    As for your “false Billing” problem. We Used to be in NY. our invoices still read NY. But look up the BBB, In fact, Don Wiss has a photo of our now closed storefront On coney Island Abe. our offices are in Edison, NJ.

    You had an unfortunate experience. i am not denying that. however at this point, it is resolved. You have admitted that yourself. I am not trying to be rude, but i am trying to Balance out this situation. if your problem was not resolved, i understand your anger. At this point. Its taken care of. And you have more than “alerted” people of your ideal.

    I want to Reiterate again- that Your issue was resolved. As were many of the people i have spoken to.

    In addition. Paying people to post positive reviews is Completely Illegal and fraudulent. Abe’s of Maine does NOT utilise such practices.

    Just on a side note, have you looked up reviews on best Buy or Circuit City? “The Squeaky Wheel gets the Grease.” Not to say that We are any better or worse, but taking into account the sheer volume of orders placed, it is Understanable to have a few customer service complaints. It should be read and taken as a BALANCED account of a company.

    Thank you,
    Sarah M.

32. I have to apologize for saying I was being blocked,it must have been something I was writing rather than some mysterious reason, I was suspicious of. I do apologize for that.

33. I’am being blocked Sarah,the only way I’m getting through is putting up different email addresses and this is what I originally intended to write to you:

    Why would I be trying so hard to get the truth out there if I’m lying? For the fun of it? I’m a mother and wife I have better things to do with my time. I don’t want this to happen to anyone else. My response wasn’t angry in any way shape or form so whats up with the “please ma’am calm down?”I’m not angry my bank account was refunded and my cc canceled because your manager Jason said he would re charge it if I called you guys again.Yes I did call you guys a lot of times I also know others that called. They did so because they saw me crying and upset that I was given the run around by you guys.When I called to ask why I received a shipment email after a cancellation email I was told “thats not my problem I’ll transfer you”I was then put on hold for 5 mins plus and then mysteriously disconnected 3 times in a row! only after people called asking why you would do this to a one income family on a budget by numerous people did you connect me to someone. The person I talked to called me slow for calling and told me “you must really need this money” in a very condescending tone. But why am I telling you this Sarah? You already know since you heard all the conversations right? I don’t get how you could be anything but apologetic to me after hearing the phone conversations,and the thing said about satisfied customers don’t bother to leave good reviews…look up reviews for b&h, people leave good reviews, I know I do.They also leave bad reviews,I completely agree no business is going to have 100% good reviews but your lifetime rating on resellerrating.com is at a 6…and the address thing…oh boy don’t get me started on the address thing… you are either in Brooklyn or you gave me a fraudulent cancellation email with this address —

    Abes of Maine
    1957-61 Coney Island Avenue
    Brooklyn, N.Y. 11223

    Which one is it? because both are bad, which are you going to fess up to?… there are hundreds out there Sarah, that would love to be able to talk to you, why are you here on me? you want to fix customer service help at least ONE of the hundreds of people that said you defrauded them. ONE just ONE. Look up Abes of maine complaints Sarah, there are people out thousand because they were sold broken TV’s,not just one either I’ve read at LEAST 30 stories about this happening, help them, don’t you feel bad for them? I know I do.

    Dont worry about me, ,I wont agree with you,go help the people out there that want some customer service that want their money back after they say they were swindled help the people on resellerrating.com just click on the low button you’ll get lots of people that would love to hear from you Sarah. Please thats all I ask of you help the people who I’ve read about that have lost thousands after being sold broken tv’s and other electronics or tricked by your company’s upsales,help them, wouldn’t you much rather make sure your past customers are satisfied rather than making sure your future customers don’t believe me? I would certainly hope so,I mean you claim to be a good upstanding business.Why are they not being helped?

    UPDATED: I tried weeks and weeks ago to post this to no avail,now I’m using different emails to get through, because I am mysteriously being blocked. I am not making personal attacks at you and I’m sorry if it came off that way,I don’t know you so I wouldn’t do that, I’ am responding to your false claims…the two are different.I don’t know why you keep saying I’m attacking you because that is the farthest thing from the truth I just cant stand the thought of someone reading this and believing you and then in turn having to deal with the customer service at Abes. The people here are being helped, because this blog comes up the first page if you look up abes of maine, so this blog has to stay in good standing, thats the only reason why your helping these people. Why haven’t the other people that are rude been fired yet Sarah, you said that was being taken care of. I got a call from you guys to “settle” the dispute I made against you with the bbb when I was going through a situation EXACTLY like Bills, when I called back I got none other than Jason and he was rude as ever, listen to the phone call Sarah. Why are these people not being fired for what there doing? If you listened to the conversations you would know that he was demeaning to me and cursed and everything, why is he not out of a job? I know any reputable company trying to clean up their act trying to get rid of such shady characters would be quick to fire someone like that, yet hes answering customer service calls? Doesn’t make sense to me.

    And yes everyone my dispute has been solved, but I keep coming back because of the hell I went through, because of the hell others have and are still going through.Its not illegal or wrong to alert people of what I had to go through.

34. Note that a large number of blogs are maintained by these Crooklyn stores which are completely bogus and post bogus feedback. They apparently send one of their employees off for a day doing nothing but posting comments.

    There are a few ways to check whether a blog is bogus:

    a.) Do an Internet search on it. Most of these blogs have been exposed as what they are, namely a scam. I would not be surprised if Abe’s participated in thsi scheme to offset the real blogs.
    b.) Post a negative comment (you can always correct it afterwards) to one of these blogs and check whether it shows up. In general the bogus blogs do simply not accept negative reviews (or no reviews at all).
    c.) Check for spelling errors in the blogs. If the Crooklyn shops send someone off to post these comments it is one person posting hundreds of reviews. That person will make the same spelling error again and again and again. Or refer to a camera model with an incorrect name (Canon XL3S or so).

    Do not trust a blog which has only good reviews.

35. After submitting my comments here to this website I sent a copy of the same to Sarah at Abes of Maine and Sarah responded with lightening-fast speed that though she was unfamiliar with my situation she’d look-into the matter and then, just as quickly, she advised me in another email soon afterwards that my account would be credited for the charge for the merchandise.

    I received, also, an email from someone in the company’s Customer Service department that my credit card account would be credited once the camera was returned to Abes of Maine via UPS.

    All of this could easily have been avoided.

    I’m aware that the company sells at a high-volume and when I’ve checked customer feedback on various websites it’s mostly complimentary. My one prior involvement was satisfactory – 5 or 6 years ago. The lesser number of complaints, though, shouldn’t be dismissed (not saying they are) and the company needs to intensify its efforts to correct operational deficiencies.

    Thank you.

36. Unhappy mother,
    Clearly you are not being “blocked” as you have just posted. We have Resolved your issue And then some, and yet you have continued to personally attack me and my supervisors.

    Bill,
    Thank you for giving me an opportinuty to speak with you yesterday. By the time your post appeared, your Refund has already posted, as per my email to you. I appreciate You giving me the opportunity to resolve the matter for you.

    Sarah
    [email protected]

37. Bill the exact same thing happened to me, now I’m being blocked from responding to this blog, I’m going to keep trying-maybe with a diff email address, I am just so glad that your story is EXACTLY LIKE MINE,because it proves that I’m not lying these people are liars and cheats and need to be stopped!

38. i am so glad i purchased my camera @ Amazon after hearing this …i was planning on buying it through Abe’s until i found this blog. hearing this stuff sickens me. Bill, you should order the D40 through Amazon…they have a great price on it right now and it has free shipping. i received the camera smoothly 3 days after i placed the order. thanks for sharing your experience with us all…every little bit of information helps.

39. If this is a duplicate post by me, my apologies. I thought I added the comment once, but don’t see it appearing – even after “refreshing.”, so here goes one more time:

    I purchased an expensive camera from Abes of Maine five or more years ago and the experience was a good one. So when I was in the market, recently, for another camera and after checking prices I noted that Abes of Maine had the product – a Nikon D40 with 2 lenses – at an excellent price, once again, I placed an order totalling approx. $660 – on Friday, April 25 at approximately 3:30 p.m., via the internet (company website). I specified 2-3 Business Days shipping.

    Shortly after placing the order I received an email verifying that the order had been submitted, and Order Number B1178143 was assigned.

    The company website provides an explanation of various process it follows after an order is received, one of which states in part:

    “Order Acceptance and Limitations” Any order confirmation given to you through Abes of Maine does not signify yur acceptance of your order, nor does it constitute confirmation of an offer to sell. Abes of Maine reserves the right to decline and cancel an order, or supply less than quantity ordered at any time.”

    The weekend passed, and Monday passed – and I heard nothing further from Abes of Maine. I went to the company’s website and accessed the “Track Order” feature, typed-in my order number, and the screen was blank. Curious to see if my order had been fulfilled, my credit card account charged and the merchandise shipped – I telephoned my credit card company to see what its records reflected. No charge had yet been made against my account for the merchandise, indicating to me the order had not been processed. I advised the credit card company that I was going to cancel the order and that any charge against my account by Abes of Maine would be contested and a note was made to my account record.

    I then, right there and then, at approx. 12:40 a.m. April 29, 2008, sent an email to the company, at [email protected] which read:

    “To Whom It May Concern: Since you have not confirmed acceptance of nor the shipping of my order placed Friday, April 25, 2008, I hereby withdraw my offer to purchase. Further processing of the order by you will not be accepted by nor paid for by me and any such attempt shall be considered a fraudulent act.” I received no response to this email and I considered the matter closed, the order cancelled.

    At 12:30 p.m. CDT, Tuesday, April 29, 2008 I received a telephone call from Mr. Doug Johnson of Abes of Maine. I was away from my desk when the call came into my office and Mr. Johnson left a voice-mail message:

    “Bill, how are you, this is Doug at Abes of Maine. I just needed to double check something on an order. If you can call me back at (800) 227-0400 at extension 205. Again, it’s Doug at extension 205.”

    At approx. 4 p.m. the same day I received via email the following note from Mr. Johnson:

    “Dear valued customer,

    We thank you for placing an order with our company, Abes of Maine. We just need to confirm some additional information. Please call me at 1-800-227-0400 or 1-732-225-1777 ext. 205.

    Thank You,
    Doug Johnson”

    At approx. 5 p.m. the same day, in response to Mr. Johnson’s telephone call and email message, I sent the following email message to him:

    “Doug, I’m on the run this afternoon. Receied your telephone message, and the email. Thanks for the contact. My earlier email canceled that order, since it had not been acknowledged or shipped. I don’t need anything else.”

    I received no response to this email.

    On Wednesday morning, April 30, 2008 at approx. 9:15 a.m. CDT, I received, at my office, a telephone call from a woman identifying herself as an Abes of Maine employee in the shipping or billing department. The woman said that she was calling to confirm my shipping address, the address to which the order was to be delivered. I explained to the woman that I’d cancelled the order via email due to lack of acceptance/response from the company and that I’d confirmed that cancellation in a separate email to Mr. Johnson. I urged the woman not to allow the package to be shipped, because I would not accept it.

    Concerned that my cancellation was being ignored, I telephoned Mr. Johnson at the number he provided. He asked me to hold a minute while he located my information. He said he needed to confirm something about my order before it was shipped. I explained that I had sent two emails cancelling the order. He said he remembered getting one email from me. I explained I did not want the merchandise and that the company had not confirmed acceptance of the order nor if and when it would be shipped.

    Mr. Johnson said he sensed I was angry. He explained that the company’s computer servers were “down”, or had some other problem, at the end of the prior week, the week I’d placed my order. Not all of the necessary information was being distributed by the server so that orders could be processed. Everything had been worked-out, though, and working fine. He said business was interrupted because of the computer server problem. He also commented that the Passover holiday probably interferred with the ordering process.

    I stated to Mr. Johnson that I recognized how those problems could interfere, but that I had cancelled the order. He said he didn’t know if the order’s shipment could be stopped. He said he’d aready ordered expidited shipment to the merchandise would get to me quickly. I again urged him to stop the shipment because 1) I’d cancelled the order prior to that point, 2) I would not acccept the order and 3) I’d notified my credit card company I’d be disputing any charges against my account for this merchandise.

    Mr. Johnson then repeated that he knew I was angry, and said he understood. He asked if I’d purchased the same merchandise from someone else, after I’d cancelled the order with Abes of Maine. I said, no, I hadn’t. He then said he’d like to “make it up to me”, do something for my inconvenience, and offered to reduce the price of my purchase by $75.00. I replied that it was a generous offer but that I didn’t want to purchase anything from Abes of Maine at this time. I’d cancelled the order and didn’t want the merchandise shipped. He then told me to remember, for the future, I could have a $75.00 reduction in the cost of my order. And I again asked him not to send the merchandise.

    That’s how the matter stood at the end of the conversation.

    At 11:30 a.m. I received an email from Abes of Maine which included an invoice for the camera order I’d cancelled and had just talked to the two Abes of Maine employees about. The invoice, however, listed a new order number, P95472. My credit card account had been charged for the purchase. I was furious that my emails and telephone conversations had been ignored and that the company had processed the order fraudulently I believe.

    I immediately telephoned my credit card company to verify that a charge had been made against my account, and the company confirmed it.

    At approx. 11:45 a.m. CDT I sent the following email to Abes of Maine (and a copy to Mr. Johnson):

    “To Whom It May Concern:

    The order and shipping confirmation which appears below is erroneously sent and I request that you correct your records and stop the shipment. At approximately 9:15 a.m. this date someone from your billing department telephoned me at my office to verify/confirm the shipping address and I informed her that since the order had not been confirmed and shipped in a timely fashion I had canceled it 121:38 a.m. CDT April 29, 2008.

    I also communicated this cancellation to Mr. Doug Johnson in an email at 4:40 p.m. CDT April 29, 2008, and in a telephone conversation with him this morning at approximately 9:30 a.m. CDT.

    In each of today’s telephone communications I asked representatives of Abes of Maine not to ship the merchandise and that if it was shipped I would not accept it and that I would dispute any charge against my credit card account.

    To save your company the expense of outbound and return shipping I suggest you catch this order before it leaves your warehouse/shipping center. I also request that you process a credit for any charge against my credit card account

    If you have any questions please telephone me at: xxx ”

    I received no response to this email.

    At approx. 5:50 p.m. CDT I received an email notice from UPS that Abes of Maine was shipping a package to me – the merchandise order I’d cancelled and had spoken to Abes of Maine in person about and about which I’d sent the earlier in the day email asking the company not to do.

    At approx. 7:00 CDT I received an email from the Abes of Maine shipping department, confirming the shipment of the cancelled order:

    “Dear XXX , Great news! Your order from Abes Of Maine has been shipped on 04/30/2008 . The tracking number of your package is XXX. You may check the status of your shipment by clicking on the following: http://www.ups.com/tracking/tracking.html The address we shipped to is: XXX Order Number: P95472 At Abes Of Maine we keep one thing in mind – enabling you and all our customers to buy products better – that means offering you top brands, low prices, and outstanding service. Once again, thank you for your order. We look forward to earning your business as we set out to be your top source for shopping on the Internet. Sincerely, Abes Of Maine Please do not Reply to this Email.”

    I had a look at the UPS tracking file for the merchandise and it indicates the package was picked-up at ABes of Maine at it’s Edison, NJ facility at 6:48 p.m. EDT., well after the times I reconfirmed with company personnel that the order was cancelled and in which conversations I advised the company, multiple times, not to ship the merchandise and that I’d not accept it if it did.

    Today, May 1, at approx, 10:30 a.m. CDT, UPS attempted to deliver the merchandise and delivery was refused. I neither saw or touched the package and it’s on its way back to Abes of Maine.

    All of this game-playing by Abes of Maine could have been easily avoided. For whatever reason, the company did not accept and process my offer to purchase in a timely manner. I understand that things happen in business which cause the various components of an organization to let-down a customer. My cancellation was appropriately submitted but ignored and there, I believe, has been a fraudulent attempt to steal money from me in the form of that charge against my credit card account. I’ve no doubt my credit card company will honor my dispute claim, but that’ll have to wait for several months while the company “investigates.”

    Abes of Maine acknowledged to me it had problems and the order fulfillment wasn’t made before the cancellation. The charge against my credit card account should be reversed to reflect a $0 balance owed to Abes of Maine.

    There seems to be strong indication that company employees are engaging in a pattern of fraudulent activities, in various operational areas. Such behavior, I believe, probably constitutes multiple violations of federal and state law. I was willing to walk-away from the matter with no further action on my part – until the deceptive actions of Abes of Maine were put into high-gear.

    If this matter is not resolved satisfactorily in my favor – and I’m asking for nothing from Abes of Maine more than the crediting of my account for the improper charges placed against it – I will do my best to organize activities targeting the company in the arena of consumer fraud and law enforcement agencies not just in the state of New Jersey, but in the states to which Abes of Maine ships products.

    This is a company with which I recognize many people have had a pleasant relationship, the same pleasant relationship I enjoyed with a prior purchase. I expect the company to act swiftly to right the wrong it’s committed.

    Bill

40. I purchased an expensive camera from Abes of Maine five or more years ago and the experience was a good one. So when I was in the market, recently, for another camera and after checking prices I noted that Abes of Maine had the product – a Nikon D40 with 2 lenses – at an excellent price, once again, I placed an order totalling approx. $660 – on Friday, April 25 at approximately 3:30 p.m., via the internet (company website). I specified 2-3 Business Days shipping.

    Shortly after placing the order I received an email verifying that the order had been submitted, and Order Number B1178143 was assigned.

    The company website provides an explanation of various process it follows after an order is received, one of which states in part:

    “Order Acceptance and Limitations” Any order confirmation given to you through Abes of Maine does not signify yur acceptance of your order, nor does it constitute confirmation of an offer to sell. Abes of Maine reserves the right to decline and cancel an order, or supply less than quantity ordered at any time.”

    The weekend passed, and Monday passed – and I heard nothing further from Abes of Maine. I went to the company’s website and accessed the “Track Order” feature, typed-in my order number, and the screen was blank. Curious to see if my order had been fulfilled, my credit card account charged and the merchandise shipped – I telephoned my credit card company to see what its records reflected. No charge had yet been made against my account for the merchandise, indicating to me the order had not been processed. I advised the credit card company that I was going to cancel the order and that any charge against my account by Abes of Maine would be contested and a note was made to my account record.

    I then, right there and then, at approx. 12:40 a.m. April 29, 2008, sent an email to the company, at [email protected] which read:

    “To Whom It May Concern: Since you have not confirmed acceptance of nor the shipping of my order placed Friday, April 25, 2008, I hereby withdraw my offer to purchase. Further processing of the order by you will not be accepted by nor paid for by me and any such attempt shall be considered a fraudulent act.” I received no response to this email and I considered the matter closed, the order cancelled.

    At 12:30 p.m. CDT, Tuesday, April 29, 2008 I received a telephone call from Mr. Doug Johnson of Abes of Maine. I was away from my desk when the call came into my office and Mr. Johnson left a voice-mail message:

    “Bill, how are you, this is Doug at Abes of Maine. I just needed to double check something on an order. If you can call me back at (800) 227-0400 at extension 205. Again, it’s Doug at extension 205.”

    At approx. 4 p.m. the same day I received via email the following note from Mr. Johnson:

    “Dear valued customer,

    We thank you for placing an order with our company, Abes of Maine. We just need to confirm some additional information. Please call me at 1-800-227-0400 or 1-732-225-1777 ext. 205.

    Thank You,
    Doug Johnson”

    At approx. 5 p.m. the same day, in response to Mr. Johnson’s telephone call and email message, I sent the following email message to him:

    “Doug, I’m on the run this afternoon. Receied your telephone message, and the email. Thanks for the contact. My earlier email canceled that order, since it had not been acknowledged or shipped. I don’t need anything else.”

    I received no response to this email.

    On Wednesday morning, April 30, 2008 at approx. 9:15 a.m. CDT, I received, at my office, a telephone call from a woman identifying herself as an Abes of Maine employee in the shipping or billing department. The woman said that she was calling to confirm my shipping address, the address to which the order was to be delivered. I explained to the woman that I’d cancelled the order via email due to lack of acceptance/response from the company and that I’d confirmed that cancellation in a separate email to Mr. Johnson. I urged the woman not to allow the package to be shipped, because I would not accept it.

    Concerned that my cancellation was being ignored, I telephoned Mr. Johnson at the number he provided. He asked me to hold a minute while he located my information. He said he needed to confirm something about my order before it was shipped. I explained that I had sent two emails cancelling the order. He said he remembered getting one email from me. I explained I did not want the merchandise and that the company had not confirmed acceptance of the order nor if and when it would be shipped.

    Mr. Johnson said he sensed I was angry. He explained that the company’s computer servers were “down”, or had some other problem, at the end of the prior week, the week I’d placed my order. Not all of the necessary information was being distributed by the server so that orders could be processed. Everything had been worked-out, though, and working fine. He said business was interrupted because of the computer server problem. He also commented that the Passover holiday probably interferred with the ordering process.

    I stated to Mr. Johnson that I recognized how those problems could interfere, but that I had cancelled the order. He said he didn’t know if the order’s shipment could be stopped. He said he’d aready ordered expidited shipment to the merchandise would get to me quickly. I again urged him to stop the shipment because 1) I’d cancelled the order prior to that point, 2) I would not acccept the order and 3) I’d notified my credit card company I’d be disputing any charges against my account for this merchandise.

    Mr. Johnson then repeated that he knew I was angry, and said he understood. He asked if I’d purchased the same merchandise from someone else, after I’d cancelled the order with Abes of Maine. I said, no, I hadn’t. He then said he’d like to “make it up to me”, do something for my inconvenience, and offered to reduce the price of my purchase by $75.00. I replied that it was a generous offer but that I didn’t want to purchase anything from Abes of Maine at this time. I’d cancelled the order and didn’t want the merchandise shipped. He then told me to remember, for the future, I could have a $75.00 reduction in the cost of my order. And I again asked him not to send the merchandise.

    That’s how the matter stood at the end of the conversation.

    At 11:30 a.m. I received an email from Abes of Maine which included an invoice for the camera order I’d cancelled and had just talked to the two Abes of Maine employees about. The invoice, however, listed a new order number, P95472. My credit card account had been charged for the purchase. I was furious that my emails and telephone conversations had been ignored and that the company had processed the order fraudulently I believe.

    I immediately telephoned my credit card company to verify that a charge had been made against my account, and the company confirmed it.

    At approx. 11:45 a.m. CDT I sent the following email to Abes of Maine (and a copy to Mr. Johnson):

    “To Whom It May Concern:

    The order and shipping confirmation which appears below is erroneously sent and I request that you correct your records and stop the shipment. At approximately 9:15 a.m. this date someone from your billing department telephoned me at my office to verify/confirm the shipping address and I informed her that since the order had not been confirmed and shipped in a timely fashion I had canceled it 121:38 a.m. CDT April 29, 2008.

    I also communicated this cancellation to Mr. Doug Johnson in an email at 4:40 p.m. CDT April 29, 2008, and in a telephone conversation with him this morning at approximately 9:30 a.m. CDT.

    In each of today’s telephone communications I asked representatives of Abes of Maine not to ship the merchandise and that if it was shipped I would not accept it and that I would dispute any charge against my credit card account.

    To save your company the expense of outbound and return shipping I suggest you catch this order before it leaves your warehouse/shipping center. I also request that you process a credit for any charge against my credit card account

    If you have any questions please telephone me at: xxx ”

    I received no response to this email.

    At approx. 5:50 p.m. CDT I received an email notice from UPS that Abes of Maine was shipping a package to me – the merchandise order I’d cancelled and had spoken to Abes of Maine in person about and about which I’d sent the earlier in the day email asking the company not to do.

    At approx. 7:00 CDT I received an email from the Abes of Maine shipping department, confirming the shipment of the cancelled order:

    “Dear XXX , Great news! Your order from Abes Of Maine has been shipped on 04/30/2008 . The tracking number of your package is XXX. You may check the status of your shipment by clicking on the following: http://www.ups.com/tracking/tracking.html The address we shipped to is: XXX Order Number: P95472 At Abes Of Maine we keep one thing in mind – enabling you and all our customers to buy products better – that means offering you top brands, low prices, and outstanding service. Once again, thank you for your order. We look forward to earning your business as we set out to be your top source for shopping on the Internet. Sincerely, Abes Of Maine Please do not Reply to this Email.”

    I had a look at the UPS tracking file for the merchandise and it indicates the package was picked-up at ABes of Maine at it’s Edison, NJ facility at 6:48 p.m. EDT., well after the times I reconfirmed with company personnel that the order was cancelled and in which conversations I advised the company, multiple times, not to ship the merchandise and that I’d not accept it if it did.

    Today, May 1, at approx, 10:30 a.m. CDT, UPS attempted to deliver the merchandise and delivery was refused. I neither saw or touched the package and it’s on its way back to Abes of Maine.

    All of this game-playing by Abes of Maine could have been easily avoided. For whatever reason, the company did not accept and process my offer to purchase in a timely manner. I understand that things happen in business which cause the various components of an organization to let-down a customer. My cancellation was appropriately submitted but ignored and there, I believe, has been a fraudulent attempt to steal money from me in the form of that charge against my credit card account. I’ve no doubt my credit card company will honor my dispute claim, but that’ll have to wait for several months while the company “investigates.”

    Abes of Maine acknowledged to me it had problems and the order fulfillment wasn’t made before the cancellation. The charge against my credit card account should be reversed to reflect a $0 balance owed to Abes of Maine.

    There seems to be strong indication that company employees are engaging in a pattern of fraudulent activities, in various operational areas. Such behavior, I believe, probably constitutes multiple violations of federal and state law. I was willing to walk-away from the matter with no further action on my part – until the deceptive actions of Abes of Maine were put into high-gear.

    If this matter is not resolved satisfactorily in my favor – and I’m asking for nothing from Abes of Maine more than the crediting of my account for the improper charges placed against it – I will do my best to organize activities targeting the company in the arena of consumer fraud and law enforcement agencies not just in the state of New Jersey, but in the states to which Abes of Maine ships products.

    This is a company with which I recognize many people have had a pleasant relationship, the same pleasant relationship I enjoyed with a prior purchase. I expect the company to act swiftly to right the wrong it’s committed.

    Bill

41. Problem was settled, at least some people in the company knows haw to deal with clients and can explain everything.

    Thank you.

42. Please read it again. With the customers I Deal with PERSONALLY. i do not stop untill the customer is Satisfied. Of course the company itself has its problems, and there will always be misunderstandings that lead to customer dissatisfaction. but i pride myself in making sure that everyone i talk to is happy. So yes, I personally have a 100% satisfaction rate.

    Sarah
    [email protected]

43. Wow. 100% customer satisfaction. That statement alone would suggest to me that you are being dishonest.

    What do you base this outrageous claim on? There isn’t a company in the world with 100% customer satisfaction.

44. Im sorry you feel that way. However I can assure you that I have a track record of 100% customer satisfaction With every customer i deal with personally. I am Being genuine and Sincere.

45. Dear valued Customer,

    I apologize that You experienced this. thank you for the information. As i have said before, this is not our practice, and situations like this are dealt with IMMEDIATELY. I spoke to Robby specifically concerning this incident. In addition, i have forwarded your complaint to my managers, who have assured me that Robby will be Admonished by managment and is on his “last legs” here at Abe’s of Maine. He is a new salesman and was not familiar with our proceedures. I would like to rectify your specific situation, however and i do not have enough order information to do so. Would you like to email me so that i can fix this for you?

    Regards,
    Sarah M
    [email protected]

46. I got all the above, but in my case it gets even worse.
    here is email I’ve got:

    Dear Valued Customer:
    Thank you for your recent on-line order with Abe’s Of Maine . We appreciate your business!

    We need to confirm some of the information on your order. Please call us at 1-800-992-2237 ext. 245. For your security, please also provide us with the confirmation order number that was provided to you.

    We look forward to hearing from you.
    Sincerely,

    Robby L.
    Abe’s of Maine

    well I call.

    I’m Canadian customer so first “GOOD” news is shipping to Canada $40, not free as advertise. well I guess OK, what else I can do. (1 m)
    next then EXTRA battery for extra price. No thank you. (3 min)
    next starter kit. No thank you. (5min)
    extra warranty No thank you. (4min)
    and so on….

    So I’ve got conformation of the order right away and conformation of payment in two days.

    After a week I didn’t get any shipment conformation, so I start getting worry. I email my “hero” SR Robby L. I didn’t get any reply by get many back to my Visa account minus conversion rate to CAN $40.

    So, I call Robby L. Robby took the phone and 1 second after I told him order number he send it’s not and the system and send me to customer service. After 20 min being on hold I just drop it.

    People don’t deal with this store you’ll lose more then you save.

47. Yea. Everytime I place an online order, all I want is to order the product with least human interaction as possible. But with Abes, they will confirm call and try to sell you the kitchen sink.

48. man. after reading this blog, i am definitely not going to be making a camera purchase through Abes of Maine and will let everyone i know what poor customer service they provide. The $100 that I would have saved by buying my camera through their store is not worth the gamble of dealing with their customer service. sure, some people have positive results, but all it takes it a few bad seeds working there to smear their name. i don’t want the headache of having “Sarah” try to make it bad situation right. thank you for this blog!

49. I was contacted by Sarah today by e-mail and phone. She stated she was autorized to give me an additional discount of $250 on the added items (the extended warrenty, wall mount, 12 ft Video cable, and the alleged shipping upgrade). Since I will likely need and use these additional items, I accepted the offer. I will let you know how it goes. Sarah also indicated she would listen to the recording of the sales call and take appropriate action on the matter with regard to the salesperson. Thanks to Sarah for getting back to me with an acceptable solution and not wasting my valuable time. I will let y’all know how it goes once I get my merchandise.
    Chris

50. Ma’am Please calm down. I did not lie to you. We are not located in Brooklyn, We moved to Edison, NJ in October 2006. We started out in Maine in 1979, hence the name. You received your refund Immediately. I am not trying to “cover up” anything. I understand you were frustrated. I have the entire order, on record, and every single phone call and “strongly worded” email that you sent to me and my customer service team. In addition, we are and have been working to improve customer service. The reason i monitor and respond to this blog is to rectify specific scenarios and pinpoint the reasons behind them. I listened to the conversation you had with our team; Every person that you spoke with in customer service was polite. Why do you keep making personal attacks at me? I am doing my best to make things right by everyone.

    I am going to reiterate here something I said earlier. We process thousands of transactions per day.

    as I said before:
    “Take into Consideration that ratio of happy to dissatisfied cutomers. The Sqeaky wheel gets the grease and all that. When a transaction goes smoothly- the Customer is satisfied- they received what they expected. You dont expect them to go on a blog and say- “Abe’s of Maine did exactly what I paid them to do” Those Reviews are few and far between.”

    I Do not want to flood this Blog with Personal Attacks. If you still have a problem, and would like to discuss it- then let me know and I will do my best to satisfy you. If your problem has been solved, then I am Truly happy that you were able to come to a resolution.

    P.S. Thank you John for giving me the opportunity to react and help his readers with any and all problems they may have.

    [email protected]

51. hah, that is a dirty lie Sarah, my order was canceled that same day, you prolly don’t have it on your records as such because your people wouldn’t cancel my order even though they said they would,they kept saying they canceled it when they neeeeevvvvvvveeeeeerrrrr did, how sick is that? Thanks for proving my point mam! I don’t need any info my money was returned after I posted lots and lots of negative reviews (see everyone they cant have people out telling the truth about their company because then they lose business)Sarah instead of playing cover up why don’t you work on fixing your customer service then you wouldn’t have to do this, and change your business name why don’t you? Abes isn’t in Maine you guys are in B R O O K L Y N, yes everyone Brooklyn and if you google what type of camera businesses come out of Brooklyn you will see that it would be a grave mistake to do business with Abes. Google abes of maine complaints, these stories are all to similar to be lies. Sorry Sarah, I’ve got one thing to say to you F A I L.

    1. I purchased a Pentax K5 from Abes. The sales person successfully bumped the transaction by over $1,000 with a lot of fast talk. I instantly regretted it and called back to cancel the oversell. Like ‘frustrated mom’, I found the customer service line closed and the sales line open for business. I wrote e-mails cancelling the oversell and called back at the crack of dawn the following day. It took a long time to get through to customer service. They agreed to cancel the oversell. Then the sales guy called me back and attempted to lay a ‘guilt’ trip on me. He argued with me. He told me I NEEDED all these extras. I told him even if I did, I wanted to go at MY OWN pace in making that determination and to cancel the entire order if he didn’t want to sell me the K5 camera without ANY add-ons. Ultimately I agreed to accept ONE add-on, a Tamaron 17-50mm f2.8 lens ($465). That bumped the sale to over $2,000. However, although I was promised a receipt (by e-mail), I never got an itemized one (making the manufacturer’s rebate offer impossible to secure) until repeated requests to Abe’s customer service eventually produced one.

       Eventually I was credited with the oversell items Abe’s didn’t ship due to my prompt change of heart. I did receive the Pentax K5 and Tamaron 17-50mm f2.8 lens without anything missing in a reasonably timely manner. I was provided a UPS tracking number. While sales was overbearing, customer service (if/when I could reach them) was not. So I did get what I paid for and was (eventually) credited with what Abes did not ship. I remain a bit irritated I was debited for the oversell items when that had NOT shipped even though I was eventually credited with that amount.

       Abes did not ‘steal’ from me, and everything was included in the retail box that should have been. But it WAS a giant hassle and their salesman was too aggressive for my taste. I’d have been better off with Amazon or Buy.com. The ‘discount’ Abes offered was only about $10 for the camera and I could have gotten the Tamaron lens for about $40-50 less elsewhere. Abes IS (however) an authorized Tamaron dealer, an important consideration for any rebates from the manufacturer (China). The accessories (oversell) pushed by the salesman are schlock (very low quality) and egregiously overpriced. That must be why Abes is so reluctant to immediately e-mail an itemized invoice. They don’t welcome comparative shopping. By failing to timely provide an itemized sales invoice, Abes makes such comparisons difficult. The bottom line is, do NOT order anything from Abes (especially accessories) until you have researched each item with a cost-benefit analysis BEFORE agreeing to purchase any of them no matter how slick their sales staff is.

       Abes operates strictly on the maxim, “Caveat Emptor”!

52. Dr. Patterson,
    I just spoke to you on the phone and we resolved the issues you have had. I have the conversation with the salesperson taped- and a supervisor is going to take care of it. I apologize for the pressure you may have felt, it is not our policy to allow salespeople to use such tactics, and this will be taken care of.

    Thank you for being so understanding, and I sincerely hope you enjoy your TV. If you need anythign else, or have any other concerns, PLEASE do not hestitate to email me: [email protected]

53. First, I would like to respond to “Unhappy Mother”
    Your order was placed on 4/4/08 ( a friday afternoon) When you called on 4/7/08 to cancel your order, it had already shipped. We rerouted the package and refunded you instantly. The refund does take a few days to hit the bank. We called the bank with you and gave you every possible transaction and confirmation number you requested. We did everything you asked without hassle. You called us 10-20 times that day, not including the multiple hangup calls we received from you. We did everything in our power to satisfy you and I personally listened and have all the recordings from your transaction. I am sorry you were frsutrated, but we did not pressure you. We gave you a refund the moment you requested it, with no hesitation. Your bank/credit card company does take a few days to process the Transaction. If you need any more information, or would like me to contact the bank again with you- do not hesitate to email me. [email protected]

54. I too received a call after my recent purchase of a 40 inch LCD TV. The call was yesterday, Sunday, and I have had a bad feeling about my purchase ever since. Suffice it to say that it was high pressure and misleading tactics that lead to my agreeing to over $600 worth of ad ons. I e-mailed Sarah tonight after reading this blog. I will let you know how it goes. From now on I plan to research the companies I do business with as much as I research the merchandise. Thanks John.

    Chris P.

55. Nice try to play the “were reputable” card Sarah your company’s full of crooks,you don’t have to keep reading here dear I sent you a very strongly worded email and if my money is not refunded I do plan to contact a lawyer and the peoples court believe me I am not one to be scammed and I will not stop until you guys are taken down,ok on to my story.I call abes and ask them “do I get everything included that the manufacturer includes”(I have heard of the sheisty companies and this one looked like it but then 30 years of service they must be doing something right…right? WRONG) The customer service guy PETE was very nice to me until he got my credit card information,then after I said no to the sales pitch he hung up on me mid sentence. No total was given no conformation number NOTHING I immediately knew something was wrong and called to cancel my order. The next guy JIM told me he would cancel the order, and then tried to hang up (ooooh no not this time)I told him i want a confirmation number “I will send you a confirmation email” he says I’m getting hip to the game now, I say “give me the email I still want a confirmation number”, he finally gives me one after my husband threatens him, I go to check my email “cancellation processed” I look at the number different confirmation number CRAP THIS IS GONNA BE A BUMPY RIDE of course 2 hours later I receive a shipping statement yes thats right AFTER I cancel my order.I immediately call them, how convenient there customer service line is closed…but there sales line is open???? how does that make sense? Dont believe the good reviews you read and PLEASE don’t believe Sarah- she does indeed work for them and they have their workers leave good comments under false names all around on websites and they do these “im sorry” comment all around its all a ploy, if they were reputable why would they do this to me? I believed them for a while after they said the item was canceled so I went to adorama and ordered another camera now that I see they have not canceled my order as of yet I now have 2 700 dollar camera charges on my card, we may have to apply for a loan to be able to pay our bills this month NO I AM NOT KIDDING this company is causing us so much grief it isn’t funny.But I wont stand for it I am contacting a lawyer like I said this company is going down, I guess they think there covered by all the fine print…they aren’t…I checked and even though you gave me the wrong confirmation number with my cancellation it still states all the items and the exact price, so I can easily prove my case in a court of law DONT F*CK WITH ME abe. You are causing me and my family grief and I wont stand for it it is 730 am I have been up all night informing websites ups my bank EVERYONE of your dealings…I don’t want this fixed any other way but my money refunded!

56. Zach,
    Im sorry about this- can you give email me your order number or any other information so i can track this problem on my end? thanks!

    Sarah
    Consumer Relations
    Abe’s of Maine

57. Not shaping up. Last friday (3/7) I ordered a camera to be shipped in 2-3 business days for a trip I was taking on this thursday (3/13). It wasn’t until yesterday that I got an email notifying me that it wasn’t going to arrive until this friday (3/14). They claimed to have tried getting a hold of me even though the only contact number I gave them was my cell phone and never received a call from their offices. When I did call to notify them I needed the product next day they said they would overnight it. It wasn’t until the next day that I got the notification from UPS saying it was sent 2nd day air.

    Just a giant mess overall. Don’t give your business to Abe’s of Maine.

58. This racket is not limited to one company. Literally every ‘discount purchase’ (read – sounded like a good deal – I have made of any camera equipment in the last five years reads like your story. These are almost exclusively companies located on the east coast and many in in Brooklyn in particular. There are no storefronts, no windows, just a semi-torn up place with a phone like and a couple of slimy sales people. Every single time I have received a call back to either ‘verify my adddress’, ‘verify my credit card number’ or any other sort of pretense I could dream up. Every single time the sales person misrepresented the content of the actual package (like your battery, which is generally sold at 4-5 times the price you can get it elsewhere), some ‘telephoto converter (really, would you stick a converter on the lens of a $5,000 camera) or even lenses which would not fit.

    Every time you decline they continue with the line, ‘because you are a good customer I will put this down for you for x dollars less’ when I clearly stated I did not want any of the gazillion accessories they tried to peddle.

    Then there is shipping. Once a manufacturer tried to charge me $150,- for a $600,- camera, but he’d throw in ‘expedited shpping (UPS ground) if I bought this or that accessory kit.

    In the end, these guys will often not sell you anything at all because without the incredibly overpriced accessories and omitted parts they do not break even.

    At some point I had gotten so sick and tired of it that I sent emails to the companies asking what the bottom line price of the camera was, that I was willing to pay more than their advertised price only to never receive a response.

    I can only urge you not to be from a discounter. Verify with the manufacturer, Canon, Sony, Panasonic whether this retailer is indeed an authorized reseller. If they are not, don’t buy. If a price looks too good to be true, it probably is. If it says ‘U.S. warranty’ it is almost guaranteed not the manufacturer’s warranty and fixed by a guy in his garage.

    As your original experience describes: Once you get that box and once you open it, you may just find that instead of buying a Canon XHA1 you merely bought the body without a lense – and a 15-25% restocking fee.

    This is not from a guy that always went with direct from manufacturer but that had numerous experiences of the sort I described.

    Instead, if you really want to save a few bucks you might check e-Bay for a brand-new used camera. Like a car, once you drive it off the lot, a prosumer camera loses a lot of value. It won’t be as cheap as what the sharks pretend to sell you but it should come with all the right paper work and some Paypal insurance. It’s not fool-proof but has worked better for me and my friends than the sharks from Crooklynn.

59. The salesperson’s name was Ted Patterson. I can’t think of the helpful person’s name, but I have it written down. I can post his name when I get back to the computer with his name in it.

    At this point I’ve read enough bad experiences from people trying to purchase from Abes and even more and worse stories from other places in the New York/New Jersey areas that I’ve just decided to avoid the area all together.

60. John,

    Thank you for your kind words. I appreciate that we can all be rational in a situation that is More than frustrating.

    I am not trying to silence the public here. I understand your concerns. I also understand that blogs like this one provide an invaluable service to the potential buyer. In the age of technology- it pays (literally) to stay informed.

    Also- Take into Consideration that ratio of happy to dissatisfied cutomers. The Sqeaky wheel gets the grease and all that. When a transaction goes smoothly- the Customer is satisfied- they received what they expected. You dont expect them to go on a blog and say- “Abe’s of Maine did exactly what I paid them to do” Those Reviews are few and far between.
    So the Amount of negative reviews, compared to the Total amount of transactions we process per day, lead me to beleive that yes, while this is a problem, it is not every customer, and every salesman.

    However I have gotten Specific Instructions to Pinpoint the Salesmen (I am convinced- based on the above- it is only one or two) who are actually practicing these deceptions, and make cases to show management.

    The Management is NOT happy with stories like yours. They have been Monitoring Phone calls and making several firings and huge renovations to our Sales and customer Service teams.

    I am Happy to say we have changed a lot for the better in the last few years- even months.

    I would like to stay here and Help all of you pinpoint and resolve any problems that you or any of your Visitors may have.

    In being an effective Customer Relations Rep- I need As much feedback from each Customer that I can get. People who are willing to give me feedback allow me to solve problems so they dont happen again.

    Again John- Thank you for your kind words. I appreciate it very much.

    Sarah
    [email protected]
    Consumer Relations
    Abe’s of Maine

61. Sarah (and everyone else),

    I am happy that you personally keep an eye on the comments on this post. I know that you are being sincere and that you take a genuine interest in solving people’s issues – and I appreciate and applaud your efforts.

    I also feel sad that you have to be the one who cleans up other people’s messes because you seem very nice, and shouldn’t have to be subjected to this. If you ever want a job in Dallas just drop me a line and I’ve got a customer service position open for you.

    I really want to believe that Abe’s is making progress and that policies are changing, but when someone shows up nearly 10 months after my original comments telling a nearly identical story it makes me feel like absolutely nothing has changed.

    Let me be very specific about what bothers me.

    • I am not at all opposed to add-on sales of accessories or warranties. These items provide margin in a traditionally low-margin business. What I am opposed to is any sort of atmosphere that tolerates lying to a customer to get them to purchase these add-ons.
    • There are plenty of compelling ethical arguments to be made for add-ons, it just takes a little creativity and training to become adept at making the offer. If you don’t have the kind of sales personnel that can do it – upgrade them.
    • If the business can’t afford higher level, ethical sales talent then fire them all and invest in the automation necessary to complete transactions without them. Or, just take them off commission!

    Abe’s seems to be caught in a viscious cycle of poor service brought on by attempting to compete solely on price. I am a perfect example of the fact that people are willing to pay a little more if they believe they are going to get better service after the sale. I’ve made these points before, but still no change…

    As a complete bystander all I can assume is that the corporate ownership is satisfied with the status quo and still making enough money to ignore the ethics of the sales folks. I will be interested to see how long this attitude can persist.

    In the meantime, this site will continue to receive far more traffic than Abe’s and the Google ranking will only continue to increase… so unfortunatly I don’t think the discussion is going to subside.

    Take care,

    John

62. Wedo keep track of this blog. Any responses have been posted by me under the name Abe’s of Maine- and I am the only person in this company who monitors blogs and tries to rectify the situations presented.

    We did not make fake reviews or responses on this site. trust me-I would have found out by now.

    Your right- Reviews are really important and provide a vital service to the online shopping community. It also allows some of the “higher ups” to be more aware of the problems as they arise and take action.

    My position however is to make suggestions to the management and correct any and all sales/customer support and lodge formal complains agaisnt specific salesmen. If you need help or want me to do something please email me.

    I am being sincere and serious. Thank you

    Sarah
    [email protected]

    P.s.- The only post I ever made not using the Abesofmaine Screen name is the one under Sarah- where i asked the salespersons name.

    Just Putting all My Cards on the Table.

63. It is great to see the impact of customer reviews on the Internet, before the Internet it would be hard for anybody to actually get any attention about bad customer service.

    I had a bad experience with a local Internet provider in the old place I lived in, and my (plus a host of other customers who are members of the forum on my site who chimed in after I wrote my initial piece) reviews and comments on my site outranks their corporate site :-) so much for them getting any more business from the net.

    This company is tracking my site, but they know they screwed up bad, so they have not been commenting officially. I am sure they did register a couple of accounts to put up positive replies, which it looks like happened here as well with the streak of 2-3 positive remarks in the middle of all the very similar sounding bad experiences…

    Kim:)

64. Hey Allen- I am sorry you had a difficult experience. i would like to make it better, can you email me [email protected] and i will try to make this right for you.

65. Do you know the name of the salesman you spoke to?

66. That original blog sounds almost exactly like mine. I tried to buy a high end digital SLR from them. I got a call and e-mail that they wanted to “confirm my address” and then it started. I got the hard sale on a longer lasting battery and extended warranty. They told me the battery that it comes with only lasts for an hour. It better last longer than that. It’s a digital SLR capable of 500+ images per charge! They said the warranty was only 90 days but I could buy an extended warranty for $200. He told me they didn’t take returns on that kind of merchandise so it was advisable to get the extended warranty. When I said no they offered it to me for 25% off, so $150. They also tried to sell me on other products like fast SDHC cards and such.

    I finally said no the 57 times it took to get off the phone with the guy but I just had such a bad feeling about it I wanted to cancel the order. I called back five minutes later and got the same guy. He said the order was already processed and it couldn’t be canceled. Total BS since it was just five minutes ago that I talked to him. I’ve heard/read a lot about these fly-by-night places offering gray market stuff so I was extra dubious at this point. Several minutes of groveling from the sales guy ensued. He said I was going to be recommending them to my friends and family and he tried apologizing for giving me such a hard sell but he still wouldn’t cancel the order! He also told me they have a 30 day no questions asked return policy. A big change of policy in the five minutes since I talked to him last. I finally just asked for a manager.

    At that point I was done and let my wife talk to them (she’s good at dealing with these types of people). Several minutes on hold later she finally talked to a supervisor. It turned out that the sales guy hadn’t processed the order yet so the supervisor couldn’t cancel it. She told him the story and got him to tell the sales guy to cancel the order. So at least there’s one helpful person there.

    We’ll definitely be checking our credit card statements and following up if necessary. Good idea being proactive with the CC company too!

67. As I wrote a few months ago, I experienced these tactics from other companies but not from Abes. After I ordered a Panasonic DX-1 HD vidcam, I got a call to confirm the order. Sol offered me a tote bag and a lense cover (protective “filter”) but I declined. That was all, he was polite not pushy and the order arrived soon.
    The DX-1 is an HD camera for only $469 delivered, maybe less now. Quite a bargain. It worked perfectly and takes excellent video, as seen on a 1080P HD TV via the HDMI cable. The weird thing is, it comes with a usb cable but you cannot transfer video (only stills) to the computer with it! Calls to Panasonic got them to send me the missing link — the software “HD Writer 2.0” This comes with their SD-1, and why they left it out of the DX-1 package I can’t imagine. The part number is VFF0386-S. I installed it from the CD and suddenly I could load video. There is even a basic but decent editor. Without this, nothing would work, not Pinacle Ultra, not even DOS. This has nothing to do with Abes but is important if you have a DX-1.

68. I too was looking at buying from Abes and after seeing the above nightmare ill go to amazon or new egg….
    This is only too common now on the internet these days. I know we all want great deals but when it comes down to it, just dig deeper into your pocket and sleep better at night, its only money.!

    Thanks for the Blogg.

    Dave

69. I was looking for a LCD TV and Abes has the best rates. But after going through your blog, you make me think again, I may possibly buy at a reputed store rather than risking myself. Thanks friend!

70. Thanks! I was doing research on Abe’s and came across your post.

71. Glad your oder went fine. It’s because of great blogs like this site and other review sites that Abe’s is beginning to shape up. Believe me, they keep track of this blog.

72. Update: i just want to say that abe’s has delivered. I am happy with the outcome and my Pioneer 50″ plasma has been recieved within 4 days of the order date and it is beautiful. I guess some people’s horror stories are true but i was lucky to be treated great. Big thanks to abe’s of maine!

73. I posted on the 7th to say I’d had a good experience with the salesman, who was not pushy.

    I hadn’t gotten the camera yet. They promised delivery on the 12th and that’s the day it arrived. The camera (Panasonic DX-1 HD dvd camcorder)appeared brand new and took great videos, as seen on my HDTV.

    Alas, for this model Panasonic seems to have forgotten to make it possible to transfer the video files to a computer for editing. They provide a usb cable, but that seems only to transfer still pictures. But their cooperative customer service rep is working with me on that — and anyway it’s no reflection on Abe’s. BTW, another reason to think Abe’s is legit is that they take full page ads in photography magazines and have for years. I think the bait-and-switch companies are also fly-by-night and don’t take out ads, just exploit cheap listings on Pricegrabber etc.

    I’m happy and will do business with Abe’s again.

74. Ok so i actually just got a call from the shipping company confirming delivery for tomorrow. I guess calling abe’s a few times sort of speeds up the process. Seems like they aren’t so bad to deal with afterall. If the tv is in perfect condition then i will leave abes a positive review.

75. Update: i call today to try and get a tracking number and they didnt even ship it yesterday like they said they were. So i tell them i just want to pick it up and they claim its on the truck already today. Something is going on and if it doesnt ship out today i am going to cancel my order. I can’t stand bad customer service and if my order hasnt shipped out yet ill make sure many people hear about their shady techniques.

76. I ordered a 50″ Pioneer Plasma last wednesday and got the confirmation call on Thursday. The salesman was not to pushy and i didnt buy anything except for the white glove delivery. They say it shipped today so let’s see what happens. Hopefully i have it by Wednesday but am waiting for tracking or a call from the shipping company.

77. Well, this blog just saved me the trouble! I’ve heard of these types of sleeze operations before. they offer a price lower than the others, then pressure people to buy extra junk at outrageous prices. They slow down the order, or do whatever they can to keep the pressure up. Just goes back to that old saying “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” It’s not just one bad salesman folks, it’s the company!

78. I ordered a Panasonic DX1 at the good price of $479 delivered, yesterday. Today I got an email to call Sol to confirm. Having had trouble with scammers before, I called expecting the worst. But Sol merely confirmed the order, offered me a lense filter or a carrying bag, and when I politely said “no”, he wished me best-of-luck with the camera.

    I seem to remember ordering from them a few years ago and having no problems. I suppose they do make money selling extras, and I can see a bad kind of salesman on commission doing the bad things described, but overall they may be OK. Sol was, anyway.

    I’ll say more if there’s trouble with the camera when it arrives, but so far so good.

79. Maybe Thanks…

    As to my post above. I received my 5D in a timely fashion and was pleased. I did however get a call to “confirm” the order which was done without incident and that’s all I could have asked for :)

80. Darren,

    I’m glad you haven’t had a problem with Abes. However, just a few follow up points:

    • The product I purchased was $4,000. The accessories may have been considerably more expensive, and hence the pressure may have be much greater than you received.
    • I wrote this article 6 months ago, and the fact that it now appears on the first page of Google results for their company name may have forced them to change their practices. If so, that is great.
    • Finally, when I place an order online, I want to conduct the transaction without human intervention. It is NOT fine to have to tell someone “no thanks” as I don’t have to do that with Amazon, NewEgg or any other competitor.

    Just my opinion. But hey, since this is the blog getting the attention I guess that matters. :-)

    John

81. I’ve ordered from Abes several times and have had mostly positive experiences (thus the reason I am a repeat customer). They often have great prices, and compensate for the lower margins by encouraging and rewarding this kind of cross-selling. I don’t mind the cross-sales pitch too much because I don’t feel that it is “High Pressure” selling like I’ve experienced from other less-reputable shops. One time i cancelled an order at two other places before a final, third attempt with Abes, which turned out fine. So maybe the perception is all relative to the other guys being worse. With Abes, you tell the guy “no thanks” and then you are done, the item is shipped. That is fine by me if the price is good and the salesperson is not “too” pushy.

82. I just ordered a Canon 5D and wish I would have found this blog before I did. Man I hope I didn’t make a mistake 3k is alot of money… Sweating it now!

83. I can also confirm those bad, bad, bad selling tactics of Abe’s of Maine people. And, it is not one person that´s bad, it is the company. I was called several times about a warranty that is not necessary, I insisted on not wanting it (makes no sense, you can also burn your money), but others from the company kept calling and bugging me about it. One guy said “no, not the same deal than yesterday. I am actually the manager, I can give you another discount on the warranty!”.

    No thanks. I hated to, but I had to become rude in order to finally let them understand that I don´t need a warranty that´s not required. What drove me upset is, that they repeatedly lied to me about the original warranty. One should sue them for that.

    Anyway, they finally understood and I got my appliance fast and well packed. Won´t buy from them anymore – rather pay 5bucks more somewhere else and know I am with someone who doesn´t lie. In case of real problem – you cannot believe anything they tell you.

    “NO THANKS – ABE OF MAINE”

84. I have not dealt with AbesofMaine but I hear the same story again and again with a number of bait and switch NY companies. I only deal with B&H and in the last 10 years I can say “I do not have one complaint. Always on time, always truthful and fair prices. “

85. Guys and girls, they have been doing business this way since they opened. I had the same sort of experience with them in ’82 or ’83 trying to buy a motor drive for one of my Nikons. It’s really a wonder they’re still around.

86. I was planning to buy from Abe, but not any more. I will get my stuff from BH.

87. Shortly after posting…I called Abe’s back and wouldn’t you know, they obviously keep track of this blog and promised to make things right. corrections…it was Customer Service. He issued me an RMA # and said I could include the shipping receipt and they will reimburst me for that as well. Plus they will send me 5 free mini dv tapes. I declined the offer but he insisted so I’ll be greatfull. Well thanks to Customer Service for understanding and thanks John for your blog spot!!!

88. Akira,

    I’m very sorry to hear that you had this experience. :-( I would definitely suggest that you dispute the initial charge with your credit card and tell them exactly the info you shared here.

    If the company has a guarantee that you can cancel within 30 days then you need external documentation that you’ve been trying to do so and even if the credit card dispute is denied just having it on record would provide the evidence you need.

    If you have a good credit card company then they should at least help you put pressure on Abe’s.

    Good luck,

    John

89. Thanks for the story John. I’d wish I would have read this before purchasing from Abes Of Maine.

    I recently purchased a Canon XL2 and experienced the same thing. First order, they canceled without me even knowing. All because they didn’t catch me at home by phone. So I call like a week later and they said to place the order again. So I do. Then I get an email 2 days latter to call them for confirmation. Like you, I wasn’t too happy with that 2 days of shipping delay. The sales person was trying to sell me all the accessories too. He finally pushed the Mack 4 year extended warranty onto me and said if I wasn’t happy I could return it within 30 days. Now, Im trying to get an RMA# to return it…the person at the RMA department transfers me to their sales rep. and here the sales rep. trying to lower the price ect. When I firmly say I cannot afford it…the phone mysteriously hangs up. When I call back, they say I will have to wait till another sales person come in and gives me his extension #. I notice, it is the rep. that first processed my order. So from this…I can conclude, it is a tactic of theirs with all employees involved. Why even have an RMA department when ultimately they are just middlemen that will transfer you to a pushy salesman?

    This experience has felt like a big weight on my shoulders and I would hope to never experience anything like it again. Do not shop at Abes Of Maine!

90. Johny – Actually I think you basically said what I had been thinking without saying it. But since you’ve opened the door:

    Regarding finding the Sales person:

    1. At the time I didn’t think it was appropriate to drag anyone’s name into the public arena. I provided all the details that Abe’s needed to figure out who it was.
    2. My name is right at the top of the page and it is so unique that it should only take a minute to find any order I placed.
    3. I also provided the exact date, time, amount, and product ordered. It should be simple to look in the system and find given all that detail.
    4. I provided the exact date, time and originating phone number of the inbound call which caused all of the problems. The call logs from that day should identify the culprit.
    5. If the tracking systems are in place why not, as Johny suggests, look up the rep on my order and then take whatever action is deemed necessary?

    And a few other things:

    • How about addressing the other issues? Customer service closed for inbound calls while making outbound calls, useless “order tracking” functionality, lying about accessories and warranty, etc.?
    • I should also note that although I previously reported that I was NOT supposed to see the charge on my card, it did indeed come through along with a subsequent refund.
    • The customer service person who took my cancellation told me calls are recorded, so if that is the case Abe’s management is reviewing them and this means there is implicit approval of the methodology. Or was that a lie?
    • Why was there a rep assigned to my Internet order? When I placed the order online I believed that it would simply charge my card and head off to the fulfillment department for shipping. Instead Abe’s sat on it for 2 whole days before a human called me to actually complete the order. That is NOT an online purchase, and in my mind it is a clearly established process designed for the sole purpose of up-sell/cross-sell.
    • Now that Johny points it out, I don’t actually see an apology here. Nor do these look like official responses. So, if someone in a high enough position of authority would like to stop by and officially respond to my issues that would be great. Otherwise we are just wasting time and energy.

    Finally, I took the statement “…complaints that ruin our image…” as a jab. It is not my complaint that ruined your image, but the treatment I recieved at the hands of your employee that ruined it. All I did was document my experience.

    I’m sure the management team at Abe’s has heard the saying that if a customer has a bad experience they’ll tell 7 people… Well, in my case I just share the really bad ones with my 250,000+ monthly visitors. On the flip side, when I do my product review I’d have been happy to recommend Abe’s – had everything gone smoothly.

    John

91. No offense, but I doubt you really care about the customer, you’re just concerned of the bad image this post is giving you when someone googles “abes of main”(without the ‘e’, it ranks 5 or 6, and with experience, i can tell that most people search it that way)…

    Instead of giving an honest apology, you are preaching that you will take actions, actions that should have already been taken long time ago because you already have all the information needed…

    In short, when you really care about the customer, you should say that appropriate actions have been taken and please accept “enter your offer here(less than 3 digits is an insult)” gift certificate on our behalf as a thank you for helping us find the bad apple which is ruining it for the rest of us.

    This is how, in my opinion, you change the bitter taste that a bad salesman carves on the customer. Don’t you agree?

92. Understood. we do have that technology in place, but i am more concerned in the customer (in this case, you) chaging the bitter taste that a bad salesman has unfortunately imparted on you. Thank you for your time. I hope your future online sales experiences are better.

    SM

93. SM,

    I appreciate your interest in tracking down the culprit, but when I called and spoke with the customer service rep to cancel the order she told me she was aware of who it was and was going to inform his supervisor. So, if that didn’t happen it would be disappointing. If you do a search in your system for my name I’m sure I’ll be the only one in there so you can look up the order in question and get whatever details you keep on file.

    On another note, having run call centers in the past I would recommend that you could solve this issue by either ensuring that your system tracks customer touch points in a notes field along with each order, or by doing random call monitoring.

    In a case where you suspect a particular individual you can obviously monitor their calls and take care of that issue in about one day.

    John

94. if you can please let me know WHO your salesmen was, i will have corrective action taken. i belive these complaints are all from the same salesman, but i never get a name with the complaints, only complaints that ruin our image..
    thank you

    SM

95. Oh, I forgot to give an update…

    First of all, I ordered the camcorder from Amazon.com and received it the next day! The one I got had a minor little glitch so Amazon actually shipped me a replacement and I shipped the original back.

    The camcorder itsself kicks ass! I’m still practicing a little with it and then I’m going to post some videos and a review. Suffice it to say that it is far, far, far better than anything you can purchase at Best Buy.

    John

96. ouch, but how’s the camera?

97. Being nickel-and-dimed on a $3,500 purchase is almost humorous. It’s almost like getting the 3rd degree when buying a new, $20,000 car to also spend $35 for the spare ashtray. Amazing. At least you didn’t knuckle under and accept your shabby treatment…I know too many people who would’ve done just that.

98. I have bought 2 things in the past from Abes, and had EXACTLY the same experience as the poster above. The latest time was on a sony n1 camera, they hard sold me an extra battery telling me lies about its charge time and the battery that would come with the camera. When I got the camera I saw that they had told me fibs and the battery that came with the camera was much better than the one he said I would get. However, like the orig story, they rolled over very fast. I called them up, spoke to a woman, and they rolled. Gave me the battery for a much cheaper price and a free case, all because they did not want me to send the battery back. Looks like they just use bad cop (guys) good cops (girls). You just have to be careful with them, they do have good prices, but you have to stand firm and threaten to cancel the order if they pull this stuff on you. and they will try it EVERY time!

99. I hope The Man is still cool with Amazon.com. I’ve never had a problem with them – the few returns I’ve had to make have been pretty much painless.

    And then there’s this cool site I use to shop Amazon products: http://www.jangle.net

    The Man can sort items by price, popularity, user ratings, discounts, and more. There’s even a neat way to view sample customer reviews.

100. Ok. So this morning I called Abe’s and after holding for a few minutes I finally reached a woman who helped cancel the order. Although today is the third day after the order, it had not yet even been charged to my credit card, and she told me it wouldn’t be.

     The lady I spoke to was professional and courteous by New York standards, and I shared with her the reason I was canceling the order. She assured me that the camcorder would indeed ship exactly as packaged by Canon and apologized for the other rep’s tactics.

     She told me she would inform that person’s supervisor (she knew exactly who it was) and have him listen to the recording of our call (I’d kill to get a copy of that for the blog). She further invited me not to judge the company by the actions of just one person.

     I was actually prepared for a fight, so was pleasantly surprised that canceling was so easy. I give Abe’s credit on that point.

     I still have concerns about their philosophical approach towards customers however, because the fact that they actually do record calls, and yet this guy was so comfortable with his lies means they are either encouraging high pressure tactics or complicit in monitoring them.

     In other words, they are more concerned with grabbing a client’s money than insuring people get exactly the product that suits their needs.

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