Pediwear - disappointing delays, twice

[tokyodandy]

If you're think about using Pediwear (www.pediwear.co.uk) I advise a little caution and a lot of email confirmation. In brief, over the past 3 months I have ordered shoes from them twice and both times there has been a significant delay i.e. the goods were despatched 2 weeks or more after I was told they would be shipped to Japan. The company has responded politely and helpfully when contacted, but they certainly haven't kept me updated. If you're ordering something time sensitive - e.g. you want them by a certain date - I advise you to pursue them ruthlessly until they can tell you the product has shipped. ORDER 1 Placed 13 November 2008. Pediwear email: "We are pleased to confirm receipt of your order. Please expect delivery within 7 - 10 working days. If we encounter a delay we will advise you accordingly." On 3 December I ask for an update - shipping from UK to Japan is usually very quick and 5 working days is not unusual. Pediwear email: Shoe trees were out of stock so order was delayed. "However... we expect to be in receipt of the shoe trees either today or tomorrow, when we will then be able to debit your card and have your order despatched to you." Then they gave me a 10% discount, which I thought was a nice gesture of goodwill. It was something of a letdown to me that after this email the shoes did not actually ship "today or tomorrow" but 5 days after that. ORDER 2 Reassured by their eagerness to make good and the civil email exchange, I assumed the delay in the first order was the sort of error even the best shop can make, so I ordered another pair of shoes on 13 January 2009. I reminded them that last time there had been a lack of communication and a delay and said I wanted to avoid a similar experience this time. They wrote back saying "We confirm that your order will be dispatched tomorrow and we would expect you to receive your order within 7 - 10 working days. We apologise again for the delay with your previous order." Today I get an email telling me my order has shipped - more than two weeks after I was told it would be despatched! Frankly this is pretty disappointing. They are a retailer so it's not necessarily their fault if shoes or trees are not immediately available. However, it's surely their job to keep me informed and not to send out information that is just plain wrong. I will try www.plal.com or www.shoesnorthampton.co.uk next time I order a pair of C&Js. TD

 

[penguin vic]

Sorry to hear. I've used both Pediwear and Herring and always received shoes within 1 week of ordering (sometimes sooner with Herring).

 

[tokyodandy]

Originally Posted by penguin vic

Sorry to hear. I've used both Pediwear and Herring and always received shoes within 1 week of ordering (sometimes sooner with Herring).
I had a look at Herring, seems like a nice site. Unfortunately no C&J!

TD

 

[Smahatma]

Originally Posted by tokyodandy

www.shoesnorthampton.co.uk next time I order a pair of C&Js.

TD
Thanks for the link. They are actually cheaper than pediwear on some pairs I'm looking to purchase soon (ex. Tetbury suede). I might give pediwear a chance the first time, since they do have their price matching + additional discount policy for further reduced prices.

 

[Sanguis Mortuum]

I ordered some C&J Edgwares from Pediwear and they have told me there is a 6-8 wait before they will have them in stock. They gave me a 15% discount though because those and the other shoes I ordered were both month+ waits (though I cancelled the other shoes and bought them somewhere else). Regardless, I think I will still be buying my next pair from Plal instead, or Edwards Of Manchester who are a bit more expensive but actually work out cheaper because they throw in free shoe trees (and good ones at that) with any order over £125...

Edit: Both Edwards and ShoesNorthamption were much quicker at responding to emails as well, whereas Pediwear would take at least 2 days respond to any questions...

 

[tokyodandy]

Originally Posted by Sanguis Mortuum

Edit: Both Edwards and ShoesNorthamption were much quicker at responding to emails as well, whereas Pediwear would take at least 2 days respond to any questions...
I must admit that when I actually prompted them for a response I got a reply fairly quickly. The issue was that they should have been keeping me informed without my having to ask...

TD

 

[vitaminc]

We are pleased to confirm receipt of your order. Please expect delivery within 12 - 16 working days.

If we encounter a delay we will advise you accordingly.

Thank you once again for your business.

Here's an email I got 2 days ago, on order placed Jan 23th.

 

[tokyodandy]

Originally Posted by vitaminc

Here's an email I got 2 days ago, on order placed Jan 23th.
Mmm, 5-6 days just to confirm your order? I got a very similar notification, although it was much more timely. You might want to follow that up with an "are you really, really sure I'll get it in 12-16 working days?" kind of email.

TD

 

[bc78]

Does anyone know how long it usually takes to confirm an order?

 

[Philip1978]

That's too bad, I just ordered from them last week and my shoes were shipped the next day.

 

[bc78]

Hmmm. They said they checked availability with the manufacturers and are waiting for them to advise us further on delivery. Thinking I might be getting a your shoes are sold out email soon.

 

[citoyen]

the "problem" with pediwear and their price pledge is, that they will sell the shoes at a loss, compared to their site-stated price. so they won´t sell the shoes they have in stock at the moment a customer will buy shoes at a price-pledge price. imagine, you buy them at a deep discount compared to the retail prices.

they receive the customer´s order and then first check their own stock and if low (1 pair) they check availability at c&j (for example) and then estimate the delivery time from c&j to pediwear and from pediwear to the customer. this time may vary due to factory holidays, low stock or any other reason we might not think of.

i think they do this, because they can serve orders on the same shoes in the meantime for customers not knowing the price-pledge and paying their site-stated prices. they won´t let these customers wait for such a long time as the pledgies are waiting.

after all, this is the price we pay for getting the shoes for less. it is all about patience, it is all about that bargain-hunting game.

plus: i don´t think that this should avoid someone from buying from them. as i said, it is part of the game

T

 

[Smahatma]

Originally Posted by bc78

Does anyone know how long it usually takes to confirm an order?
Here is the roadmap for my order last month March 13 (friday) inquired if the shoe I wanted was in stock March 13: received reply saying they would need to check on monday with C&J factory because they had just closed for the day March 16: reply saying it is not in stock, but they can order it from C&J and would take 4-5 weeks *note: the inventory check was before I asked for a price match March 16: placed order (price matched) March 18: order confirmation stating it should take about 4 to 5 weeks as previously discussed April 6: order shipped and billed I have no idea how long royal mail takes to ship to Texas, but I'm not holding my hopes up for delivery any time this week

 

[citoyen]

Originally Posted by Smahatma

*note: the inventory check was before I asked for a price match

alright, this would vote against my theory.

 

[Smahatma]

Originally Posted by citoyen

alright, this would vote against my theory.
I'm a small size (6.5E), so that may be a large factor in that. Even Turnbull&Asser had very little in stock in my size last time I was up there. Suede Tetbury's in case you were wondering.