Open email sent to TDW, The Discount Warehouse

Monday, April 04, 2005

I am just a guy who wanted to buy high-end domestics in bulk, and sell them on eBay for a profit. That's not going to happen. I don't feel I got what I paid for. See the open email I sent to the salesperson below.

Re: invoice # 11257

Hi Martine -

It has been several weeks since I made and received my order with TDW for "High-End Domestics." When I received my order, I was impressed with the professionalism and attention to detail exhibited from you and everyone involved in the shipment of my items. My high regard was quickly changed when I finally opened my package. Now, you and I know what I signed in your agreement, so that is not even part of this email. This has to do with ethics. I feel I did not receive the products I was paying for. This is a quote from the sales document sent to me for which I paid $5.95 per item + shipping (which brought the total to $2,381.75, or around $8.00 per item!):


"Federated/Macy?s Domestics/Linens: All New shelf-pulls and overstock Domestics. Huge selection of high - end brand names: Burlington, Court of Versailles, Calvin Klein, Charter Club, Tommy Hilfiger, Fieldcrest, Sheridan, DuPont, Signature, Luxury Linens, Liz at Home, Ralph Lauren, Cannon Royal Family, DKNY and more. Pallets may contain a mixture of Sheets, Towels, Comforters, Linens, Bathroom Accessories, Rugs, bed in a bag, Pillows and much more. Please call for inventory availability. F.O.B. Florida. Order now. ON SALE NOW!"


Here's what I really got: 33, new-in-package, mostly Charter Club bedding, several shower curtains, and even shower curtain hooks, 175 towels, most of them individual, unmatched towels, and 27 pillows, along with Votive Candles, Potpourri, a waste basket, a terry cloth robe, and a toilet paper holder stand.

There was no Tommy Hilfiger, DKNY, Liz at Home, of any type, just to name a few high-end designer brands that were missing.

Besides that, my biggest problem is the number of towels, and some that no one seems to have heard of. I got a large bunch of "Inside/Out Towels by the Cellar. You can't even find these on Google, which means that buyers don't know these are supposed to be high-end! Or are they? Another thing is that I wound up paying what amounts to $8.00 per towel, considering that Macy's is selling towels for less than that, retail, on sale, and I have to charge shipping (they don't). I can't make a profit or run a business like this, so it looks like I take a loss. I sure can't sell this stuff even on eBay, where someone has to pay shipping to receive it. I may have a problem giving it away, if I make the buyer pay the shipping. I am including images of the bedding and of the towels and pillows to give an idea of what the ratio looks like.

Now, I am for everyone making a profit. But the profit on this seems to stop with you at TDW. And yes, my legal remedies may be thin at the moment, but this being the US of A, I still have the good ol' First Amendment to say what I think.

That $2,400 I spent may be just a drop in the bucket to TDW, but it represents a lot of sweat and tears on my end. I feel that the best I could expect for all these towels on eBay would be $1.00 each plus shipping. I also feel that I could put this episode behind me if I was to receive a refund check for $1,200.00 (half of what it cost me with shipping). On the other hand, I can make this my life's work to get this rectified. If I do not hear from you within one week, I will be starting a blog with TDW and my situation at the center of it, looking for others who have similar stories. I will make this letter public, send it to your competitors, and have a conversation with the BBB in your area. I don't feel that I received what I paid for, and I hope that you, and your superiors, see it my way, and avoid any need to take this further.

The limited amount of bedding I received!


The amount of towels and other things I received!

Martine emailed back to me about a week after I sent the email above, and also called her. She wrote:

"Good afternoon Gary,

This is to confirm that I have received your message this morning which I've already bring to my supervisor' s attention, however it will takes a few days to come up with a solution since the merchandise were shipped out exactly the way they came in. The pictures are greatly appreciated, as soon as I hear from my supervisor I will let you know. In the meantime, please feel free to contact me with any further questions or comments.

Best regards,
Martine/Sales Dept.
The Discount Warehouse
PH: 954-746-8701"

I haven't heard from them since, and I have written them again!