Zack White Leather, Buyer Beware

[barbiesdude]

Holy Smokes, Zack White Leather charged me right at $15 to ship two strips of 5/8 latigo from NC to MI! $11 and some change UPS and a $3 "handling fee". So my $15 dollar order was right at $30. I recieve and ship ups constantly so I have a pretty good idea what it costs to ship. and I know it doesn't cost that to ship two pieces of 5/8 x 5/7 oz latigo. When I called to question that fee they insisted that's what it was and would not do anything further. There website site says that they will ship the fastest least expensive way and I know you can ship that small and light of a package cheaper, so here is what the website says and I would caution anyone buying from them to get your total before they run your card. They did offer for me to send it back at my expense plus a $5 re-stocking fee! BULL#!%*. That is my first order from them and I will not do business with them again.

SHIPPING: Orders are normally shipped within 10 days depending on stock availability. During times of heavy order volume this time frame may be exceeded. All shipments by UPS, Parcel Post, or common carrier. If not specified we will ship at the quickest, most inexpensive way available to your address. Shipping is charged at the actual rate charged to us by the carrier. All shipments are charged a Handling charge of $3.00 per package. Rolls of leather are charged a Handling charge of $4.00 per package. UPS Hazardous charge of $25.00 per package applies to all FL Items in gallons only. UPS COD charges are $9.00 per package. Rates are subject to change if there is a rate increase by the Carrier. Call us for approximate shipping charges if needed.

[NoahL]

Their shipping has always been around $15 for me--I suspect that they probably averaged out the shipping costs and charge everyone the average as a base rate and add from there. That said, they are nice folks and have a good selection. It all depends on what you're willing to spend to get what they have--if you can find it cheaper somewhere else you can always buy it from there instead.

[rickeyfro]

Same here, Ive bought from them alott usually my orders from them consist of two or three double shoulders or backs and Ive never seen anything unusual about there shipping fees, Ive nover bought a small order from them so maybe thats the rub, maybe theres a flat base fee that hits hard on small orders, if thats the case they should state that in their shipping policy though to keep everyone from getting the big surprise.

Their shipping has always been around $15 for me--I suspect that they probably averaged out the shipping costs and charge everyone the average as a base rate and add from there. That said, they are nice folks and have a good selection. It all depends on what you're willing to spend to get what they have--if you can find it cheaper somewhere else you can always buy it from there instead.

[hivemind]

I too had a terrible experience with them recently. I ordered a side of white chap leather from them on 9-18, paid my ~$90 via PayPal, got an order confirmation, and then waited for leather to arrive. No leather showed up. I emailed them on 9-30 with no response, and again on 10-11. I finally get a response on 10-12 from Tim, who told me that item was out of stock, and that I shouldn't worry about it because they never charge anyone until items ship. I replied that PayPal certainly took my money when I placed the order, and that I'd like a refund from them. I got no further apology or communication from them, but did get a refund at least.

Not ordering from there again.

http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=26600

[NoahL]

I certainly do not recommend buying from them online--call them if you are going to make an order. Every time I try to place my order online it seems to go through okay but then tries to charge my PayPal over $700.

[zackwhite]

Holy Smokes, Zack White Leather charged me right at $15 to ship two strips of 5/8 latigo from NC to MI! $11 and some change UPS and a $3 "handling fee". So my $15 dollar order was right at $30. I recieve and ship ups constantly so I have a pretty good idea what it costs to ship. and I know it doesn't cost that to ship two pieces of 5/8 x 5/7 oz latigo. When I called to question that fee they insisted that's what it was and would not do anything further. There website site says that they will ship the fastest least expensive way and I know you can ship that small and light of a package cheaper, so here is what the website says and I would caution anyone buying from them to get your total before they run your card. They did offer for me to send it back at my expense plus a $5 re-stocking fee! BULL#!%*. That is my first order from them and I will not do business with them again.

SHIPPING: Orders are normally shipped within 10 days depending on stock availability. During times of heavy order volume this time frame may be exceeded. All shipments by UPS, Parcel Post, or common carrier. If not specified we will ship at the quickest, most inexpensive way available to your address. Shipping is charged at the actual rate charged to us by the carrier. All shipments are charged a Handling charge of $3.00 per package. Rolls of leather are charged a Handling charge of $4.00 per package. UPS Hazardous charge of $25.00 per package applies to all FL Items in gallons only. UPS COD charges are $9.00 per package. Rates are subject to change if there is a rate increase by the Carrier. Call us for approximate shipping charges if needed.

I am sorry to hear that your first purchase from Zack White was not a pleasant one. Although we have been a supplier to the leathercraft trade for over 58 years, we are still a small company who is famaliar with the struggles one has in today's economy. We almost always ship our shipments via UPS because we can track them, and their service is usually very reliable, but in some markets, UPS has increased their rates to the point that small shipments are expensive. Rural and non-business areas are expensive to ship to via UPS, but being able to track a package is a big plus. Our shipment rates are set by UPS. We use their program for shipping packages, but we do add a small handling charge to help cover our costs. Normally, we do not have a problem with the rates, but when the amount is small, the percentage of freight to merchandise cost can be quite high. I assure you that we do not make money on shipping, and the only reason we charge a restocking charge on strip returns is that they are cut to order... we cut all our strips off the hides when orders are placed. If it is our mistake, we always refund freight and give full credit.... but when a customer just decides he does not need an item, we will accept back the merchandise, but charge the restocking fee. I know this explaination does not lessen the pain of your $14+ freight charge for two strips of leather, but I hope you can understand that we do not make money on freight, and it is in our interest to keep the freight to a minimum. I don't understand the methods UPS uses to calculate their freight, but I do agree that it is extremely high for some areas of the country. I regret that you feel mis-treated on your first order... our sales dept acted correctly in how they responded to your complaint. I feel we did no wrong, but your charges were high in consideration of the small purchase. So, if you decide to ever give us another chance, we will ship to you at NO freight charge for anything you choose to order. I will also offer you a $10.00 store credit against any future purchase. It is a tough time to be in business, and we understand the need to keep costs down. Thank you for considering Zack White in your selection of suppliers.

Regards, Tim Cox

Pres. Zack White Leather Co

[BearMan]

Hi Everybody,

When I moved to South Carolina, I wanted to find a good "local" leather supplier. I always like to deal locally if possible. As it turns out, the closest supplier to me is Zack Whites. With my first order, I called & talked to Tim, & told him what I was looking for in the leather I like to use. I just happen to like a fair amount of "fat" marks in my leather. Tim has sent me exactly what I wanted everytime. We only had a small situation one time,,, actually I recieved too much of a good thing. When I called Tim, the problem was resolved,,, quickly,,, & more to my benefit than his.

I expect to have freight charges on anything I get shipped in. Just the other day I needed a small lathe part, that cost $7.00 from a tool company,,, & the shipping cost was about the same as the part. That happens whenever it's a small order,,, a lot of the time, the shipping seems high,,, but thats with lots of suppliers, not just Zack White.

I've had good dealings with Tim & Zack White, & I'll continue to use them. There are lots of other good companies out there,,, but Zack White has worked well for me,, Besides,,, being so close,,, I get things quickly.

Ed the"BearMan"

[Studio-N]

Just FYI, but UPS did raise their rates on Jan2. Most packages look like they are averaging $12 to start and pennies per pound after that. I'm using a lot more USPS flat rate boxes these days.

[barbiesdude]

I am sorry to hear that your first purchase from Zack White was not a pleasant one. Although we have been a supplier to the leathercraft trade for over 58 years, we are still a small company who is famaliar with the struggles one has in today's economy. We almost always ship our shipments via UPS because we can track them, and their service is usually very reliable, but in some markets, UPS has increased their rates to the point that small shipments are expensive. Rural and non-business areas are expensive to ship to via UPS, but being able to track a package is a big plus. Our shipment rates are set by UPS. We use their program for shipping packages, but we do add a small handling charge to help cover our costs. Normally, we do not have a problem with the rates, but when the amount is small, the percentage of freight to merchandise cost can be quite high. I assure you that we do not make money on shipping, and the only reason we charge a restocking charge on strip returns is that they are cut to order... we cut all our strips off the hides when orders are placed. If it is our mistake, we always refund freight and give full credit.... but when a customer just decides he does not need an item, we will accept back the merchandise, but charge the restocking fee. I know this explaination does not lessen the pain of your $14+ freight charge for two strips of leather, but I hope you can understand that we do not make money on freight, and it is in our interest to keep the freight to a minimum. I don't understand the methods UPS uses to calculate their freight, but I do agree that it is extremely high for some areas of the country. I regret that you feel mis-treated on your first order... our sales dept acted correctly in how they responded to your complaint. I feel we did no wrong, but your charges were high in consideration of the small purchase. So, if you decide to ever give us another chance, we will ship to you at NO freight charge for anything you choose to order. I will also offer you a $10.00 store credit against any future purchase. It is a tough time to be in business, and we understand the need to keep costs down. Thank you for considering Zack White in your selection of suppliers.

Regards, Tim Cox

Pres. Zack White Leather Co

I appreciate your willingness to remedy this. I would like to do buisness with your company, if I can afford to. I am just getting into braiding and leatherwork so my first orders will be on the smaller side. Your shipping terms indicate that you will ship the fastest CHEAPEST way. I ship all the time with the flat rate boxes from the Postal Service " if it fits it ships" deal. Two strips of 5/8 latigo could be rolled and put into one of those boxes and shipped anywhere in the country for $5. I would expect to pay more for a side or whole hide to be shipped. If your offer still stands I will give Zack White another try. Thank You.

[rickeyfro]

I appreciate your willingness to remedy this. I would like to do buisness with your company, if I can afford to. I am just getting into braiding and leatherwork so my first orders will be on the smaller side. Your shipping terms indicate that you will ship the fastest CHEAPEST way. I ship all the time with the flat rate boxes from the Postal Service " if it fits it ships" deal. Two strips of 5/8 latigo could be rolled and put into one of those boxes and shipped anywhere in the country for $5. I would expect to pay more for a side or whole hide to be shipped. If your offer still stands I will give Zack White another try. Thank You.

I gotta agree, really dont understand why more suppliers refuse to use the priority mail flat rate boxes, cant see nothing but pluses in using these. Free boxes which in itself is a big deal, boxes aint cheap, super fast delivery, and you can even have the post office deliver the boxes to you and if you buy postage online they will pick it up. I use these all the time and just an example of one of the best sevings Ive had because of them was a shippment of 1 - 1/4" solid brass rod cut to 12" lengths, shipped across country for $11.95 this same box using the ups website would have cost me $72.00 to ship. Might be worth looking into.

[RCZWL]

Due to the increase in the UPS rates we are going to have to revisit our policies on using the post office for shipping some of our packages. One reason we have not used them is their inability to properly track a package and the fact that they will not pick up at our location. We live in a small town and unless you have a street mailbox they will not deliver or pick up. Our business lies on a paved road without a place to put in a mailbox. We have to make a trip to the post office to deliver or pick up our mail which we do once a day.

In an effort to be able to supply our customers with a more economical way to ship we will begin using priority mail on smaller packages. We will have an option on our website to choose priority mail and we will do our best to ship it at the lowest cost to our customer. Our handling charges will apply to the non-flat rate boxes. If we find that there is not a difference between using USPS or UPS we will ship it by UPS. This does not apply to any Flammable liquids as they will continue to be shipped by UPS only. We will also make the effort to deliver to the post office twice a day , once in the morning and once around 3:00pm to help your orders get to you quicker.

Both UPS and USPS have raised their rates on Jan. 1st. We use UPS world ship and their rates are what we go buy. We do not in any way pad our shipping costs.

We hope this will help our customers in the long run as we do appreciate each and every one of them and try to do what is best for them while trying to adjust to the rising economy.

Also please note that if you go online and pay with paypal or a credit card the shipping charges are just a baseline to go by, Most times the charges are just a bit lower and we DO adjust them and pass the credits back to our customers. Sometimes they might be a bit higher and we take the loss.

As to the paypal trying to charge $700 to someones account. That was a fluke incident and was on the paypal end not Zack White Leather. We do have the 800 number that you can always call your order in during working hours.

We are in the process of updating our website over the next couple of monthsand hopefully we will continue to improve our services as well as our communications with our customers. If you have a question or concern we will do our best to resolve it to everyones satisfaction.

Rhonda Cox

Mgr.

Zack White Leather Co.

[Johanna]

And this, Ladies and Gentlemen, is why Zack White's is a trusted supplier to so many of you. It's called "customer service", and they aren't kidding around. Barbiesdude could have called them on the phone and settled this in minutes. I'm glad this thread is here because it demonstrates how willing ZW is to please their customers and make things right. You may pay a dollar more to an independent retailer, but the personal attention is worth so much more. Tim and Rhonda will go the extra mile to make sure you get treated right.

Johanna

[RCZWL]

And this, Ladies and Gentlemen, is why Zack White's is a trusted supplier to so many of you. It's called "customer service", and they aren't kidding around. Barbiesdude could have called them on the phone and settled this in minutes. I'm glad this thread is here because it demonstrates how willing ZW is to please their customers and make things right. You may pay a dollar more to an independent retailer, but the personal attention is worth so much more. Tim and Rhonda will go the extra mile to make sure you get treated right.

Johanna

Johanna

In all fairness, this customer did call us at Zack White Leather Co. and our customer service staff handled it in the correct way that they were hired to do. The decision to go the extra mile was up to Tim and myself. Due to the hectic day we had yesterday we were not made aware of it until it was over and done with. RMC

[wvcraftsman]

I"m still very new to leatherwork as well. I've never bought from Zack White, YET. I've always heard great things about them. I am close enough to them (4-5)hrs. that as soon as the snow quits falling, I'm going to make a visit this spring/summer. From all of the positive reviews, I'm expecting wonderful service. With the ever rising price of gas and shipping costs, it's a wonder anyone can afford to ship anything. It will probably be cheaper to have them ship to me, but I have family in that area anyway.

[CruseVegas]

I am sorry to hear that your first purchase from Zack White was not a pleasant one. Although we have been a supplier to the leathercraft trade for over 58 years, we are still a small company who is famaliar with the struggles one has in today's economy. We almost always ship our shipments via UPS because we can track them, and their service is usually very reliable, but in some markets, UPS has increased their rates to the point that small shipments are expensive. Rural and non-business areas are expensive to ship to via UPS, but being able to track a package is a big plus. Our shipment rates are set by UPS. We use their program for shipping packages, but we do add a small handling charge to help cover our costs. Normally, we do not have a problem with the rates, but when the amount is small, the percentage of freight to merchandise cost can be quite high. I assure you that we do not make money on shipping, and the only reason we charge a restocking charge on strip returns is that they are cut to order... we cut all our strips off the hides when orders are placed. If it is our mistake, we always refund freight and give full credit.... but when a customer just decides he does not need an item, we will accept back the merchandise, but charge the restocking fee. I know this explaination does not lessen the pain of your $14+ freight charge for two strips of leather, but I hope you can understand that we do not make money on freight, and it is in our interest to keep the freight to a minimum. I don't understand the methods UPS uses to calculate their freight, but I do agree that it is extremely high for some areas of the country. I regret that you feel mis-treated on your first order... our sales dept acted correctly in how they responded to your complaint. I feel we did no wrong, but your charges were high in consideration of the small purchase. So, if you decide to ever give us another chance, we will ship to you at NO freight charge for anything you choose to order. I will also offer you a $10.00 store credit against any future purchase. It is a tough time to be in business, and we understand the need to keep costs down. Thank you for considering Zack White in your selection of suppliers.

Regards, Tim Cox

Pres. Zack White Leather Co

Tim I'm curious as to why you don't use USPS with delivery confirmation either first class or priority mail? While it doesn't give you the same "tracking" as UPS it does verify that the item was shipped for the buyer and that delivery has been made. The biggest difference is that UPS give you a date that it should arrive and USPS does not, but most USPS is significantly faster than UPS. For small items USPS can be 80% less expensive to ship.

Just my 2 cents.

[zackwhite]

Tim I'm curious as to why you don't use USPS with delivery confirmation either first class or priority mail? While it doesn't give you the same "tracking" as UPS it does verify that the item was shipped for the buyer and that delivery has been made. The biggest difference is that UPS give you a date that it should arrive and USPS does not, but most USPS is significantly faster than UPS. For small items USPS can be 80% less expensive to ship.

Just my 2 cents.

Look at my above post.

[CruseVegas]

Look at my above post.

I saw that after I posted that.

I think it says a lot about you and your company how you listen to your customers and the concern you have for customer service/relations.

While this whole leather working thing is very new to me, recognizing companies that are good to business with isn't. Yours will be at the top of the list for me. Best to you in 2011

[Wyvern]

I have bought from Zack White for several years now, and have always had excelent customer service. Just give them a call! They will bend over backwards to insure you are happy!

Donnie

Owner and Sporran maker

Wyvern Leatherworks

[artificer13]

Just FYI, but UPS did raise their rates on Jan2. Most packages look like they are averaging $12 to start and pennies per pound after that. I'm using a lot more USPS flat rate boxes these days.

+1 for this.

I ONLY ship USPS priority. Even worldwide. USPS helps your overseas (or even just Canadian) customers NOT get gouged by UPS/FedEx 'brokerage' fees. I've been able to track every package sent, insurance is a minimal upcharge, and in case anyone missed it, USPS handles packages with more care than the competitors

HERE.

[BevJones]

Shipping does seem to be going up with all suppliers. If you have a small order, the minimum shipping fee at Weaver is now $15.....just an fyi

[Jbarv Bulls]

I had stopped ordering from Zack White Leather when I paid $15 for a couple of 1" buckles, some thread, and needles to get shipped to me. ( UPS dropped them off at my local post office for delivery, must not have wanted to drive to the house that day ) Didnt seem so high when I was ordering shoulder leather though . Maybe I will give them another try with the option for lesser shipper costs.

[Bobby1949]

I'm new to working with leather so I haven't had any experience with any online leather shops. But when I have a day to go for a ride I'll go to Zack White Store in Ramseur, NC. It's less than an hour from my house. With the price of gas today it will be cheaper than UPS & just go for a visit.

See you in Ramseur, NC sometime. Bobby

[RMB Custom Leather]

I'm new to working with leather so I haven't had any experience with any online leather shops. But when I have a day to go for a ride I'll go to Zack White Store in Ramseur, NC. It's less than an hour from my house. With the price of gas today it will be cheaper than UPS & just go for a visit.

See you in Ramseur, NC sometime. Bobby

I would request to use USPS in the comments section when you order from them, usally they will ship it that way which is cheaper. You could also call your order in to make sure someone gets the message. I left comments on one of my orders and they shipped just like I asked.

[Spinner]

+1 for this.

I ONLY ship USPS priority. Even worldwide. USPS helps your overseas (or even just Canadian) customers NOT get gouged by UPS/FedEx 'brokerage' fees. I've been able to track every package sent, insurance is a minimal upcharge, and in case anyone missed it, USPS handles packages with more care than the competitors

HERE.

Unless it's going to the UK...in that scenario, do yourself a favor and spend the extra money. UK customs are horridly slow and ParcelForce, one of the delivery agents, is even worse.

I sent two tank bibs over there to two separate clients, the packages were held in customs for the maximum of 10 days and then passed through to ParcelForce. PF then claimed they never got the package,

held it for another 8 days and then returned it to me in California, undelivered. When I checked the box, no reason for return was noted and the box had never even been opened for inspection! But it did bear their labels on it proving they had in fact received it.

They were simply too lazy to deliver the package and then after all that kept my money.

FedEx basic int'l service had it there in 6 days door-to-door but it cost twice as much...sometimes a guarantee is worth it.

[wvcraftsman]

I've purchased from them twice now. Both times have been excellent. I ordered on Friday and the package was waiting on me monday when I got home. Great place!!