an interesting letter from lands end.

[guitone]

This may be a bit long, but here goes:


I have been a long time customer of Lands End and have even sought advise on this forum and on another (I forget the name and my real computer is in the shop) style forum. I have noticed the quality of shirts and other items getting lesser than what they were...I have been a very good customer of theirs for the past 20+ years, probably closer to 30, and I have taken advantage of LE's custom service to get both chinos and cords. I have found this mostly frustrating as it takes getting about 5 pair in for the one that fits, so reorders are something that occur frequently. I have had a problem most recently with the cords, got my first pair and they were great, reorded from that pattern and the next two pair were too big, returned and reorded, returned and reordered again and again. Then I find out that LE somehow mixed up the pair that fit well and deleted it from my account and I was reordering from a pair that were not right...OK, try again, get in two pair, one fits pretty well, the other is huge, waist is ok, mostly ok that is but the thighs and seat are at least 2 inches bigger than the other pair. I send them back and reorder. On the advise of a forum member I get in touch with LE again (probably should have just cut my losses at this point). Today I get the following letter:

"Dear Mr.....

I have received word from several of our customer sales and service representatives that you have expressed concerns about the service you've been receiving at Land's End. Our representatives report that they were repeatedly unable to resolve the issues you raised and/or that many of the products you ordered from us did not meet your specifications.

Since our efforts to help you find styles or sizes you wished to keep, and our services have not met your expectations, we have concluded that-for whatever reason-we seem to be unable to serve you to your satisfaction. Rather than continue to disappoint you, we think it best that we simply part ways. As a result, we have removed your name from our mailing list and will no longer accept your orders"

So it would seem that LE does not want to be a better shop, does not want to deal with the issues of their custom clothing (I cannot be the only one that has had problems here), but would rather just not sell me anything. That's ok, I have a box ready to go back to them now and I will work on another, they will probably have to credit me around $2,000 when all is said and done, but if this is how they want to do business, so be it. I can get nicer chino's at BR anyday and I don't need them to be custom made, so now that I have found these I think it time to clean out my closet.

Just a note to anyone thinking of returning anything to LE, or at least to trying to make them aware of any problems they may have satisfying a customer.







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[Johnnysan]

Guitone...

Thanks for the post. I too have noticed that the quality of LE's merchandise has slipped since they merged with Sears. You mentined BR...I'm drawing a blank...who are they?

 

[guitone]

Sorry, BR, Banana Republic....

 

[BellyTank]

Sweet!
You musta really peeved them.
Some firms just don't tkae kindly to constructive criticism.
You are known as an awrkward custmer there by the sounds of it.
I guess when they have an obliging policy of customer service, it's their final hand.....parting company...
B
T

 

[guitone]

Yup, I am sure I pissed them off. It wasn't enough to be able to return an item, I wanted them to address the problem so I could order easily in the future. No problem, all my LE shirts are going back, Nordstrums will have there 1/2 year sale soon and I will buy a bunch there, I prefer their shirts anyway....so a good reason to clean out the closet and send back the many things I no longer wear...if they don't want me I don't want them...that sounds vaguely familiar.

 

[El Jefe]

While I have yet to be "barred" from shoppng LE, I am, quite frankly, not particularly shocked at their response here.
I've been buying stuff from them for more than a decade, necessitated primarily by living in an Asian country and being over 6 ft and 180 lb. I have always in the past found their willingness to accomodate requests to be more than exemplary.
Which is not to say, Guit, that I have any problem with your story, especially since I have also experienced, with increasing frequency, a really unacceptable level of inconsistency within what should be identical product lines.
And I can tell you exactly why.
It's because, with the growing tendency toward WTO-sanctioned globality of manufacturing access, whereas 10 years ago, Lands' End would have sourced hundreds of foreign factories, today they source thousands.
I have friends who work in various capacities bridging the geographical/economic/cultural distance between large N. American retailers and their (mostly Asian) manufacturers, and the reality of 21st supply chain is that a single product can be provided by tens of different manufacturing facilites...where before, a single factory might do all of the dealer's cotton shirts, for example, or all their linen goods, today, these factories specialize to the degree that identical sizes of an identical item might be made at 3 different facilities, very possibly in three different countries, because the individual outlets deal in specific color types, and this system is he most cost-effective.
Naturally, it becomes extremely difficult to enforce strict consistency in QC.
Most customers wouldn't notice this, because, unlike guys like Guit and me (and I'm sure many of you all), they probably own only one piece of a given item (and probably aren't that detail-oriented in their assessment thereof).
Whereas me, you know, I find a shirt I like, well, heck, I'm as likely as not to order 3 or 4 different colors of it, and then do the same in long/short sleeves as well.
And this is where you start to see these bizarre ranges in size and other aspects of garment quality.
So it's not too unreasonable to expect their Customer Service to start going down the pooper too.
That's my take on it, anyway.

 

[guitone]

EL, Thanks for you post...I have come to the conclusion that I am better off without buying fron LE now....I have replaced my dress shirts with ones from Norddtroms and chinos from banana republic, and all are of higher quality.
Thanks

 

[El Jefe]

Guit, LL Bean so far seems to be still performing well in this area (sorry, I can only attest to the mail order outfits), although their sizing takes a bit of a learning curve.
A couple of times I've had to do size exchanges and stuff with them in the last few months, and there haven't been any issues, although it was all pretty standard, procedure-wise.
And they still carry the very best field/bush shirt (for the money) on the market, IMHO.

 

[guitone]

El,I am also a long time LLB buyer, been to the store, always worth a visit when nearby, more stuff than in the catalog and the outlet just across the street. I have never had a problem with LL Bean, been buying there for longer than I did with LE. I like LL Bean mostly for summer shirts, you really cannot beat this years selection, and belts and sweaters. I still have the duck shoes I bought from them over 20 years ago and they are great, as well as my snow boots and so many other items. I find their sizing to be pretty true for me in shirts, pants are another matter, with a non American body I am lost in the oversized pant pattern that they use, as well as their shorts.

 

[El Jefe]

"Now I'm stocking shirts in a Wal-Mart store,
Just like the ones we made before,
'Cept this one came from Singapore...
I guess we can't make it here anymore..."

We Can't Make It Here Anymore
James McMurtry