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Reviews and Complaints

My husband and I bought a dining room table on 1/6/12. When we got it home, it was scratched badly on the table. My husband took it back with the receipt. They would not do an even exchange. They said he needed my debit card which he did not have. They agreed to put the credit on his debit card. He tried to buy another table and asked if he could open the box and check it first. The manager said no because he did not bring his own tape and told him they would not load it on his truck. He asked if he could buy the floor model and the manager said "nope." Worst customer service we have ever encountered. Will call Monday to Clark Howard to seek his advice and find the CEO's phone number, which by the way, is not available on any website.

I bought some holiday decorations two weeks ago. Of course we over bought. I went to return the extra items but I had lost the receipt. Cashier said no returns without a receipt, not even for store credit. I couldn't get a manager in store to speak with me. I tried calling the corporate office and cannot get live person on the phone. You can't even call the store and get a live person. I had to email customer service, and after many back and forth emails, they wouldn't help me. So they can't pull up receipts by credit card, no returns without a receipts, can't talk to a live person or anyone with any authority. All this equals a lost customer for life. How are they in business? Perhaps they won't be much longer...

Please do not shop at this location! I have never dealt with anyone more rude! When I spoke with the manager, Paul, I was told that they were not worried about upsetting customers because they would be "profitable" without me! Customer service should be of utmost importance, but it's not to this company! Let's see just how profitable they can be without customers!
They sell low quality merchandise and hire even lower quality management!

Please see email sent to the "fake" email address that Garden Ridge gives out when you complain about something at their store, which is [protected]@gardenridge.com on 5-24-11 and five additional times since I did not receive a response:

Hello,

I would like to share with you the experience that I had at your Garden Ridge store located at 4641 Lafayette Road, Indianapolis, IN, yesterday 5-23-11 at approximately 4:00 pm Eastern standard time. First let me say that I have been a loyal customer and have spent alot of money at this store since it opened here in Indianapolis, and I have also referred several friends and co-workers because of the great selection and low prices. Unfortunately I'm not even sure I will ever go back. Let me explain what happened.

Approximately 10 days ago I went to your store and bought throw pillows, two small ones, and one big one that matched. I really needed two big ones, but you get so many of these that I was sure you would get more of them. I thought it was reasonable to wait 1 1/2 weeks to go back and see if the store had received additional pillows to get the one pillow that I needed. Keep in mind when I picked out these pillows I was there for 1 hour studying the pillows, so I know what inventory you had. Please also keep in mind that I live 1 hour away and gas in this area costs $3.80 - $4.00 per gallon. I have no other business in this area except to drive to your store.

Now to the events of 5-23-11. I spent about 40 minutes looking through the pillows and in the area above that wraps around the store (where you store additional pillows) looking for this one pillow that I needed. I could not find one that matched even the small ones I had bought, I could only find a large one that was brown like mind instead of green. I could tell however that a new shipment of pillows had come in because there were several styles there that had not been there before. I have a keen eye for these things and again studied the pillows for an hour before I picked mine out the first time. I noticed at the back of your store (but on the floor visible to customers) were several new pieces of furniture, still wrapped in plastic, and 4-5 huge boxes that had not been opened. My thought was that the boxes could contain pillows, so if someone could at least peek in there and tell me then I wouldn't have wasted an hour drive for nothing. There was a tall black man with a black shirt on, one of your employees, straightening the pillows in one of the aisles. I approached him and explained what I was looking for, and told him nicely that I had spent a very long time looking through all of the pillow aisles and at the extras that wrap around the top shelf of the store, and could not find any of these. Then I pointed out the boxes and asked if there was a possibility that there were pillows in those boxes. He said he didn't know and he was "not authorized" to do anything with those boxes, and that I would have to speak to his "manager". Let me say that this was the first employee I encountered that acted like I was "bothering" him and he was totally uninterested in my dilemma. Please keep in mind he was "straightening pillows"! I'm sorry but that should be done right before closing, I'm sure alot more customers would come and mess them up before close. Unfortunately I did not get his name but the time of day and my description should be enough to figure out who it was.

The next part is the real kicker. I went to the front of the store to the cashier, and very politely explained that I drove a long way and was hoping that someone could check the boxes. I told her that the person in the back by the pillows said that I needed to talk to the manager. The cashier used her two-way radio and explained the situation and asked for the manager. The manager, Angela Zabinski, stomped up to the front of the store very irritated that she had to be bothered by me. I explained to her that I saw that there were large boxes that possibly contained pillows and was hoping someone could peek inside before I left to see if that was the case. She was very rude from the moment she walked up to me. She sighed very loudly and said "I have all my employees doing other projects"! I'm sorry but straightening pillows was the other man's "project" that was so important? I told her I understand, but I drove a long way and if someone could just peek into the boxes if they contained pillows I would search for the one I wanted myself. She then stormed to the back of the store. It couldn't have been more than 60 seconds later when she called the cashier on the two-way radio and said in a very nasty tone "IS THAT CUSTOMER STILL THERE?" Of course the cashier said yes. The manager then said that the only pillows in those boxes were the back rests that have arms on them. I'm not sure if she thinks I am stupid, but I don't think she even had enough time to walk to the back of the store, much less slit open 5 boxes and look inside of them.

At this point I am bewildered, the only person that even remotely has any focus on customer service in this store is your cashier. She was awesome and gave me this email address and the managers name when I asked for it. Other than that who in the world do the other employees thinks they work for? Without customers they would have NO JOB! I myself am a Sales Manager for a large telecommunications company. I have 8 Account Managers that work for me, and they handle 3, 200 accounts that are all cities, governments, counties, and school systems. I have to say that if I EVER heard them talking to a customer like I was talked to yesterday they would be fired. I am not sure if I even want to step foot in your store to return the other three pillows! I also have to say that you have lost a customer, and I will no longer be referring friends and family to this store. The funny thing is I have never had to ask for assistance before, so now I know. Maybe it has been this way all along, I just got lucky and never needed any help while I was there.

My last point that I would like to make is that management comes from the top down. If Ms. Zabinski acts like this towards customers, then the staff that works for her will also act like this. I hope you get my point.

Thank you for listening.
********************

Keep in mind that no one responded after sending this multiple times! I would think that any company who wants to stay in business would be all over this! Bottom line is they are a horrible company to do business with, I agree with everyone else on this website, total scam. They are also right about the phone numbers they publish for their stores, they ring to nowhere, or for Indianapolis, it has a fax tone.

My experience with Garden Ridge in the past has been without incident, as long as you make a purchase, and never return or question the price, etc you will be fine.
In December 2010 I attempted to purchase some marked down pictures. They were on a clearance rack with a red mark through the original price and the sign posted indicated an additional % off.
Once I approached the register, the picture rang up at regular price. The cashier refused to look into the discrepancy and said it was an error. I informed her of the stack of 20 or so pictures and she stated they were all mistakes. I asked for a Manager and the cashier informed me she was the Manager. So in turn, I asked for the Store Manager. She points to a gentlemen who was standing a few feet away. I explained the price discrepancy, he said they were placed in the wrong area (with red lines), snatched them from me, added them to his cart and walked away.
The "store" manager never looked into my claim, or even gave me more than 3 seconds of his time. I asked the cashier/Manager for company information in order to file a formal complaint and she hands me a tiny piece of paper with an email address typed on it.
I am not exaggerating but I felt as though I had been acosted. I walked away from all the merchandise and the store, never to look back, except for now by sharing my story.

I drove 50 miles to go to Garden Ridge to Buy a rug. I found one that I really liked and was going to buy it. It was red lined which is half off. I thought bonus, I will get it cheaper. When I checked out it rang up full price. the cashier told me that it must have been red lined by mistake, because if it was supposed to be it would have rang up half off. I told him that I also work in retail and if we make a pricing mistake then we make it right by the customer. He told me that he couldn't override the price that had to be done by corporate. When I asked to speak to a manager he informed me that he was a manager. I aksed for a phone number to corporate and all I got was a piece of paper that had a web address. It didn't even take me to a place where I could complain to them directly. I will not shop with that company again. I will also tell everyone I know not to shop wuth them either. They(Garden Ridge) don't know the meaning of customer service. The item that I was trying to purchase was item #[protected]. I can't believe as a manager he doesn't have the authority to make things right for the customer. I am also a manager and I have that authority.

On November 6th my mother my sister and I went drove for 1 1/2 hours to go to Garden Ridge to by Christmas trees. I purchased a 7' white lights tree my mother purchased a multi color same size style. On November 27th I started to put the tree up and the top was wobbly and the lights kept going out. I called my mother and asked her if her's did that no. I had seen her's over Thanksgiving and it looked great. After working all day I drive to Garden Ridge and I didn't have my reciept I had looked for it every where I just wanted an exchange. I spoke to a return clerk, front manager and "store manager" all kept saying NO to everything I wanted. Thery were out of that style tree, I could NOT get a credit put money with it and purchase another tree. I was NOT wanting a refund just a tree I explained to them the next 3 weeks I was VERY busy and that I just wanted a tree that worked. I was told to call customer service I called while standing in the store they told me to fill out the warranty card send it in and once registered they would send me replacement parts 7-10 days to get registration then 14 days for replacement parts. I told them I could not wait they then told me to return it to the store I said I'm in the store and they are telling me to call you. As things escalated I was told to leave the store I was drawing attention and upsetting other customers. I proceeded to put the tree together in front of the store to prove my point the "Manager" who then went to the back and brought back a new top and said she could get fired for doing this. The tree is still not "RIGHT" but I am going complete that warranty card and if takes until next December it will be "RIGHT". I would not buy a rubber band from Graden Ridge. NEVER AGAIN Buyer beware!

Bought a couple of chair cushions from this store on the weekend. When I got them home, they were not tall enough in the back. When I got to the store to return them on Monday (2 days later & tags still attached), I did not have my receipt in my purse. Proceeded into the store and thought I would just get a store credit, which was fine because I would just switch them out. Obviously the receipt was in one of the bags and I missed it when I took out my items. Of course, the bags were in the trash which was picked up that day. So, no receipt. The young man at the counter told me, no receipt, no return. Asked to speak to the manager, Arlene, and was given the same reply. Actually, acted like she didn't even care. Asked for her boss's name, and she wouldn't supply it. Garden Ridge's motto should be "Our customers come last, but you can shop here anyway". Now I see why the parking lot is always empty. At one time, I thought they had closed down. In today's modern and technical world, we have a company who gives no store credits, can't look up the credit card used (or just doesn't want to because they have you) and puts there customers last. I will NEVER shop there again. EVER! Garden Ridge in Greenville, SC, your manager Arlene, sucks at her job and needs a new appearance.

I never lose receipts and rarely return anything, but I just tried to today and of course learned of their new short-sided return policy. If they had given me (like any other store) the store credit of $16, I would have turned around and spent that, plus another $113 in purchases that I'd intended to get there. Instead, I had to purchase these items from WalMart (who, like most stores, will give store credit if you lost your receipt).

I understand some people abuse return policies. So, limit how many returns a customer is allowed per year (without a receipt) so that ALL of your customers are not punished for the small group of abusers! Duh!

This policy SCREAMS we don't care about our customers (and we're lazy). Well, I'm happy to go cold turkey and give my tens of thousands of dollars of purchases to the many stores who do care about their customers (Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Walmart etc...to name a few). I'll return as a customer when (and if) they correct this policy.

RE: Mirror purchased 08/21/2009 paid over $130.

Hello Customer Service,
I appreciate your response to this matter. It seems to me that Garden Ridge no longer stands behind the products sold nor is the quality and workmanship meant to last.

I have several pieces of heavy artwork and mirrors that have been hanging on walls from 1-15 years (several are from Garden Ridge). I would expect any mirror that I purchase to hold up to the trip home in the package it was purchased in and installed correctly stay together. I understand that you cannot guarantee control over installation. The mirror did not fall off the wall hanger and the wire did not break (my installation). The attached hanger that came on the mirror came off the mirror frame (your product).

I am not asking for my money back. I spent days shopping for this item and would like it replaced. It is clear that Garden Ridge no longer stands behind the items sold in it's stores nor really cares about me as a customer.

Good luck with all your future endeavors!

Garden Ridge response:
That is correct, we can't assist you further. We do not offer or sell extended warranties of any kind.

Per the policy on your receipt, and the policy we post at every register, we can only offer assistance within 60 days (as we have no control over installation or the use of any product).
Thanks

Customer Service,
I would like to clarify that the piece that came off the mirror and caused it to fall was part of the mirror when I purchased it from Garden Ridge. Please review the pictures to understand that the frame is not strong enough to hold the hanger piece that came on the mirror used to hang on the wall.

I would like to clarify that I understand your response.

Under no circumstances does:
1. Garden Ridge warrant any items purchased from their stores for defects after 60 days from the purchase date?
2. Garden Ridge return, exchange or replace any items 60 days from the purchase date for defects in material, workmanship, etc.?
3. Garden Ridge return, replace, or repair any item that breaks after 60 days from the date of purchase?

Garden Ridge response:
We are unable to assist on a purchase from 6 months ago. All returns/exchanges must be made within 60 days.
Thanks

Hello Customer Service,
I recently purchased a mirror and some other art work to hang in my new home. It has been within the last 6 months. One of the pieces I purchased is a heavy 4'X3' mirror to hang over my sectional. I followed all instructions and hung the mirror with the proper hangers that hold over 200 lbs of weight. I found a short screw on my sectional about a week ago and questioned my children about it. No one knew where it had come from. I was sitting on my sectional today when I heard a noise and turned my head to see the mirror crashing down. I was able to somewhat break the fall and keep the mirror on the sectional where it did not hit the floor or glass table and break. However a bit of the front chipped off during the fall. The part on the mirror that has 4 short screws holding in the part that is used to hang the mirror was bent and had pulled out of the frame. There were 3 screws left and the 4th screw was missing and matched the one I found on the sectional a week ago. Bits of the frame were stuck in between the screws and had pulled completely out of the frame. (see attached pictures)

I tried to contact the store but there is no longer a live person only recorded messages. I took the mirror back to the store. I went in the store to ask for help and where customer service is. The manager said there is no customer service. I explained what had happened and she said we do not take back damaged items. I asked her to look at the mirror and see that it was not damaged other than the part that came off to hold the mirror on the wall (see attached pictures) and the piece that had chipped out of the front when it fell, I had the chipped piece with me. I asked her if someone could help me bring the mirror in it is heavy. After looking at the mirror she said I had hung it wrong and was not suppose to use wire to hang it. I explained that I followed all the instructions for hanging the mirror that was on the package as well as used the proper weight wire and wall kit for hanging the mirror in excess of 200 lbs. At that point she called another large man over 6' tall named John. He asked me if I had my receipt with me. I said no but I can dig it out of my files. He then asked me if I paid cash. I said no I paid credit. Then he asked if it had been over 60 days. I said yes it had been in the last 6 months. He said the policy is that they do not return or exchange after 60 days. I explained that I would like to exchange the mirror that I purchased it less than 6 months ago. Obviously the mirror is faulty in the frame or hanging piece. He said we do not do that and I would have to contact you this way to determine if the mirror could be exchanged.

I was humiliated and felt like they were more than implying that this was my fault or I was trying to pull something. So I am writing you and sending pictures of the back of the mirror where the piece pulled out and the bent piece that came out of the frame. I am very grateful that my children were not sitting there at the time and I was able to break the fall of the mirror somewhat. I truly hope this was a faulty mirror and that it can be replaced by the same mirror without any problems. This is not the first mirror I have purchased at Garden Ridge. The other mirror I purchased from you is longer and narrower with a much heavier frame. This mirror is a bit heavier than the one that fell and I have had it over 7 years with no problems.

I would like to replace the mirror with the same or equal mirror as long as it is free of any defects.

Thank you,

Before Christmas I bought several boxes of Christmas ornaments. These ornaments were for trees to be used in an assisted living home. After buying the ornaments, we found that they were not needed. On December 22 I went back to the Garden Ridge to return the ornaments. I could not find the receipt with Christmas and all. But they could use my debit card. The lady at the desk was not helpful at all. She quickly scanned the boxes, which were labeled 'Garden Ridge', and said that they were not on the debit card. I asked her to repeat the scan. She quickly did it and said again it was not on the debit card. I KNEW it was purchased using the debit card. WITH AN ATTITUDE, she put the ornaments back in the bag, handed them back and called for the next customer.

I went home and frantically searched for the receipt. After finding the receipt, and checking upc numbers, the ornaments WERE on the debit card which was scanned. I live 40 miles from Garden Ridge so it is not an afternoon drive to the store. The next opportunity that I had to go to the Garden Ridge I took the ornaments AND RECEIPT to the store. I was informed that the deadline was past and nothing could be done.

I did what was suppose to be done by returning the items in the correct time frame and Garden Ridge did not work with me. So, when I was finally able to make the 40 mile trip back to the store, Garden Ridge still would not work with me.

I believe that I have a legitimate complaint because I did work in the correct time frame and the store was not cooperative. I believe that since I had the receipt that I should be entitled to the complete refund, or at least a store credit, since I did follow the time frame but was not worked with. If the store were still following the policy of scanning debit cards, they could even pull up my card showing the time and date that I was there to make the return because I also made another return of a Christmas tree and it would show the date and time of return, on the 22nd. Having to return to the store a THIRD time will cost me alot in gas. I am very disappointed in the store not working with the customer, especially since a receipt was in hand.

Now, unless you authorize it, I still cannot get my money back. Please respond. I would also appreciate a phone number not just an automated response. By just using an automated response, I know you truly do not want to work with your customers and ensure the future happiness of your customers. I also believe that it is a cop-out to being fair to your customers and striving to work with them.

Please help with this situation.

On Monday January 4th 2010, I went to my local Garden Ridge in Little Rock, AR where I purchased 2 rugs, 2 rug pads, and 2 lamp shades using my credit card. The lamp shades worked in my home perfectly and I was very pleased with them. However the 2 rugs did not work in my home as I had anticipated. Last night, Thursday January 7th 2010, I went back to my local Garden Ridge to return the 2 rugs and rug pads. I told the cashier that I did not have my receipt but I paid by credit card. She told me it was no problem to return the items and she could look up the purchase using my credit card. After 3 failed attempts for the computer to find my purchase, the cashier finally told me that she "just remembered" they were no longer able to look up purchases using this method. I told her no problem. I'll take store credit because I love shopping at Garden Ridge. I was told that without a receipt they could not give me store credit. I asked about an even exchange and she again told me she could not do that without a receipt. I asked to speak with the manager. He also was unable to work with me and ended up raising his voice and getting very rude with me. (I would also like to add that no one at this store ever brought up the return policy when I purchased these items.)

I asked for an number to call so I could file a complaint. The manager told me there was not a number I would have to email my complaint. I did this and the response I got was I am very sorry you can not return with out a receipt. There was no name signed to the email and I replied and asked where they were located and what their name was. No response. I tried calling my local store and all I got was a recording and no matter what button I pushed I could not get a live person on the line.

I work in customer service and know that the main goal of any company is keeping the customer satisfied. The experience I had last night at Garden Ridge was unlike any experience I have had at any retail store. It is extremely disappointing that a business I frequently visit is so unwilling to work with their customers regarding exchanges. I urge their business to reevaluate their return policy as I know they will have many more unhappy customers in the future. I hope that this does not hurt business at the Little Rock store as I know in this tough economic time people really need their jobs.

This store has a crappy 60 day return policy. Even if the item is defective or does not work at all! No store credit, no nothing! The manager told me to take my broken item and get out of his store or he would call the police.

You cannot call them and speak to a real person. You can only e-mail a complaint line.

They sell junk and back it up with a bad return policy.

My wife and I purchased a Christmas tree on clearance from the Garden Ridge store in Lexington, Ky after Christmas last year. We brought the box home and put it in our attic until 2 weeks ago when we brought it down to put it up. (Hence the reason so much time has lapsed.) When we opened the box there were only 2 pieces of the 12 ft tree with no papers or anything else. We got to looking at the box and realized that there should have been 2 boxes included in the tree and we had Box B. We immediately went to the Garden Ridge store where we purchased the tree, showed them our receipt (which we had kept) and explained the situation. They told us that we would have to go through their customer care line which is an email address. We did this and explained that we would just like to have the other ½ of the tree we purchased or to bring the ½ that we have now and get our money put back on our card since we didn’t get what we paid for. Their “customer care” told us that there was nothing they could do for us since it had been over 60 days. We went further to try and contact the CEO of Garden Ridge, left numerous voicemails with their so-called VP’s and received no response from anyone. Now we cannot even get anyone from the “customer care” line to respond to us. The best they could do was offer us a gift card for "THEIR" mistake. Why would we want to wait until after christmas to purchase the tree again? Why would I want to spend another dime in their store? So I declined their gift card and b/c I did that they explained to me that they would have no further contact with me.

We’re out over $200 dollars and stuck with only half of the merchandise that we actually paid for. We feel that Garden Ridge has committed theft and can’t understand how they can get away with this. We’ve filed a complaint with the better business bureau but it probably will not do any good and Garden Ridge will keep ripping people off!

Garden ridge posted their weekley ad and I very excited to see "sunday only $99 for a 7 1/2 foot prelit tree-style arizona or rhode island normally $299!" I gave my christmas tree to my son and arrived at the store 8 a.M. Sunday morning to get that tree! I was one of the first into the store and they did not have those trees in stock! I could have understood if I had waited until late sunday morning but I was the first over there and the ad trees were not there. I spoke with a manager and she stated that the sunday ad was a misprint, only 9 1/2 ft trees were on sale for $199 and the corporate office became aware of the mistake wednesday before the sale. That tree is too tall for my house and $100 over the ad price! She was very nice and tried to show me some $99 trees but I was not happy. She explained as per company policy she could not substitute a similar tree or reduce prices on any other tree. I then asked if I could get one of the trees from the thursday only ad for the thursday price because there were plenty in stock. That was also a no. Company policy allows the managers to offer no discounts or price changes. The manager tried to help with in the limits the company gave her but all she could give me was an email address to contact corporate. As one of the clerks said, "don't bother, they won't do anything to correct their mistake." so why are we giving our hard earned money to a company that uses trickery and deceit to get us in the store and does not honor its ads? Why are we helping a company make money when they care so little for its consumers that they do not even give the managers discrectionary overrides? Where is the customer service? Consumers are not always right but if you want to keep them happy and spending money at your store, then empower your managers to fix your ad mistakes or quit making mistakes!

I am documenting two complaints. First of all their return policy is a joke. I tried to return items for a refund or store credit, however, I have lost my receipt. I was denied any sort of refund. Ridiculous! I hope their company goes out of business. I spoke with two managers, one of whom (karen) was extremely rude. I find it unthinkable that a store would not even offer in-store credit as a type of refund. Now they have lost our business forever, since we will not be spending one cent in any of their stores. This will definitely cost them thousands of dollars in revenue. I will also be posting my complaints all over the internet, alerting unsuspecting customers of their horrible business practices. I will also be filing a complaint with the better business bureau. The other complaint relates to their ridiculous phone system. There is absolutely no way to talk with a human being when calling the stores, though they have individual phone numbers listed for each store location. Unacceptable. I will never be shopping at this store again. Horrible customer service.

I am documenting two complaints. First of all their return policy is a joke. I tried to return items for a refund or store credit, however, I have lost my receipt. I was denied any sort of refund. Ridiculous! I hope their company goes out of business. I spoke with two managers, one of whom (karen) was extremely rude. I find it unthinkable that a store would not even offer in-store credit as a type of refund. Now they have lost our business forever, since we will not be spending one cent in any of their stores. This will definitely cost them thousands of dollars in revenue. I will also be posting my complaints all over the internet, alerting unsuspecting customers of their horrible business practices. I will also be filing a complaint with the better business bureau. The other complaint relates to their ridiculous phone system. There is absolutely no way to talk with a human being when calling the stores, though they have individual phone numbers listed for each store location. Unacceptable. I will never be shopping at this store again. Horrible customer service.