Granite Furniture Co.
Attn: Store Manager
(address removed)
To whom it may concern,

I purchased a bed and dresser on 12/19/01 in preparation for moving into my new condo. They were delivered on 12/29/01, while I was home. When I returned and put the dresser in my bedroom I discovered that two dresser drawers had some staples that had missed the back panel. This allowed the bottom panel of the drawer to separate from the back panel. I returned to Granite Furniture during the 1st week of January to see what could be done to fix the problem. I was told by a salesman that all that mattered was my satisfaction so the dresser would be replaced or fixed, whatever I thought was best. Since it wasn't a serious problem I decided they could be fixed, so he told me to call Customer Service to set that up. I was very satisfied with the level of service I had been given up to that point.

I called Granite Furniture the next day and spoke with a customer service representative to set up an appointment for the drawers to be fixed. After explaining the problem, they responded by saying "What?" I explained the problem again and they told me I would have to repeat myself again because there had just been an announcement in the store and they hadn't heard anything I had said. The third time I was able to get them to understand that I wanted to have my dresser drawers repaired. There was an opening on 1/10/02 for a technician to assess the problem.

I was told I would have to wait at my home for 4 hours because there was no way to know when the technician would come. The technician had an appointment at 12pm that could last any amount of time so he could arrive anywhere between 12pm and 4pm. I asked for some way to have the technician call my cell phone when he was on his way, but was told that they had asked for management to get cell phones for the technicians but the request had never been granted. I explained that I worked full time and sitting at home waiting for 4 hours wasn't an acceptable option. Nothing could be done by the customer service representative and I was told that I would just have to wait. If I wasn't there when the technician arrived I would have to reschedule for another time and there wasn't another opening until the following week.

I decided to try to get to work early that morning so I could have a little extra time for lunch, hoping I could catch the technician without having to miss much work. On Thursday, January 10th I waited for over two hours, only to get a phone call from the technician on his cell phone saying he was on his way. I had just wasted two hours of my time for absolutely no reason. When he arrived, he was very pleasant and professional. I showed him the problem with the drawers and he said he'd take them into his shop to fix them and call me the following day.

I received no communication from Granite Furniture on Friday, so on Monday, January 14th, I arrived at work early so I could leave before 5pm in order to talk to the customer service representative in person. I was told by one of the cashiers that Monday was their day off. I called Tuesday during lunch, and had to repeat the explanation because they couldn't hear me again. I have never had a problem with people hearing me on the phone I was using so the problem was most likely on the other end, but it was annoying to have to repeat myself. I asked about the status of my drawers, explaining that a technician had taken them on Thursday to fix them in his shop. This was how the conversation went:

Employee: "Your name isn't listed for Tuesday"
Me: "No, the technician came last Thursday"
Employee: "Nope, you're not listed today (Tuesday) or last Tuesday."
Me: "No, I said Thursday!"
Employee: "Oh, Thursday, here you are."

I asked about the status of the drawers and they didn't know. They said that the technicians hadn't been around. One was out sick, another's truck was in the shop and there was no indication of when I would get my drawers back. The rest of the conversation continued:

Me: "When do you think they'll they be fixed?"
Employee: "Whenever the tech fixes them"
Me: "Do you have any idea of when that will be?"
Employee: "No"
Me: "Well, how will I know when they're fixed?"
Employee: "I'll pick up the phone and call you"
Me: "Do you have my number?"
Employee: "No, why don't you give it to me"

I gave them my number and have heard nothing about the drawers since January 15th. If I still had them I would have fixed them by now at my own expense and the problem would have been solved. Now I'm even worse off than before as I don't even have the drawers to fix. The job would have taken about a half hour with the proper tools and there has been a delay of more than 2 weeks. All I am asking for is to have my drawers returned to me, even if they aren't fixed. I will fix them myself. I want you to know however that if this is how customers normally get treated I will not be buying from Granite Furniture again. In fact, a friend of mine at work asked me where I bought the furniture for my condo. I told him I had gone to Granite Furniture explained to him how I have been treated, recommending he not go there to get his couch.

I am not pleased with this situation, but I realize that nobody is perfect and sometimes these things happen. I feel it is only fair to alert you of this situation to give you a chance to resolve it in a timely manner. I'm sure that you don't want your customers to have to go through the hassle that I have and would appreciate it if you would make the necessary changes so that this doesn't occur again.

Sincerely yours,

Daniel Hersam