I discourage anyone from doing business with Eurotique in Florida. I had an awful experience with them, and the owner, Chrissy Grieco, was very rude and unethical with Me.
Now, this may seem long, but I want to include the entirety of My experience with them.
On February 22, 2016, I ordered a vegan cat o’nine tails from their website. The price was $189.99.
I was contacted two days later by Jennifer. She said, “The flogger that you ordered is currently out of stock and will take up to 4 weeks to make.” I was then offered a couple of different leather options for a flogger and asked what I would like to do. I said I needed it to be vegan and that I would wait for it to be made.
Three days later, I was contacted and told they were having trouble sourcing the material and would I be interested in another vegan material like rope. I said the only thing I could use would be quality faux suede or faux leather.
I didn’t hear back by March 5th, so I sent an email to check on the status.
I received a reply on March 8th saying they couldn’t find any other materials and offered Me a couple more options for rubber floggers or a refund. I explained that I already had some rubber floggers and I specifically was looking for a cat o’nine tails. I said that if they couldn’t make the product for Me, I was willing to purchase a corset instead. The price of the corset I wanted happened to be the same.
After receiving some help with sizing via email, I received the corset on March 12th. It was a smooth, black satin brocade with a paisley design. Very pretty. I noticed it still had a hanging price tag attached, which read, “$129.99”. Immediately, I was confused. I had paid $189.99 for this. Was there some kind of a mistake? Was I being ripped off?
I contacted Jennifer that evening and the next day she told Me that I was sent the wrong corset. That they apparently make a cheaper version of this corset, which is the one I was sent. She asked if I wanted to return it. I had some concerns about if the difference between the two might cause sizing problems, but on March 17th I told her that I would keep this cheaper version and would like a refund for the difference.
By March 22nd I had not received the difference so I sent an email to follow up.
On March 24th I received an email from Jennifer stating that she had processed My refund.
Shortly after that, I wore it for about 3 hours total. Then, I put it back in My closet.
When I took it out for a second wear, which was on October 13th (sounds like a long time, but anyone who has a large wardrobe and many corsets knows you may not wear the same corset for a while), I began to tighten the laces and I noticed the fabric was pulling away from the seam at one of the front bones. I took a photo of it:
I removed the corset and emailed Eurotique the next day, explaining that I had only worn it once and it was coming apart at the seams. I included the above photo.
Jennifer replied with an apology and stated, “That should not have happened, so of course we will exchange it for you. Please send the corset back to us and we will send you a
replacement.”
I asked for a return label, which she provided, and I sent it back.
On October 31st I received the replacement corset. To My surprise, the fabric was completely different. It was now a matte black fabric with a floral swirl pattern and it felt rough to the touch:
I figured they made a mistake and sent Me the wrong corset. I emailed them and said, “If this was a mistake, I’d just like to return it for the exact same corset I ordered and returned to you. If you made a substitution, I would have appreciated it if you would have asked me.”
Jennifer replied, “The corset that you received is the same style that you ordered before, only it is made with a different brocade. The last fabric was defective which is why it tore, so we are now using this brocade on this style.”
I replied, “With all due respect, if you have to swap the fabric, you really might want to notify the customer before you send them a product. A quick email, ‘Hey, we no longer use the same fabric because it doesn’t work with a corset. We instead use this. Is this okay with you or would you like to select something else?’ Because what if the customer does not like the new fabric?”
By November 4th, I received no reply, so I emailed and stated that I didn’t like the new fabric and that I’d like to return the corset for something with a fabric which is similar to the one I ordered.
I received a reply from the owner, Chrissy Greio, on November 4th:
“We have been working with you on this issue sine March of 2016. Our
return policy is 3 days from receipt for store credit or exchange. You
didn¹t notify us of a problem with the corset until October 14, 2016. I
have absolutely no idea how many times you may have worn the corset.We replaced the corset for you and even paid for the freight both ways as
good will.I will offer a 50% discount off another corset for you as long as you
purchase it by November 30, 2016. The only shiny material we currently
have is satin.”
This is where I started getting angry. I had been incredibly patient with their continual problems — not having something advertised, waiting for it to be made only to be told they couldn’t, being sent the wrong corset, having the ask for a refund twice, getting a corset which ended up starting to fall apart after a single wear, getting a replacement that had nothing in common with the one I ordered other than it was black — and Ms. Greico’s tone is that I am the problem here and she’s doing Me a favor by, you know, doing her job.
I replied the same day:
“Yes, I have also been working with you on this issue. It has actually been multiple issues. None of which are any fault of mine.
In some instances a customer will not know there is a problem with the item within 3 days. This is why there are warranties. I should not suffer a loss because the merchandise reveals itself to be faulty after those three days. In this case, I wore the corset only once, shortly after I received it in March. I wore it for about 3 hours total. Then, on Thursday October 13th, I put the corset on for the second time. This is when I noticed that the fabric had pulled away from one of the seams, as shown in the photo I have again attached. I emailed on Friday the 14th to ask about an exchange. Jennifer agreed that the corset should not have done that with only 3 hours wear. She also later stated that the fabric was “defective”.
If you understand corsets and what they look like when worn, you will be able to tell that the corset has barely been worn. Look at the fabric, the bones, the eyelets, the laces, etc. You will see I could not have worn it extensively because there is no wear.
With all due respect, your paying the cost of shipping on faulty merchandise is your responsibility as the merchant. Again, the customer should not suffer a loss when the issue is not their fault. None of the issues I have had with your company are my fault in any way: that your site stated you sold something you actually did not have available, to what was supposed to be a 4-week wait for the item ended up with my being told the material could not be sourced, to being sent the wrong corset, to receiving a corset which started coming apart at a seam, to being sent a new corset which used a completely different fabric that the one I purchased without anyone bothering to check in with me to make sure I’d still want it. So, please explain why you’re acting like this is somehow my fault.
I don’t want to buy another corset. I just want to exchange this one for another one that is similar.”
I did not receive a reply and so I sent a follow up on November 14th.
I’ve waited and no reply.
Now, today, I called and asked to speak with her.
It began friendly enough. I told her I had been waiting on a reply for a month. She said that she had two bounce-backs from My email. To be honest, I do not believe her. Let’s say, though, that it was true. Why didn’t she call Me to resolve this professionally? She had My number.
The call quickly went downhill. I explained that you can’t just sent someone a product that looks different than the one they agreed to purchase from you without notifying them, and that I just wanted to exchange it for something in a similar fabric. I used an analogy that it’s like if I bought a chair from someone and ordered it with a certain upholstery and had to return it because there was a problem, and then they sent Me a new chair with a different upholstery without notifying Me. That’s not really going to fly with people.
She didn’t care. She refused to accept a return of this corset. She very rudely said, “I have gone above and beyond for you. There’s nothing more I can do.”
Which, if you know anything about customer service, not only is this nothing resembling “going above and beyond”, but you do not treat your customer like you are doing them a favor for accepting a return on your merchandise because it’s falling apart and because it’s not actually the same product they ordered.
I told her this is not the corset I agreed to purchase, and that instead of an exchange I now would like a refund, but since she is refusing, I would have to go about getting My money back in a different way. I told her that I would be mailing the corset back to her and contesting the charges with My credit card. She then said, “I guess it will get lost in the mail.” (!) Wow. She just told Me she’s going to commit fraud!
I told her I was astounded by this and I couldn’t believe that she was treating a customer is this manner — especially in this day and age, where I can easily share My experience with the world — and she hung up on Me.
I am absolutely floored by her behavior and the refusal to accept an exchange on a corset that I did not consent to buy — and her telling Me that she will lie and pretend she didn’t get the corset!
I highly suggest everyone avoid this business. They are only one of many, many people who sell corsets and BDSM gear. Knowing that they essentially have a three-day warranty on their merchandise, and that if you need to exchange something, you are just supposed to accept whatever they send you, is reason enough to spend your money elsewhere. There’s absolutely no reason why anyone should risk this headache and tolerate this kind of treatment.
UPDATE (12/15/16): Peter Grieco left a comment on My Yelp review which accuses Me of “ruining” the corset and threatening to “ruin [their] reputation” if they “didn’t do what [I] said”. Anyone who knows Me, knows I wouldn’t pull this kind of shit. I don’t threaten to ruin people. I do however ask people to be accountable for selling Me faulty merchandise and sending replacements which don’t look like the thing I paid them for.
These people would rather slander their customers than be accountable for their unethical behavior and business practices. Run the other way.
UPDATE (01/18/17): On January 3rd, I contacted the credit card I used for the purchase with the intent to dispute the charge. I explained the situation and they told Me they were going to send My case to the department that processes disputes. I received a letter in the mail saying they have tentatively credited Me for the cost and requested I fill out some paperwork with details of the transaction and My attempt to resolve it. I am waiting for their reply. (I don’t anticipate any issue. The merchant is basically trying to force Me to buy something I didn’t agree to purchase.)