Mc Feely's

[Julie Moriarty]

A couple of weeks ago I got a catalog from McFeely's. On the back it says, "Prices good through August 13, 2013, unless otherwise noted."

I've been thinking about picking up a Festool DX93e detail sander. I have a lot of detail work to do on the kitchen cabinet carcases. With it's dust collection capabilities and other features, I thought it might be worth spending the money to make the job go easier and faster and keep the kitchen cleaner. McFeely's price in the catalog is $300. When I went online, they listed the price at $315.

Knowing Festool's pricing nature, I scoured the catalog to find the exception for Festool. I could find none. So I emailed McFeely's and asked them if I missed the exception in the catalog and if not will they honor the catalog price. They replied they would look into it. After a few days of hearing nothing back from them, I replied to the email and asked them if they will honor their catalog price. They replied, "The on line price is correct 315.00. We apologize for the confusion."

That's it.

I checked the price out elsewhere and it's $315. I know Festool is rigid with their prices, but I guess I expected more from McFeely's than I got. Maybe they could have thrown me a bone for their pricing error. I haven't spent a ton of money at McFeely's but it's been enough to get a better response than that.

Am I being nit-picky?

[Matt Meiser]

Am I being nit-picky?

Yes. It was an obvious error by a reputable vendor.

BTW, $15 was the price increase on the on Feb. 1.

[David Weaver]

There is no way they'll give a break on something festool, people have been down that road before and it leads to you (as a dealer) getting in trouble or someone from festool coming and taking your festool stuff back.

They could offer you store credit or something, but festool would probably even poo poo that if they found out about it.

[Wade Lippman]

I haven't spent a ton of money at McFeely's but it's been enough to get a better response than that.



A couple weeks ago I tried to use a 10% off coupon 3 days after it expired. They told me to forget it. I was shocked; I thought most companies would allow me to use it. McFeelys is off my list; there are plenty of others.

[Julie Moriarty]

BTW, $15 was the price increase on the on Feb. 1.

The catalog was sent out long after that price increase. It was most likely even printed long after the increase. So the error should have been caught. They know Festool's hard line stance on product pricing. I know they have a lot of items in their catalog but they need to get the prices right where the manufacturer gives them no control over prices. So I withdraw my nit-picky question and remove a star from their rating.

[David Weaver]

A couple weeks ago I tried to use a 10% off coupon 3 days after it expired. They told me to forget it. I was shocked; I thought most companies would allow me to use it. McFeelys is off my list; there are plenty of others.

I don't want to sound like a cynic, but many years ago, they had a lot of made in the USA screws that were better than what I could get locally (as a hobbyist, maybe the selection was better for cabinet shops, etc). But anymore, the origin of the screws is not impressive, and the screws I can get up the street at rockler are just as good (if most of them are coming from the far east and they're all decent quality, why be picky?), and McFeely's doesn't seem to me to be discernible from any other mail order catalog (lots of plasticky junk, etc). Their prices are on the high side, and though I was a loyal customer when they had stuff I just couldn't find elsehwere (and others' imported screws were pretty doggish), there are plenty of businesses out there who will bend over backwards to get you what you need.

I personally default now to either places that have just over the top customer satisfaction reputations (like Bob Marino, etc) or go straight to the creek's onramp to amazon to send a little bit backstream.

[Matt Meiser]

Sometimes you make a mistake you can't fix. You apologize and move on.

And not buying from them because they won't take an expired coupon? Seriously?

[Prashun Patel]

They offer $1 shipping, and I for one like their screws above many others. One bad apple don't spoil the whole darn bunch.

[David Kumm]

Asking a company to honor an expired coupon is wrong. Blaming them is worse. On the other hand there is a part of me that believes the company should honor it's incorrect price and the employee that was in charge of proofing should be held accountable. If companies are held accountable, so to should the employees. Dave

[Julie Moriarty]

I agree, if it's past the date for coupons or price guarantees, it's on you. But if it's within the dates and there are no exclusions or exceptions noted, then it's on the company to honor it or try to make things better. Customer service is important, with all the competition out there. Too bad someone at McFeely's thought it was okay to blow off a legitimate question from an established customer.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Too bad someone at McFeely's thought it was okay to blow off a legitimate question from an established customer.
McFeely's was taken over by Grainger just a few years ago.
Usually when a large company takes over like that, old loyalties are the first things to go.

[David Weaver]

That reminds me of the people at the local auto parts store. it's a chain, I won't say what it is. But I went in there once and asked them about an oil change deal (like to buy the oil and filter). I wanted 0w-20 oil, but for whatever reason, the computer was only recognizing the deal for 5w-20. There was a separate 0w-20 deal, but someone made a technical mistake and neglected to get it in the computer.

I said to the guy at the counter, I'd still like the deal, it's in the flyer. Can you enter it manually or ring it up under 5w-20? He said "no, I know it's supposed to be in the flyer, but the computer isn't showing it. If the computer doesn't show it, I can't give you the deal".

Enterprise IT and the company have decided that there will be no variance from pre-programmed computer for any reason, and I got to learn it first hand by stopping to get a deal that was listed in the flyer. The bigger a company gets, the less the reps and customer service have any flexibility, and I'm sure someone knows that they'll lose more money by allowing discretionary handing out of discounts than they will if they just let you walk.

[glenn bradley]

They offer $1 shipping, and I for one like their screws above many others. One bad apple don't spoil the whole darn bunch.

I also frequently use McFeely's. Things with fixed pricing aside, I wouldn't really consider them a source for power tools any more than I would consider Klingspor's Woodworking Shop for power tools. Some vendors that specialize in certain areas also carry other items but, they would not be my first choice for those "other" items. There was some decent concern when Grainger's picked up McFeely's (http://pressroom.grainger.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=194987&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1094863&highlight=) but, for the most part the fasteners (which is all I really use them for) have been fine and at $1 shipping I don't have to worry if I forgot an item or two, I just order it once I realize.

P.s. I totally agree that if a person at the counter can't override the computer for an obvious mistake, I shop somewhere else . . . unless its Wal-Mart or somewhere that I expect the help to be minimally trained and empowered. :)

[Matt Meiser]

They didn't blow it off. They made a mistake they can't fix and apologized. They aren't allowed to sell it for less than the price Festool sets. You really expect them to risk losing their dealership for you? If you want a cheaper sander go to Home Depot and buy one.

[Dan Hintz]

Am I being nit-picky?

Personally, I don't think you are, and I would have the same issue. Sure, Festool sets their pricing and slap down vendors who undercharge their set rate every time, but this isn't one of those cases. No one fat-fingered the keyboard when putting together the catalog... they weren't listing the item as $31.50 and people were rushing the door to purchase at that price. It was a 5% difference in price, and McFeely's should eat the difference. The text clearly states prices are good for a set amount of time, so unless the pricing error is egregious, they should hold to that. Passing the buck and blaming it on Festool's pricing practices is in poor form, IMO.

At the very least they could offer you $15 in credit so they can claim to be within Festool's pricing guidelines and still keep a customer happy.

[Julie Moriarty]

They didn't blow it off. They made a mistake they can't fix and apologized. They aren't allowed to sell it for less than the price Festool sets. You really expect them to risk losing their dealership for you? If you want a cheaper sander go to Home Depot and buy one.

They can fix it Matt. And their reply was a blow off. I wasn't saying they should risk losing their dealership. All I was saying is their response could have been better. No need to take this personally.

[Julie Moriarty]

Personally, I don't think you are, and I would have the same issue. Sure, Festool sets their pricing and slap down vendors who undercharge their set rate every time, but this isn't one of those cases. No one fat-fingered the keyboard when putting together the catalog... they weren't listing the item as $31.50 and people were rushing the door to purchase at that price. It was a 5% difference in price, and McFeely's should eat the difference. The text clearly states prices are good for a set amount of time, so unless the pricing error is egregious, they should hold to that. Passing the buck and blaming it on Festool's pricing practices is in poor form, IMO.

At the very least they could offer you $15 in credit so they can claim to be within Festool's pricing guidelines and still keep a customer happy.

Simple solution for a simple problem. Thank you for your level-headed and reasonable response.

[Matt Meiser]

Page 196 of the most recent catalog:


Prices
Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this catalog. However, prices are subject to change without notice and errors are subject to correction.

[David Weaver]

That's sort of a "if we waste your time by making a mistake, then it's your problem, not ours." Not a big fan when the error is small, just a good way to lose a customer.

Everyone has a different opinion about it, I guess. When someone stiffs me on something where I would've yielded, then I take them off my list. For me, personally, it would be different if they had all first world fasteners, but that changed about 6 or 7 years ago, IIRC, and there really aren't any prizes in the rest of their offerings compared to anyone else, so if you have to pay the marked up prices they charge, it falls to customer service. I think they failed. Not necessarily on the coupon thing, but on the inability to accomodate a customer for an error that's literally less than 5% of a purchase price.

[Matt Meiser]

Except that you are talking about a manufacturer that has an extremely strict pricing policy. They made their dealers pull everything of Ebay when the Bing cash-back deal was going on because it allowed people to effectively pay less than advertised. I'm not a fan of the policy but it is what it is. And to come on a forum and bash the vendor because they made a mistake they can't fix without a risk--what's the point of that other than to bash the vendor?

And for the record, I've been fairly disappointed with McFeely's since the Grainger buy-out. The screws still seem to be decent quality but I've come across a few defective ones and its disappointing that, for the price, they've been outsourced to China. I've found myself picking up more US/German SPAX screws lately but they don't have as big a selection. I'd probably switch if I found a comparable line produced in the US or Europe. And I completely agree with filling the catalog with other stuff. Other than the fact that Grainger probably already carried most of that stuff, what's the point? With Grainger pricing, why try competing in that market? Not a huge fan of what Grainger did with Duluth Trading either.

[Prashun Patel]

I'm curious if any of you are in customer service positions. When I was a customer I thought the world was simple. Now that I'm on the other side, I realize that while I (as McFeely's probably does too) try to strive to keep customers happy, it just isn't as simple in certain situations. I suggest in addition to getting it off yr chest on this forum, you write a letter to the owner.

I will BET that you'll get a more than satisfactory response. In fact, if you don't, PM me, and *I* will send you the $15. Honest.

[David Weaver]

I doubt they'd have much issue with providing $15 of credit unless they called festool ahead of time to ask about it. That's just my opinion. I have heard of other vendors giving concessions when they screw up (i'm not going to say who they are for obvious reasons), and they're all still selling. I would guess the policy has more to do with grainger ownership and no allowance for CS to make anything but decisions that are provided on a bullet point list, but how would we know unless someone else had the same issue with a good that's not price controlled. I certainly don't think the OP is out of line. If I saw something there $15 cheaper and with free shipping and I went to order it and they just said "no", I'd tell them to stuff it, there are places that do more to earn business.

[Julie Moriarty]

Prashun, I came here initially, curious if the snub I felt from the company was just me or if I was justified in feeling snubbed. I felt the response from customer service was poor, at best. For a good portion of my career, I worked with company clients, people we needed to keep happy if we wanted to stay in business and remain profitable. At times they pushed me to a point I wanted to strangle them but I always responded diplomatically and did everything I could to keep them happy. And we kept them as clients and the contracts I bid and managed were almost always profitable. Simple business practices.

This was never about the money. I don't care about the $15. It's about the blasé way they went about handling this. First response was "I'll check and get back to you." Several days passed and no follow up. Then I wrote them again. The response was pretty much, "Oops! Sorry. Have a nice day."

Will I buy Festool products from McFeely's now? No. Customer service is the only thing that separates one Festool vendor from another. And if you like their $1 shipping, there are places that offer free shipping so you can save the buck and buy a pack of gum.

In some ways this seems like making a mountain out of a molehill. You and a friend can get coffees at Starbucks for the $15 difference, maybe. And that $15 probably means even less to McFeely's. They could have used it to pay someone to write a Festool exception in their catalog. :rolleyes: But what would it have meant if instead of their aloof response they replied something like this, "We're sorry for the error. Festool controls the prices on their products and we are not able to honor the catalog price. But if you decide to buy the tool from us, we will throw in $15 worth of any screws in our selection." They would have gained a loyal customer and the price for that would be peanuts.

BTW, I've done some research on the DX 93 and it seems that may not be the best choice in the long run. The RO 90 DX may be the better choice, if I buy the low profile triangular sanding pad with it. Since I had McFeely's catalog at my desk, I checked their price. Yeah, it's the old price. Should I ask them to honor THAT price? ;)

[Matt Meiser]

if I buy the low profile triangular sanding pad with it

Its included. Tool-Home sells abrasive packages with smaller than full-box quantities as well.

[Tom Ewell]

She might be talking 'bout the extended delta pad which didn't come in my kit.

[Matt Meiser]

Ah, true. The standard one gives pretty similar functionality to the DX93 so that's what I was thinking.

[Michael Dunn]

I'd be bummed about it. Disappointed in there response, maybe. But stop buying from them? Certainly not. I buy what I need from whoever has it at the best price and can get it to me the fastest for the cheapest.

I just ordered the DIY dozen from McFeeley's. They messed up the count on some of the screws. I called them up, explained the situation, told them the count I should've received, and the count I actually received. The lady said they'd ship the difference right away.

I had them the next day.

Different situation I know, but accidents happen. Sometimes people aren't as friendly as they should be. Maybe the rep had a real bad day or week or something. Or maybe they're just a cold type of person.

I know myself personally, I tend to rub a LOT of people the wrong way. I'm always told I come across as intimidating, (being 6'6" 230lbs doesn't help either... LOL!) harsh, or rude(in person). From my perspective I'm not actually being like that. My point is, maybe someone had a bad day or something similar.

I still like McFeeley's.

[Don Morris]

Did not know Grainger took over McFeely's (and sad to find that out). Where do you get that type of info? I've always been happy with my McFeely's screws, but haven't had a recent shipment in a while. Will pay more attention to the next one.

[Dan Hintz]

A couple of weeks ago I got a catalog from McFeely's. On the back it says, "Prices good through August 13, 2013, unless otherwise noted."


Page 196 of the most recent catalog:

Prices
Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this catalog. However, prices are subject to change without notice and errors are subject to correction.
You can't say "we guarantee our prices until such and such date" and then on the next page "prices are subject to change". Remove Festool from the equation and look just at those two statements. They're in direct conflict with each other. So my first question to CS would now be "Do you guarantee prices or not?".

[Michael Dunn]

Did not know Grainger took over McFeely's (and sad to find that out). Where do you get that type of info? I've always been happy with my McFeely's screws, but haven't had a recent shipment in a while. Will pay more attention to the next one.

I found out a few years ago. I asked a salesperson why I was getting barged tax if I was in IL and they were in WI. She said, "Our parent co. is Grainger. You're charged sales tax since they have a presence in IL."

[Matt Meiser]

You can't say "we guarantee our prices until such and such date" and then on the next page "prices are subject to change". Remove Festool from the equation and look just at those two statements. They're in direct conflict with each other. So my first question to CS would now be "Do you guarantee prices or not?".

Agreed. But in this case they don't have control of the price and that's well known. They have no option but to correct it or stop selling it.

[Jim German]

Sometimes you make a mistake you can't fix. You apologize and move on.

And not buying from them because they won't take an expired coupon? Seriously?
+1
They weren't rude about it, they apologized, and it didn't cost you anything. Loyalty goes both ways, if you aren't willing to accept that sometimes other people make mistakes too, perhaps you don't deserve their loyalty.

[Andy Pratt]

McFeely's is great for getting all the square drive screws you want, at a low shipping price, and they have great customer service on fasteners (knowledgeable, helpful etc.) I would give a big "pass" on every single other item in their catalog: their prices on everything else are high and you can get them faster/cheaper/ with better customer service elsewhere. They know one thing well (fasteners), and do it arguably better than any of their competition, their non-fastener offerings are just padding out the catalog, shop for them elsewhere.

You could tell things were getting fishy at McFeely's when they started offering all kinds of random power tools in their catalog, they should have just stuck to fasteners.

[Ed Edwards]

This came from wikipedia
GHC Specialty Brands is the result of Grainger's acquisition of Lab Safety Supply and several other catalog companies, including Gempler's, Ben Meadows, Highsmith, and McFeely's. It markets safety and other industrial products to customers under several brands throughout North America.[6] (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/#cite_note-6)

Ed

[David Weaver]

That might solve why i got a gempler's catalog out of nowhere a couple of years ago. It was another catalog for people who don't shop around (that's grainger in general, though - I always considered grainger a good place to purchase if someone else was paying), but I see that ben meadows shares their high prices on overlapping items.

[Peter Kuhlman]

I have purchased and will continue to purchase fasteners from McFeelys. Sure was a change when they were taken over by Grainger. Prior to that, McFeelys had people posting on a couple forums. They were in touch with the FOG and were putting together packages of fasteners with the storage Sortainers and Systainers. All that changed when Grainger got involved as I have not seen any posts from McFeelys in quite a while. Never had any issue with purchases from McFeelys.

[Julie Moriarty]

I always considered grainger a good place to purchase if someone else was paying
Ditto that! When I'd go in there to purchase something I needed for a job ASAP, I was always shocked at the prices they charge and happy I wasn't paying for it.