It’s not often that you come across bad customer service.  Yes, sometimes it’s a little bit too robotic for me but it’s not bad.  However, in the middle of May I found a bike company that sold cheap and, according to customer reviews, good road bike.  So I bought one….

First problem, I used an American credit card and they automatically thought that someone used it fraudulently.  So we went back and forth trying to contact each other so that I could let them know that indeed I was innocently just trying to buy a bicycle (although my American name and bad Japanese should have confirmed it).  Right from the beginning the customer service seemed shady. Definitely not up to the Japanese standards that I’m used to.

After sorting out the payment problem they told me that the delivery date would be postponed until the beginning of June because of ordering parts.  So I waited… Beginning of June, nothing. No bike, no word.  So I had to email them and ask about the progress of the bike.  Nonchalantly, they added that parts were backordered and it would now be the end of June.  So I waited… End of June, nothing.  No bike, no word.

I wasn’t really freaking out because they hadn’t taken my payment but still I was getting a little angry by now.  So I emailed again and they said now it would be the end of July!  WTF!  The bike ended up being shipped and delivered within 10 days of the last email however the last correspondence I had with the company had no real message of forgiveness.

I think I have been spoiled by good customer service in this country.  I just couldn’t believe it, Two months!  But even more then the time it took, was the lack of communication that really bothered me.

Oh well, I’m going for a ride now.