Woeful Wiggle
Gpac65
Posts: 17
Bought a Focus Cayo 105 Ltd Edition 2 years ago. Love the bike the price etc.
Unfortunately recently snapped a spoke. fair enough that's wear and tear, nothing lasts forever. However what I wasn't quite prepared for was Wiggle's response to my request for spares. My bike came with Cole Shuriken alloy clinchers. Not the biggest brand on the planet, but bear in mind Wiggle didn't allow for change of spec, this bike comes as sold.
So was somewhat surprised when i received the following response from their sales dept, when i queried asking for spares.
I have to say i thought this really was poor customer service, especially since they DO actually still retail Focus bikes. So if you are considering buying from Wiggle all I would say is 'buyer beware', after sales support is somewhat lacking.
Oh yeah Wiggle also responded with the following, which I have to say whilst being 100% legally accurate it really shows a complete lack of customer care. Also what confusion ?
Fortunately I have managed to source spares direct from Cole, just wish Wiggle could have put a little more effort into their after sales, which I think was sorely lacking in this case.
Unfortunately recently snapped a spoke. fair enough that's wear and tear, nothing lasts forever. However what I wasn't quite prepared for was Wiggle's response to my request for spares. My bike came with Cole Shuriken alloy clinchers. Not the biggest brand on the planet, but bear in mind Wiggle didn't allow for change of spec, this bike comes as sold.
So was somewhat surprised when i received the following response from their sales dept, when i queried asking for spares.
I apologise for the inconvenience caused in this case but unfortunately we no longer deal with Focus we sourced Cole spokes from so we can note source these parts for you.
I have to say i thought this really was poor customer service, especially since they DO actually still retail Focus bikes. So if you are considering buying from Wiggle all I would say is 'buyer beware', after sales support is somewhat lacking.
Oh yeah Wiggle also responded with the following, which I have to say whilst being 100% legally accurate it really shows a complete lack of customer care. Also what confusion ?
I apologise for the confusion in this case, I can confirm that if a Focus bike has a warranty issue and it was bought in the last three we will honour the warranty and get it dealt with but unfortunately spokes are not covered by the warranty so we do not have any spares and we cannot source them. I apologise for the inconvenience and if you have any queries please let me know.
Fortunately I have managed to source spares direct from Cole, just wish Wiggle could have put a little more effort into their after sales, which I think was sorely lacking in this case.
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Comments
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You maybe expecting a bit much for Wiggle to warranty a broken spoke, especially on a two year old wheel. I suppose they could have shown a bit more after sales support, even if it was just pointing out that Evans are the distributor for Cole wheels and spares.0
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You can't seriously expect Wiggle to deal with requests for 2 year old spare parts?
They are an online retailer not a local bike shop! There isn't a lack of customer care... its just that wiggle don't want to waste their time sourcing individual spare parts for general wear and tear issues! If its not a warranty issue its not their problem.
There is not really any reason to complain!0 -
I blame Wiggle***** Pro Tour Pundit Champion 2020, 2018, 2017 & 2011 *****0
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Really?!? A broken spoke on a two year old bike? From my experience Wiggle have always provided excellent service, excellent delivery and are very competive on prices. Some people just slate them on here unfairly and unrealistically expect far too much from them.Road - http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12777154&p=16943702#p16943702
Commuter - http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12877017&p=17855019#p17855019
MTB - http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=10017&t=12930006&p=18407199#p184071990 -
Hmmm
Didn't ask for them to be covered under warranty. I merely asked for spares more than happy to cover the cost. I think that a reasonable request, so that deals with that response. More helpful was what i was looking for !
As for ddraver , oh dear that's intelligent well thought out and mature response. I asked for neither FYI.0 -
Unfortunately whilst they still have 2011 bikes they are not exclusive for Focus anymore. Be better off going down the LBS to get the right spoke.
Ultimately they are big online retailer, I can't imagine the guys on customer services have time to do research for everyone that contacts them.
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=cole+road+spokes0 -
iPete thanks.
I happen to agree about LBS and 'giant' online retailer. Spokes like many other parts are consumables, however no matter how insignificant the cost, even the most expensive wheels or bike would be rendered useless, without them.
I didn't even expect them to have them in stock hence the query, however I think my point was to highlight that to others thinking of purchasing, that when purchasing beware you may have to source parts yourself, which I think matters to a lot.
Often my LBS doesn't have parts in stock but you can almost certainly bet your ' house' that they will respond, that they will get the part and it will cost 'X' and will take 'Y' to arrive. In that respect I think Wiggle's response was lacking.0 -
Shop at your LBS then if that's the kind of service you're looking for, you cant have it both ways.0
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Gpac65 wrote:Often my LBS doesn't have parts in stock but you can almost certainly bet your ' house' that they will respond, that they will get the part and it will cost 'X' and will take 'Y' to arrive. In that respect I think Wiggle's response was lacking.
An LBS will do this for you as building a loyal customer base is very important to their success. A company the size of Wiggle doesn't need to try so hard as they have literally thousands of customers.
It would be like walking into B&Q and asking them to order in spare parts for a power tool they don't stock. The profit out of it simply isn't worth the time and effort they would need to put in.
I think their response was fair.
Rob0 -
"Woeful wiggle" is unfair in my view. A little bit to the point in the email perhaps but you can't judge tone from an electronic communication.
They perhaps could have put you in touch with the wheel builders but that would have been my first port of call after such a long time.0 -
sourcing parts yourself is hardly the most difficult thing to do. colewheels.com would've been a goodplace to start.
i ordered some new shoes late wednesday and received them on friday without paying for delivery. i got a high5 drink sachet though when i'd have preferred some harribo to scoff when i got in from work."Unfortunately these days a lot of people don’t understand the real quality of a bike" Ernesto Colnago0 -
This is the LBS/Online conundrum! Personally, I think the title is more than harsh, we all know that Wiggle are in the main a very good outfit, offer great prices and are used by the masses. For me customer service is important no matter how much you pay, or where you are spending your money, but I really don't see anything "woeful" to get too upset about here.
Personally, I would tone down the title and get just a bit of perspective.Ridley Orion0 -
Wacky Racer wrote:This is the LBS/Online conundrum! Personally, I think the title is more than harsh, we all know that Wiggle are in the main a very good outfit, offer great prices and are used by the masses. For me customer service is important no matter how much you pay, or where you are spending your money, but I really don't see anything "woeful" to get too upset about here.
Personally, I would tone down the title and get just a bit of perspective.
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Your response to this is hugely out of proportion. You went to Wiggle in the first place because being a huge online retailer they offered you a great price on the bike. Expecting the aftercare to then be on a par with a small local business is asking too much. Their response was polite and stated the position fairly enough. This inconvenience to you is hardly 'woeful'. Sounds to me like you don't have too much wrong in your world if this counts as an issue.0 -
I think your beef should be with Focus and their Product Managers who specced a product with a wheel that uses a difficult to obtain propritary part and likewise for Cole who are a small manufacturer offering poor support. To try and blame Wiggle is stretching things a bit.Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..0
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Ahh the old Wiggle chestnut!
Gpac65, you can't come on here complaining about Wiggle unless you have a valid reason or you will just get flamed my friend.
I'm sure if they could still get the spoke you need then they would be more than happy to sell it to you. I doubt that 2 years ago Wiggle expected to have a fall out with Focus and not be able to sell Focus products anymore thus letting down customers who may need parts in the future.
I see you've now bought your spokes elsewhere. Time to move on!0 -
I don't understand. Are they straight pull spokes or something weird like that? It wouldn't even have occurred to me to go back to Wiggle; those sorts of organisations are set up to deal with the common enquiries, not odds-and-sods questions.- - - - - - - - - -
On Strava.{/url}0 -
If its the same design as the more expensive wheels, yes the spoke end is housed in a cyclindrical bushing in the hub.0
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Seriously, why didn't you just google cole wheels, if you did you'd see that they are exclusively sold by Evans, do you really expect Wiggle to recommend Evans to you!
http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/c ... les-29958/0 -
I've bought loads, and returned loads to Wiggle and have found their customer service to be first class every time..I think that you are expecting too much my friend.....they do have a business to run and probably at very low margins I would guess. Go to a LBS, pay more and get more !0
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Been interesting reading the comments
I agree with the comments regarding LBS v Online. I to have dealt with Wiggle and found there sales process simple efficient etc. But in this case i felt dissapointed so lesson learned in that respect.
However their web site states the following as of today on the about us page:Huge collection of high quality exclusive brands you will not find available anywhere else in the UK including Focus Bikes, dhb, LifeLine, Briko, DZNuts and more
When I read exclusive i took that to mean exclusive, so I think its fair to say that's where one would naturally turn for spares, if based in the UK....With Brands such as dhb, Verenti and Focus Bikes we deal directly with the manufacturers shaping and tweaking the features and specification ensuring that the product you buy, is exactly what a true sports enthusiast would want.
Finally for the sake of any one else Cole Wheels are not to be found at "colewheels.com" but at www.cole-products.com.
I have learned a great lesson today. Haribo & Free Samples are powerful marketing tools and seem to work wonders in the customer loyalty department.
Thanks to all for you wit, flames and general advice.
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I've got to agree with others.
I wouldn't expect any shop to stock parts for old wheels that require propriety spokes. I suspect though that is because I've already had enough bad experiences with factory wheels that I'm a handbuilt convert (it's like a cult, we get you when you're vulnerable after an experience like this and 6 months later you're selling your liver for some Dash hubs).
In the OP's defence though it would have been nice if they'd offered some contact details for Cole (although I'd prefer Haribo in my orders).0 -
PeteMadoc wrote:Ahh the old Wiggle chestnut!
When did Wiggle start sending out old chestnuts with orders?
I'd prefer a Haribo.0
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