"I WISH I had checked this site out before ordering from Mercantila!! I ordered an accent cabinet on Jan. 14, 2012. On Jan. 16 we received an e-mail that the cabinet was no longer available from the manufacturer. We were offered a 10% discount on another purchase, or we could have our money refunded. We found another cabinet elsewhere and asked for our money back. They said sure, you'll have your refund within 10 business days. That would have been Jan. 30. It is now Feb. 8 and still no refund. Their own website boasts a BBB rating of A+. I wonder if the California BBB knows about all the scams they are pulling on people. I'm going to find out!!"
"On Jan 30, 2012 we ordered a piece of furniture for the kitchen we are doing. While checking other on line retailers, we noticed that most of them were out of stock for this item. The person at Zoostores assured us that this item was in fact in their warehouse and would be shipped in a few weeks or sooner. I asked her to "please double check" this. She did and said again, "Please don't worry, the item is available and in stock". I wondered why that day, we received no email confirming our order. Our Visa card was debited $235.70 almost immediately, but no email. The next day I had to call 3 times and request an email confirming our order. It finally arrived and said on the shipping line, "Item to be shipped 06/15/2012...wow! a blatant lie. I called Mercantilia, the parent company and had to wait more than 30 minutes for someone to answer the call. This was the worst service I was ever involved with and they should be ashamed to handle people in this manner. A lot of internet retailers feel they can hide behind their phones and never personally see anyone and this practice of lies and decet should be told so everyone can read what exactly is going on. So while we have been trying to get a credit on our card, as of this writing, we still do not have the monies returned to us and I will never forget the lies and the very, very poor customer service. Their actions and policies speak for themselves on the Internet reviews.....we should have checked them out more before ordering.
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"I ordered a computer armoire that showed in stock ships 2-3 days. I called after 3 days to check on and it was backordered for 3 months. My credit card was charged and the item wasn't shipped. I used paypal and you can only dispute within 90 days. It would have been too late if I waited for the backorder and I would have lost $990. On 1/24/12 I received an email that it was canceled and would send a refund. It's 2/1/12 and still no refund. I opened a dispute with paypal and have to work and stay on top of it to get my money. "
"We purchased three Surround Air Multi-Tech XJ-3000C (XJ3000C) Air Purifier, all of which are wonderful products. The issue is that during the order process, the web site (through ZooStores) claimed that you would receive a $25 "refund" per purifier if you purchase it through them.
When the order arrived, no refund items were included. We sent several emails, all of which were not returned. We called a few times, but couldn't get through. Finally, after a 40 minute wait on the phone, I got through. The person explained that the refund was for future purchases over $250.
After quoting the dictionary's definition of "refund" to the person on the phone, I escalated the issue to a manager, Bridget, and she said that she could not refund the money. I called ZooStores, and to their credit, they said that the wording is indeed confusing, and that Mercantila should change the wording.
DO NOT PURCHASE FROM MERCANTILLA!
We purchased three air filters from them, and their web site indicates that you will receive a "refund" of $25 per air filter. When we didn't get it, the refused to give it to us, stating that a "refund" is for future purchases.
CALL THEM OUT ON IT BY NOT PURCHASING FROM THEM!
They are also impossible to reach via phone, email, whatever. BRIDGET from Mercantilla refuses to do the right thing and give us back our money. The Better Business Bureau has been made aware and they are investigating this company.
BUYER BEWARE!
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"I was very scared after reading the Mercantila reviews here, but I had already placed an order with ZooStores (partially online, and then completed on the telephone). They delivered a great product right on time, and the tracking process was easy and accurate.
I don't know if this is normal for Mercantila, but I figured I owed them a good review here since they delivered exactly what they promised for my order. For the record, I am in no way affiliated with Mercantila or ZooStores."
"Do not order anything from this company. I ordered a Sunny rowing machine from them, and the same part broke within a few months of use. When I contacted the companies, I was informed that Mercantila had a one month warranty and Sunny had a three month warrenty, so I was out of luck. I realize that Mercantila didn't make the rowing machine, but they don't seem to care that they carry shoddy merchandise. I'm just glad that the rowing machine wasn't too expensive. Oh, and don't buy anything from Zoo Stores, one of their affiliates."
"Watch out their restocking fee si 25% and inbond & oubond shipping charge. I made big stupid mistake order through this website. I order $2800.. items and UNOPEN pack return for pay almost $800.00 BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD company "
"Mercantila is a scam. I ordered my daughter's low loft bed with slide on 9/9/11. They charged my debit card over $800 and told me the item was in stock and would be shipping shortly. About a week later, I received an email stating that the bed was actually not in stock, but it would ship by 10/7/11. Well it is now 10/19/11 and I have one small piece of a kids bed in my possession, with no idea as to when mercantila will ship the remaining 7 boxes of the bed. The delivery people did not show up for my first scheduled delivery, and did not bother to call and notify me they were not coming after I waited at home all day. The second delivery day, they were 3 hours later than the 4 hour time slot they gave me, and showed up with only 1 of 8 boxes. I am still waiting for the other 7 boxes and my poor daughter continues to go without a bed. The real kicker is that the company has no idea what happened to the other 7 boxes...
This company is a joke."
"I placed an order with The Home Safe Superstore on 9/18/2011 vi telephone. There is a specific item that I wanted that I had a hard time getting a hold of, so I called before I placed my order to confirm that it was in stock. The representative confirmed that the item was, in fact, in stock and so I placed the order with him via telephone on that date.
I received two more e-mails stating that my order has been processed, my credit card was charged, and that I will be receiving the tracking number on or before 10/3/2011.
Today (10/4/2011) I went to contact the company (TheHomeSafeSuperstore) to find out the status, but when i checked my e-mail, I had an e-mail from them stating that the item had been dscontinued and they would offer me 10% off my next purchase.
When I called the company (Mercantila), I was told that the item was discontinued as of 10/4/2011. I asked the representative how that relates to my order as I was told is was in stock and scheduled to ship and he informed me that they must have "forgotten" to order it in the last batch of orders.
I find these business practices to be completely unprfessional and it has caused a great deal of inconvenience. Now I must search for a new item after waiting almost a month for what I confirmed was IN STOCK because of errors on the part of the company.
As a business owner, 10% off does not cover the losses of not having the item you order, nor does it cover the time it took for you to research and place this order, as well as the time it will take for me to have to research and order from somewhere else.
In summary, I would not reccommend this establishment to anyone, as you are ordering at your own risk. There is no guarantee that the item you order will be shipped or in stock even if a representative tells you that it is."
"Horrible company! Theyhave a "sister company" zoostores.com whre a Tennis Cube Ball Machine with oscillation was being advertised for $499. We ordered and paid over the phone. The rep at first stated it was an additional $100 for the oscillation feature. We disputed due the clear advertisement and that there was no option to add $ or features to the ball machine. The rep went to the zoostores site we were on and saw the advertisement. She acknowledged the pricing and said she would honor the pricing and said we were being recorded for assurity. They sent the ball machine without oscillation and when I asked to listen to the recorded call they refused. The rep who did listen to the call said,"well she did say yes you were getting the oscillation but it was at the end of the call and she had already placed the order." They say we can return the machine we don't want but will have to pay shipping both ways AND a 25% restocking fee - that's over $200 for something I didn't order and don't want! This company is a joke and should be shut down. Buyer beware - I will NEVER buy from them again. I reported them to the BBB and the attorney generals office for deceptive business practices."
"I'm from Canada order a furniture from Mercantila that furniture was coming in 2 part Order in January 6 2011 and get the furniture in May 2011 well i receive only 1 of the 2 part was the right part so i return the other part and get my furniture finally the 12 of August 2011... Fast shipping my ass but got to admit communication was very good and get the fruniture at the end Half price but still took 8 month to get my furniture ....."
"Ordered a trampoline and enclosure set, received a trampoline and trampoline cover. Still waiting on the enclosure. Horrible company to deal with. Please do not buy from them."
"I ordered a Schwinn 140 exercise bike. The purchase was immediately applied to my credit card. After a week, I still did not get an email stating that it shipped. After sending an inquiry on when I can expect shipment, they stated the end of the month. When the end of the month came and went, they then stated the end of the next month it will ship. I cancelled, figuring this to be a typical scam. Then it shows up at the door. Now they want it shipped back. I still don’t have a refund, but I did get the bike 3 weeks after ordering."
"I ordered a BOB double jogging stroller from them on a Friday. My credit card was charged and cleared my account. By Monday, I still hadn’t received a shipping email, so I wrote customer service. 22 hours later they responded saying stroller was out of stock and that they would refund my card in 10 business days. With their apologies they offered only a 10% discount on a future purchase. This as it turns out is a standard offer for any order, not just orders they messed up. Meanwhile, they have had my money in their account for 10 days and I think its malarkey. I called to see if they would give a better discount or expedited shipping as I have now been waiting for a stroller for over a week and they simply said no. This is a shady operation. DO NOT USE THEM. Go for a reputable dealer, like Amazon, who puts the customer first. "
"I have to admit I was scared off by reviews here and on epinions, so I ordered a piece of furniture from Linens N Things. Which was a mistake because they took my money immediately and then I never heard back. The shipping time on the site went from 2 days to 4 to 7, and still nothing. I got in touch with them and canceled and tried Mercantila. I called and got a bit of a discount (not much) off the Web price. The woman was friendly and helpful. I got emails confirming my order and notifying that it was ready to leave the warehouse, and from there I dealt with a third-party shipping company. 8 days from order time to arrival, and it was in perfect condition. I don't doubt anyone's horror stories, but goes to show that's not what happens to everyone."