Beware The Butchers Organic Meat - or "Marlon's"

[KathyN]

From Trueler:
"The Butchers got very bad reputation in 2011 during their campaign on various daily deal sites like Buytopia, Webpiggy, DealTicker, DealGetters, DealFind and Teamsave. They are known for significantly reduced quality of the products and services. They have also unilaterally changed their terms and conditions several times making impossible to redeem coupons. "

http://trueler.com/2011/04/21/marlin...butchery-meat/

http://trueler.com/2011/04/15/where-...ats-come-from/

[screamy]

Interesting read. When I went several weeks ago (with one of the Groupon or whatever coupons) it was on a weekend, and very close to closing time. They didn't have what I had gone in to look for, but there was certainly plenty on offer. I got a little freaked out when I overheard one of the counter staff talking to a customer (who initiated the discussion) about the coupon offer, and the staff member said they were going to post changes because people were coming in with a bunch of the coupons and then hassling at the employees when they couldn't use them all at the same time.

I asked if I could use my coupon, because I definitely can't get there during the week, and he said yes, of course - it was because people were coming in and cleaning the place out, so they didn't have enough stuff for their regular customers.

It made perfect sense to me that if I'd wanted $300 worth of meat all in one go (and especially for a big event!), I would have called ahead to ensure they'd have it put aside for me (apparently there were people who had decided to have parties, and (quite logically, in my mind) wanted to use the coupon offer to get good meat at a significant discount - but neither called ahead).

The store is tiny, and they order their meat from the various farmers on a regular basis - so if someone shows up wanting every scrap of chicken breast they have, I can understand why they'd want a "we reserve the right to limit quantities to normal household use" proviso in there. Unfortunately, they didn't specify that on the coupon, so it is their own fault for not being more careful. And if they needed to change things, they should have worked with the various companies and sent a blast email to everyone who had bought the deal, explaining the change to the terms and offering to cancel the purchase if that's what the customer wanted. It's not very good customer service, for sure.

I don't expect that I'll have any difficulty getting them to honour my remaining credit (but I do want to try their chicken and steak, so I'm calling them! LOL). But definitely a cautionary tale about the social buying phenomenon.

[freebie_fan]

Glad to hear that you didn't have trouble screamy... I bought one of the webpiggy ones and have heard a bunch of bad things online so have been nervous to check it out. There are restrictions on the one I bought, but they were stated before purchase so I knew what I was buying I'll give an update once I've made the trek over there!

[marvindoodle]

This is the worst experience ever. I have never met a bunch or passive aggressive and whiney staff. They obviously don't know how to run a business or understand how couponing works. You cant issue coupons and make a nice profit and then back track on your terms and conditions. You have to honor the coupon based on how it was issued. I recommend never to walk into this store as the entire experience will be completely negative. Their product is poor so you aren't missing anything.

[screamy]

Thanks. My site Mekong tours

Ummm....not sure what you posted that in this thread for since travel and The Butchers' have nothing to do with one another - but you're not allowed to advertise on here without going through the proper channels.

[momof3heathens]

Ummm....not sure what you posted that in this thread for since travel and The Butchers' have nothing to do with one another - but you're not allowed to advertise on here without going through the proper channels.

Those are the posts that should be reported. It's only a post for advertising and nothing else. Likely a spammer.

[mimi-]

you got very lucky, screamy. i remember seeing a feature about them on global news. there were lots of problems with redemptions like confirmed orders that couldn't be picked up, limiting voucher redemptions to thursday and friday evenings and poor treatment of customers with vouchers.

what a waste of a promo. either do it right or do nothing at all. they lost all the money they invested into the group buys and most importantly, their reputation. i wouldn't be surprised if they went bankrupt or re-open under a different name in a different place

[r40eng]

I lost alot of money and have had a terrible experience. I recommend contacting Silverman helps http://petersilvermanhelps.com/index.php/contact-us

I hope he helps us.

[electric_viking]

I had bought a coupon from Dealfind.ca and was never able to buy any meat because they were always swamped. I contacted Dealfind directly and they gave me my money back. This was like 6 months after I bought the coupon. I think because of all the bad press the Butchers has received, the coupon places will be more than happy to return your money.

[John Rietkerk]

I was a supplier to the Butchers, supplying them game meats. Marlon owes me $6000 dollars and pretends that he is not responsible even though he acted as the owner all the time I dealt with him. I have a Toronto court judgement for this outstanding debt of The Butchers which Marlon will not pay. Now his store has a new name. Do not trust him!