Overstock.com disappoints with Wusthof purchase

This past Christmas, I decided I would like to get my sister-in-law a set of Wusthof knives. I have done a fair amount of research and came to the conclusion that these were the best knives available in the price range, and since she had terrible knives, I knew they would be welcome.

Since my sister-in-law is also a huge fan of good deals, I went online the Monday after Thanksgiving to see what was available. I came across a five-piece set on overstock.com that looked very promising. It said it had a block, a paring, bread, chef’s knife, and a sharpening steel. It was 35% off the already reduced price and the shipping was free that day, so I ordered it. When the set arrived, I opened it to look at the knives, and instead of a chef's knife, I received a sandwich knife! Anyone who has done even the most modest amount of research about good-quality knives knows what a chef's knife is. (It is much wider and better balance for chopping than a sandwich knife, which is thin and made for slicing.)

I immediately tried to call overstock.com to report the error and was placed on hold. After twenty minutes, I decided to e-mail their customer service department. I then had a lengthy e-mail conversation with Werner, who appeared from his use of the language to be from a foreign country. He had no idea what a chef's knife was and showed me pictures of ten or twelve completely unsuitable, off-brand, unmatching knives, several of which had white plastic handles. I thanked him for his time and repeatedly told him I wanted a WUSTHOF knife and asked him if they had any. He did not say so directly, but since he did not ever show me one, I presumed they did not.

After my unsatisfying e-mail experience, I called again, and after another thirty minutes on hold, finally spoke to a woman about the issue. She also was unaware of the difference between a chef's knife and a sandwich knife. I asked her if it would be possible for me to get the correct knife, and she told me they no longer had the product and since they just dealt in overstocks, they may or may not get any more of that product. Since the rest of the set was acceptable, she offered to discount the set a further 15%, which I decided to do, because (a) the customer (me) has to pay for the shipping to return the product, and (b) with the additional discount, I could buy the correct knife to augment the set and still get a pretty good deal.

Although overstock.com did eventually "fix" the problem, I would have liked to have actually received the correct product. I asked to be removed from their mailing list and no longer shop there. I have also told everyone I know about my experience and have recommended they do not shop there either.

-Anonymous Shopper

The Counter at LandsEnd.com "frustrating"

Having seen the growth of sites like woot.com, it makes me think of other so-called limited time deal sites that I have shopped in my very extensive internet shopping experience. One such site that has frustrated me is "The Counter" section of LandsEnd.com.

Each week, Lands End offers an assortment of merchandise that will be priced at different price intervals over the course of a week. Once you purchase an item, you cannot receive the lower price if the item is further reduced. For me, calling this section "The Counter" is what frustrates me. While I see how the items are sold or counted down until they are sold out, I see no visible Counter. The consumer never has an idea if there are 15 or 500 items that they have available.

I guess you could call me a cranky shopper, but I want a "Counter" I can see. So many Limited Time Deal sites say for example, 300 left...212 left...30 left...etc until the item sells out. And of course, based on this, I can make a practical buying decision. So now at last I have it off my head! But please, Lands End, in the future show me how many you have when you're counting down clearance...and if not, find a better name then 'The Counter'!

-Anonymous Shopper

Welcome!

Look to this blog for ongoing news about the latest in Limited Time Deals. These are the bargains that you just can't get enough of, because they always seem to offer a great price for a very short time. This page will carry consumer reviews and experiences about these shopping websites, as well as news of openings and closings of such sites. Furthermore, if we find a deal that is simply too hot to ignore, we will post it here to share it with all of our dear readers.