My new, belated credo: investigate BEFORE ordering

[bethmarie]

I impulse bought orchids online. In retrospect, a risky thing to do if dealing with a company or person for the first time. I've had it work out well for me on several occasions. Luck, I've decided. From now on, research first, order later.

The hook was this: I got the hots for Den. Lori Tokunaga and after coast to coast searching found it only turned up at Aloha orchids, which I hadn't heard of and didn't research. I ordered two. After a couple of days I received my order. There were blooms present, ones that made it clear the plants weren't Lori Tokunaga. The absence of any label left me knowing only that I'd gotten a couple of NOID dens.That alone was hard to accept. They'd also been shipped clear cross country through some pretty wicked wintry weather (20's here in NC) with no heat pack. All but a few leaves developed bacterial brown spot and dropped in a couple of days.
The vendor responded to my unhappy email. They said Lori Tokunaga was no longer available although I ordered from a page that said 28 were in stock. They offered to send me a free Den. to make up for my disappointment.
I said no thanks. I asked for my money refunded. And waited a few days and tried to make contact again. And again. And once more just in case. No more communication from the vendor.
Live and learn. Research first, purchase second. In the meantime, does anybody have a Den. Lori Tokunaga they're looking to part with?

Beth Niver

[SJF]

Originally Posted by bethmarie

I impulse bought orchids online. In retrospect, a risky thing to do if dealing with a company or person for the first time. I've had it work out well for me on several occasions. Luck, I've decided. From now on, research first, order later.

The hook was this: I got the hots for Den. Lori Tokunaga and after coast to coast searching found it only turned up at Aloha orchids, which I hadn't heard of and didn't research. I ordered two. After a couple of days I received my order. There were blooms present, ones that made it clear the plants weren't Lori Tokunaga. The absence of any label left me knowing only that I'd gotten a couple of NOID dens.That alone was hard to accept. They'd also been shipped clear cross country through some pretty wicked wintry weather (20's here in NC) with no heat pack. All but a few leaves developed bacterial brown spot and dropped in a couple of days.
The vendor responded to my unhappy email. They said Lori Tokunaga was no longer available although I ordered from a page that said 28 were in stock. They offered to send me a free Den. to make up for my disappointment.
I said no thanks. I asked for my money refunded. And waited a few days and tried to make contact again. And again. And once more just in case. No more communication from the vendor.
Live and learn. Research first, purchase second. In the meantime, does anybody have a Den. Lori Tokunaga they're looking to part with?

Beth Niver

I am sorry to heat about what happened to you. If you used your credit card you can dispute the charge from the vendor and state the reasons

[Leafmite]

Wow!
I limit myself to those who get good reviews from Dave's Garden's site. So sorry you had such a bad experience.

[vjo]

Glad you said something, I was getting ready to place an order with them tomorrow, probably wont now...Jean

[Orchidreamer]

Sorry to hear about what happened! Just reading all the reviews of the company you ordered from gives me the shudders...
The scoop on 'Aloha Orchid Nursery'

Or check the BBB:
Aloha Orchid Nursery Business Review in Pahoa, HI - Hawaii BBB

Good thing you brought this up--always research vendors before you buy. I hope your vendor helps you out in the end. If not, maybe you can contact the BBB?

[Leafmite]

Hmm, the BBB doesn't exactly rate this highly, does it?

[ronaldhanko]

This company is a joke!

[WhiteRabbit]

You might check H&R Nurseries in Hawaii for that Den.

[bethmarie]

Hi all my orchid friends...I really appreciate all the responses and information. The vendor feedback feature is very valuable to me. Will be using it first from now on.

[Davidcee]

I just did the same thing today. I had at least minimal feedback about SLO Orchids, but went ahead and ordered 5 plants. I don't know what the outcome will be, but I will post when it plays out.

But the other purchases, also today, was from Smiley's Orchids on basically a whim and gut feeling that they are reputable. I did a cursory search on OB, but didn't find any posts on Smiley's Orchids, so I'm crossing my fingers.

When buying sight unseen, there's bound to be some displeasure every now and then.

On the brighter side, I recently ordered two B glauca from southernstar on ebay, and the plants I got were HUGE, healthy & happy, happy.