Phillip Ashley Chocolates — Attraction in Memphis

I placed my order on December 17th 2020 with the full expectation that my order would be delayed due to the large volume of orders they had received. On February 28th, 2021 I was emailed and texted that my order had been shipped and was “on its way.” By March 9, 2021 my order had still not been shipped. When I inquired about my order and expressed my dissatisfaction with their customer service I was sent a text which read:

“Dear Customer,

We understand that you have been waiting on your order for quite a while. For that, we sincerely apologize. The delays have been caused by a number of factors beyond our control. We received thousands of orders overnight. For a small business that produces handmade chocolates, it takes time to move that kind of volume; even with all the preparation we put in place.

We want to make things right in order to preserve your business. If you will allow us, we will send you a gift card in the amount of $100 that you can use to purchase on our website beginning June 1, 2021. This gift card covers your original purchase amount with added value as our way of thanking you for your patience. In accepting the gift card, you agree to closing out your current order, understanding that it will not be shipped, that you will not request a refund for the original order, file a chargeback claim with your bank or leave a negative review based on the original order.

We have been implementing new systems and working to hire new staff that will allow us to fulfill greater volumes in the near future. We truly appreciate your support and ask that you continue to support us by allowing us to offer you this as a solution. We can assure you that you will see why our chocolate is so special and the work that goes into each piece will be evident.”

They must be kidding! Offering me a gift card of $100 that I can use beginning June 1st in exchange for closing out the order I’ve almost waited 3 months for, not requesting a refund or filing a chargeback claim, and not leaving them a negative review? That is NOT an offer made with good customer service in mind. I have zero confidence in anything this company says or does at this point. I demanded a full refund instead.

They say that the delays were caused by a number of factors beyond their control. That may well be true. What certainly WAS within their control was to implement customer service policies and procedures that would have avoided ill will. Lying about ship dates, lack of communication, and a last ditch attempt to avoid refunds and bad reviews is not how you...

I know I'm not alone in this but it has been three months of being understanding as I knew this company had been overwhelmed with orders. I made it a point over the holidays to support small businesses but at this point, I feel I have been more than patient. I received a couple mass e-mails from the company requesting those that had ordered to be patient. I wrote to them numerous times asking for an update on my specific order and finally received an e-mail in return stating that my order would be shipped and received in January. Then it became February and still no order so I wrote to them again. This time I received a new e-mail with a tracking number that doesn't even exist, stating that I would receive my order by 2/14/2021. Again nothing, so I wrote another e-mail, this time with no response and when you call, you can't reach a person or leave a message as their mailbox is full. At this point I have no other choice but to dispute this with my credit card company seeing as Philip Ashley has my money and I want I back. I was really hoping this would end differently but you should not be in business if you do not have the skills to service your customers correctly. ADDITIONAL NOTE TO OWNER: It saddens me to read your reply below as it's apparent you did not read my review or you would have known I was receiving all your mass e-mails. In addition to all the mass "update" e-mails, I also received e-mails from Ashley stating that I would receive my order in January. In February I contacted her again and received no reply, just an e-mail stating the order had been shipped with a tracking number that doesn't exist according to UPS. I have filed a dispute with my CC and just want my $$ back. One less order will help you to fulfill other people's orders that much quicker. I would suggest you hire somebody to handle your customer service moving forward and wish you the best. For now, I'm disappointed to have not had the opportunity to try your delicious chocolates but maybe things will change in the future. For now, I'll look out for that credit on my CC soon! Thank you~ **UPDATE: Wanted to let all that may read my earlier remarks that today the chocolates that we had ordered were finally...

Here's the deal. I lived around New Orleans for about 5 years and was introduced to Sucre. A wonderful chocolate shop whose chef is as accomplished as Phillip Ashley. The bottom line: Presentation is everything. There is no denying that Phillip Ashley chocolates are delicious and beautiful. But the in store customer service is not up to par. I went for my first time to purchase a box of 6 for a gift in the store yesterday. The gentleman working kept telling me he would put my name down but wasn't sure they'd have it but I'd still have to pay and maybe It'd be there tomorrow. Reluctantly I did so hoping I'd have it the next day. This was after being in the store 15 minutes and me asking a question and the gentleman disappearing to the back for long periods of time. The next day I come in, and no surprise, the lady at the front had no idea where it was. I showed my online receipt and she said oh, we don't have our boxes for 6 so we will build a tower. No explaination, then disappeared for about 10 minutes. When she came back there were two black boxes instead of one, a small one for four and a small two piece box on top, with stickers on the seal, tied together haphazardly. At Sucre, they show you the chocolates as they are put into the box and I like that because I know that I'm getting what I asked for. I asked for a bag, as it was for a gift, and told no more bags. Here's my point: if I am going to pay $4+ for my gourmet chocolates, there is a sense of pride and presentation that match that. I highly doubt anyone would buy a luxury bag (say a coach or LV bag) after an employee said oh we are outta boxes and bag but just shove it in another shopping bag you have. The customer service was not good: as in people are not knowledgeable or quick to serve and don't offer any solutions when they are out of something. Overall, I was just disappointed. Perhaps in the future I will order online but I would highly recommend not going into the store. People in front of me were having the same...