Grady's Great Outdoors — Local services in Anderson

Customer Service that is Above and Beyond Expectations

I would give Grady’s and particularly their Shooting Sports Manager Will Phillips a 6 out of 5 stars if that was possible. Briefly, I bought a new Walther PPK/S from Grady’s at an exceptionally good price, black with white grips. Unfortunately, when the firearm arrived, the grips were very yellowed. I reached out immediately to Walther and they immediately responded: “Those are plastic grips, and unfortunately coating or color is not something we cover under warranty, …. They left here as white grips …. That looks like someone either used it or put oil to clean/keep from rust happening …. This would have been something to check before taking possession. “ I forwarded their reply to Will Phillips. Will immediately went to bat for me, reaching out to Walther, stating the pistol had been boxed new in Grady’s warehouse and was never opened (it looked unopened/untouched when I received it). He sent 3-4 emails to Walther over the next 1-2 weeks, never got a response, then reached out to his sales rep. Grady’s representative appeared to find a resolution to the problem. New grips were supposed to be shipped out but after another two weeks had not arrived. Will again reached out, found out Walther was no longer responding to the sales representative, and Walther eventually responded by saying they did not have any white replacement grips and again offered no form of rectifying the problem (except returning the item, which had no impact on them). At that point Will went on his own search for replacement grips. He found some copycat grips that weren’t quite as nicely shaped as the original, even admitting they might not be satisfactory. When I indicated I was not perfectly happy with the he again went searching on my behalf. A few days later he offered to allow me to choose a replacement from any of the wooden grips from Hogue. Even though the grips weren’t white, I don’t think anyone can dispute that checkered Cocobolo grips were not an upgrade from the original white plastic grips. All of this took over a month to sort out due to Walther’s foot-dragging. Will reached out to me over twenty times until this problem was rectified. I fact, every time there was any significant pause in my email replies, Will would check in with me instead of letting me drop off his radar. I never expected this kind of service, never would have stood a chance with Walther if Will had not stepped up. I do not recall ever having received such helpful customer service with any purchase of anything I have made previously. I look forward to working with Grady’s and Will in particular in the future and can recommend them without reservation. ...

Updated review at bottom: 3/5/18:I have never had a problem with this store until today. And it is hard for me to even begin to express how I feel but I am going to do it anyway. I should never have to start a sentence like this but... I am black and my fiance is white (I'm not even sure that this was the problem, but something definitely was). We came in for socks and to talk with someone in the gun section about different types and brands of hand guns. I have always received decent customer service here, and the gentleman that helped us in the shoe department was wonderful and has helped us before. After finishing there we moved over to the gun/ammunition section. Where an employee behind the counter ( a slinder gentleman with reddish hair) was already with a customer. It was apparent that they were just chatting a bit as the customer stated "well I should let you go so that you can get to your other customers." The employee continued to try to chat a bit more despite the man saying this. We waited patiently for our turn as we were the only other two there at the moment. So finally they were done and I just knew he was going to come to us with a warm greeting like we've received from other employees so many other times, and ask us what we needed help with. As he walks in our direction without even making eye contact or uttering a word, he passes right by us to the other end of the counter. As I looked that way I see that another gentleman is just approaching the counter. The employee greets this man and proceeds to show him a gun. Never once did he acknowledge us. Everyone in this painful interaction is white except for me of course, which is why I am inclined to believe that his actions (or lack there of) towards us were racially motivated. But I could be wrong. At that point my fiance says to me "we'll look another time since we're not going to get any service". I was infuriated and hurt. I wanted to speak with the store manager, but I decided against doing that because I was so upset. I knew that my emotions would have led that conversation and it would not have turned out well. So here am posting my painful and angering experience. I am no fool and I know nothing will be done about this and that is fine. But at least this is off my chest. I will not go back. Maybe my fiance can receive some help here without me by his side...if I was the problem. 3/6/18: Thank you for reaching out to me Mr. Phillips. I greatly appreciate you taking time out of your schedule to address my concern and offer your apologies. It really does mean the world to me. Your kind words brought me peace of mind and I look forward to visiting your...

Slow shipping and/or processing, poor communication, 20% restocking fee.

So apparently my ffl needed to send Grady's a copy of their license. Grady's sent me a vague email stating "If your chosen FFL was highlighted in green, or on file, then no further action is required" nothing stating in black and white that I needed to take action. 3 days go by after placing my order on the 3rd without hearing a word from Grady's, I finally reached out to them, and it was at that point they clarified what I needed to do, which according to my ffl, Grady's should have been the one contacting them.

My ffl sent Grady's the information they required. Once again I was the one reaching out to them to confirm they had received it. They confirmed they had, and said the package would be going out the next day. The next day came, I was provided a tracking number on the 7th, but the tracking number had no information until 3 days later on the 10th when it finally actually did ship.

Meanwhile the day after placing my order, my dog needed unexpected, emergency attention from the vet, which pretty much broke the bank. I placed my order on the 3rd, it didn't ship out till the 10th. During this time period I couldn't help but think that the $24.95 I spent for 2 day shipping and the $576.82 including tax, I spent for a firearm sure could be better spent elsewhere.

I admittedly contacted Grady's on the 10th by email once the order was finally "processed" requesting a cancellation. I had already assumed I'd probably be dishing out another $25 for return shipping. To my surprise, I think I received a reply in only about an hour stating "unfortunately this package went out with our UPS pickup, about 2 hours ago. If you would like to return the order it would be a 20% restocking fee as the item has already shipped." Grady's showed a complete lack of consideration for my time, but wanted 20% of the FINAL price for the time they would spend "restocking." To clarify, my order total was initially $601.77. when I asked how much exactly I would be receiving if I did return my order, I was told "$481.42." Oh yeah, and if you didn't catch that, they wanted 20% of my shipping to UPS along with 20% of my tax to uncle Sam, because Grady's is going to get there's regardless.

Moral of the story, be careful who you do business...