Stenella Antiques — Local services in Perkasie

I’m writing to share a customer service matter involving Stenella that just wrapped up today (1/23/2025); the following are the highlights of the interaction.

I originally engaged Stenella over the summer re: selling/consigning a large quantity of Kittinger/Colonial Williamsburg furniture. We exchanged some preparatory emails, but “got down to business” in October. From the beginning I was very clear that the condition of the furniture ranged from very good to “lived in”; I followed up this general description with crisp, labeled photos of the pieces I was looking to sell on 10/19. I didn’t hear anything back, so I followed up 3x via email and left one message. On the day of my call (11/5) I received an email apologizing for the delay and providing me with basic consignment information and a listing of steps to consign, two of which were already marked as “approved”. Because the second of these stated “Items are evaluated for consignment approval. (approved)” I understood that we were moving forward. I asked a follow-up question, and received a response on 11/6, which contained information re: how we would/could handle the shipping and related expenses. There were several additional email exchanges, and on 11/24 I provided a detailed description of the pieces that aligned with the photos I had sent, along with several additional photos and questions (inc. whether the new pieces could be included). The gentleman I was engaging with had indicated that he was open to answering any questions I had and, because I am new to this process, there were some issues I was hoping to get clarification on. Again I heard nothing, so I followed up with emails on 12/3, 12/10, 12/30, and 1/21, as well as left two messages. I fully expected the next communication from Stenella to be responses to my final outstanding questions (which I needed to accurately complete and finalize the contract on my end), and guidance regarding how to set up a date for the furniture pick-up; instead, within ~40 mins. of my hanging up the phone today I received an email from Stenella stating that they had changed their mind due to the condition of my furniture. I was shocked, as (1) I had been very clear from day one re: the status of the furniture; and, more importantly (2) they have had the photos since October and never once during all that time did they even hint that they didn’t want to move forward – in fact, every interaction suggested the exact opposite! While I understand that Stenella is not required to do business with anyone, I do believe that – if they weren’t interested – they should have indicated that in October (when they received the photos), and not led me to believe we were moving forward. I relied on our exchanges, and now feel as though I’ve lost over three months of researching alternatives (while also increasing the aggregate cost of what I will ultimately pay in storage fees). I feel this is a really unprofessional way to treat potential customers, and I think it’s important that people considering doing business with Stenella are made aware that this could happen to them as well (and to take appropriate precautions). I was really thrilled to find Stenella, and to say I am disappointed is an understatement. Honesty and transparency...

I had an agonizing 5 hour journey to Stenella Antiques in Lansdale, PA for what is usually a 2.5 hour trip. The trip included 2 road closures, 2 road construction backups, a detour, a tractor trailer that flipped over and caught fire causing a major backup, and Google Maps leading me into a gated community and a dead end. I arrived at the store at 5 pm. They close at 3:30 pm. I had left messages that I was running late, and they are usually working until 4 pm or so.

After my last message was left in their general mailbox, Nick at Stenella listened to my voicemail and called and said he would reopen the store at Lansdale after he finished his work at their other location in Perkasie. To save me the grief of making another trip there to pick up a small table, Nick was sympathetic and went out of his way to help me. The piece was in great condition like many of their pieces at Lansdale. That kind of service is hard to find these days, but Nick and Stenella came through for me. Outstanding service and another fine piece of furniture...

We just wanted you to know that we had an excellent experience with Kenny and Steve today when they pick up our furniture. They gave us an advanced phone call of their arrival, arrived on time, quickly went to work and took very good care of handling our furniture. We were very pleased with their professionalism and pleasant demeanor.

You are very lucky to have them on your team. They represented Stenella Antiques very well today and It was a pleasure to meet them. Thanks for sending them to us!

Bill and Kate helped us make arrangements for our Henkle Harris furniture consignment. They were incredibly responsive and helpful. When there was opening for an earlier pick-up, they gratefully called us to reschedule their appointment. This saved us several hundred dollars of additional storage unit fees.

All around, great customer service. Well...