hive — Local services in Portland

Back in September 2020, I placed an order for 4 Kartell Jolly Tables and 2 Ghost Chairs in black. Everything was fine when they arrived. However; I noticed the ghost chairs had the same surface defects; surface scuffs that would not come off or be buffed away with Kartell cleaner (pictured below) as my original set from 2018 had but from another online retailer. I contacted Hive Modern and spoke to Gabe and was told that this was a typical issue with these chairs as Hive Modern had difficulty filing claims with Kartell themselves. This is was that I was told by Gabe: Hello Jason, Thank you for your message. So in short, Kartell would not view this as an issue and would fall within their quality guidelines. We have had a few where we go back and forth with Kartell and they are pretty firm on their views here. When this issue has come up and we have filed a claim with Kartell, this is pretty much the verdict every time. We could try filing a claim for you, but the problem is even if they agreed to replace the chairs, they would not be able to guarantee the replacements would be any different. I could authorize for you to return Hive as an exception for store credit as Kartell will not accept returns on these but you would be responsible for shipping back to Hive at your expense and it would be for store credit only. It may not add up for you with the cost of shipping. --

At this point I was just happy to have this information for any possible future Kartell orders, as the previous online retailer never got back to me about why the chairs were arriving like this. Mid December, I sat down and casually leaned backed on one of ghost chairs and the back rest cracked in half. I was stunned and stood there in disbelief that it broke suddenly and so easily. I still own early clear ghost chairs back from 2004 and NEVER had issues with them. I called and spoke to Gabe? (If remember correctly) requesting a US contact number for Kartell to inquire about Kartell's one year warranty on the Ghost Chairs. I mentioned that I emailed Kartell and hadn't heard back and was blatantly told that I wouldn't, and claims would have to be filed by HIVE MODERN. I told Gabe? about what happened and was met with a tone that implied an impression that perhaps I was misusing the chair and that it would be difficult to prove this claim with Kartell as a manufacturing defect. He asked if I still had the original box and warranty card, which I did. (I live in a rental home and keep all my packaging to ensure proper transfer of my furniture when I move),He said I would be sent an email correspondence within 30 minutes with what I needed to do to file a claim. I said thank you, hung up and waited. While I waited for the email, I took photo's of the damaged chair and examining it, I wanted to be certain that this particular chair was from my recent Hive order. I remembered the photos' I sent the other retailer were still in my email folder so I downloaded them and carefully matched the chairs due to their scuff marks and realized the chair was from 2018 and not one of the newer ones. Since it had been two years, and in good faith, I continued to wait to hear from Hive, thinking they would be happy to hear that I would be declining from filing a claim as it turned out to be an older ghost chair. What's golden, it's been 3 WEEKS AND NEVER RECIEVED AN EMAIL OR HEARD FROM THEM AGAIN! I really thought I found a trustworthy retailer in HIVE MODERN. I felt brushed off and was really bothered by their lack of integrity and really felt compelled to express this. Be a little more professional and don't BS with...

I try to support small businesses vs chains like DWR, but it was a challenging and disappointing experience with this company. I ordered a Knoll table and after 9 months and 2 failed deliveries due to damaged or missing components and additional damage to my property from poor delivery service, I decided to cancel the order altogether. Hive and their staff never took any responsibilities or showed remorse for this failed purchase; in fact at one point, one of their staff, Gabe, mockingly laughed when I described the first failed delivery. I did stick it out and asked multiple times to speak to a supervisor to resolve the delay and the damaged product, but never got a response. I realized that there is really no reason to buy anything from Hive. Rather, I can cut the middle man (Hive) and buy directly from Knoll, Herman Miller etc for better service. I now also go to DWR for all other mid-modern purchases because their service is extremely professional and efficient. Honestly, I should have read reviews. They have a great website, but please beware when purchasing from this company. You have so many...

I was able to get a custom configuration of a Herman Miller product I couldn't find anywhere else. Not even DWR or the Herman Miller online stores carried all the options available through Hive. My product shipped directly from the Herman Miller factory in a few weeks, as expected. Delivery through CEVA Logistics was good.

It appears that Hive sells directly through to the distributor, essentially "drop-shipping". In my case the product was delivered in good condition and exactly what I expected, so no surprises and good value. No experience with claims. If I have a specific product I'm looking for I'll order...