City Lights SF Showroom — Local services in San Francisco

Unethical Business Practice My recent experience with City Lights has raised significant concerns regarding their professionalism and ethical standards. Approximately two months ago, I placed an order for an Italian floor lamp valued at nearly $3,000. After an extended wait, the item finally arrived; however, it was delivered with considerable defects, including scratches, as demonstrated in the accompanying picture. The only response I received was an indication that I would need to wait an additional three months for a replacement. Unfortunately, there was no offer of a discount or remedy to address the situation, which I attribute to their apparent lack of quality control. Furthermore, my correspondence with Ms. Joy Perez, who was handling my order, was similarly disappointing. Her responses seemed impersonal and lacking in professional empathy, akin to an automated message. In light of the circumstances, I proposed a substantial discount to accept the product as is, as I wished to avoid further delays. Instead, without prior notice, I was issued a full refund, resulting in a complete waste of time after months of anticipation. I found that I could have sourced the product much more quickly from several other suppliers online. Based on this experience, I strongly advise against doing business with City Lights due to their unprofessionalism and the questionable nature of their practices. I am seriously considering legal action as a result of...

I wish there was a zero star. Do NOT go to this store. I would highly recommend finding another light store. I have been into City Lights multiple times to ask questions about Lumens and Kelvin to gain a better understanding of the new LED lights. Every time I go into the store they are complete snobs, do not ever say hi, act like I do not exist and I am bothering their busy day. The last two times I went in I was treated like an absolute idiot when I was trying to get my head around the different Temperatures of LED (2700 kelvin-6500 kelvin). The sales rep continued to tell me I just didn’t understand (hence the reason I was there) and even threw a fit when I asked for a piece of paper to write down some notes. He then slammed the paper and pen on the counter in front of me. Now I am a scientist (PhD in Genetics) so I believe I am relatively smart (I don’t know everything though) but this “Light Salesman” wanted to make me feel inferior to him and spoke to me in a condescending tone and made weird faces and rolled his eyes every time I asked a question. This was the second time I have dealt with an exceptionally rude sales person in this store and I would recommend going somewhere else for all you lighting needs and certainly all your questions. Do not bother these people as they do not want to help and do not have time for you.

UPDATE: A manager reached out to me...

I came to the store to ask about pricing, lead times, availability, and color options for items I had seen on a previous visit. I was assigned to Ginna, who made the experience frustrating from the start. She checked her watch literally every 10 seconds and cut me off mid-question with, “No, it’s not possible,” even for things other staff had previously told me were possible.

When I asked if I could show her photos of items I liked so she could help identify the brand or similar options—as other staff had offered—she rolled her eyes, asked “Who told you that?” and said, “I don’t do that.” She told me to look online myself and wouldn’t even check availability or alternate colors, saying, “If it’s on the website, then maybe.”

When I asked about a specific item I had seen months earlier, she dismissed it, saying it might not even be available even-though they were on display and available on the website. I asked to check or take a picture of the item name on her screen, and she just read it aloud without turning the monitor toward me.

Overall, this was a frustrating and unwelcoming experience, and I left without the information I needed or any willingness to return.

If customers are expected to do everything online, I don’t understand the point of having sales associates in-store—especially if they’re unwilling to assist with even...