Here is a classic reason why lauritz are "problematic" to trust.
just relying on the discription written when the first chair was listed and used over and over means that they have not inspected it correctly or thoroughly. If they had the discription would tell of dry crumbling foam.
If they have and know then its lying and misleading to further what end?
If you look closely at the images and the arms you will see the fine yellow dust of crumbling foam.
I fell sorry for whoever buys it as the cost to have this refoamed is pricy and very time consuming.
What examples have you got?
http://www.lauritz.com/Item/Item.aspx?LanguageId=1&ItemId=2541522&ReturnUrl=http%3a%2f%2fwww.lauritz.com%2fItemList%2fItemList.Aspx%3fSTA%3d3%26FText%3dDitzel%26LanguageId%3d1%232541522EndTagRU#
Funny you should ask,
as I'm close to bidding on a Johannes Andersen Smile coffee table on Lauritz in less than an hour (hopefully no one here is planning on bidding). These guys are few and far between in the U.S. Shipping is quite pricey, almost as much as the table itself. But it does end up being a little less overall cost than what they are available for over here.
I'm less concerned about bidding on this particular item, because the leg joints are usually the only problematic issue for this design. Loose joints (or poorly reglued joints) are somewhat easy to spot in the photos, and there isn't any fabric or foam issues to worry about.
The only other items that I am looking for on Lauritz are those elusive Kirkegaard benches, which I have only seen as sold on your website. Most of my other wish list items pop up enough in the US.
Well, after a year of...
Well, after a year of looking around for a reasonably-priced option in the US, I finally bit the bullet and bought the #1 item on my wish list, from a Lauritz auction: a Johannes Andersen "Smile" coffee table.
The shipping cost back to the US is a bit pricey, but combined overall cost it is 1) still cheaper than any of the dealer options in the US, 2) comparable to the two auction chances that I lost out on the US.
Hopefully there are no hidden defects in mine that Lauritz has purposefully withheld. Here is one of the photos from the auction. It should be a few weeks before it arrives.
Update
Well, I can provide an update for a few recent thread topics:
1) Shipping furniture in from Europe - My Smile coffee table arrived over Easter weekend at O'Hare, and I picked it up yesterday. While there was some cumbersome paperwork to fill out in the custom office, the overall process was fairly smooth, and I had the crate in my van in about 2hrs flat from when I arrived at the airport. There was no customs duty applied for "used furniture for personal domestic use". I did pay $6 to customs for paperwork fee, and $40 to British Airways for a service fee as well. All in all, it was not as bad as I was expecting, and can certainly be done without an import broker.
2) Quality of JH Transport - They were one of Lauritz' recommended transporters. The table was well packed in a solid corrugated box enclosure with internal wood framing tied to an integrated pallet base for easy fork lift moving. I've kept the box for future use. Very good first experience with JH Transport.
3) Accuracy of Lauritz description - this is where the story takes an unfortunate turn for me. After getting the packaging home and unpacking, the table did arrive in good condition. However, upon inspection, there were gaps in the leg joints and a hairline crack in one leg which I had not seen in the photos, nor listed in the description. On a hunch, I took another look at the photos online, and then realized that this table was clearly different than the one that I had bid on (differing wood grain easy to spot in the photos). The Herlev gallery actually had two different Smile table auctions within a week of each other. They sent me the wrong table. I don't think it was done intentionally, as a sticker on the table clearly noted the lot number of the other auction (not mine). The bad part is that this table is in worse condition than the one I bid on, and was sold for a significantly lower price. However, I do not want this particular table for the combined auction and shipping price, as the damage is not worth the overall price. I have sent a notice about what happened to a few Lauritz e-mail addresses about 22hr ago and have not yet heard back.
Since I paid for a specific table and received something else, I believe Lauritz is responsible for either 1) refunding the entire auction and shipping cost and paying to have this table shipped back to them, or 2) shipping the correct table to me and return shipping the one I received, all at no cost to me. However the double shipping in both options ends up being more than the value of the table. So I was thinking of offering them a compromise of full refund of the auction price table, with me allowing the shipping cost to stand and keep the table. In my mind the shipping cost is worth the value of the damaged table. Any of these three options would be acceptable to me. Simply refunding the difference between the two auctions is not acceptable to me.
Any thoughts or recommendations would be appreciated.
It was paid via Visa credit...
It was paid via Visa credit card. If Lauritz is uncooperative, my last resort would be to cancel the transaction through Visa.
If Lauritz agrees to option 1, I would be happy. However, I would view this as analogous to furniture damaged during shipping that costs more to repair than its overall value. In those cases, I have been refunded both item and shipping, but the cost to return the piece on the truck was effectively zero. In this case, it would cost Lauritz a significant amount of money to ship back to Denmark.
I am not thrilled with option 3, but do not see options 1 and 2 as something that Lauritz would be willing to do.
Three days later . . .
. . . and three e-mails and two phone calls later, Lauritz has not responded (not even to pick up the phone). The next step is to initiate a dispute through Visa and continue to pursue both means to resolve the issue.
The best case scenario for Lauritz' intentions is that 1) the table "swap" was unintentional and an honest mistake, and 2) that they have a very poor customer service department in general and are not intentionally ignoring me now due to this particular situation.
Even in this best case scenario, it does not reflect well upon their company as a reliable business with which I would want to deal again in the future.
In any scenario that is less than the best case, they would be bordering on shady practices.
Either way, it is a shame, as they do provide a good marketplace for items that are either hard to come by in the US, or too expensive in the US.
Cross your eye's and dot your 'T's"....and drink extra vodka...
and document everything. Visa should help with the dispute. It's always best to remain firm, but polite. Please keep us posted. And consider sending them a link to this thread on Design Addict Forum.
As always,
ps do I sound like niceguy?
The burden of resposibility
Lies with the seller of the table and if the item is clearly marked with the other tables lot number you have a case against the seller for not delivering the goods for which you have paid in good faith.
Seek legal advice and look into distance selling regulations which govern the sale transactions over the internet.
Put all issues in writing and if all fails seek advice from the danish embassy local to you!
Getting no reply or response may also be a sign of the seller knowing they have made a mistake.
Keep track of what happens to your lot should they relist it.
It has also been easter so did you ring them thursday - friday last week? They would be closed as these days are public holidays in denmark.
Guess what
Has reappeared after selling for 42000dkr???
Still no mention of crumbelled dry foam
http://www.lauritz.com/Item/Item.aspx?LanguageId=1&ItemId=2574366&Return...
I collect Danish stoneware,...
I collect Danish stoneware, especially Saxbo, and I often notice how Lauritz relist stoneware items because they haven't inspected the items proberly or simply forgot to mention signs of heavy use/damage.
Yesterday I drove to Lauritz' showroom in Herlev to see a big blue Saxbo vase (see link below). After much trouble with the staff in order to see the vase - which was still sitting in the photo-studio 2 days after the auction was listed - it took me 5 seconds to notice two very large chips to the bottom rim.
How can Lauritz miss that? - or don't take a photo of it? - or not mention it in the auction describtion? I don't get it. Either they're careless or have bad intentions. I don't know what's worse.
I told the staff to correct the item description and add a picture of the chips but nothing has happend so far. It seems like such a waste of time and effort on both seller and buyer's behalf, when the job is done as poorly as in this case. I think there's something very wrong with the work-ethics and work-culture at Lauritz.
http://www.lauritz.com/Item/Item.aspx?LanguageId=1&ItemId=2578907&Return...
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