My Experience with HOMETOWN, Central, JP Nagar- Future Group
If you are thinking of buying a modular kitchen from any vendor, read this before you do. Bet, You will never regret!
Placed order on first week of April with 50% payment for modular kitchen of worth 2.6 Lac against order number: 2004088707 to Hometown, JP Nagar.
Received goods arrival intimation on 22nd May. Made 100% advance payment before delivery.
Got delivery on 25th May(50 days) against the 30-35 days promise. Materials delivered late by 3 weeks
Issue post first hand-over
1) No Magic corner as ordered
2) D Carosul – Delivered cheap quality PVC material instead of steel
3) No Cylinder Trolley
4) No Skirting
5) No Soft hinges for cutlery unit, cup saucer unit, spice pull out rack, thali units
6)’Pull out’ not delivered as per order
7) No Rolling Shutter unit
8) No loft material and cabinet
9) Wall mount cabinets covers- wrongly designed in 2
Realized that there is a big communication gap between sales people-taking order and factory people who are designing this. You order X and you get Y. Some of the materials like Magic corner, rolling shutter, D carasoul etc were ordered only after the first hand-over with lead time as high as 5-6 weeks!
Project Completed- after 10-15 painful follow-ups on 7th July ‘2013 with the cancellation of Magic Corner and Pull outs and refund promise of Rs.33, 000.
Issues still unresolved
No Soft closing for cutlery unit, cup saucer unit, spice pull out rack, thali units after multiple follow ups- Company does not have these materials or do not have vendors who supply this although these are readily available in any kitchen fitting traders or any other modular kitchen suppliers.
Refund not received. Company is pushing to buy other goods with credit note after promising refund and we ordering the balance materials to other vendor.
Pros:
Wooden Material Finishing is good, fitted well, Installation team is very good.
Cons
Poor unknown brand ‘spacewood’ fittings: I am getting rust on some hinges in 30 days post installation
Delay in delivery and installation- project completion
Uncompleted project
Too much of follow-ups and loss of peace of mind for 2 months
Average overall buying experience
My take from this experience
Very smooth and polite talker. Do not fall on this trap.
Never hand-over 100% of your money to them before placing order. It never works. Once you have done, it’s actually you who have to follow up to get work done and not they. They are as good as any unbranded vendor when it comes to handling your money. The risk of not getting refund is always there.
Big Brand does not mean best materials, best service always. Internally they may work as unorganized as any vendor. Lack of communication between groups is key which is not available always with Big Brands.
Don’t trust 100% for everything. Insist for good quality fittings like hettitch, else they can give you poor quality fittings without your knowledge.
Write down everything in minute details you have need & agreed and get them signed before handing project. Don’t believe on their words and their agreement only. It may go unfulfilled leaving with you a bad taste.
People Involved
Designer & Sales Engg Vaishak(77XXXXXXXX). Always a good listener. Never left customer post sales.
Business Head Kitchen Design: Mr. Pruthvi(07XXXXXXXX) talked only when business was needed. Visited once to show commitment in closing issues. Never picked up phone or replied to mails after that.
Mr.Amit- Store Head(09XXXXXXXX)- HomeTown JP Nagar: Listened patiently, promised to resolve issue and refund money in 12 days. After 25 days and follow ups, came up with a credit note instead of refund and insisted on buying more goods. More keen in retaining store numbers than retaining customers!