Don't make our mistake
Complaint
Polly Globe
Country: United States
We attended their presentation and after some calculation decided to pay for the membership which was $4990. We wanted to update our kitchen and bathroom cabinets, as well as bedroom furniture. We put down about $1000, and the rest was financed through their lender Beta Finance.
A month later we started planning our purchases and realized we were about to pay more by buying through them than we would otherwise. What the don't tell you on their presentation is that while you save about 10% on furniture they add 8 % handling charge in addition to 7% tax, and that doesn't include shipping.
I am now trying to get our membership money back. Do not become a member! Buy from other stores.
A month later we started planning our purchases and realized we were about to pay more by buying through them than we would otherwise. What the don't tell you on their presentation is that while you save about 10% on furniture they add 8 % handling charge in addition to 7% tax, and that doesn't include shipping.
I am now trying to get our membership money back. Do not become a member! Buy from other stores.
Comments
There aren't too many places you can go shopping where they say, 'Oh you can only come here once without a membership and we won't give you another chance. It's now or never.'
That alone should warn you to STAY AWAY!! They are setting you up for a financial failure with a bullseye on your wallet. Beware.
Are there savings? So far that seems to be the case.
Are they what's advertised or what someone always seems to comment on these type of threads? Not even close.
Is it worth it? Jury's still out on that.
We do not blindly shop at DB. For certain things (e.g. appliances) we first do lots of research and settle on a handful of models. We then see if DB carries the brands. If not, then we see if what DB carries would be an acceptable choice. For other things (e.g. furniture) we don't rely on reviews as much. We first decide what characteristics we want and then look at the brands that DB offers.
Once we have an idea of what we want we find the best possible price online and get a DB quote (we email / call and do not go to the showroom much) which includes handling (if any), freight, taxes and any other costs.
So far, we have bought three things:
1. Dishwasher
DB did not carry the preferred brand.
Washers with similar performance ratings were 2.5 to 4 times as expensive as what we wanted so we bought that online at lowes.
2. Garbage disposal
DB price (including shipping, taxes, etc.) was about 8% cheaper than the absolute cheapest price we could find online. DB paperwork said it would ship on April 9th. It was at our house yesterday.
3. Twin over Full Wooden Bunk Bed
DB pice (including shipping - $300, taxes and 8% handling) was about 16% cheaper than the cheapest online store we could find.
Interesting note: The most typical price for this bed online was 240% of the total DB price. You cloud really think you are getting great savings depending on how you "price shop". =)
So we have saved about 5% of the membership price with our first 3 purchases and the savings have been around 15% of the absolute lowest price we could find anywhere.
We'll see how it goes as we purchase other items.
So far, however, I think the savings are pretty modest. I did not have unreasonable expectations. I expected 20-30 % savings. I am getting about half of that. I think I'll recoup my costs and eventually come out ahead but it will take much longer than I anticipated...
I suspect that online shopping has really diminished DB's discounts. I think DB should stop charging handling fees (or they should cap them). That would really help their service become more appealing.
One last comment: Would I sign up if I had to do it over again? Right now I am thinking that I would not. Not because I do not think that I will get my money back. Rather because I will get it back far too slowly and then reap somewhat marginal benefit from the membership.
One last note: People out there posting about much greater savings vs what I mentioned above or posting about saving 5 figures on your kitchen or saving 6 figures on your house. You all should know that no-one believes you.
If what I was told by the DB personnel is true then this seems like a very useful service that would definitely pay for itself. However, that is the problem. How can I verify whether it is true without making a $5000 commitment?
Since my wife and I have a policy of sleeping on any financial proposition before making a decision, we were not able to proceed with DB. As soon as I pointed this policy out to our closer, he lost interest in us, handed us our prizes and said good night.
If you are doing this for the "Android Tablet", don't bother. The thing is a waste of plastic. Although it "works", it is more like a toy and is not usable. You can buy much better tablets for $35. The Restaurant.com card appears to be legit.
The franchisers are in it for the membership fees which is why they tell you it's now or never... Talk about a high pressure sales tactic... worst mistake we've ever made. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
We were gullible to pay them without a day to think it over..
BTW = Our franchiser is out of DB & looking for work... hummmm Hopefully he's learned he can't fool all of the people all of the time... hope he enjoys eating his can of beans & fish sticks.
BUYERS BEWARE - DON'T MAKE OUR MISTAKE
If you dont have similar needs .. then dont join! SIMPLE!
Aggree with you. I paid 2K Long time back. I got my Money back and still buy.
Just Look for Store specials. Eureka Vacuum 600 Watts $ 390.00 you can't go wrong.
Just be smart