Ordering a pipe from Pipes and Cigars, safe?
- Thread starter crazyhog
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Daimyo I hear you. How recent was this? We've had numerous conversations with our warehouse about packing issues. They do a better job for a while and then fall off. I think there may be a few issues here. We rotate staff to different positions out there so they don't get stagnate. So we get someone new and the issues begin all over again.
We share our fulfillment facility with a few rather large cigar companies. So the packers know to fill the boxes with bubbles to protect them. But when they see tins, the perception is that they are more hardy and less susceptible to damage. WRONG! They soon found out the opposite is more true. But when they rotate positions, the new guy says, "hey, these tins are strong - I don't need much packing" and it begins again.
I know what you're thinking - why don't we just pull these people aside and train them. We do. But our fulfillment warehouse has about 175 people working out there. Its not quite as simple as it appears.
Then when you consider the increased volume of Father's Day and a lot of new faces out there....
What Russ has attempted to do is train the supervisors of this area with regard to the particular needs of tobacco and pipes. They're getting better but there's still a way to go. All I can say is to let our Customer Service team know when you've gotten a particularly bad packing job so we can let them know. The supervisors out there may be able to pinpoint who is doing the negligent job and work with them.
We're trying to get this aspect right. It has gotten better but its a work in progress. Keep us informed!
Trish
We share our fulfillment facility with a few rather large cigar companies. So the packers know to fill the boxes with bubbles to protect them. But when they see tins, the perception is that they are more hardy and less susceptible to damage. WRONG! They soon found out the opposite is more true. But when they rotate positions, the new guy says, "hey, these tins are strong - I don't need much packing" and it begins again.
I know what you're thinking - why don't we just pull these people aside and train them. We do. But our fulfillment warehouse has about 175 people working out there. Its not quite as simple as it appears.
Then when you consider the increased volume of Father's Day and a lot of new faces out there....
What Russ has attempted to do is train the supervisors of this area with regard to the particular needs of tobacco and pipes. They're getting better but there's still a way to go. All I can say is to let our Customer Service team know when you've gotten a particularly bad packing job so we can let them know. The supervisors out there may be able to pinpoint who is doing the negligent job and work with them.
We're trying to get this aspect right. It has gotten better but its a work in progress. Keep us informed!
Trish
My experience with with grab bag of 3 pipes left a bad taste that still lingers. I was sent 3 identical cheap pipes instead of three different pipes I had expected. I called before smoking any of them, and was basically given a lecture on buyer beware and tough luck. I get aggravated every time I think about it. Really, I would have been happier if they had sent me some nice cobs, e.g., Generals and/or Freehands. I really wish I could say they made good on this but didn't. I've bought several pipes and products from competitors because of this experience.
But since then, P&C offered some deals on pipes I couldn't refuse. I've ordered a couple of Stanwells and several upper end Pipes of the Year. I was satisfied with the price, performance, quality and service on these orders. Plus Russ is an active supporter of this site and P&C is a sponsor, so I cut them a little slack.
But since then, P&C offered some deals on pipes I couldn't refuse. I've ordered a couple of Stanwells and several upper end Pipes of the Year. I was satisfied with the price, performance, quality and service on these orders. Plus Russ is an active supporter of this site and P&C is a sponsor, so I cut them a little slack.
My first experience with P&C since it was taken over by CI was an order of 12 tins of tobacco on May 10 2015. The box that came to me had one strip of packing tape on the top of the box and one strip on the bottom. Inside the box was one piece of bubble wrap and the tins were totally loose inside the box. Luckily none of the tins were damaged but the packing job was nothing like it used to be before CI took over. Before CI took over I had ordered at least 9000.00 worth of tobacco from PC and not once was the packing this bad. When you compare the packaging to SP or 4noggins, the difference is like night and day. PC needs to really watch what their shipping department is doing as they really need to up their game in comparison to their competition.
At one time PC was my go to tobacco source as their prices were the best and their packaging was just fine, this however is no longer the situaton so SP and 4noggins gets my business for the time being. The only reason I ordered this one time from PC( I did pay more money) was to re establish my account which had been lost in the buy out. I really wished my account had not been lost as I liked having the ability to go back and look at what I bought and when I bought it. I understand things happen when a buy out like this takes place so I do understand how my account was lost, but you would think that when they have a customer who buys over 9K worth of tobacco in only 1.5 years they would try and keep track of a customer like me, that was not the case. I did try and work this out with Trish when the buy out happened, but even she was unable to access my original account, she definitely did try so I do give her props for that.
At one time PC was my go to tobacco source as their prices were the best and their packaging was just fine, this however is no longer the situaton so SP and 4noggins gets my business for the time being. The only reason I ordered this one time from PC( I did pay more money) was to re establish my account which had been lost in the buy out. I really wished my account had not been lost as I liked having the ability to go back and look at what I bought and when I bought it. I understand things happen when a buy out like this takes place so I do understand how my account was lost, but you would think that when they have a customer who buys over 9K worth of tobacco in only 1.5 years they would try and keep track of a customer like me, that was not the case. I did try and work this out with Trish when the buy out happened, but even she was unable to access my original account, she definitely did try so I do give her props for that.
I have only made a couple of purchases from Pipes & Cigars, just tobacco no pipes. This is because they don't ship to Canada.I have a mailbox in Maine, 1 1/2 hour drive away that I use on occasion. I haven't had a problem with my orders but it is hard to understand the shipping restrictions. Smoking Pipes and 4Noggins don't have any trouble taking my money, much to the detriment of my bank account.
I've been pretty disappointed with the packaging for a while now too. I didn't realize the operation was as big as it is.
I had a few pipes issues so decided to not order a pipe from them again. Their packaging does leave a lot to be desired. I have never received a box of tins that were packed well. I usually order 10-12 tins at a time but not very often. They should pack much better.
Rectangular tins are the worst in terms of getting banged up, lots of tins with dents. While the seal may still be tight, the rectangular tins with dents seem to lose seal faster than non dented ones. Just my personal observation from having many hundreds of these over the years.
Try to put up large pictures of how they should be properly packed or tell them to pack like they pack cigars to give them a reminder. Then when new folks are brought in, they will have those to guide them.
But then from a production standpoint, I can see where they are coming from. One on hand everyone is told to provide excellent customer service but when you are on the line and you keep getting slammed, corners are going to be cut. Mistakes will happen. This just seems to be on a large scale with P&C, its really the number one complaint I read about them.
Rectangular tins are the worst in terms of getting banged up, lots of tins with dents. While the seal may still be tight, the rectangular tins with dents seem to lose seal faster than non dented ones. Just my personal observation from having many hundreds of these over the years.
Try to put up large pictures of how they should be properly packed or tell them to pack like they pack cigars to give them a reminder. Then when new folks are brought in, they will have those to guide them.
But then from a production standpoint, I can see where they are coming from. One on hand everyone is told to provide excellent customer service but when you are on the line and you keep getting slammed, corners are going to be cut. Mistakes will happen. This just seems to be on a large scale with P&C, its really the number one complaint I read about them.
I buy them quite often and have had nothing but good experiences. They use air filled bags and I've had no damage to items. While I'm not an employee of the company, I did try to extort them, exchanging product for good reviews, they refused and my search for alternate revenue streams continue 
The blackmail business just ain't what it once was... it's getting to be such that a guy can't make a dishonest living.
The blackmail business just ain't what it once was... it's getting to be such that a guy can't make a dishonest living.
Some of their tobacco "ladders" are a really good buy, and I am quite pleased with their Chestnut blend. Since I've had no complaint with them on pipes nor tobacco, I won't hesitate. Their pipe buyer is notably astute; you can get deals at P&C you won't find elsewhere.
The 2 or 3 times that I received a damaged tin, it was from P&C.
Fortunately I was able to start smoking the compromised tobacco the day I received it.
That the tobacco was in good condition suggests that the tin seals were breached during shipment.
Maybe you can blame P&C for not being sufficiently protective, maybe not. I still do business with them. No worries.
A breached seal:
Fortunately I was able to start smoking the compromised tobacco the day I received it.
That the tobacco was in good condition suggests that the tin seals were breached during shipment.
Maybe you can blame P&C for not being sufficiently protective, maybe not. I still do business with them. No worries.
A breached seal:
I got a package just yesterday. It was well taped with quite a bit of packing bubbles holding 12 tins essentially motionless. I think it's always possible for problems to crop up, but I've never had any problem with anything I've ordered from P&C.
Well, except for the time I added some butane for an order. That order had to be marked "hazardous material" and it took over a month to get to me, and I'm pretty sure I'm on a terrorist watchlist now, but that's the combined fault of the Post Office and the government, not Pipes & Cigars.
Note to self - Buy butane LOCALLY!
Well, except for the time I added some butane for an order. That order had to be marked "hazardous material" and it took over a month to get to me, and I'm pretty sure I'm on a terrorist watchlist now, but that's the combined fault of the Post Office and the government, not Pipes & Cigars.
Note to self - Buy butane LOCALLY!
Ditto, mrlowercase. Just ran a ticket this morning and have spent a ton of money with them in the lat 2 years.
I am not sure when it started, but the boxes, several a month, generally look just like your pictures. As cgrmaster noted, the contents can be quite loose. The single strip of cheap tape will not even stick to the box any longer. My deliveries generally contain an average of 100+ bucks worth of bulk tobacco as that has been the minimum for free shipping until the last several months, when it went down to $79 or so. I personally would rather they maintain the $100 minimum if that is what it takes to keep the shipping department packing parcels correctly. I think it may have started with the advent of the new box design ( see mrlowercases pics). This does not excuse loose packing of course.
It will become even more annoying with the return of hot weather.
I am not sure when it started, but the boxes, several a month, generally look just like your pictures. As cgrmaster noted, the contents can be quite loose. The single strip of cheap tape will not even stick to the box any longer. My deliveries generally contain an average of 100+ bucks worth of bulk tobacco as that has been the minimum for free shipping until the last several months, when it went down to $79 or so. I personally would rather they maintain the $100 minimum if that is what it takes to keep the shipping department packing parcels correctly. I think it may have started with the advent of the new box design ( see mrlowercases pics). This does not excuse loose packing of course.
It will become even more annoying with the return of hot weather.
I just wonder if the people who are doing the packing have been trained properly. I mean seriously it is not rocket science to pack a dozen tins so that they are not flopping around in a box. It also may be that the moral at the place is low and the people working there purposely do a poor job of packing just to piss off customers. If there is no way for a supervisor to see who shipped what and there is no accountibility, then what is stopping a pissed off employeee from getting back at their bosses.
Cuban cigars are notorious for being poorly rolled and it is the rollers who do it on purpose because they are being paid peanuts to work as a roller. Could be the same thing at PC.
Cuban cigars are notorious for being poorly rolled and it is the rollers who do it on purpose because they are being paid peanuts to work as a roller. Could be the same thing at PC.
Perhaps do like Smokingpipes does and place the name of the person who prepared the order on the side of the box. Then again, I'm not at all sure if the name also refers to the same person who packed it. Either way, simply give each packer a simple name label/sticker that must be placed on, or in the box so the sups. know who packed it if there are any packaging issues.
On a side note: I just received my two packages from P&C and no problems encountered.
Now I'm off to break the cherry of my new Neerup with a bowl of Penzance. :wink:
On a side note: I just received my two packages from P&C and no problems encountered.
Now I'm off to break the cherry of my new Neerup with a bowl of Penzance. :wink:
Trish reached out to me to resolved my long-standing unhappiness with their grab bag pipe deal. I don't know any of the details but am happy that someone at P&C has taken ownership. I would then be able to recommend them without any reservations.
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