I've purchased two things now from Mercantila. The first was a coffee table. Was a smooth transaction, the box it came in was beat up so bad that I could see into the box. Luckily nothing was damaged, so i built it and it works fine, a little bent, but works fine.

Now, onto the issue. I found a table I wanted to purchase, the website didn't state the dimensions, so I called and doubled checked that everything on the website was correct. The lady I spoke with confirmed dimensions and price, so I placed the online order. I gave plenty of time for the table to arrive before christmas time, as I was expecting a full house, and needed the larger table. It was processed through their system, and eventually I get a tracking number. The box arrives on 12/20/09, and it's two random stools. The shipping lable had the correct order number, but the packing item was not correct.. I contacted the company, who said I had to file an issue via the website. I contacted Fed-Ex and refused the packed, so they picked it up and sent it back to sender. I waited 48hrs and no response, so I called Mercantila again. They said they would have the appropriate person e-mail me back. I asked to speak with someone but they said it was not possible, that they will only communicate via e-mail. So about 2hrs later I got an e-mail saying that They will either credit me back $150 and I could keep the chairs (Which I had told them were already on their way back, had even given them the return order #), pay them $400 more to get the table I actually ordered, or get a refund. I was fine with the refund, but I really needed the table for the company I was going to have. I didn't want the refund, I wanted the table I ordered on their website, which I had confirmed with them was correct. I will not do business again with them, which is a shame, as the coffee table I purchased was a great price.

Their ticketing system is miserable, no way to talk to the actual seller, and response time is not what they state (24hrs)

I've submitted a complaint with the BBB, CASE#: 57158876. I've gotten two responses from them, both the exact same.

I've also submitted a report with the Federal Bureau of Investigation reguarding internet fraud, more specifically the bate-and-switch.

I've yet to get any response where they are willing to solve the issue.

Recently ordered recumbent bike; delivered by fed-ex without my signature. I returned it next day as it was an obviously used bike (scratches on part I saw and carton indicated damage. I didn't remove from carton, wrote a letter attached to package and sent it back through fed-ex the next day. According to Art-(staff member) It was received at a Georgia distribution plant. They never sent an order confirmation. I couldn't use their site to send messages. I rarely could talk to a real person except Art. Every barrier was put up to prevent them from sending refund. They are a fraudulent company. Don't order anything from this company. I spent hours on wait to get to talk to someone.

Mercatila.com is an online retailer for many products. They do not stand behind their 110% price guarantee. Do not let them fool you with their apparent customer service. I attempted to cancel my purchase one day after placing the order and they didn't respond for four days. Once they called me back they told me the shipment went out the day prior so it was too late to cancel. They said if I refused the order they would still charge me the shipping costs even though shipping was free for the item bought.

In attempting to get the price match guarantee (found for $70 less from another online retailer), they never returned my calls nor responded to my emails.

STAY AWAY from this retailer - I've found more dependable people on Ebay!

Merchantila has been the worst customer service experience i have ever been through. first, their website advertised a table & chair set as "in stock". yet after 1 week of waiting we only rec'd a table and was told "the chairs were being delivered seperately". that was a lie. a week later we were finally told that the chairs were discontinued and that they could not get us them. i was furious at the fact that: 1) they advertised the set was "in stock" and 2) they would only ship the table knowing they had no chairs! we have tried many call to merchantilar trying to return the table. however, we have not received a response from merchantila and our calls go to people who say "they can not help me". reading reviews here, i am not alone. what a horrible company! if you buy something from them, pray it is is descent shape or you are out of luck!!!

I ordered a "Schwinn 203 Recumbert Bike" for $376.01 from them in late December, 2008. At that time I was told the bike would ship on January 15th, 2009. After not receiving any shipping information by January 16th, I checked their web site and found the shipping date had been pushed out to February 2nd, 2009. Bare in mind that Mercantila had not contacted me about the delay. At that point I wrote to their customer service department and received the following response on January 21st, 2009...5 days later.

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Hello,

We apologize for the delay, but the item that you ordered has been placed on back order. Currently the estimated date for shipping is February 2. As soon as the item ships we will forward you the shipping information.

To help fix this situation, we have switched your order to ship directly from the manufacturer, and the manufacturer has already confirmed your order and has reserved a unit for you. As soon as the item arrives at their warehouse, it will ship directly from the manufacturer -- this will save several days on overall delivery time. We will continue to monitor the situation closely to ensure prompt shipment as soon as the item is restocked.

We will continue to keep you informed throughout the shipping process. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us through the order status page and we will get back to you as soon as we can.

We appreciate your patience with this matter and apologize for the inconvenience,

Regards,
Sal
Mercantila Customer Service
AL1985AL
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Ok, so it appeared as though "Sal" was taking appropriate action, but when I didn't receive any shipping information by February 3rd, I wrote him again and received the following response on February 6th, 2009...3 days later.

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Hello,

We are digging into this matter right now. We are sorry that it has taken this long to get back to you on this issue. This has been escalated to a priority issue and we would like to apologize for the lack of communication. Moving forward we assure you that we will keep you apprised of the situation.

We are working with the manufacturer and the shipping company to discover the location of your item. Any information that we receive at this point, we will pass along to you right away.

If you have any questions you can contact us through the order status page and we will get back to you as soon as possible.


Thank you for your patience with us while we work through this matter, and we apologize for the inconvenience.

Regards,
Sal
Mercantila Customer Service
AL1985AL
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In this letter "Sal" says he'll keep me "apprised of the situation", so I waited an additional 5 days, but he never got back to me. So on February 11th, 2009 I called Mercantila at (800) 718-1710 and canceled my order. The girl on the phone told me she was expediting my cancellation and said it would take a "maximum" of 48 hours for them to receive my money back from the manufacture. She went on to say that once that money was received, it would take a "maximum" of 48 hours for them to transfer the money back into my account. That being said, I should have received my money no later then February 17th, 2009...but I have yet to see a dime.