HMS shipping?

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itsme

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Everyone here raves about HMS and their fantastic customer service. To be honest, I once made an inquiry and received a response in record time, so I was impressed, although I ended up buying a used Pono from the Marketplace here instead of HMS.

I made my first purchase from HMS a week ago... a set of Fremont strings that were listed as being in stock. There was a disclaimer about their shipping:

We are currently experiencing delays due to the number of orders and time required to setup your ukulele correctly.

Right now, processing is one week but we will soon be back to our standard 2 day turn around.
But I figured that didn't apply, as I wasn't ordering a uke that needed any set up, and requested the "just put them in an envelope first-class" shipping. A week later, my order status still says "processing."

Maybe I've gotten spoiled by all the ebay sellers who bust their humps to get packages out by the next day. Or that places like Amazon can offer two-day shipping and have it actually on your doorstep in only two days.

I can understand being busy, I can understand how it would take longer for setups and custom requests. But I really don't understand how it's been a week since I placed (and paid for) my order and they still haven't shipped a set of strings that were in-stock when all they had to do was slap a label on the envelope. (Or even hand write the address, which MGM used to do when I bought strings from him on ebay.)

Am I being unrealistic here to expect that it shouldn't take them a week (and counting) to ship a set of strings?
 
When you contacted them about this matter what did they tell you?

808 622-8000 for the store and 808 781-9168 for Andrew

they close at 6PM it is 350PM Hawaii time right now
 
I was waiting to see if anyone says this is the norm for them.

I'm not bitching here, ok?

But....I recently bought an ukulele from them. It was a cheapie. I paid extra for 2 day shipping. I guess I thought that meant they would get it to me quickly. Like 2 days after I ordered it. I did ask for strap buttons added. It took over a week for them to get it sent out. I guess 2-day meant 2 days from when they sent it, not 2 says from ordering. I was a bit surprised. Since it was not an essential item I decided not to get upset. But I understand what you mean.
 
I was waiting to see if anyone says this is the norm for them.

I've always had quick shipping from HMS on strings that are in-stock.

But, if you really want to know, email or call them. HMS goes out of their way to help customers, from my experiences.
 
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I'm not bitching here, ok?

... Since it was not an essential item I decided not to get upset. But I understand what you mean.
I'm not bitching, either.

And I'm not really upset, just a bit disappointed. Life's too short to stress over something as trivial as this.

The strings aren't essential, although I was wanting to put them on a certain uke. I have plenty of other strings and other ukes to play. :)

If there's no update tomorrow, I'll contact them. No biggie for me, but I can understand the frustration some people might feel when they're waiting for something they're really counting on.
 
It's easier to go direct S and call them and get a correct response from them..not others assumptions on your matter... :)
 
I saw an email with this complaint a few days back and was shocked strings didn't go next day. I talked with Crystal and she sent this email to the customer-

"We're very sorry for the delay in the shipment of your order. We were understaffed for some time, due to most of our staff attending the NAMM Event in Los Angeles. We will be issuing you a refund for the order shortly, and you should be receiving an email confirmation of the refund as well. Again much apologies for the inconvenience and hope you have a great week!"

But that can't be you because they were very nice after that. I'm truly sorry. Strings should always ship the next day. That's not acceptable which is why I credited back the customer that emailed me.
As far as the uke setups go, sorry that's just how we are. I'd rather have it done right.
We still have a lot to improve on though. The criticism is well deserved.
 
I returned a ukulele to HMS that did not work for me and they went out of their way to make it easy for me to do. I was very pleased with their attitude all the way through the process and would buy again from them in a heartbeat.
 
"There was a disclaimer about their *shipping*: "Right now, *processing* is one week but we will soon be back to our standard 2 day turn around." It doesn't really matter what you "figured," does it? Great people who go above and beyond. So they didn't get it sent out the second you ordered it… Ah I'm gonna be quiet now :eek:

Or maybe not. I had a friend in high school who once proclaimed that there's only one thing people are universally good at: bitching. It took a while to sink in 'cause he was talking about me; I have a knack for bitching and it's part of my routine in life. Haha. Try as I might, I just can't help it, it's all I do. And it's part of the reason I have so few post counts here on the UU. But I have to say that this thread really, really, rubs me the wrong way because it's totally uncalled for. OP made no effort to contact seller whatsoever; just brought it up casually in asking a question; thereby besmirching Andrew and his business that, incidentally, I KNOW FOR A FACT HE BUSTS HIS HUMP FOR via numerous personal conversations over the years; many of which had nothing to do with me purchasing anything- he was just being awesome! This whole thread is just wrong. But carry on :rolleyes:
 
I ordered a ukulele on Jan. 19th. The disclaimer mentioned by the OP was on the site when I bought it. Turnaround time to my door was 10 days, and it was during the deep freeze when all shipping was a bit off. I was very pleased that it got to me that soon.
 
Everyone is susceptible to mistakes. From the very polite reply, it looks like it was unintentional that the strings weren't shipped promptly. But to me it's a bigger mistake to post the question in a public forum without even contacting the seller. Phone or email is easy and quick, leaves no residue, and the reply means a lot more than any guesses from thread replies. Had they not replied, or been evasive or said they shipped but didn't, then is the time to go to a forum and let people know there may be a problem.
 
I ordered a ukulele from them in December, and it took 21 days before I received it. It was toward the tail end of the holiday season so I figured it'd take longer than the 7-10 days but I didn't think it'd take that long. It was set up well and I've continued to enjoy the ukulele. Not bitching either; just my two cents.
 
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Maybe I've gotten spoiled by all the ebay sellers who bust their humps to get packages out by the next day. Or that places like Amazon can offer two-day shipping and have it actually on your doorstep in only two days.

That's the whole joke to me. We have software that automatically prints shipping labels. It takes no time, literally. We have boxes pre made to all sizes. It could all ship the same day on those requirements. I have tried a number of setup techs and gave up looking for now. Myself, Joel, Chris , and Eli understand and can do this job. I am not even gonna try to grow beyond that. You should see our return room every week, to all major brands. We reject more ukes than most music stores buy all year. We go to bat, for you. This is our expertise. Ebay sellers and Amazon don't even know how to spoil. Shipping is nothing. Which is why your complaint was legit. But just like the customer I mentioned earlier, when complaint was directly to me, and we were in the wrong, they got the whole order free. Contact me, I am here for you. I want all customers to be happy, within reason. Especially when we screw up, I want to compensate! Use the right channels and it will be to your benefit.
Andrew - andrew@theukulelesite.com
cell direct - (808)781-9168
 
HMS is great people, and I'd buy stuff from them in a heartbeat, no matter how long it took for them to set it up and ship. I know it's frustrating when expectations about things like processing and shipping times don't get met, but if I had to choose between waiting longer and getting a product that hasn't been adjusted, if it needs to be, to provide its best performance, I'd choose waiting longer every time. And, frankly, I'd rather see things stay the way they are than for Andrew to hire a bunch of people who don't set up ukuleles well just to increase the speed of processing orders. I always worry when a business becomes so popular that it can't sustain its high level of service, and it's reassuring to me for Andrew to suggest that he doesn't want that to happen to HMS.
 
I've always had great response from HMS - usually stuff, including small orders like strings, gets to my door faster from them in Hawaii than from some outfits on the mainland - and that's with standard shipping (I've still not figured out how they manage that).

The key is that any outfit, even the best, will make the occasional mistake. What sets the best apart from the rest is how they respond to a mistake. Unfortunately, it's rather difficult for anyone to respond to a problem that they haven't been notified about!

A good general rule for dealing with all vendors - contact the vendor directly first and give them a chance to fix the problem. Then if you don't get satisfaction it might be appropriate to post publicly to see if others are having similar problems with that vendor.

John
 
Good response here as well. I've ordered some packs of oasis strings and while it does take a few days to process they do it. I think it's just a couple of guys handing the orders. In fact I still need to ship back a set of strings they shouldn't have sent me.
 
Never bought from HMS but with this kind of response I would buy from this kind of business anytime! :)
That's the whole joke to me. We have software that automatically prints shipping labels. It takes no time, literally. We have boxes pre made to all sizes. It could all ship the same day on those requirements. I have tried a number of setup techs and gave up looking for now. Myself, Joel, Chris , and Eli understand and can do this job. I am not even gonna try to grow beyond that. You should see our return room every week, to all major brands. We reject more ukes than most music stores buy all year. We go to bat, for you. This is our expertise. Ebay sellers and Amazon don't even know how to spoil. Shipping is nothing. Which is why your complaint was legit. But just like the customer I mentioned earlier, when complaint was directly to me, and we were in the wrong, they got the whole order free. Contact me, I am here for you. I want all customers to be happy, within reason. Especially when we screw up, I want to compensate! Use the right channels and it will be to your benefit.
Andrew - andrew@theukulelesite.com
cell direct - (808)781-9168
 
I ordered Corey's new CD from HMS recently, and seems like it arrived in only 2-3 days, which seemed surprisingly quick to me.

I've ordered several ukuleles from HMS and have always been very happy with their products and service. Sometimes they've filled my orders quickly, and other times it takes them a little longer to process an order. Maybe it's because sometimes I've ordered various strings, tuners, and pickups as part of the setups. Maybe it's because they're busy. I can only imagine their workload, especially now without MGM. Oh, and there was that little NAMM show on the mainland recently.

Regardless of turnaround time at the store, Andrew has really got it down pat when it comes to shipping. I'm talking free FedEx 2-day shipping, and it really is two days from Honolulu to Nashville bang-on every time! I get a tracking number via e-mail, and I can practically watch my new uke fly non-stop to Memphis on the first day, and then ride the truck up I-40 to Nashville the next. I don't see how anyone could beat that when it comes to shipping.

With my UAS I'm sure I'll be ordering from HMS again soon, so here's a big Mahalo to Andrew and everyone in the shop for all you guys do!

(Matter of fact, there's a sweet-looking Kamaka Pineapple up on the web site now... Must. Resist. Temptation. :))
 
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