What an enlightening experience this has turned out to be.
I did not condemn the company (contrary to accusations), I did not say they weren’t knowledgable or helpful (contrary to suggestion), I did not say to stop shopping there and I did not say that shopping there was a mistake. All I actually suggested was that other nurseries are available!
Still, the onslaught of uppity indignation which ensued amused me no end, so I thank many contributors for that.
I reserve my sincere thanks for the handful of Forum members who were rational, kind and positive.
My decision to share this lousy shopping experience was simply this: if all disappointed customers of any nursery only contact the nursery directly, I don’t know that it helps other buyers much.
I deeply disagree with shaming a company based on one mistake and my decision to share this on the Forum was because I have been disappointed by the service from Beth Chatto on a few occasions.
I do not believe we should just shrug and let it slide when our time, our money and our loyalty is treated dismissively. If I treated our clients like that, I’d expect them to go elsewhere.
I entirely agree that it matters how a company resolves a situation and I never had any doubt that Beth Chatto would make good. But that was not the point.
For me – and I am only speaking for me, remember, so breathe – getting a replacement plant or a refund only fixes part of the problem.
Every thoughtless or oblivious act chips away at me – whether that’s someone letting a shop door shut in my face cos they didn’t have the manners to check behind them, or every twit who stops at the end of an escalator to have a wee think about where to go next or anyone who thinks it’s ok to listen to music or watch a movie on public transport without headphones...
Whenever someone’s actions show me that they’re not considering me even one little bit, it does incremental damage but instead of settling for that just being the way of things, I still aspire to things being better.
Anyway, wary of the wee tsunami of righteous harrumphing which will undoubtedly follow, I share the happy news that Beth Chatto have been in touch with a lovely apology and a refund of my entire order. Like I said, never in any doubt.
While this is of course very much appreciated, the company just lost money because of an entirely avoidable mistake. That’s my point – with just a tiny bit of care, I wouldn’t have had a lousy experience and they wouldn’t be out of pocket.
Now, feel free to talk amongst yourselves, I’m going out into the garden.
I too buy plants from Beth Chatto - and I have some more arriving soon! Personally I wouldn't buy alliums in flower. There were some at the plant fair on Sunday and my daughter was tempted but I told her to just buy bulbs for flowers next year. And that was without them going in the post. I do sympathise with @Tanty2 though. I too have had plants delivered that were completely out of their pots (not from BC) and it is such a disappointment after the anticipation of waiting for your lovely plants to arrive. However, titling the thread as 'Beware Beth Chatto' was bound to stir up controversy.
There seems to be a bit of victim blaming going on here which I find unpleasant. It was BC’s choice to sell and send out alliums in flower, presumably charging accordingly, so it’s their responsibility to get them to the customer in good condition by careful packing. Yet people are implying that the OP should be grateful they didn’t cut the flowers off or should have known better than to order them in the first place. The hostas were in a sorry state too, no excuse there.
I never assumed they actually promised to deliver alliums in flower, I thought they were just usual potted plants, or bulbs "in green". If they did, my bad.
There is no victim blaming going on. When someone says "beware of this company, I had a bad experience with them", people with a good experience feel the need to add their experience too. It basically becomes a review thread. This doesn't mean that the bad experience hasn't happened, it just puts it in perspective.
Beth Chatto is one of the better ones, although every company can have problems like this. Their customer service in this case is inexcusable though.
Still, imagine how would this thread look like if it were about someone like JParkers. I don't think people would jump here defending them. More probably, they would jump to add their bad experiences.
@Tanty2 did they refund your postage too? I've never ordered from Beth Chatto, but one of my bugbears is online plant companies not refunding postage. I had an order arrive from on such nursery a year or so ago and all the plants were dead. They did refund the plants in fairness, but not the postage, so I was £7.50 down with nothing to show for it.
I think if they want to keep their reputation they need to accept that a plant such as an Allium in flower should not be transported at all.
I could not agree more Suze! I would never order Alliums in flower, personally it seems a big waste unless it can't be bought as a bulb. However last year I did order Alliums for a garden I was doing for work - because instant colour was demanded by an impatient client. However I clearly told the nursery not to bother unless they were still in bud, and in a fit state to be planted. Obviously 80% of them had gone over completely by the time they arrived and the rest looked like they had been sat on by an elephant...
"What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour".
Not trying to be awkward, but is it a Nursery's fault for supplying bulbs in flower, when customers want instant gratification. I would always buy Allium bulbs in Autumn, but some people want to buy stuff when it is in flower.
How can you lie there and think of England When you don't even know who's in the team
I was rather sad to read all this, the late Beth Chatto was such a lovely lady. I used to order plants from her back in the 80s. No online, no photos, just names and descriptions. I ordered with a letter and a cheque. I had a couple of lovely letters from Beth and an invitation to visit her garden. I was a young mother then and never managed to visit. The letters are long since lost, wish I'd taken more care of them.
I have visited her garden twice in recent years, buth Beth is no longer there.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
Not trying to be awkward, but is it a Nursery's fault for supplying bulbs in flower, when customers want instant gratification. I would always buy Allium bulbs in Autumn, but some people want to buy stuff when it is in flower.
I agree that buying bulbs is best and buying bulbs in flower online is optimistic. However, if the company are advertising them for sale and offering to post them, then they are taking on the responsibility of fulfilling that contract. If the cannot guarantee they will arrive in good condition they should not be selling them online. If it was other fragile goods, say something glass, that arrived smashed would you expect the buyer to suck it it up? Is it not the sellers responsibility to get that glass item to you unbroken and if they cannot fulfil there responsibility they shouldn't sell it online.
Just to chip in and give another vote for Ballyrobert... I ordered some 2ltr geums from them last year in almost flower and was very impressed at how they arrived.
I also today received my delivery from Sarah Raven of 3 small thyme plants and they were all very happy too though I know others have not had good experiences with SR... seems to be luck involved sometimes, either with picker/packer/delivery co. It is SO disappointing when you excitedly open the box and are confronted with a mess.
Posts
What an enlightening experience this has turned out to be.
I did not condemn the company (contrary to accusations), I did not say they weren’t knowledgable or helpful (contrary to suggestion), I did not say to stop shopping there and I did not say that shopping there was a mistake. All I actually suggested was that other nurseries are available!
Still, the onslaught of uppity indignation which ensued amused me no end, so I thank many contributors for that.
I reserve my sincere thanks for the handful of Forum members who were rational, kind and positive.
My decision to share this lousy shopping experience was simply this: if all disappointed customers of any nursery only contact the nursery directly, I don’t know that it helps other buyers much.
I deeply disagree with shaming a company based on one mistake and my decision to share this on the Forum was because I have been disappointed by the service from Beth Chatto on a few occasions.
I do not believe we should just shrug and let it slide when our time, our money and our loyalty is treated dismissively. If I treated our clients like that, I’d expect them to go elsewhere.
I entirely agree that it matters how a company resolves a situation and I never had any doubt that Beth Chatto would make good. But that was not the point.
For me – and I am only speaking for me, remember, so breathe – getting a replacement plant or a refund only fixes part of the problem.
Every thoughtless or oblivious act chips away at me – whether that’s someone letting a shop door shut in my face cos they didn’t have the manners to check behind them, or every twit who stops at the end of an escalator to have a wee think about where to go next or anyone who thinks it’s ok to listen to music or watch a movie on public transport without headphones...
Whenever someone’s actions show me that they’re not considering me even one little bit, it does incremental damage but instead of settling for that just being the way of things, I still aspire to things being better.
Anyway, wary of the wee tsunami of righteous harrumphing which will undoubtedly follow, I share the happy news that Beth Chatto have been in touch with a lovely apology and a refund of my entire order. Like I said, never in any doubt.
While this is of course very much appreciated, the company just lost money because of an entirely avoidable mistake. That’s my point – with just a tiny bit of care, I wouldn’t have had a lousy experience and they wouldn’t be out of pocket.
Now, feel free to talk amongst yourselves, I’m going out into the garden.
Personally I wouldn't buy alliums in flower. There were some at the plant fair on Sunday and my daughter was tempted but I told her to just buy bulbs for flowers next year. And that was without them going in the post.
I do sympathise with @Tanty2 though. I too have had plants delivered that were completely out of their pots (not from BC) and it is such a disappointment after the anticipation of waiting for your lovely plants to arrive. However, titling the thread as 'Beware Beth Chatto' was bound to stir up controversy.
There is no victim blaming going on. When someone says "beware of this company, I had a bad experience with them", people with a good experience feel the need to add their experience too. It basically becomes a review thread. This doesn't mean that the bad experience hasn't happened, it just puts it in perspective.
Beth Chatto is one of the better ones, although every company can have problems like this. Their customer service in this case is inexcusable though.
Still, imagine how would this thread look like if it were about someone like JParkers. I don't think people would jump here defending them. More probably, they would jump to add their bad experiences.
I would always buy Allium bulbs in Autumn, but some people want to buy stuff when it is in flower.
When you don't even know who's in the team
S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
I have visited her garden twice in recent years, buth Beth is no longer there.
If it was other fragile goods, say something glass, that arrived smashed would you expect the buyer to suck it it up? Is it not the sellers responsibility to get that glass item to you unbroken and if they cannot fulfil there responsibility they shouldn't sell it online.
I also today received my delivery from Sarah Raven of 3 small thyme plants and they were all very happy too though I know others have not had good experiences with SR... seems to be luck involved sometimes, either with picker/packer/delivery co. It is SO disappointing when you excitedly open the box and are confronted with a mess.