Jackson’s Western Store

So for Christmas my family wanted to purchase me a pair of cowboy boots.
Wanting to get a chance to support a great local business we zipped on over to Jackson’s. Something must have been wrong the day we came in, or maybe I just didn’t belong. The people working the front were cool and dismissive, no warm hellos or welcomes, a real lack of Southern hospitality, which is something you’d think you’d get a lot of in a western store in WNC.
The girls in the back in the boot area were MUCH more friendly. Happy to help, and provide insight into what makes a great fit and what to look for.
After trying on many pairs, I found a pair that I really favored. But I was between one size and a larger size, and really wanted to know what it would feel like in a wider size. I asked the woman that was assisting me patiently if there was any chance that we could order a wider version of the boots. She said most likely, and went to speak with the owner.
She came back with a glum look on her face, and explained that the manager would be happy to order a wide version of the boot I liked, but only if I purchased it. She went on to explain that wide boots don’t sell as well and the manager didn’t want to have them on the shelf taking up room. I explained that I was going to buy one of the three pairs for certain, and most likely the one that we ordered, but I wanted to be able to try on all 3 pairs and make a final decision. I would have been happy to pay a restocking fee if the wide version didn’t work out as I expected it to.
The patient and gracious assistant pointed me towards the manager so that I could state my case, which I did, but the manager wouldn’t budge. I explained that there was a 99% chance that I would be happy with the wider boot, and that I would be happy to pay whatever restocking fee was needed from the boot supplier, but it was to no avail.
It still breaks my heart. Here I am, WANTING to spend money at a local business, to support people that live here in our town, but no. It was either buy something you’ve never tried on before, buy a less than perfect boot, or get out.
I opted to get out.
I feel guilty about it. On the way home we found the exact pair of wide boots online for $ 10 more than they were in the store with free returns for 60 days, and ordered them.
The saving grace of this business were the wonderful assistants they have in the back. They were so sweet, and patient, and happy to work with me that they made this less than awesome experience pleasant. I’m just sad that I didn’t have a chance to buy anything here to put towards their wages.

I have no idea why someone would give this store a bad review. My husband and I visited today and were very impressed with the service, selection, and prices. My husband recently joined the Single Action Shooting Society (SASS) and needed a complete outfit. We met «Bulldog Jackson» (the owner, I presume) downstairs in the leather shop who showed us all the historical western clothing (nice selection!) and ordered a beautiful custom Buscedero Belt, with two holsters. They had a great selection of boots and beautiful leather saddles and tack. We can’t wait for our next visit to Asheville. We’ll definitely be back!

Went in here to find a fly mask for my horse that I’ve had for 12 years. They didn’t have the kind I was looking for (I have reasons for wanting a very specific style). When I inquired about it I was shocked at the condescending tone of the sales clerk who basically talked to me like I was an idiot. Went to tractor supply and found what I was looking for and with no judgement.
Will definitely not be returning. Don’t appreciate know it all horse people. That attitude does not belong in a retail environment.

Wow, I’m frankly surprised not to see this Unilocal thread busting at the seams with 4-​star and 5-​star reviews from happy customers. Jackson’s is seriously solid, and I’m a fan.
Jackson’s main floor, upstairs, is your typical boots/​hats/​dungaree selection that seems to cater towards locals looking for solid values, more than out-​of-​towners looking for fancy stuff. I mean, nobody comes to AVL to buy a Stetson, but some people round here like to wear them, and if you’re one of those people, this is where you find that sort of stuff.
That said, I took a Prada-​wearing Italian politician to Jackson’s one time, and she must have blown a thousand bucks on «authentic American» souvenirs to bring back to all her European friends. I started calling her «Spaghetti Western» after that. I thought that was pretty funny.
Downstairs underneath the Jacksons retail salesfloor is a hidden basement with a working leather shop that makes stuff like the harnesses for carriages that take tourists around Central Park in NYC. Really high-​end bespoke stuff.
So yeah, maybe the desk clerk isn’t all that chatty, but it seems disingenuous to say this shop isn’t a local treasure, or to imply that they somehow aren’t that good at the few things they do – things that are highly specialized, and hard to find anywhere else.
That’s my two cents, anyway: I think everyone should shop at Jacksons because they rock.

My wife and I came into the store to shop for some western boots for me and here’s why we won’t be going back to Jackson’s Western Store.
We arrived at about 1:15 and spent about 45 minutes in the store with me trying on a number of boots. At no time did anyone working in the store ask if I had any questions or if I needed any help. In fact, nobody even spoke to us.
Actually, the whole experience was unsatisfactory since we found many of the boots to be mismatched in size, without prices, and in the wrong size section to begin with. During most of the time we spent in the store looking for the best boots for me, the store staff were in the office near the boot department discussing personal matters.
After a half hour of frustration, we decided to leave without buying any boots but stopped on our way out at a display of men’s slippers because I need a pair of those, too. During the next ten minutes, a young male store employee stood at the front door counter facing our direction working on his laptop about 25 feet from us but did not acknowledge our existence.
BTW, at the same time we were in the store, there was another couple shopping (we two couples and one other woman were the only customers in the store at the time) who were also looking for boots. I did not see any staff people try to help them either as they moved around in the boot department looking for a pair for him. After looking at boots for quite a while, they seemed frustrated at being ignored as well and left the store just before us, also without making a purchase.
After largely feeling invisible for almost an hour in the store, we left to shop elsewhere. Having owned my own business for many years and having shopped at many others, I am stumped at how store employees can ignore potential customers who would have spent around $ 200 plus for a nice pair of boots (and maybe bought other merchandise) if given a chance to do it by just the common courtesy one expects from the staff at a quick-​stop gas station.
Obviously, they need to do some customer service training. I sent Jackson’s an email through their website citing my frustration at shopping at their store but received no response at all, another indication of their «don’t care» customer service policy.
If you are looking for anything western, I’d shop elsewhere. I have rarely run into such a poor shopping experience.

I’ve been to a lot of western stores, and the selection here seemed lackluster (we went looking for fancy snap shirts, which my husband favors as stage-​wear for performances with his band). The staff was not rude or anything. .. they just didn’t seem friendly or interested in helping too much. Pricewise, things were about what I expected. Additionally (and I don’t know that this is the store’s fault), the place was just about impossible to navigate to. We tried two different GPS systems (Garmin and GoogleMaps on iPhone) and neither got us there – so if you go and are not familiar with the area, you might want to consult a real MAP.

Forward: this review pertains to the custom leather shop, not the retail store. My only experience with the retail store was brief after the lady at the counter seemed annoyed when I asked if they would be receiving additional sizes of one of the hats that they had in the store… she reluctantly took my information and said that they would call me, it’s been nearly 10 months, still no call. I doubt Stetson is shipping hats in from China… by rowboat.
To start, about two years ago I decided to surprise my father-​in-​law with a custom leather holster for father’s day. I took him in approximately 1 month prior to father’s day so that he could give them the specifications for his holster and they could begin work. As with everything in the leather shop, we were given a confirmation ticket and told that the 1 month timeframe would be met without fail. Fast forward to one week before father’s day, we had not heard that the holster was ready so started calling them to check on status… turns out, they had lost the order and we ended up not getting the holster until almost 2 weeks after father’s day. Albeit, they did give us a discount and were pleasant to deal with — so we let it go. This should have been my warning of how things worked here, but I gave them the benefit of the doubt since they did try to make it right.
Last Christmas, my wife surprised me with a custom holster from Jackson’s. We went in approximately 3 weeks before Christmas, I gave them the basic specifications of what I wanted and, once again, I was told that the timeframe was acceptable and that we should have no problem having it by Christmas. About one week before Christmas, we had not heard anything from them so I decided to follow up… turns out, they had not even started the order yet, but the worker said that it shouldn’t be a problem to complete by the end of that week so final adjustments could be made. To make a long story short here, the quality of workmanship on this holster was sub-​par in comparison to what was made for my father-​in-​law just one year prior; it needed several rounds of adjustments and I can still safely say that it is not exactly correct. MY father-​in-​law and I had to make several major adjustments to it after it was supposedly correct, and it seems like it was just slapped together at the last minute with some spare leather that they had lying around. Still, I have managed to make the holster work, although for the nearly $ 200 spent on it (this was the same price quoted for my father-in-law’s holster before we received a discount for them losing the order), I expected much higher quality and I shouldn’t have had to do anything to it except adjust the position, size, etc.
My last, and final, experience came a few days ago. I have been in the market for a custom leather wallet as it seems that the store bought ones fail on me after about a year… I wanted something that would last a lifetime (or at least more than a year)…cost was not an object. I wanted a fairly simple wallet — a billfold with several pockets for credit cards (something that I thought was standard nowadays). Point blank, I was told that this was «too complicated with all of those fancy pockets» and basically they could not charge me for the amount of time that it would take to make… not even asking me what my budget would be for the project in the first place. I was referred to the retail shop upstairs to look at the wallets that were, I’m sure, made somewhere well outside of Asheville. I find it difficult to understand why you would call yourself a custom leather shop and not even be able to make something as simple as a men’s billfold wallet — people trust this shop with thousands of dollars worth of saddles? Those aren’t «too complicated»?
My family and I try to support local businesses as much as possible, but in this case I have gone to looking well outside of Asheville for this need. With the spotty quality (whoever made my father-in-law’s holster did an excellent job, mine… not so much), inconsistent customer service, and the fact that their order system is apparently a hot mess… I don’t have any problem in taking my business elsewhere.

Anyone who gives this store a bad review is CRAZY! All though I live in Connecticut I have never visited this store, I have dealt with a gentleman who works there. I ordered a item which was damaged… within MINUTES of emailing him with the problem he replied with no questions on sending me a new item. He has been a pleasure to deal with… and I will continue to buy from this store… and others should do the same!!! Thanks Susan:) (purchased Painted Pony)

Well, they must have fired all those terrible employees because when I went it was great and I got a great pair of boots! Anyway, they left me alone to find what I wanted, which I appreciate. I don’t like it when workers pressure me or distract me and I was there to get my 1^st pair of cowgirl boots and I needed to focus, darn it! They had a ton of styles but I didn’t find my dream boots (in my dreams my cowgirl boots are a little black leather number with turquoise detailing and flowers, totally adorable).
Well they didn’t have those, but I swear they have every other style ever made! I ended up buying a sweet and comfy tough-​looking pair in brown and I love them. Wearing them to a wedding in the mountains tomorrow. Also the girl working was just a sweetheart and she gave me some good tips on wearing them today to break them in and tomorrow. Great job, Jackson’s! Sorry some folks had a bad time here but I’m happy as a hog in the mud! I’m already more country, see?
I only gave them 4 stars because I did end up buying some inserts that I didn’t really need and I couldn’t come back to the store to return them. I live in California!

We were kinda greeted by a lady behind the counter. She said hello and when we asked how she was doing she turned away from us to talk to other people. We got almost no help at all except for a different lady on the floor. Poor customer service and rude employees. Gotta love the return policy as well, a 15%, I believe, restocking fee for every item including defective items and clearance items. What a lovely set-​up. I will never come back and will steer others away due to the lack of customer service.

It took almost 14 minutes on the phone to confirm an item was in stock and get a price check. It was also patently obvious that the 2 people to whom I spoke were not happy to be bothered. Exceptionally poor customer service!!!

Went in to buy a piece of tack for my daughter’s birthday. They didn’t have what I wanted in the store. Said they’d order it for me. Turned out not to be what she needed. Had receipt, went back to the store only to be told too bad, we don’t take returns on «special orders». I was not informed of this policy when they took the order, nor is there any returns policy posted at the register, and there is nothing on the receipt. Sales clerk stood there eating and I basically got stared down until I left the store.

I have been talking about getting cowboy boots now for quite sometime and so I decided that Asheville was a perfect place to find a great pair. The BF’s sister knew the perfect place: Jackson’s!!! We hit up Jackson’s on Black Friday and a few people were there, but not overly crowded. The cowboy boot selection was absolutely out of control, there was just an endless amount of shoes! I was a little overwhelmed but I got to narrow things down once I had a little help. I finally found the perfect pair. LOVE the boots and everyone working in the store were nice and helpful. I was definitely stoked about my new boots– I am in fact, wearing them right now! WHOO.