Sonoma Paint Center

Went in here today with my 2 daughters to look at paint for their room and grab a few other things. I was very clueless and had a rambunctious 2yo grabbing all the samples and playing with brushes ect. I didn’t get the guys name, but he was super friendly, knowledgeable and helpful with recommending the best route for the girls room and just grabbed everything else on my list while I attended to the heathen. Will happily do all my future paint shopping here.

Sonoma Paint Center is a Benjamin Moore store. BM is a higher end line with some sophisticated colors, and while it’s more expensive than some big box store offerings, the quality and finish are outstanding. I’ve never had a problem with any paint I’ve bought here. Colors are absolutely spot-​on and if you need a custom tweak (like say, make it this color but 10% lighter) they can do that too. They have pre-​made sample size jars of the newest colors for testing, or they can mix you up a sample size can of any color in the line. The guys behind the counter are helpful and efficient, but if there are other customers ahead of you then you could be waiting around a while. For samples and interior paints, if you already know what BM color and formula you want you can pre-​order online at their website. It will be ready when you get there so you’re in and out fast. Saves a lot of time:

I’m a painter here in sonoma and I’m embarrassed to say Sonoma paint is so bad I stopped going. John the owner has issues and reads people wrong then gets hostile quick. In one disagreement he was cursing at me and asking if I wanted to go out back to fight. Really. He has had some good employees and bad over the years but after being disrespected to many times I can’t stomach the store.
My mother in law Mary Martin used to jokingly say they where a front company for the mafia as she thought they really didn’t want to sell paint or make people happy.
If you want Benjamin Moore paint and like to be abused go to Sonoma Paint. If not Kelly Moore will treat you like a customer. I drive over to Napa, Petaluma or Healdsburg to get Benjamin Moore, any other store but not Sonoma Paint.
FYI Santa Rosa paint store is also owned by John Barnes aka Voldermort.

I hate to give such a low score in stars, but… ME THINKS NOT!
Per the recommendation of the young hispanic guy behind the counter, my painter and I bought 6 cans of chalkboard paint for my babies nursery. Once our painting project was over I realized that we had 4 cans of chalkboard paint left over. Keep in mind that this paint came directly off the shelf and was $ 20/​quart.
So at 9 months pregnant, I went to bring these 4 cans of chalkboard paint back into the store for a return and that same young man at the counter told me he couldnt take them back because it had been past 30 days which is their policy. Again, this was un-​altered, un-​opened paint off the shelf. He told me that I could come back the next week and talk to the owner to see if he would be willing to take the return. So then, at 9 months pregnant, I took my 4 cans of paint back to the car, with the expectation of having to lug these cans back into the paint center in another week. Did this guy offer to help me with the paint? Nope. Real nice customer service. So off I waddled carrying my cans of paint.
A week later, the same thing. I lug these 4 cans back into the car, and back into the store. The owner agrees to give me a return but then asks if its ok that he charges me a restocking fee… are you serious? When I told him I didnt see the point of that since all he has to do is literally put them back on the shelf, which I could do in less than a minute, he promptly reminded me that they have a 30 day policy… Well dont ask if its ok if your not going to like my answer.
Overall, I would say that this store has poor customer service and if you want to buy paint from people who are friendly and actually care about their customers you might be better off going somewhere else. Dare I say this, because I always like to stay local and buy local, but next time I need paint Ill be going to the Kelly Moore store in Sonoma. Ive experienced much nicer customer service there in the past. Even not pregnant, the employees there are helpful, offer to carry paint for you and help you with the door and to your car.

I own rental properties and have used this store for years with 100% satisfaction. The paint quality and color range are superior to my former supplier (Kelly Moore) and the service my contractor has received here is fantastic. He has a choice of where to supply paint and he chooses these guys. Now I know why…
I walked in recently for a personal project with my wife for two quarts of paint. I had really excellent service, great color matching and honest answers.
I am perplexed by the negative reviews, they don’t make sense in relation to my years of experience with this store and their product.

We had another opportunity to work with John Barnes. This guy is a genius (and a sweetheart). We needed colored concrete to compliment a tricky pool project and had been struggling for WEEKS on this one issue. John solved the problem within minutes. And he was spot on with the color. Truly amazing… don’t tell him though. He might raise his rates!

Love this place so much that I won’t bother getting touch up paint for my house from the original manufacturer. They have an extensive selection of colors (including the Pottery Barn designer colors), and carry environmentally friendly bases.
The customer service has been professional and attentive. I’ve worked with John, who is extremely knowledgeable about paint and colors, and after going back and forth between three different kinds of green, he recommended one that I wasn’t looking at. That’s the one I ended up going with– not because he recommended it, but after testing it out, it was the look and feel I was going for, which he completely understood.
I’ve worked with a couple of the other guys behind the counter, and in John’s absence, they’ve always taken care of me and made sure I had everything I needed to complete my project.
To date I’ve used Wrought Iron, Wasabi (John’s recommendation) and Amsterdam in my home. I’m going for Santorini next, and who knows where else? The possibilities are endless here.

I’m just going to drive to the Novato store the next time that I need Benjamin Moore paints.
All of the young men who work here are ghetto horrible. I’ve been to this store a few times and I was very uncomfortable with the staff there. One employee in particular really tries to act creepy. He kept asking me over and over again whether or not he could carry my small paint can out to my car for me. I said, «No, thanks.» And he kept staring at me saying «are you suuuure???»
Ick.