Sound Boatworks LLC

So I know there are several bad reviews out there. And my experience started out dicey as there was a slight mix up in my order. But Chris took care of things — promptly and courteously. Companies do make mistakes but how they follow up on those mistakes tells me a lot about them. I will do business with them again. They have great prices and the service, while not infallible, is professional and I feel honest.

I ordered a coat just after Christmas. I didn’t receive the coat after a week. I contacted Sound Boatworks and found out the manufacturer was on an extended holiday. BUT the lovely people at Sound Boatworks promised I’d get the coat in time for the party present it was to be. They were as good as their word. The coat came as they’d promised, it was of high quality, fit perfectly, and made the receiver very happy. His words??? «I can’t wait to wear this during Sailing Week in Florida.» The coat was: Henry Lloyd, inshore, sailing coat.

I can’t believe they are still in business! Three years ago I ordered a Dynamic dolly from them. They charged my card immediately and «kited» my $$ and didn’t pay Dynamic. The dolly was ready to be delivered but obviously wouldn’t be shipped to me until Dynamic was paid. I was lied to until Dynamic got into the act and got their money.
My son had a similar experience having ordered two Gill jackets which were «in stock» for «immediate shipment». After several weeks he filed a protest with his card company and bought directly from Gill. How can people read about these crooks and still keep buying from them!

People say Sound Boatworks is dishonest or a scam. I don’t agree. They have a well established well liked retail store. For some reason I don’t know, they are unable to manage their online operation. I would guess they mean well but regardless of intentions YOU SHOULD NEVER ORDER FROM THIS BUSINESS. There’s nothing to fear from going to the store and leaving with an in stock item you buy.

I have purchased sailing gear from Chris and the SB team for many years now and boy do they treat a customer right! I was in a pinch right before the Bermuda Race start when my spin lock deck vest had been stolen. Chris was able to get me a replacement, gave me a HUGE discount and delivered it to me personally in Newport before the start.

I wish I had thought to look at these comments on Unilocal before I made my purchase.
I ordered an opti cover that is so far taking 3+ weeks to deliver. Zero customer service.

I purchased $ 260 worth of merchandise from this Company in May. Now, 60 days later, they have not shipped. When I have called several times, they explained that they did not have the inventory and their suppliers were back ordered. They processed my credit card as soon as I placed the order. They are selling merchandise out of an elaborate catalog, but they do not have the inventory in stock. My requests for refund have been ignored and they do not respond as promised. DO NOT EVEN CONSIDER DOING BUSINESS WITH THIS COMPANY.

My wife ordered a product by mail (a present for me). It arrived on time and as described. However, I didn’t need it. Returned it for store credit with no problems or issues. Used that credit (plus more funds) to purchase halyards. They arrived on time and as described. Therefore, I personally have no complaints against them or cautions against using them.

I’ve ordered gear and apparel from just about every rigging shop out there and this place struggles when it comes to order fulfillment. They will charge you for your order immediately even though they don’t know when your items will ship. If you feel like taking a chance and are willing to continually follow up for status over the phone, go for it. Otherwise I would recommend you shop elsewhere.

Terrible service bordering on dishonesty. I will never buy from them again.
Ordered a sailing book (North U Racing Trim Coursebook) on 10÷3÷2014 which is two months and five days ago and just called them for the sixth time to follow-​up. I always get the same response. Don’t know what happened, will put it on the manager’s desk and you can expect a shipping confirmation by tomorrow. Today I called several times and it kept going to voicemail until I finally called via Skype to mask my California area code. I’m having this trouble with a $ 25 purchase so I dread to think what would happen with something more expensive or a more complicated order.
I expect that I’ll have to involve my credit card to get my money back or just forget about the money.

I ordered a Ronstan racing timer/​watch for delivery before a major regatta, and called when it had not arrived on time from the warehouse. Chris went out of his way to find one in the store and left it in a secure spot before the store opened for me to pick up on the way to Newport. The other one did arrive to my home during the regatta and I just returned it via the UPS sticker. Chris’ effort canceled out the late shipment, and left me as a satisfied customer.

I just want to further document the fraudulent activities of this company. I ordered and paid for (credit card) a Laser upper mast, which was to be picked up at their Westbrook, CT store. This payment was processed on 11÷7÷13. I have called about monthly for an update on this delivery, without ONE single returned phone call. I stopped in at the store, and Chris (the son of the father-​son ownership) said they were just waiting to make a run to the Providence warehouse. Several months later I stopped in and they said there was a problem getting this part for the manufacturer. I just checked online for other vendors that sell this part, and they list it as in stock.
Having just looked them up on Unilocal,I am resorting to getting a credit through VISA.
Bob B

This company is to be avoided at all costs. They rip off customers, lie and otherwise misrepresent themselves.
I ordered a kayak rack back in January and was told it would ship in 1 – 2 weeks. My credit card was charged immediately — that should have been my first clue that I was going to get ripped off.
The rack never shipped, period. I called weekly through February, March and April speaking with several associates and the infamous «Chris». Over 25 calls and I NEVER once got a call back as promised — another warning I stupidly chose to overlook.
Finally in late May I cancelled the order and was told a refund would take a few days. I again started weekly calls with no refund.
In fact, if it wasn’t for American Express and their dispute resolution process, I’d still be out over $ 700.
Do not purchase from these con artists under any circumstances unless you have money to throw away.

Having dropped north of $ 500 with these guys on a jacket and a Deckvest without doing any real review due diligence on them, I have to admit that I freaked out after seeing the reviews, and my order not having arrived after a week. One call & email later, I was informed that the items were just shipping, and they arrived exactly as promised.
Chalk one up to folks Unilocaling 99% of complaints, and 1% of compliments.
Would give them five stars if the free shipping was faster, but hey, you get what you pay for.

I asked if the Henry Lloyd’s jacket was sized like the Gill foulie jackets. They said, «Yes.» It wasn’t.
They charged me twice for the jacket and $ 10 to return the jacket.
Almost 30 days later no refund has hit my account.
Yesterday I called and I was told I would get a call back They did not call back in 24 hours.

As noted in one of the ratings here, check the Better Business Bureau first on this merchant. 33 complaints as of March 7, 2014. I returned two life vests in early December 2013 for a refund. Repeatedly Chris Boynton, the co-​owner and manager promised to post a refund to my credit card. I must have called 20 – 25 times asking that my refund be posted back to my credit card, and was repeatedly assured it would be. I sent multiple emails politely inquiring, then pleading for my refund. By today, March 7, 2014, it was obvious there was no intention whatsoever to make a refund, so I contacted my credit card company’s dispute center. It is hard to believe there are companies out there like this one. Buyer beware. And check the Better Business Bureau first.

A new low for customer service. Bought a pair of racing boots… was later contacted by sound boatworks saying they would not honor their price???
After some emails of disappointment, they did agree to honor their price and would ship the boots promptly, and email me when they shipped.
Well, that was over a month ago without any communication. I finally called them a week ago. I was told they would follow up quickly and email me the status of the boots… Guess what? … No follow through, no reply from sound boatworks.
You need to «try» to be this bad!

Never received product. Called to check status and was told it has to be «custom made» and won’t ship for another month. So I canceled the order because it was supposed to be part of a Christmas gift. (Website guaranteed arrival by Christmas). As if that wasn’t enough I then had to nag them for my refund. Called them three times this week and EVERY time I call I’m told they have to speak with their manager and someone will call me back. Not only is the «manager» never there I never get a call back. Almost three four weeks after I canceled my order and getting the runaround I disputed the charge with my bank. Don’t buy from these.clowns. Quick to take money but refunding it is a different matter!

I received an e-​mail with a 20% off Kaenon Sunglasses and ordered a pair on May 1^st. With orders over $ 100, they offer free shipping. So I didn’t upgrade to 2 – 3 day or overnight as that would virtually eliminate the 20% savings.
I checked the status of my order a week later and it had not shipped out. I e-​mailed customer service and they auto-​replied that someone would get back to me within 48 hours. I never received a response from them. So I called to inquire about the status of my order. They said that with the promotion, the warehouse had gotten behind, but my order would ship out that day. So they created a UPS label. According to their site, my sunglasses were to arrive May 29^th (note order date May 1^st). I checked UPS and that site indicated that a label was created, but the package had not arrived at their site. I called customer service again. She apologized but said that another warehouse was shipping it. So she would contact that warehouse to see what was going on. She said she would call me back. No call received back.
So I called AGAIN. This time I was angry. It was MAY 31^st and still no sunglasses. I said that I had called multiple times and was told that my sunglasses were «on their way» I said I demanded overnight delivery. She apologized and had them sent. I still didn’t receive them the next day. I received them the following Monday June 3^rd. The whole process was a little ridiculous for one pair of sunglasses!

The Facts
Unilocal Reviews: To date, September 26, 2012, Sound Boatworks, LLC, in Westbrook, CT has 13 reviews; 12 of those reviews are ‘filtered’; with the exception of one, all of the reviews are 1 star. All of the reviews reference slow shipping /​misstated ETA for order fulfillment /​delivery.
Better Business Bureau: To date, September 26,2012, the BBB Business Review has 17 complaints for Sound Boatworks, LLC, in Westbrook, CT; 15 of those complaints have to do with shipping. 2 of those complaints involve a problem with the product or service. The BBB rating is an ‘F’.
The Experience
I found Sound Boatworks, LLC, in Westbrook, CT, following a search for foul weather gear; though they appeared to have competitive prices, I’d found better elsewhere so called to find if they’d price match the other vendor (s). I spoke with ‘Chris’, who turned out to be Chris Boynton, one of the principals. Chris offered to discount the item and informed me that I should note it in the checkout area.
I placed my order on Friday, July 6^th. The following Monday, July 9^th, I reached out to Sound Boatworks, LLC, (Westbrook, CT) once again; I wanted to order another item and have its shipment bundled with the previous order, assuming that the previous order had not shipped. I exchanged instant messages with ‘Chris’ (the Sound Boatworks, LLC website provides IM capabilities), whom I assumed to be Chris Boynton; he informed me that the shipments could be combined and that I needed only to add a note to the online order. I asked about transit time to the West Coast, and he informed me that it’s typically 5 – 7 days.
I placed the 2^nd order online following this exchange.
Shortly after placing the 2^nd order, I received an email from Hutch Fisher, one of the Sound Boatworks, LLC (Westbrook, CT) staff, thanking me for the order, stating that the order was ‘being processed and will be dispatched shortly via FedEx or UPS’; the email also stated that Sound Boatworks was ‘still having difficulty processing Paypal orders’ and requested that I resubmit the order with a credit card.
I responded to the email stating that I would resubmit the order with a credit card, and that if they foresaw some delay in shipping, or that they did not anticipate the gear arriving by July 18, 2012, they should call or email to make alternate arrangements i.e. expedited shipping option.
I resubmitted the order; Sound Boatworks cancelled the Paypal payment.
By Wednesday, July 11^th, I had not received a shipping update, so I reached out via email to Hutch Fisher, informing him that, as previously stated, I had a hard cut off date of July 18^th — and that I needed the gear by then, as I’d be getting uderway for an extended ocean passage on July 19^th.
In response, I received two automated emails from the Yahoo Shopping Checkout system that Sound Boatworks uses: Order Status: Will ship in 2 – 3 days.
On Thursday, July 12, I called again and spoke with Chris; I asked for expected shipping date, reiterating that if rec’d after July 18, the gear would be useless to me. Chris looked into the order #s and informed me that they were expected to ship on Friday, July 13^th — and that he’d mark them as 2-​Day Express, to ensure that they got to me by the 18^th; I thanked him for this, and offered to cover the cost of the expedited shipping.
To their credit, a day prior to my departure I received a partial shipment: one of the two ocean foul weather jackets had arrived — the other had not.
Fast forward a month to late August and I’m back on shore, anticipating the final foul weather jacket to be waiting for me; it is not there, a full 6 weeks after its initial order date and purchase. I call Sound Boatworks and ask about its status: «it’s shipping shortly», I’m told — which I’ve heard before; I decide to cancel the order and have the $ 423 refunded — and am told that I should anticipate it when I next check my statement.
After a few days, I note that there’s still no credit — so IM them (for written record) and am assured that it’s processing; 5 WEEKS LATER I AM STILL WAITING ON THE CREDIT. It’s now in dispute with credit card.
Clearly, Sound Boatworks, LLC, does not stock items; they’re either drop-​shipped from the manufacturer or are shipped and re-​shipped. Further, based on my experience, other Unilocal reviews and the Better Business Bureau Business Review complaint file, they are not in the business of providing accurate guidance on realistic shipping estimates.
Additional Thoughts
Integrity — and competence — in business should not be the exception; if a given item is not stocked, or there will be a delay in shipment, proactively let the customer know; though you may lose that order, you’ll likely gain a long-​term customer for your honesty.
Bottomline
I’m disappointed but not surprised; I should have done more due diligence prior to placing the order. And I should have checked out the Unilocal reviews, as part of that. Would not recommend.