The FinishLine in Greensboro, NC tried to'stiff' me.. Here's the story:
First, a look at the obvious defect of the shoe in question:
(That green from the background should not be visible under the black)
This is a letter that I attempted to email to FinishLine concerning my problems with their Greensboro, NC store, but was unable to send because they have a problem with the .jsp page that is supposed to allow this email to be sent - The submit button doesn't do anything... (I also attempted to call on the 2nd of January, but they were observing New Years)
My Fiancé purchased a pair of Nike Shox Ride shoes at the FinishLine store located at Four Seasons Mall in Greensboro, NC, for me as a Christmas gift. When I opened them and wore the shoes for one week, part of the decorative material on the shoe started to come off. I had purchased the same shoes from the same store for her, and she has had them for almost a year, with no apparent evidence of this problem, so I gave them a second chance, and exchanged them at the store for a less desirable color choice, in lieu of the refund. Here it is, a week later, and these shoes are coming apart in the exact same place as the last pair - The left foot, front right side of the shoe. Today, when she brought the shoes to your store, she was told by what appeared to be an 18 year old manager that she could not obtain a refund for the shoes because this was the "second time" that we have had a problem with the shoe. I do not see anywhere that a 'second time' clause is mentioned in your return policy. In fact, the first time she asked, the manager said that he didn't know her original method of payment and therefore could not refund her money. She did not know at the time that when she exchanged the shoes that your store kept the receipt, and asked if it would make a difference if she had the original receipt, and he then said that it would not, because of his 'second time' clause. I am outraged that after spending over 300 dollars on shoes for two people within one year at that finishline that we would be treated this way. The reason that those shoes were chosen was because of the design of the bottoms of the shoe, with an air pouch at the front lower, and shox on the rear of the shoe. None of the remaining shoes fit that category in the least bit. The other shoes there are tawdry, in my opinion. Being treated as we have has caused me to take a hard look at whether we will be conducting business there ever again. I am writing you to give you the chance to make this huge error right, and refund the money for this shoe. If some alternative method of compensation is chosen, I want you to know that I will never shop at your store again for myself or any other person, and will recommend that everyone I know do the same. I shopped at your store in the first place because it offered a more convenient way to handle manufacturers defects than other stores, and now, for them to not honor it when it is an obvious flaw in the shoe, is incredible.
-Jason *****
***-***-****
My problem with this is that their policy is clearly stated online, and arose within a week of wearing the shoes both times.
This is a quote from their policy:
Defective Merchandise: Normal wear and tear is not warranted on any merchandise. Exchanges on worn merchandise will only be made when the damage is caused by a manufacturer's defect. Items cut or sliced by sharp objects cannot be exchanged. After 45 days, items may not be returned for any reason.
(Neither time was the shoe subject to being cut or sliced, as is obvious in the photos)
**Update**
I went back to the store with my fiancé and showed the person there the shoes, the check that FinishLine had deposited, and a copy of this page, and they refunded the money in cash right then and there, within 5 minutes. The bottom line here is that people need to make sure that they are covering all of their bases when they make a purchase, as well as afterwards. Keep your receipts and as many records as you can. If the records don't help, then using a little force never hurts.
