Clansman Knitwear ??

[Colquhoun]

Greetings everyone,

I guess this is going to be one of those introduction and looking for advice all rolled into one kind of posts.

A little over a month ago I received an Oct. 28th invitation to a friends wedding, which will be including a semi-traditional Scottish ceremony as the focal point of the afternoon. Additionally, I am also planning my own nuptials next June 10th which is also going to be a Scottish themed (albeit a little less formal) event.

So, when my friend's invitation arrived I thought it a perfect opportunity to embrace my maternal heritage and begin assembling my attire.

Rocky and company at USAK cranked out a wonderful semi-trad in the family tartan, and I currently have Rab Gordon working on getting me a custom blade in time for the event. Belt, buckle and kilt pin are also in the works and should be here within a week. The sporran is iffy as to if it will make it in time, but I'm keeping a good thought. Otherwise I can borrow one.

However, I am having serious difficulties with the remaining items (hose, shirt, some misc. t-shirts, etc.) as I ordered these from Clansman Knitwear (www.scottishclansman.com/index.html) out of Valencia CA. on Sept 12th.

As of today I have been completely unable to reach them to find out the status of my order. Several attempts to phone them last week found myself being sent directly to voicemail where I was promptly told their mailbox was full and that I needed to hang up. A subsequent email has gone unanswered. I just tried calling again today and a recorded message said they were out of the office until Monday Oct 2nd. OK,

Well... I'm reasonably confident that today is Monday because I'm sitting at work and there's a bunch of my coworkers here with me. And I'm pretty sure it's Oct 2nd, so, I'm at a loss as to why they still aren't answering their phone. The only saving grace is that it appears they have not charged my card yet.

I'm at a loss as to what I should do as it's been 20 days and no communication whatsoever. I'm really not looking to bash them, I'd just really hate to waste anymore time only to find out there is a problem with my order. Or worse, a problem with these folks in general.

I'd appreciate any advice anyone could offer, or anyone who might be able to chime in with first hand experience with this company. I'm down to 26 days to go, so the clock is ticking.

Many thanks

Brett

[chasem]

I don't have much experience with them, aside from ordering a few yards of tartan, which went well for me.

However, since then, I've read several posts from other users here having the same or similar troubles with them as you seem to be. Poor communication and slow service.

I hope everything works out so that you have your stuff (be it from Clansman or elsewhere) in time for the wedding(s).

In the meantime, welcome aboard! You'll learn plenty by visiting here, stick around.

[Riverkilt]

A search of this forum will yield you many sad tales of woe. Many of us have been there.

Best way to shop with this company is at highland games where you can see the goods, and if you want them, pay and take them with you.

Hope it works out for you. They are known to have bursts of customer service from time to time, but if you're already where you are with them it may be some time before you see your order.

Good luck,

Ron
Who tried twice and learned the hard way both times...

[Kilted KT]

As riverkilt stated, you can search the forum and find that clansmen knitwear are not a vendor you want to deal with. Many tales of woe, incorrectly sized items, extremely long delays and all kinds of other problems. Being that it is scottish games season in most of the country, I'm fairly certain that getting in touch with Ralph or anyone else over there will be close to impossible.

I wish you the best of luck.

[bubba]

Personally, I'd cancel that order and go elsewhere. There have been too many problems to rely on Clansman. You might try J. Higgins or the Tartan Museum or any number of other vendors. My experiences with Higgins have been very good, about a week from order to delivery. Matt and the Tartans Museum could probably do as well.

[Colquhoun]

Ok, thanks everyone!

That's just what I needed to hear. Time to move on to someone more reliable.

Brett

[Riverkilt]

Not sure exactly where you are in So Cal. But your best bet might be heading up to Ventura in Two weeks for the Highland Games there and shop and buy what you can see from the vendors there. You might even be able to give Clansman direct feedback, he'll probably be there.

Or check your yellow pages or google up Scottish gear retailers you can drive to.

The Internet is overwhelmed with folks who claim to have stock of Scottish goods when all they do is act as a middle man while you wait and wait and wait for products that, if you're lucky, may be what you wanted, of fair value, and correctly sized.

Here's the website for the Ventura games http://www.seaside-games.com/
enjoy the bagpiped surfer music.

Ron

[Colquhoun]

I just discovered a retail store front by the name of "The Tartan Patch" about 15 minutes from my house. I plan to take a drive on my next days off. They also do jacket and vest rentals, which as much as they pain me to wear, are going to be a must.

Brett

[Sir Robert]

First of all I've no brains at all but I would cover my *** by getting a second source of accessories:

Kilt hose: knee high socks in a complementary colour to yer' kilt.

Shirt: If formal, I'd get a long sleve wing tip (oh and starch it) and a bow tie.

Some misc: eBay.

T-shirts: Walmart, XXXL turn inside out, tailor the sides but leave the leignth so that your willy does not chap on the starched shirt.

Etc: fake it baby, a horse blanket pin looks like a kilt pin.

[Livingston]

Ralph has been at the games in Estes Park, CO for the last 4 or 5 years. Wasn't there this year. Sure didn't miss him either after the poor job he's done. See this thead, and this one, and this one, or maybe this one. They all show a trend that you won't like.