Saddle Ordered

Deposit Paid

Payoff Call Made

Payoff Processed

Saddle Here?

Still No Pics

Negotiations?

Saddle Here, Again

FedEx Mirage

Saddle ARRIVES!

Teskey's "Done"

Wrap Up

Update 1

Update 2

Teskey's Saddle Fiasco

Facts surrounding the terrible customer service
and treatment I received from Teskey's.

Final Product

I ordered a custom saddle from Teskey's and received the most appalling and rude customer service of any company from which I have ever purchased. The saddle took 2x longer than was quoted, came in with multiple items missing or incorrect, had to be sent back to be changed, and then I was laughed at when I was finally able to speak to someone about it.

Saddle Order Placed

April 30

Concept Mockup

Called and spoke to "Frank" with my order request. Made multiple phone calls to ask questions and make sure my first experience ordering a custom saddle was a good one. My main concern was that this saddle fit my high-withered barrel horse who's built more like a TB. I asked lots of questions about the different trees available and based on my research and talking with Frank, I designed my saddle from the Corner Cut Barrel Saddle on Teskey's website, with the following modifications: Upgrade to Buster Welch tree; $100 upgrade to bullhide seat; chocolate brown seat and horn/cantle rawhide dyed to match, silver laced; medium oil with roughout seat jockey in light oil, 7/8 tooled basketweave with Wyoming floral corners, also on skirt and fenders; $100 upgrade to nickel dots added to whole of saddle; rear chinch custom in-skirt D rings; tooled rear billets; clips and dee's on rear conchos; Antique Star conchos; $100 upgrade to real wool saddle lining; 2-inch aluminum barrel stirrups.

It was indicated that custom build time would be 6-8 weeks and I was told they had an increased volume of custom saddles so it may very well be the full 8 weeks, but wouldn't be any more than that. I also asked if I could be provided in-progress photos and gave him my email address when I was told that would be no problem. So after all my options were added, to make sure I was crystal clear on what I ordered, I took their stock Corner Cut Barrel Saddle photo from their website into Photoshop and created a complete mock-up of my saddle. I was not provided with an email address, nor does their website have one, so I used their online contact form to send the link to the photo. I made sure it was ATTN: Frank. To the right you will see my quick photo mock-up representation of what my saddle should look like.

$1000 Deposit Withdrawn

May 2

Deposit cleared - Click to enlarge

The initial deposit of $1000 was paid with Credit Card #1 and was withdrawn from my account on this date.

$830 Payoff Call Made

May 25

Final Payment - Click to Enlarge

Called in to provide a different card # from which to have the final payment processed. Also asked about the status of the saddle and was told it was "on time" and when I inquired about receiving my in-progress photographs, I was told I would receive them via email.

Payoff Still Not Processed

June 7

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Nearly 2 weeks went by and my remaining payment had not been removed from my checking account. I started to get worried, so around noon I placed a call to check the status. After being put on hold for over 7 minutes, someone got on the phone and said "We don't see your order in the system. Are you sure you placed an order?" Yes I was sure. I was $1000 sure because THAT payment had already been processed, more than 5 weeks prior. So I'm asked for my phone number and told they would investigate the situation and would call me back.

After waiting over three hours, I finally had enough, so I called them back. This time I was on hold for about 4-5 minutes when someone got with me to tell me they found my order and would run the final payment right away. Within 10 minutes I received a call back from them to tell me my card wouldn't go through. I asked what card # they tried to run. Of course, it was the wrong one. I had to give them the correct card # a second time. I had also inquired about my in-progress photos again during this call and was told once again that I would receive them.

Saddle Is In, But...

June 27

Call Log - Click to Enlarge

My initial build time was quoted at 6-8 weeks. I waited until the actual 8 week mark from the date my original deposit was withdrawn from my account and called to check on the status (a Wednesday). And again, I was told I would be called back. And wasn't called back.

After waiting several hours, I called back in and this time I spoke to the Custom Saddle Manager, Mr. Casey Cooper. I was told by Mr. Cooper that the saddle would be "in the store" by Friday, and that he would at that point be able to have photos sent to me. At this time he also expressed his concern that he had seen the saddle and thought the seat might not be right, that the bullhide material I had paid for an upgrade to was much "smoother" than normal.

I asked him what would be done if it wasn't right, and his first line of defense was to offer to completely refund my money on the saddle. I told him that I wouldn't have ordered this saddle if it wasn't the one I wanted, and his next offer was to completely rebuild the saddle. I told him I didn't want to wait another 10 weeks and he said let's just take a look at the pics and we would go from there. He said he would send me photos as soon as it arrived in the store on Friday June 29, as previously mentioned.

Where Are The Pics?

July 5

Actual photos received by email. Click to Enlarge.

Click to enlarge

Friday came and went, no photos, no phone calls, no emails. My first call after being completely neglected yet again wasn't until Thursday, July 5th. And as usual, I called in, was told I would be called right back, and then not called back. This time, I was tired of being neglected, so I called at 2:47pm and spoke to Mr. Casey Cooper.

I told him it was ridiculous that I have had to wait this long, with no word from anyone, and I questioned him about the whereabouts of the photos he promised. He was very rude and cocky with me, cutting me off every time I tried to talk, and just being downright disrespectful. Among other things, and in a very arrogant fashion, he said "How could I send you any photos when I didn't even have the saddle in until yesterday?" I reminded him that he had promised me photos last Friday and that the least he could have done was call or send an email and tell me the saddle wasn't in like he had expected. A little professional courtesy would have gone a long way.

Keep in mind during this brief call I still had not seen the saddle, so yet again, I was promised photos and the conversation was ended. I waited over an hour and did not receive any photos, so I called back again, and even though I asked for a manager, I was yet again directed to Mr. Cooper. I told Mr. Cooper that this was more than enough time, and he yet again was flippant and tried blaming it on someone else: "The guy who takes our pictures for us, I told him, and he put it in line with the rest of the saddles, and as soon as forwards them to my email, I'll forward them to you."

I again told him how unacceptable this whole process was, and not once did he apologize to me for anything. Instead, he offered to "undo the whole process". I was the one who had to ask about options to fix it, and maybe throwing in something extra for my trouble. At this point I was laughed at, and then was yet again promised photos by close of business that same day, which would be 6:30pm CST. I didn't receive the photos until after 6:00pm CST - enough time for me to view them and attempt a phone call (see call log image to right) to discuss the problems with Mr. Cooper, but of course, he had left for the evening.

Let's Discuss This

July 6

Click to view entire email.

Since Mr. Cooper was unavailable via phone, I decided to write an email to address my concerns. It was sent on July 5th, so Mr. Cooper would have it in his inbox first thing on the 6th. I gave Mr. Cooper until then to respond to my email. In this email, I indicated all the problems I could see: missing Just before noon, I missed a call from him, and he left a voicemail indicating he had responded to my email. I called him back to discuss the email.

During this call he basically told me that only a couple of things in my email I had requested would be included for free, and that everything else would need to be paid for at wholesale cost. This offer of atonement was not at Mr. Cooper's hand. Mr. Cooper later made it clear that he would "never offer anything for free to someone who didn't directly ask for it."

I had initially requested a 30x30 pad because I assumed the skirt was short enough that it would fit. Even though I requested the skirt measurement numerous times during my phone calls, I was never provided with an actual measurement, so I was unable to order a saddle pad until after the saddle came in. When the option of having a pad included in my order presented itself, and I only had 2 size options, I specifically asked Mr. Cooper the skirt size to make sure this size would fit, and again, was not provided with any measurements. Instead I was told that the 30x30 size is the size that they sell with all barrel saddles, so I was assured it would be large enough.

I settled on the 30x30 pad, a 34" cinch, and having the saddle sent back to have the seat replaced (with a 2 week quoted turnaround time) I was then told that I would receive photos of the fixed saddle seat by Friday, July 20.

Saddle Round 2

July 20

I emailed Mr. Cooper around noon, asking for an update, and explained how I had hoped to not have to call in on my own. I received a response email saying he had just talked to the shop and the saddle was en-route for a 3pm delivery. I waited several more hours and finally called in at around 5:30pm.

Mr. Cooper indicated he had the saddle in the store but was unable to get photos from his photographer, so he would go out of his way to take photos with his own cell phone and text them directly to me. Fortunately for Mr. Cooper I received the photo of the newly-replaced seat within a few minutes. It still looked very dark to me (I had ordered a chocolate brown, not black), but was assured (yet again) that it was just the lighting in the store and the poor quality of the photos giving a false representation of color. However, the seat texture was much better, and quite obvious the Bullhide I had originally ordered and paid for.

I called back in immediately after receiving the texted photo and told him that would be fine, to please ship it out asap. I asked if he would ship it overnight but of course that was out of the question. I was assured, however, that it would ship on Monday July 23 and would be to my home in 3-4 days, so I would most definitely have it for the following weekend.

Shipping Status

July 23 - July 26

Call log - Click to enlarge

Fed Ex Tracking Info - Click to enlarge

I called in first thing Monday morning (7/23) to make a change to an additional item I had ordered (split reins instead of rope reins), plus I wanted to get my Fed Ex tracking number. Mr. Cooper was out of the office that day, but I spoke to "Rhonda", the "Orders Manager", who told me she had to find the order paperwork and then check with Mr. Cooper and would call me back. At around 4pm I received the call back letting me know this change would be fine and the saddle would ship out today and I would receive a Fed Ex tracking number via email. I never received anything via email.

As of Wednesday morning (7/25) I still hadn't received anything, so I placed another call to check on the shipping status. I again spoke to "Rhonda" who said that she was all the way at the other end of the store and could she call me right back. I never heard back from her that day.

Thursday (7/26) afternoon I called in and was immediately asked if I could be called back, but this time I said no, that I would wait. When "Rhonda" got on the phone she told me she tried calling me the day before. I told her I never received any voicemails. She indicated she didn't leave a voicemail. I then began to tell her I had been waiting for her call and not once did I receive any incoming calls from anyone from Teskey's. Instead of allowing me to finish, she cut me off towards the end and finally offered a Fed Ex tracking number. Now this was Thursday. I had already been told by Mr. Cooper the week before that I should have this saddle by the end of the week. I looked up the FedEx info and the saddle hadn't even been picked up until Wednesday and was still in TX on Thursday.

Saddle Finally Arrives,
But Missing Some Things...

July 28

Saturday morning (7/28) my saddle finally arrived. The box looked a little beat up but I opened it and began taking pictures. The very first thing I noticed is that the SMX cinch I had ordered was missing out of the box. The next thing I saw is how the saddle itself has actual nickel dots missing from several rosettes and other areas. I then saw the crazy alignment of some of the dots along the stirrup keepers.

After placing the saddle on a saddle rack the next thing I noticed is how terribly small the saddle pad looks under it. I got out a measuring tape and the skirt length measured at 28". The pad is only a 30" pad, as was indicated by Mr. Cooper as being the "proper" length for this saddle. I like to have at least 2" of pad showing on either side of the saddle in case the saddle slides or the pad slips, and this pad is clearly too small, so I called the store immediately. Mr. Cooper was unavailable but I spoke with "John" who claimed to be the "General Manager", and as such, Mr. Cooper's immediate supervisor. I politely explained the situation and told him the cinch was missing from the box and the pad was too small. He said he would ship the cinch out right away and include a return label so I could ship the too-small one back. I thanked him and ended the conversation.

Teskey's "Done Doing Anything To Make Me Happy."

July 30

Called the following Monday morning July 30 to speak to the General Manager again, to make sure they were sending the cinch and pad out right away. Was told, again, that it would be no problem to have another pad and shipping label sent out with the missing cinch and I could return the too-small pad and wouldn't need to worry about anything.

A couple hours later I received a call from Mr. Cooper to "check" on the saddle, and I told him what I had told the General Manager. The cinch was missing, there were some nickel dots missing, the saddle had a chunk of leather missing from one side, overall workmanship was not up to par, and the saddle pad was clearly too small.

Then Mr. Cooper proceeded to get very nasty with me and tell me that "all Teskey's barrel saddles have a 28" skirt" and "that's the size pad we sell with all our barrel saddles". He also stated that he wouldn't be sending me anything else, "including a saddle pad or even a shipping label" so I could send the too-small pad back, and that Teskey's was "done doing anything to make me happy." If I wanted to speak to his superior (the owner) I could call back in on Monday (8/6) because Mr. Cooper wouldn't "be there to persuade the owner's opinion".

I told him that his actions and treatment were uncalled for and disappointing, and that I might go viral with this story. He laughed at me and told me to "go ahead" if I thought I was "important enough". Again, not once was he apologetic or even offer to replace the missing nickel dots -- I had to specifically request that he send them to me.

And to date, I haven't received them or a pad or a shipping label. The cinch was delivered a few days later directly from the manufacturer.

Summary

To wrap everything up...

1. Rawhide wrong color, told I could have dark brown to match saddle but 8 weeks later told "we don't do that at Teskey's"
2. Never received in-progress photos, told I could have them but 8 weeks later told "we don't do that at Teskey's"
3. Paid for shipping but they offered free shipping during this time
4. Waited over 12 weeks for saddle to arrive
5. Had to wait 2+ additional weeks for seat material to be fixed
6. Shipping was slow
7. Customer service was non existant
8. Nickel dots crooked and/or missing
9. Cinch missing, but arrived 3 days later
10. Pad is too small
11. Teskey's will do nothing more to make this nearly $2,000 transaction right

Update 1

Spoke to Mr. Teskey...

I called and spoke to Mr. Teskey (after a 15 minute hold period) and, while he was not apologetic either, he offered to make the transaction "right" by shipping the larger pad and a shipping label so I can return the too-small pad. Also, a new set of rosettes should be in there as well. I have a feeling they won't have the matching dark brown bullhide that mine currently do, but maybe I can find a local saddle maker that can fix them.

I was going to bring up the terrible treatment I received from Mr. Cooper, and even share this time line with Mr. Teskey, but since he offered to make good on the original transaction, I will just accept the situation and personally will never shop there again.

Update 2

Why I will never shop at Teskey's again.

Click to enlarge

A week later the other saddle pad arrived with a shipping label and a handful of unoiled leather rosettes with nickel dots. Of course nothing about this is correct.

The original saddle pad was measured at 30"x30". I am, by trade, a designer and measurements are important to me. Anything I measure or design for print is always done as width first, length (or height) last. Think about a piece of paper. You say "8.5 x 11", you don't say "11 x 8.5". TVs are "4 x 3" or "16 x 9" aspect ratio, not "3 x 4" or "9 x 16". And yet the saddle pad I got was a 31"x32", with the 31" measurement being the length. So the saddle pad I just got is still barely long enough where it needs to be (lengthwise) and now too wide where it was previously fine. After all the hubub about getting a size that would fit under my saddle, you would think that Teskey's would have been a little more quick to point this out. Not once did I hear anything like "Well ma'am, you currently have a 30" long pad, and the other pad we have is only going to give you 1 more inch..."

What's worse, the missing nickel dots that I paid for were sent to me on a handful of unoiled and plain rosettes, even though I specifically mentioned the cinch keeper and the latigo keeper were missing dots. Not only are they the wrong color, and missing the upgraded leather I paid for, but they're not even the right rosettes. They did not send either cinch keeper or latigo keeper rosettes.

The order was never right, and never made right, and every chance Teskey's was given they mess something up and have never, not once, been apologetic about anything. I will never shop at Teskey's again and will leave this site up to let everyone know how they have treated one of their customers.