Compromising quality to meet demand?

I second that whole heartedly.

The only reason I'm willing to pay the high prices I do is because I'm getting a item that is worth it to me. If I am "ripped-off" and do not receive the item advertised, you can bet I will file a dispute with my credit card. I will be happy to return the unwanted item, but no one is going to force me into silence and acceptance of a defective product.

 

When it comes to a hand made product, I really think the makers should deliver on quality. I tend to think of (supply &) demand when it comes to production line goods. If an artist is finding it hard to keep up with demand, then they should know their limits and adjust accordingly. Letting customers know how production is fairing goes a long way into developing great respect between artist and buyer. I like to see companies keep customers up to date when production falls behind because of concerns of quality. I have more respect for company when it does that.

 

I can't agree that lowering the price is a sensible response. The assumption here is that they are backlogged with too many orders, right? What exactly do you think will happen to their workload if they CUT the price? Think about it.

No, the correct thing to do is to just slog through the backlog while apologizing the whole way, RAISE the price, or start setting ordering limits.

 

I would rather have good quality and fewer dolls and pay a little more for that good quality. Unfortunately some companies charge top dollar for average quality.

 

Being a bigger company or smaller company does not necessarily dictate quality. Smaller companies are not providing better service in all cases.

I own a doll from a one man company and I own a Volks Doll. Customer service has been equally good between the two. My positive experience with these companies had everything to do with attitude, readiness, craftsmanship and pride in their work. (FYI I had to contact both of these companies with an issue and BOTH times it was handled quickly, professionally, and with great care.)

I will also add that if you order from a company while they are scaling up you have most likely caught them at their WORST moment. This is the ultimate stress test for any type of small business and most of the time accidents and over sights will occur during a growth period. It is unfortunate but true. What matters is how the company deals with their mistakes.

 

I don't think that sending out a poor quality doll is okay at all. Here I sit, paying hundreds to thousands of dollars on a doll. I sure as hell expect good quality. If companies are taking to many orders and are rushing to get them filled, resulting in a loss of quality in their product, then they should take ordering periods. If it is simply negligance, then the company should not be ordered from. In my opinion, even lowering the cost is unacceptable, because the product is still of low quality. For example, if I order an SD for $200 and then go out and buy an MSD for $300, the extra money would still be worth it if the cheaper item was defective.

I'm personally miffed about this issue. I've bought two dolls that I ended up reselling only because they were broken and the companies insisted that they were shipped out in perfect condition, so I couldn't return or exchange them. >

 

I haven't bought a doll from a company before, but my friend has an Elfdoll Sooah, and her upper torso doesn't fit into her waist. She also has an Iplehouse Tania with seam lines that are really noticeable. So if the quality does decrease then the price should as well. Everyone spends good money on their dollies but good money shouldn't go into crappy face ups and sanding and molding.

 

I think since the hobby is growing the companies arent necessarily readily equipped to meet the demand, Like when soom started getting really popular and churning out mds. It is acceptable in my opinion for a limited time as long as they are still polite, helpful, and respectful to the customer!!! I cannot stress this enough. I have had a few problems of my own, most recently mt chicline rou comming with a broken ankle. Pictures were sent and a replacement part was sent asap. I was extremely happy with this response and honestly mistakes happen, and happen more frequently under stress, but as long as the company doesnt get snarky or rude I can tolerate it. However if the problems were more severe, like the quality of resin decreasing or terrible 70$faceups, then I think I would stop buying from the company until they got everything in order. I still firmly believe that with the cost of these dolls and the emotional attachment we develop that its not fair to the consumer to give us anything less than perfection just because there are alot of other people who want the same doll. But on the same note I have the information available through doa to recognize when its a bad time to order from a company, which company has bad/good service, quality, etc. so I can hopefully help to avoid the headache and heartache from snippy companies or poor dolls

 

This is why Japanese businessmen go out drinking for company purposes. The idea is that the employees in lower positions can tell their superiors what needs to be fixed and they can't be blamed because, well, they were drinking! Not their fault! I admit, I've always been fond of this idea, though it seems that the whole drinking business could mean some things were forgotten...

Anyway, I agree mistakes are probably made because of company expansion and trying to fill out more orders than anyone originally expected. I do also agree that mistakes really should be remedied by the manufacturers.