mamakven
Full Member
Posts: 407
Oct 2, 2014 22:01:19 GMT
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Post by mamakven on Oct 28, 2017 23:36:07 GMT
I'm frustrated by the fact that you have to sub for kits sight unseen, but each month i'm wowed by them... so i dunno... and i'm confused by the subscription policies. Subs are "closed" till the 2nd?? WHY? and then when you sub, its only for the following month, not the month of the 2nd. (i think, its really confusing!) any thoughts or experiences?
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Post by anniefb on Oct 28, 2017 23:54:12 GMT
I'm a current subscriber to the SB kit. The subs are closed now until the 2nd so they don't have new people signing up for the current kit when it's not available - at least that's how I understand it. If you want to give them a try, you can sign up when they open again (and I believe you can sign up until about the 27th). Unfortunately a lot of stuff is selling out at the moment, so it's not easy to just buy the odd kit to try them out. I've been pretty happy with most of them - a reasonable balance of exclusives and new lines plus a range of embellishments in the kits. I've tried various subs in the past. I was reasonably happy with Hip Kit but through the embellishments in the SB kit got a bit limited and boring (tended to be the same thing month after month) but IMO the digital files for Hip Kit are better than the CD ones. Just preference I guess. If you've like a lot of the recent kits, I'd give them a go - at least for a few months ETA mamakven subscribers get an email about the 15th announcing the next kit and the sneaks start soon after that, so you can wait until then to see if you like the look of what's coming and then sign up for it. SaveSave
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mamakven
Full Member
Posts: 407
Oct 2, 2014 22:01:19 GMT
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Post by mamakven on Oct 29, 2017 0:20:33 GMT
Thanks, Anniefb! So am i right in saying that when subs open up on the 2nd, it will be for december, not november? Thanks for your feedback
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Post by freeatlast on Oct 29, 2017 0:27:03 GMT
I think the subs are closed because they are sold out. When they open again on the 2nd, it will be for the next month (December), not what is going on sale to subscribers tonight/to the general public on the 1st if anything is left over.
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Post by Frazzled Mom on Oct 29, 2017 0:35:23 GMT
It looks like many of the kits are sold out so if you subscribe on the 2nd, you would get the kits that are available on Dec 28 - so the January kits. Those will be "sneaked" on the 15th so you can get an idea of what the themes/colors are.
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mamakven
Full Member
Posts: 407
Oct 2, 2014 22:01:19 GMT
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Post by mamakven on Oct 29, 2017 1:05:28 GMT
It looks like many of the kits are sold out so if you subscribe on the 2nd, you would get the kits that are available on Dec 28 - so the January kits. Those will be "sneaked" on the 15th so you can get an idea of what the themes/colors are. Seriously?? that's insane. I'm starting to think i need to just find another kit that i mesh well with, though this seems to be the best one. Its really off-putting that they can't seem to maintain any stock. Maybe i'm the only one that finds that annoying.
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Post by kiwikate on Oct 29, 2017 1:15:07 GMT
Not the only one. I found the whole process frustrating even as a subscriber- the early purchasing would open up and by the time I got there I either found everything sold out that I wanted or the website was so busy it kept crashing. In the end I paid to get out of my sub as I was losing any pleasure in the products. Having said that, the quality was always excellent as was the quantity in each kit. I also found that the Customer Service rep was very rude on FB and other social media if anyone complained or questioned the process.
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Post by anniefb on Oct 29, 2017 2:30:12 GMT
It looks like many of the kits are sold out so if you subscribe on the 2nd, you would get the kits that are available on Dec 28 - so the January kits. Those will be "sneaked" on the 15th so you can get an idea of what the themes/colors are. Seriously?? that's insane. I'm starting to think i need to just find another kit that i mesh well with, though this seems to be the best one. Its really off-putting that they can't seem to maintain any stock. Maybe i'm the only one that finds that annoying. It is a bit annoying - the subs and everything is popular so they really need to keep more stock. SaveSaveSaveSave
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Post by anniefb on Oct 29, 2017 2:32:26 GMT
And they need better servers - every month the website is incredibly slow. I just normally get the kit and don't worry about ordering anything extra.
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Post by dasmith2 on Oct 29, 2017 8:24:21 GMT
It looks like many of the kits are sold out so if you subscribe on the 2nd, you would get the kits that are available on Dec 28 - so the January kits. Those will be "sneaked" on the 15th so you can get an idea of what the themes/colors are. Seriously?? that's insane. I'm starting to think i need to just find another kit that i mesh well with, though this seems to be the best one. Its really off-putting that they can't seem to maintain any stock. Maybe i'm the only one that finds that annoying. For as long as they have been around, they should have an easier way. I would not want to deal with it every month!
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Post by Patter on Oct 29, 2017 10:10:09 GMT
I am looking to subscribe to ONE kit. I don’t need anything but I thought I would try one for fun. This thread is making me cross CD off my list. Sad to hear of the problems. I too was frustrated reading their site. Thanks for the info.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Sept 29, 2024 17:43:25 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2017 13:02:51 GMT
I paid for my sub using PayPal and there were lots of issues with that at first. Eventually they were sorted out. I agree with others the site is slow. I also didn't receive stickers in my sub one month. I raised an issue with cs and they were rude and it was never resolved. Since I'd had 3 kits in a row I didn't like, I quit in summer.
It was also hard to find dt inspiration and the kits took forever to get to me.
The quality of the product is excellent and I do wish you could buy month to month. But I won't sub again, even though the last few months I've loved the designs.
The downsides just killed their club for me.
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Post by elegantsufficiency on Oct 29, 2017 13:47:27 GMT
I get irritated by the email I get every month, reminding me that the shop is opening soon (or whatevs) but when I go there it's all sold out anyway....why do I bother? The answer, I don't any more! A shame. I'd love them to offer printable TN files, that I could print at home on the paper of my choosing, but I won't sub/order a kit because of everything I understand about the organisation which is confirmed in several messages above.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Sept 29, 2024 17:43:25 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2017 14:18:00 GMT
I get irritated by the email I get every month, reminding me that the shop is opening soon (or whatevs) but when I go there it's all sold out anyway....why do I bother? The answer, I don't any more! A shame. I'd love them to offer printable TN files, that I could print at home on the paper of my choosing, but I won't sub/order a kit because of everything I understand about the organisation which is confirmed in several messages above. I get emails telling me how gorgeous this months kits are but sorry about your luck because everything is sold out except the shitty print it yourself planner pages.
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Loydene
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,639
Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico
Jul 8, 2014 16:31:47 GMT
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Post by Loydene on Oct 29, 2017 14:26:03 GMT
I don't know what is going on but I do keep seeing FB messages from some friends and really "mean-girl-poor-me-not-my-fault" responses from the company.
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Post by freeatlast on Oct 29, 2017 15:00:59 GMT
I am a subscriber and have been for about a year. When I first subscribed, I could sometimes grab a kit other than my subscription. After a few months, less and less was available at release time. And then the server issues started. Trying to get an order through at release was an exercise in futility and was just too stressful.
The kits are beautiful. The couple of times I've had an issue, they were resolved promptly and professionally. I'm sorry to hear others have had less than that in their dealings with customer service.
That said, I continue to subscribe. I've decided what kits/add ons are things I will use and I subscribe to those. I no longer put myself through the release night frenzy and disappointment. If Cocoa Daisy had a better system, they might get even more of my dollars.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Sept 29, 2024 17:43:25 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2017 16:25:15 GMT
I love their kits but it sounds like they operate just like Studio Calico before they went downhill. FOMO may be a great business tactic for the one making money, but for me as a buyer it is a huge turn off. Stinks because I really want to give them my money, just not every single month.
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Post by anniefb on Oct 29, 2017 18:29:21 GMT
Yeah I don't know what the issue is- they keep saying they've increased the number of subs but nothing changes. I wish they'd at least sell a digital version of the PL cards.
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nicolep
Drama Llama
Posts: 7,156
Member is Online
Jan 26, 2016 16:10:43 GMT
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Post by nicolep on Oct 29, 2017 18:37:33 GMT
I'm cornfused just reading this thread lol.
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mamakven
Full Member
Posts: 407
Oct 2, 2014 22:01:19 GMT
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Post by mamakven on Oct 29, 2017 18:39:47 GMT
WOW. Ok, thanks for the feedback everyone! I can see i'm not the only one irritated with this situation!
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Post by gigi333 on Oct 29, 2017 19:03:26 GMT
Wow that's crazy
I'd love to buy there kit but it's sold out
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Sept 29, 2024 17:43:25 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2017 19:10:56 GMT
My worst ever customer experience came from Cocoa Daisy and not from Studio Calico. I'll never shop at Cocoa Daisy again. I was told that I had never shopped there and that I was basically trolling them. Not only had I been a subber for over 6 months, but I was spending $200 a month there. Never again. Wow! Yikes!!
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Post by anniefb on Oct 29, 2017 19:21:04 GMT
My worst ever customer experience came from Cocoa Daisy and not from Studio Calico. I'll never shop at Cocoa Daisy again. I was told that I had never shopped there and that I was basically trolling them. Not only had I been a subber for over 6 months, but I was spending $200 a month there. Never again. That's terrible!!
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Post by paperpilekitten on Oct 29, 2017 21:23:52 GMT
I've been a subscriber to their planner kits and products for about two years now. All CD subs are sneak peeked in an email on the 15th, and the sneak peeks are really good, in that you get a feeling for what will be in the kit. One big photo of each kit/sub with a lot of the products in it (as SC used to be in the old days). On the 28th each month you get an hour before reveal to have a detailed look and description of everything that is going on sale in the evening so you can make a decision if you'd like to purchase anything other than your subscriptions. The reason they are closing the subs for the month is that they are sold out. They have had a surge of new subscribers every month, and they are telling us that they are increasing the numbers of kits and extras every month and still there's never enough to meet the demand. Since they plan and order their kits several months in advance, it's of course impossible for them to predict the demand. They only know that the numbers will most likely increase for every month, so they increase the orders but it's done several months before reveal so if they sell out, they're gone. This month, both the sb kit and PL kit were sold out even before reveal so there was no chance for anyone except the kit subscribers to get any of those kits. I've never seen that before! Apparently some other kit club was closed down and all the subscribers went right over to CD? Crazy! This was kind of a bummer because I loved the look of both those kits (and I only sub to the planner kits) but I was able to pick up the PL cards and the exclusive 12x12 papers, as well as both the chipboard alphas and the stamps from both those kits. Those items sold out pretty fast but it still took a few hours, so not at all the same as SC during the FOMO days when products could sell out in minutes. The customer service is usually very friendly, swift and excellent. I'm sorry to hear that several you got crappy CS from them, I've never heard anything like it. I've been in panic mode and really frustrated on several occasions, and Mary Kay always comes back to me with a calming message and she has always sorted everything out for me. You must have had the worst luck to get such a reply from them. Now to the huge frustration for everyone each month: their web site does have big problems every month at reveal. At first I thought it was a server load problem, but now they have their own dedicated server. It seems as if they have custom built a complex web site, and I know from my own experience that if you change only a tiny thing in the templates or the code, it could all break. So on almost every reveal there are a lot of error messages when you try to purchase the extras. After two years, I'm pretty chill with that, haha! I just reload any page with an error message until it loads properly and I can put the product in my cart. I'm now as patient as a zen buddhist monk! And *knock on wood* so far I've been able to snag all the things I want. But from reveal to checkout, this process can take me more than one hour sometimes! And I set an alarm and get up at 2.30 am every month (reveal is 3 am Central European Time). That's also the reason why I sub to every planner product I know I want: main planner kit, add on planner kit, two sizes of TN notebooks plus dividers. In that way, I'm guaranteed to get those items and really don't have to bother with the reveal. I know many subscribers don't even bother to log in at reveal because it can be so frustrating. They only get their subs each month without having to do anything. I truly love the quality and the designs of the CD planner products. I've decided to stay for another year because there is nothing as pretty as their products on the market, in my personal opinion. Opening my planner makes me happy every single day. SC's planner kits are a joke in comparison. I wouldn't sub to those. They are super thin with a few stickers, a tiny stamp and a few other items, while CD planner kits come with a divider, a monthly overview calendar, weekly overview pages and one sheet (2 pages) per day for the entire month, in addition to patterned papers, sometimes a good sized stamp and/or a gem pen, stickers, washi tape, paper clips, etc. I also sub to the Planner Society kit and they have a pure subscription model with no extra stuff at reveal. At times, they sell extra kits and mystery bags and those are always gone in minutes, so I don't even try to get any of those. So to sum it up: I really understand all the frustration with Cocoa Daisy around reveal. I've been there! But for the amazing quality and gorgeous designs, it's worth all the hassle for me personally, and I think for everyone who has a sub and doesn't bother with the reveal frenzy, it should be easy sailing and good value?
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Sept 29, 2024 17:43:25 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2017 1:37:16 GMT
I'm very glad you have a great experience with them paperpilekitten, I really am. I know there are thousands of others who feel the same as you. But that FOMO mindset really, really irritates me. After being subbed to many different kits in the past, I have come to really like the freedom of buying a kit as I please. I can use my supplies at my own pace and don't feel overwhelmed with so much stash. I also don't like feeling forced to buy kits every month because they sell out so quickly. And I think that by now they should have enough of a finger on the pulse of the kit club business to know how much they are growing, who is shutting down, what people like, how many people are on their waitlist every month...etc, etc to be able to figure out the numbers of kits they should have on hand. I think it's a poor excuse they use. I've seen it with SC and Papertrey Ink. I think it's a terrible business acumen and after many years of buying scrapbooking supplies I refuse to feed into this tactic. /end rant
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Post by Delta Dawn on Oct 30, 2017 6:06:43 GMT
I have probably bought 5 of her planner kits so far. I have liked the ones I got very much. I thought you got a decent amount of product for the money. I do NOT LIKE SIMON. OMG that rabbit pisses me off to no end. He isn't cute. Those months I skipped and then I kept seeing him over and over and gave up. I have liked the past couple of months but the kit sells out so quickly and I am not going to sub to something I don't love. I do like what i have bought, though.
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Post by Frazzled Mom on Oct 30, 2017 8:28:19 GMT
My worst ever customer experience came from Cocoa Daisy and not from Studio Calico. I'll never shop at Cocoa Daisy again. I was told that I had never shopped there and that I was basically trolling them. Not only had I been a subber for over 6 months, but I was spending $200 a month there. Never again. Wow. That's awful.
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Post by scrappinmom1 on Oct 30, 2017 16:32:38 GMT
I will start by saying I LOVE their kits.....LOVE them! I have subscribed to their SB and DITL kits in the past and currently subscribe to the Planner, Planner add-on and Dashboard kits. However, this will be my last month for more than one reason. Reveal is a nightmare....their website crashes every.single.month. They say they are working on fixing it but every.single.month it is the same thing. Be patient....be persistent they tell you. It took me 50 minutes on Saturday to put 3 items in my cart and then I was not able to get it to take my method of payment. I have had a couple of issues when trying to change my sub and they were very pleasant and it was resolved quickly, but I have seen some attitude directed at people on the FB page so get where people complain about the CS (I can see where CD may get frustrated with people asking the same questions over and over, but if your job is customer service then it is your job to answer them or politely point them in the right direction to find the answer themselves.
Ultimately, I am leaving because I am just spending too much money there every month and not necessarily due to all the issues (although they make the decision easier).
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Post by medennis4 on Oct 30, 2017 18:47:16 GMT
I'm a new subscriber and just started getting their kits. I really like what I've received so far. As others have mentioned though, I've also experienced the "sold out" sign on items on release night...when I've finally been able to sign-in to the store. I also noticed that this past release they posted on FB that the server(s) crashed on release night. I guess on release night you have to be somewhere with super-fast and secure Internet (and keep your fingers crossed that their servers stay up when you're on)-LOL.
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Post by kiwikate on Oct 30, 2017 19:05:08 GMT
. I do NOT LIKE SIMON. OMG that rabbit pisses me off to no end. This made me laugh so hard! The Ooh and Aah over the rabbit on their FB groups made me wonder if I was missing something. SaveSave
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