Disappointed In Mb Customer Service

[Karmachanic]

Reality is that the material value of a nib is pretty limited. They only weight about a gram so the value of the Gold would be around $30 USD.

 

Gram here, gram there, next thing you know it's a kilo.

[Honeybadgers]

 

Humm... I wouldn't call them for a restoration either, but just replacement. Just try to ask them for a restoration of a 1950's 146 -I bet it would be funny!

 

 

I'm not speaking from experience, but from what I have heard, they'll absolutely do it. Even if all that's left is the nib, they'll take that nib and put it in a brand new 149/146 body if they can't restore it. they will retain as many original parts as possible. Send in an 80's 149 (let's be honest, 30-40 year old pens still being offered with restoration service is already kind of impressive) that needs extensive restoration and it'll come back with modern pieces but the whole thing should still remain relatively original.

[Honeybadgers]

Reality is that the material value of a nib is pretty limited. They only weight about a gram so the value of the Gold would be around $30 USD.

 

 

on a 149 or m1000 I'd wager you're well north of a gram of pure Au.

[zaddick]

 

 

I'm not speaking from experience, but from what I have heard, they'll absolutely do it. Even if all that's left is the nib, they'll take that nib and put it in a brand new 149/146 body if they can't restore it. they will retain as many original parts as possible. Send in an 80's 149 (let's be honest, 30-40 year old pens still being offered with restoration service is already kind of impressive) that needs extensive restoration and it'll come back with modern pieces but the whole thing should still remain relatively original.

MB offers replacement parts. The do not repair damaged parts. They will replace non-operational components. If that requires them to replace non-damaged parts that are not compatible with the required replacements they will replace those currently functional parts too. So the two parts on a damages 1980s 149 you are likely to keep ate the nib and the clip. You can write a note or put in a request with the boutique to keep it as original as possible or keep the feed and they will not if it interferes with their replacement protocol. I postulate this is because it is cheaper to replace the entire pen than see it again for a failed part during the 1 year repair warranty period. This is based on many experiences with MB service in the US.

 

If you prefer a fully functional pen to one that is more original then they offer a reasonably priced service. As long as the clip and nib are good on a standard resin pen that is a current production model, you can get a new one with your old clip and nib for about $100 and it includes a 1 year warranty.

[Honeybadgers]

MB offers replacement parts. The do not repair damaged parts. They will replace non-operational components. If that requires them to replace non-damaged parts that are not compatible with the required replacements they will replace those currently functional parts too. So the two parts on a damages 1980s 149 you are likely to keep ate the nib and the clip. You can write a note or put in a request with the boutique to keep it as original as possible or keep the feed and they will not if it interferes with their replacement protocol. I postulate this is because it is cheaper to replace the entire pen than see it again for a failed part during the 1 year repair warranty period. This is based on many experiences with MB service in the US.

 

If you prefer a fully functional pen to one that is more original then they offer a reasonably priced service. As long as the clip and nib are good on a standard resin pen that is a current production model, you can get a new one with your old clip and nib for about $100 and it includes a 1 year warranty.

 

This is the clarification I needed, but yes, they won't repair damaged celluloid barrels and such, but they will supposedly take in any 149 and will send you back a working pen with as many original parts as will fit. I find that pretty damn impressive, though again, with the basic stuff, they should be willing to point you towards reasonable service and not simply give you the "Take it or leave it" of a new nib when all it needed was a $40 tuning.

[Ghost Plane]

Im jealous of the city folk within easy driving distance of boutiques. Im stuck with Texas for my warranty repairs & parts only MB has.

 

Being chewed out via chat on line for not including an email (because I specifically wanted phone contact) is bad service. Not communicating regarding the status or even location a pen that costs the same as a car is simply bad business. The car dealership at least gives me an estimate when my car will be repaired and does me the courtesy of letting me know when its headed back my way. Heck, I even get a loaner. And I only dropped $70k with Lincoln.

 

Am I stuck with using MB for MB parts? When its a Skeleton suffering with corrosion and a section leak in under 2 years, yes, Im using the warranty because no one else has parts, annoying as it is to drop a car payment on shipping and insurance. But will I acquire any more? Ill decide when I see the results and how long it takes to wander back. The boutique model is an utter failure for those of us outside the huge cities, which Im guessing has to be at least 90% of the US population.

 

Perhaps enough other nationalities are buying to offset the loss of the US customers. But its a bad business model to drive away good customers through arrogance. I was a happy, loyal customer until Ft Worth copped an attitude. If the fancy pens arent going to hold up to daily use, thats important to know. Im interested in users, not collectibles. But then my Chanel and Armani gets used instead of sitting on a shelf in my closet, too. And theyre easier to shop online.

[Uncial]

That's a bit alarming. I have seen some people write about corrosion on the Bernard Shaw pen, down near the nib on the white metal section. I always wondered if that was due to the continued contact with ink but then I saw one on the bay a few years ago that was heavily corroded throughout. Presumably the coating has come away on your skeleton?

[ardene]

Im my opinion, one should still be able to buy a pen (because one likes the pen) and complain about the costly customer service (or why they don't repair but rather replace parts - even though a repair would make more sense).

 

+1.

 

Maybe they will soon turn their business model to a (still very exclusive, mind you potential customer) subscription service?

[Ghost Plane]

That's a bit alarming. I have seen some people write about corrosion on the Bernard Shaw pen, down near the nib on the white metal section. I always wondered if that was due to the continued contact with ink but then I saw one on the bay a few years ago that was heavily corroded throughout. Presumably the coating has come away on your skeleton?

I thought it was simply precipitates from the ink until I rinsed it & discovered not only pitting, but a section leak. My Shaw has never shown any signs of corrosion or any section damage, despite longer use, but the end piece has come off twice in the years I’ve had it, being apparently too heavy for the cheap plastic piece holding the piston. The last time the entire piston backed out of the pen!

 

Lord only knows what would happen to these pens if I ever took them off my desk and out of the house. I use them daily for lengthy writing, but the metal pens seem unable to stand up to daily usage as well as their resin brethren which actually migrate into my purse, thence into the world.

[meiers]

I thought it was simply precipitates from the ink until I rinsed it & discovered not only pitting, but a section leak. My Shaw has never shown any signs of corrosion or any section damage, despite longer use, but the end piece has come off twice in the years Ive had it, being apparently too heavy for the cheap plastic piece holding the piston. The last time the entire piston backed out of the pen!

 

Lord only knows what would happen to these pens if I ever took them off my desk and out of the house. I use them daily for lengthy writing, but the metal pens seem unable to stand up to daily usage as well as their resin brethren which actually migrate into my purse, thence into the world.

This is so disappointing. What will MB do to make this right? Edited November 22, 2018 by meiers

[jmnav]

 

 

I'm not speaking from experience, but from what I have heard, they'll absolutely do it. Even if all that's left is the nib, they'll take that nib and put it in a brand new 149/146 body if they can't restore it. they will retain as many original parts as possible. Send in an 80's 149 (let's be honest, 30-40 year old pens still being offered with restoration service is already kind of impressive) that needs extensive restoration and it'll come back with modern pieces but the whole thing should still remain relatively original.

 

Well, maybe my definition of restoration is different from yours. If I send them a 1950's 146 and they return me a brand new 146, that's not what I call "restoration". If I send them a 136 and they return me either a "no way" or a brand new 146, that's even less of a restoration.

 

"Send in an 80's 149 (let's be honest, 30-40 year old pens still being offered with restoration service is already kind of impressive"

 

Again, I think we'll have to disagree here: I don't find quite that impressive that they sell basically the same product than 30 years ago (that's why they'll do the "restoration": because being the same product they can just replace all its parts with new ones and they'll just fit in place) and still they price it so above its marginal production costs (well, I find quite impressive that they can get away with it! -see below about monopolies).

 

...But I don't think that's because they are cheap, lazy or unable to do a better job: it's part of an explicitly thought out strategy. On one hand, one of Montblanc's strongest competitors is... Montblanc: what's better than a 149? A 1950's 149. By not supporting them anymore they "split" the market (new vs old) leaving the uninteresting side (from their point of view) on a shrinking window. But even this is not that important (after all, they could use their old pens as a vector for brand recognition and prestige)... On the other hand, and I think that's the critical point, Montblanc doesn't sell pens anymore but the Montblanc brand itself. Think of it: the strongest position any company can dream of reaching is a monopoly. And then, anyone can sell pens, even quality pens, but no one but Montblanc can sell Montblanc, so it's no wonder they'll try to convince us (indirectly, subconsciously) that the pen is not the important part, the brand is, and the brand as it is "today" (so they can mould it towards their interests for any given "today", present or future). By giving you a new pen they are killing two birds with a shot: they take out (their own) competition from the market, and they renew our relationship with the brand. In fact, I find somehow surprising that they haven't gone the full path and still have some repairing services instead of just offering a brand new pen at a heavy discount (maybe that would be too much: by explicitly stating that their products are fully disposable, maybe they are afraid it would "poison" their brand as disposable too).

 

Of course, they are not alone on this: look at other (luxury) companies that sell brand instead of products and you'll see them converging towards same trends, i.e.: Rolex or top tier Swatch Group brands are basically using the same tactics.

Edited November 23, 2018 by jmnav

[ardene]

 

...Montblanc doesn't sell pens anymore but the Montblanc brand itself. Think of it: the strongest position any company can dream of reaching is a monopoly.

 

...anyone can sell pens, even quality pens, but no one but Montblanc can sell Montblanc, so it's no wonder they'll try to convince us (indirectly, subconsciously) that the pen is not the important part, the brand is, and the brand as it is "today".

 

In fact, I find somehow surprising that they haven't gone the full path and still have some repairing services instead of just offering a brand new pen at a heavy discount.

 

Interesting and very well articulated thoughts. You're absoloutely right. Remember as well that as a luxury brand, fountain pens, or pens in general are only one part of the Montblanc business. As I take it, they are forced to sell brand rather than products these days, which would signify design, status (for the customer) and workmanship in their case. In the case of watchmakers the brand is meant to translate to artistry (that's design plus a flair of creativity, so the actual product enters the picture from the back door here), status and workmanship. Concerning the last quoted point from your post, Montblanc doesn't do discounts. Never. Independent retailers do discounts on MB writing instruments, often substantial discounts, usually jewellers who also sell luxury accessories of various sorts, but it's frowned upon by MB as far as I know.

[jmnav]

Remember as well that as a luxury brand, fountain pens, or pens in general are only one part of the Montblanc business.

That's indeed very interesting as it shows how succesful Montblanc has been at what it tried.

 

Remember that, in the end, there is no such a thing as a "Montblanc business" but a "Richemont business" with an interesting brand portfolio (from Wikipedia): A. Lange & Söhne, Azzedine Alaïa, Baume & Mercier, Cartier, Chloé, Dunhill, IWC Schaffhausen, Giampiero Bodino, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Lancel, Montblanc, Officine Panerai, Piaget, Peter Millar, Purdey, Roger Dubuis, Vacheron Constantin, and Van Cleef & Arpels which, so it seems, it's second only to LVMH.

 

The "gold standard" for this kind of corporations is to segmentate and position and Montblanc selling pens and stationery (of course) but also watches, perfumes, jewels... is kind of a rara avis only explained by the strengh this brand has managed to achieve.

 

Other "single brands", Rolex, for instance, despite its undisputable market position haven't managed to break free of its original product niche, which on their own eyes must appear as a worrying weakness (LVMH or Richemont don't need to worry about that: if champagne, or pens, or smoking, get out of vogue, they just need to move impacted brands to second line, waiting for better days, and push forward the novelties).

 

Concerning the last quoted point from your post, Montblanc doesn't do discounts. Never. Independent retailers do discounts on MB writing instruments, often substantial discounts, usually jewellers who also sell luxury accessories of various sorts, but it's frowned upon by MB as far as I know.

 

Again, perceptions. They "can't" offer discounts in the clear as it would stain the branding, but when they can sell a pen at the 1000$ mark, having a "flat fee" for repais (tiered, but still flat fee) they are already offering you a discount: it's quite probably that in the grand scheme of things they are not recovering their full costs on some tier-1 repairs nor they are making as much money as they could at tier-3 -basically a full new pen... at a discount. It's simply they are not marketing it as a discount but as part of "the full Montblanc experience, out of respect to their very valuable customers" or something like that.

[Ghost Plane]

This is so disappointing. What will MB do to make this right?

I’ll find out when my pen eventually materializes at my business box with no notice. The only communication I’ve managed is the snippy chat session with the person on their website + a confirmation number & them telling me it was in Hamburg. No time estimates, no further information.

 

This after I sent it in with photos of the section leak in progress to help speed diagnosis as I was not sending a partially inked pen in to be further damaged, so it was flushed & dry when I sent it off with a detailed explanation neatly typed to go with the pics. Which only earned me a telling off for not including my email. Heavens forfend we focus on the pen repair as opposed to bureaucratic forms.

 

To be forced to endure such discourtesy and cavalier treatment for a still under warranty Skeleton is leaving a nasty taste in my mouth. I find myself disinclined toward future acquisitions. A great deal depends on what I receive back. That is a lot of money to treat it, and its owner, so cavalierly.

[Kalessin]

I loathe most online customer service chat. There is nothing to let you know if you're talking with a computer script, a human (possibly somewhere that has nothing to do with the company you're contacting), the human's manager, or possibly a blend of the three.

 

I'm curious; did you try giving the 1-800-995-4810 number a call? This connects with a "customer concierge", but after describing the situation, I'd probably be asking for the concierge's manager right away. Snippy chat sessions, telling you off for not including your email address, and keeping the customer in the dark are a terrible way to do business.

[Ghost Plane]

Good luck getting a call back. Once I knew it was in the system & made it to Hamburg, I realized I had all the information I was going to get.

[ardene]

That's indeed very interesting as it shows how succesful Montblanc has been at what it tried.

 

Remember that, in the end, there is no such a thing as a "Montblanc business" but a "Richemont business" with an interesting brand portfolio (from Wikipedia): A. Lange & Söhne, Azzedine Alaïa, Baume & Mercier, Cartier, Chloé, Dunhill, IWC Schaffhausen, Giampiero Bodino, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Lancel, Montblanc, Officine Panerai, Piaget, Peter Millar, Purdey, Roger Dubuis, Vacheron Constantin, and Van Cleef & Arpels which, so it seems, it's second only to LVMH.

 

The "gold standard" for this kind of corporations is to segmentate and position and Montblanc selling pens and stationery (of course) but also watches, perfumes, jewels... is kind of a rara avis only explained by the strengh this brand has managed to achieve.

 

Other "single brands", Rolex, for instance, despite its undisputable market position haven't managed to break free of its original product niche, which on their own eyes must appear as a worrying weakness (LVMH or Richemont don't need to worry about that: if champagne, or pens, or smoking, get out of vogue, they just need to move impacted brands to second line, waiting for better days, and push forward the novelties).

 

 

Again, perceptions. They "can't" offer discounts in the clear as it would stain the branding, but when they can sell a pen at the 1000$ mark, having a "flat fee" for repais (tiered, but still flat fee) they are already offering you a discount: it's quite probably that in the grand scheme of things they are not recovering their full costs on some tier-1 repairs nor they are making as much money as they could at tier-3 -basically a full new pen... at a discount. It's simply they are not marketing it as a discount but as part of "the full Montblanc experience, out of respect to their very valuable customers" or something like that.

 

I don't disagree with any of that, although I do not see how they can explain the MB ecosystem better than your initial post. Are you working / have been trained in finance? My addition has been from the consumer point of view.

[jmnav]

 

I don't disagree with any of that, although I do not see how they can explain the MB ecosystem better than your initial post. Are you working / have been trained in finance? My addition has been from the consumer point of view.

 

Well, the first one was about why Montblanc behaves the way it does because being a "luxury company" while the second focused on its peculiarities within that business sector but, yes, probably you are right: too much redundancy.

 

I do have training on business administration, yes, but I figure that I also come to this from a consumer point of view... out of frustation about what a company like Montblanc could do from an engineering point of view, but won't do from a business point of view, I mean, I would love the pens Montblanc could make but (so it seems) will never make.

[nishantdr83]

I thought it was simply precipitates from the ink until I rinsed it & discovered not only pitting, but a section leak. My Shaw has never shown any signs of corrosion or any section damage, despite longer use, but the end piece has come off twice in the years Ive had it, being apparently too heavy for the cheap plastic piece holding the piston. The last time the entire piston backed out of the pen!

 

Lord only knows what would happen to these pens if I ever took them off my desk and out of the house. I use them daily for lengthy writing, but the metal pens seem unable to stand up to daily usage as well as their resin brethren which actually migrate into my purse, thence into the world.

My Blue Hour Skeleton has the same issue with pitting at the end of the section.

 

MB took 6 months to replace the nib to OBBB but failed to address the pitting/corrosion. So the pen is now back with them with no communication again for close to a month.

 

When I pay a premium, I expect an exemplary service. MB service so far has been a mixed bag.

[Ghost Plane]

My Blue Hour Skeleton has the same issue with pitting at the end of the section.

 

MB took 6 months to replace the nib to OBBB but failed to address the pitting/corrosion. So the pen is now back with them with no communication again for close to a month.

 

When I pay a premium, I expect an exemplary service. MB service so far has been a mixed bag.

Oh dear. Sorry you had to join me down here in the waiting room.