Well, to say the least I am completely dumb founded by the customer service I just received from Cabelas. I have been preparing for my Elk Hunt in Colorado that I just completed since June of this year. I have been ordering supplies and equipment well in advance to make sure everything was here and that I wasn't overnighting stuff last minute. June 30th to be exact, I purchased multiple pieces of Sitka clothing and gear from Cabelas for this hunt. All but 2-3 pieces were all on back order, some as far as mid to late August. I proceeded with the order because I knew it might take forever to be shipped. One of those pieces was a backpack. The backpack showed up around the first of Aug. and sat in my closet till 2 weeks ago to be used on my elk hunt. The second day the zipper breaks. So I call up Cabelas today, of which I have been a Club member and Visa card carrier for, for more than 15 years. I tell them what happened, and he tells me, "sorry sir, it has been more than 90 days since you ordered this so you need to contact Sitka directly. We cannot help you!" Uh...are you f-ing kidding me. I have never ever had this problem in the past with Cabelas. What little I have returned or exchanged was never met with such unwillingness to be of assistance. If it broke or was malfunctioned they always took it back or exchanged it. It's not like this is something that is over a year old and all beat to hell and tore up. Anyone else had this problem? I hope not, otherwise I might think twice about shopping with them.

New policy they started a while back due to many using things for a year then returning them.

try calling back and talking with another person or taking it up the chain of command. Politely state your case and what you'd like to have happen. Being rude or upset won't help to further your agenda, not saying you were but i find being polite helps tremendously.

Trust me, I was very polite. I told him the exact reason I ordered it so early (the fact that nearly everything was on backorder for 2+ months and I wanted to make sure I had a place in line so that I got my order in a timely fashion for my upcoming hunt). Even though I got it 2+ months after I ordered it he was going by the date the actual order was placed. He wouldn't budge. I totally understand the "older than a year, torn up, destroyed returned item concept", however this didn't fall into either of those categories. And I thought being a long time member of their club and visa card carrier had perks. Not like it use to. I am disappointed. Hopefully just an isolated incident. Not many other places to buy from with such a big selection.

I called Sitka. Great people, great customer service. They stand behind their products. They fixed me up. Thanks Austin.

this is going to happen more as time goes on because manufacturers that let the stores do instore exchanges get a lot of product returned for no good reason. most times the manufacturer will try to make the customer happy.

I agree, Cabelas has gone downhill from the level of service I used to get. I'm trying to order everything I need from Bass Pro as much as possible and only go to Cabelas when I have to.

I have had the exact opposite experience. I always get hassled at Basspro, but never cabela's. Just this year I returned a 6+ month old fishing rod to cabela's with no issue. the tip broke on a small fish.

Maybe it depends whether you are returning Cabela's brand gear compared to another company's gear.

I buy all my stuff at cabela's and always try to avoid Basspro

now that I think about it. last Christmas I ordered some gifts for my dad. The package tracking showed it shipped and was delivered, but dad never got it. I called Cabela's and they shipped new stuff with no questions asked.

Or maybe it's just the store

Get a Cabelas Black Visa card and problems like this never happen.

I think it was all about the time frame, I have seen it more and more in the last few years that retailers are limiting the time for claiming problems. I have see this on other forums, where someone is advised to buy something for a one time use and then return it. Example is Harbor Freight ATV ramps, they have a no questions asked return policy, a guy bought a ATV and needed to load it, he asked if anyone had one he could borrow. It is "stuff" like this that ruins it for the legitimate returns. Better get used to it, I don't think it will get better.

Sorry, but it should not matter whether you use Cabela's card or brought Juniors piggy bank in to buy the product. You pay your hard earned money and you expect them to stand behind what they sell whether you are Daddy Warbucks or Orphan Annie.

Agreed.

Was it Cabela's brand? I don't know where you are or if this is feasable for you but try returning it to one of the stores. I was told this weekend by an employee at the Ft Worth location that they take back any cabelas brand equipment NO QUESTIONS ASKED. She said if you brought back a pair of boots that had been worn every day for 10 years they'd exchange it. NO QUESTIONS ASKED! Should be a slam dunk for a broken backpack.

Sorry to hear that I have had nothing but great luck with cabelas. I had to stop buying from basspro from the problems they gave me on a big purchase and have not been back to this day.

Walter

Go to Sitka's website. www.sitkagear.com and get their number and call them. They warranty their stuff for life. They will repair or replace for free.

I quit going to Cabela's for similar reasons. I'm back to Bass Pro for everything if at all possible. I have never had BPS give me any grief on a return, not do with Cabela's and their new policy. It really irks me because they can see how much I've bought, when I bought it and that I seldom return anything.

I'm with you, can't deal with the big chains. I have had worst experiences with Gander Mountain, but Cabelas is not far behind, not to mention their prices are often rough.

On the flip side, I had the archery dept adjust my new to me compound bow @ Cabela's in Allen and Bob provided outstanding customer service... He was very patient, explained things and the why he did what he did, and even gave me pointers. I'd easily recommend them for archery services.

Cabellas was exactly correct. They are a retail store, not a warranty center for every vendor that has products for sale there. Most generally merchandise is purchased from the vendor with the agreement for warranty calculated in the pricing of the product. Most generally this agreement is the retailer will handle warranty for the first 30 days, after that the vendor handles the warranty. This is what cabellas did. If there was an error on their part it was not selling you on the process. You were covered under a warranty either way, it was just a matter of who provides the coverage. So there was no reason for your being turned off for not being babied.

Well said and the most intelligent post so far. Cabelas did not make the thing. I can't understand the mentality of returning a product to a business that did not manufacture it.

Sounds to me like Cabela's didn't do anything wrong and their policy isn't much different than anyone else. I wouldn't be mad about it. Contact the manufacturer and ask them to fix it.

My opinion (black card holder):

Cabelas rocks
BPS sucks (but the Katy store not so much)
GanderMountain is hit and miss
CaptHarrys is the best for saltwater stuff

All the stores in north Texas tend to be light on saltwater stock in the store.

The grapevine BPS used to be fully stocked and packed almost everyday, with some knowledgable folks behind the counter. After the Cabelas opened, it went downhill fast. The last time I was there there was only about 30 cars in the parking lot on a Saturday afternoon. The shelves were poorly stocked - out of almost everything that folks really used, and the sales staff were young kids who hardly knew anything, much less the product line.

Cabelas in Allen is staffed with adults, mostly older that have real experience and knowledge. I've gotten to know the store manager and found it is their policy to hire older, more experienced folks - they really do try to find the RIGHT type of person that is Cabelas material. I was impressed.

He is familiar with BPS (he actually goes checks out the competition personally) and told me that store has problems. Lower margins, poor ordering planning, etc led to to reduced profits - so they had to counter with reduced stock and cheaper staff (store's GM decision ) and lost touch with their customers - and it spiraled down.

Customer service always boils down eventually to the 1 on 1 interaction. There are always a few times where the people interaction breaks down. I can tell you the Allen store management does not tolerate that - the spend the time to get GOOD people, and if a bad experience filters up to management that was the result of a staff actions or attitude - that person is gone.

I have returned a lot of stuff to cabela's with no problems.
If I was you I would just call again and act like you had never called, the next guy might be able to help you out.