shabbybearcottage.co.uk Reviews 

We like the look of the garden table and it seems very practical - just what we need to eat outside on these lovely evenings. A good buy.

I purchased a dining table and bench and was lured by the fact that the wood was reclaimed and I’d be supporting a small business. Well..I wish I had bought from a reputable mass produced company instead.

The legs started rusting very quickly, the table itself was bent on an entire side so wasn’t fit for purpose - the purpose being *to dine*
I raised this with Kathy but didn’t get anywhere. Responses were very slow, it would often take weeks for her to respond and as as small business owner myself, I get it. However, my frustrations grew when the delays and excuses increased; so I simply couldn’t be bothered to take this further which might be by design - they take so long to respond hoping you’ll give up the fight.

Really shameful shabby bear cottage as many like myself want to support a small business with an eco friendly ethos but are left disappointed with the quality of the product and the customer service.

I cannot recommend shabby bear cottage and this business needs to be investigated given that others have had similar experiences. Notice how the google reviews have vanished?

This has been the most frustrating shopping experience ever. The website stated delivery would take 4–6 weeks, but the confirmation email said 3–4 weeks. After waiting six weeks, I still had no table. Customer service kept assuring me it would arrive "this week" or "next week." Then the status changed to "released to courier," but for two more weeks, no courier picked it up. I had to keep chasing them, and after nine weeks, I finally received a table that was just okay. Don’t buy from them unless you’re prepared to wait that long for a mediocre product.

If only I had searched TrustPilot before placing an order and not gone by the reviews on their company website.

I purchased some furniture from this business 12 months ago and had issues from the get go.

1.) My delivery was initially delayed and when I queried this I was given a laughable excuse why it was late involving steel production being held up by the Ukraine war. Yes that might have caused some supply issues at the start of the war, but we had moved way past that by the time I came to place my order.

2.) Then when my order did eventually turn up there was a mix up by the courier and part of my order was missing. Okay this was possibly no fault of Shabby Bear Cottage, but they did not even respond to my email or concerns.

3.) I was later able to resolve the delivery issue with the courier myself after some chasing around, but surely some means of acknowledgement or help from Shabby Bear could have been expected.

4.) I then discovered the steel legs to the furniture only came with approx. 20% of the nylon feet installed. I tried raising this with Shabby Bear and asked if they could post some to me, but my email was ignored.

5.) So I had to source these myself from eBay at an additional cost. By this point I was fed up and decided to write a negative review on their company website, but noticed this was deleted a day or so later.

6.) After all this and I eventually got the furniture set up, and it was used on my patio for approx. 10 weeks. Even though I had purchased a waterproof cover to protect it and I made sure it was covered at all times when it wasn’t being used, the legs still started to corrode. I revisited the company website and even though they advised covering it and warned about some weathering, you shouldn’t expect this to happen in such a short time period. Maybe more in 2 or 3 years of use?

7.) After taking my furniture apart at the end of last summer I stored it away inside in a dry/sealed space to protect it and I have now re-inspected the corrosion to the legs. It’s clear there is insufficient and minimal thickness to the powder coating to ensure protection from the elements.

So I have now decided to send the metal elements off to get them blasted back to bare steel, and hopefully remove all the corrosion, and then apply a zinc protective coating and new powder coating, which is going to cost me approx £135. I would ideally prefer to get it galvanised but that will cost too much.

I haven’t even bothered to try contacting them again about the corrosion issues and exercise my consumer rights, as I know I will be wasting my time and not get a response.

So I figure my time is best spent here writing this review and warning others. Yes the furniture will look lovely and rustic to begin with, but this is one of the worst customer service experiences I have ever had, and I am kicking myself I didn’t save myself the time and money, and just checked TrustPilot beforehand and go elsewhere.

Beautiful rustic table, Hand made and waxed to my specifications so well worth the wait. The couriers
used were very professional with great communication.

Bought a coffee table in early February, which still hadn't been delivered at the end of April. Contacted the company to try and cancel the order, as we were going away for 2 months, but they refused. Had to raise a dispute with the bank to get my money back. Dreadful customer service, and no way to contact them by phone. Avoid this company.

Quality of the headboard is lovely, my rating would have been 5 stars had the headboard been the correct shade on first ordering, and had delivery not been so delayed, communication was polite but minimal with no updates unless requested, reasons given for some delays were that the delivery vans kept breaking down…
Finally after 6 months the correct headboard arrived and is lovely thankfully. If communication and delivery delays were tightened up the ratings would follow. I would not purchase from seller again based on the above. The only reason it got 2 stars and not one is due to good item quality.

Just received our bespoke kitchen island crafted by Shabby Bear Cottage. It’s wonderful! Just what we wanted and so well made. Great service from beginning to delivery. Caryl Hallett.

Your never sure when you buy things online what you’re going to get but I couldn’t recommend shabbybearcottage highly enough , my kitchen island is stunning so well made it looks stunning . I had to tweak the measurements a bit but no problem and Kathy was always available to talk to and replied to my questions within a couple of hours every time . Couldn’t be happier .

I bought a table, it had a couple of issues, the main one being that one of the legs is way off being straight and very noticeable. I sent this feedback to the company but did not get a response. I re-sent the same email which bounced back twice as being undeliverable. The company is still in business so I can only assume they have blocked my emails. Very disappointing.
Update: I sent another email using a second email account which did not bounce back, however no response from the company. Buyer beware.

Bought a dining table 2 years ago. The first top cracked within a few weeks. A new top was sent. However in a short time ( despite feeding the wood as advised), the table top warped badly, to the point that a place mat was rocking ! After the poor communication experienced initially, we have scrapped the table and had to buy a new one. Not impressed!

I am happy to report that the Wardrobe Clothes Rail Rack is beautiful. It is exactly what we were hoping to receive: good design, excellent craftsmanship and pleasing proportions.

Customer Service: After I had ordered the rack, I stumbled across the many poor reviews that Shabby Bear received over the last few months and years.

I was in a state of shock, expecting untold trouble to come. Fortunately, none of the poor experience that others report materialised.

Customer service was good overall and promises of action led generally to effective intervention. However, I began checking on production progress early on to make sure that there was no or little slippage.

It is a little unsettling that it is impossible to conduct phone conversations with Shabby Bear (they do not give a customer service phone number), but this is increasingly the case with many companies.

The cloth rail rack arrived two weeks late, but this did not bother us too much.

The rail/rack is beautiful; so this delay will soon be forgotten while we will continue to admire the rail/rack for years to come.

I would return to Shabby Bear without much hesitation, now knowing that things work well.

Ulrich

Terrible customer service . Been waiting months for order. Contacted company twice was told would arrive by 20th December. Still not arrived.
Customer service automated.
Do not buy from this company

We purchased a kitchen table and it arrived within the time frame stated. I contacted them a few times via their live chat service and a reply was always prompt, helpful and friendly. We are really pleased with the table and would definitely use again.

Loved our furniture! Just as on website.
Delivery time was as we were told, and delivery team very helpful.
We communicated via email, which states 72hr response… this happened and they couldn’t have been more helpful. Thank you!

I initially had issues with my product, but their customer service team worked wonders to resolve it, and now I am happy. They have taken my feedback onboard, and they are a small growing company that means well. So, if you have any issues, I recommend contacting them, and they are helpful.

4.11.24 Update I have not receive my order - I fully appreciate your lead times and have waited in excess of 6 weeks .. but I have nothing here at all and have heard from nobody … ordered 21st September. .,, so if delivered you have delivered it to someone else … and have an error your end!!! … I haven’t even heard from your workshop or courier as promised last week …. please have the decency to contact me following numerous emails as you have a few hundred pounds and I have nothing at alll - not even customer service or a courtesy call!’

if so Ordered back on 21st September and prior to ordering I enquired as to delivery times etc as currently undergoing chemotherapy and needed asap …their reply ..,23.9.24

“Thank you so much for your order :)

We will get working on that right away.”

I was told end October latest as a delivery date - though if working on it 23rd September ., an order for a hall bench and coat hanger it seems like long time to make it . … chased 23rd October as had heard nothing more .. and after a day or so was advised by email that it had just gone to the workshop (so not working on it right away at all!) and they would be in touch with me early week commencing 28th October re delivery latest 1st November.

Again heard nothing by Thursday 31st October … so emailed once again as was guaranteed delivery by Friday 1st November - not even a courtesy email to advise running late. .. no reply via email - no phone number to call have now had to raise with the klarna .. sadly wouldn’t recommend them as I paid a lot of money for an item which seems to not even be made! … now need to source elsewhere - completely lost faith in this ever arriving.

week later than promised, our furniture arrived but it was a completely different colour to the photos of the products on the website - more like pine than oak. The company offered to either send me varnish to stain it myself or replace the items. I opted for them to be replaced and was promised a rush order which would arrive within 2-3 weeks. I also noticed that the headboard was just a plank of wood with no indication of how to fit it to the bed/wall. I was told it was easy and given details of butterfly clip things to order which I did ready for the replacement. After much badgering, the replacement furniture finally arrived 7 weeks later. It was a much better colour but, when we went to fit it, noticed that there were two metal bars on the back of the headboard so it couldn’t sit flush on the wall and the butterfly clips weren’t going to work. I messaged shabby bear to ask for advise on how to fit the headboard but did not receive a reply. It is so frustrating that shabby bear does not allow phone communication! In the end, I had to pay for a carpenter to attach an extra piece of wood to the headboard for it to be attached to the wall. I love the furniture but can’t recommend the company sadly.

Update: further to the company’s response to my review, I would like to confirm that I emailed them on 22 October asking for advice on how to fit the headboard and they replied on 29 October so their claim that they responded within 24-48 hours is not true. All this could have been easily resolved with quick and courteous customer service

Excellent company and excellent result! Beautiful shiny table, just as I requested and was delivered inside the projected time as well. Lovely people and great comms. Highly recommended.

Amazing service! Such a good quality item. I ordered a console table. Perfect colour, perfect quality, arrived right on time. Seller kept me updated at every step and delivery was easy!
Responsive to all messages and amazing service