Kudos to Simms
- This topic has 2 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated Mar 5, 2015 at 10:14 am by
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About 4 ½ years ago I gave up on Orvis waders because I rarely got more than two seasons out of them before they were trash. Instead, I spent the $600+ on a pair of Simms G4 pro waders. If I was going to spend 50-60 days on the water every season in my semi-retirement years, I thought I’d do it dry and in style. By the end of last season (Nov 2014), the G4s were showing their age despite being washed every season and air dried after every trip. Booties were wearing through, the gravel guards were shredded and I’d worn two bad spots near my knees from getting in and out of the kayak all the time. Apart from the few inevitable pin hole leaks that I occasionally repaired with GOOP, these waders were still pretty functional although ragged to the eye. In January I decided to take them to Simms to take advantage of their repair program. http://www.simmsfishing.com/repairs-landing. When I dropped them off, the technician’s opinion was about the same as mine, these waders had seen their day. But they took them in vowing to replace the booties and gravel guards and a few other minor things. They said check back in a month. Well, by the end of February, I was getting anxious. I needed a pair of waders and was fully prepared for the verdict that mine weren’t really repairable. I was ready to shell out the $700 for a new pair—I wanted to continue doing it dry and in style as the 2015 season moves forth. Well this morning Simms surprised me with an email saying I could pick up my brand new pair of G4 pros from the factory anytime—no charge—an invitation I promptly accomplished. I got a vague explanation that the replacement was due to an undisclosed “material defect”. I wasn’t going to quibble. I think I have more than a dozen of Simms products—boots, shoes jackets, gloves, etc. They are all quality products and I’ve never had a complaint with any of them and this was the first time I’d ever dealt with Simms’ customer service. Today’s experience will keep me buying their products and wearing them out on the rivers in the West.
Strategy without Tactics is a Slow Route to Victory, Tactics without Strategy is the Noise Before Defeat - Sun Tzu
I had the same experience with one of the first generation boat bags. I had used it for a few years and it got to the point that the zipper just didn’t work. Either jammed or the teeth wouldn’t mesh.
I sent it in to see what they could do with it…they sent me a new one with an improved zipper.
Gotta love a company that stands behind their product.
If you do actually have the occasion to use their repair service, though, they do a really good job. The problem from a company like Simms’ perspective is that if they offer repairs, then they turn around and give away a product, word gets out. While it certainly does them credit and you are right to thank them, Mike, it also creates an expectation.
Do you know why Simms’ competitors don’t offer repair services, but instead often offer elaborate warranties and easy replacement? Because Simms is the only company making waders in America, and thus the only company with on-site repair facilities. If Patagonia gets a pair of trashed waders and a request for a warranty claim, their cost to honor that warranty (with an imported product) is much lower than Simms’ cost with an American-made product. No one shares this information but I’d be really surprised if Patagonia’s profit margin on its wader (assuming both sold for the same MSRP) was less than 20% larger than Simms’.
I’m just posting this so that if the next guy who turns in waders for repair, thinking in the back of his mind that he’ll get a free pair after years of use, instead gets back repaired waders and a repair bill, he won’t be pissed and run off to a competitor. Simms is playing baseball with its competition and baseball is not a fair game.
Zach
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