I have owned and operated a chain of cookware stores in and around Seattle for the past two decades. After receiving a telephone call from a Maverick Ventures, Inc salesperson, I placed an order for the "Microwave Spatter Screen." I have never been so dissatisfied with any one product and/or vendor in my 21 years of business. The saleswoman who called gave me many details regarding this product and claimed that the average housewares store sells between 96-144 units per month at a retail of $1.29. She stated that 24 for each of my stores would give me a good idea as to the volume my stores would be selling. Now, under normal circumstances, this would be information that could prove to be very useful in my future purchases. I agreed with her. She stated the sale was GUARANTEED and if I had any trouble selling her product that she would take back all unsold merchandise. I did some mild research into the product, a screen that is to be draped over liquid filled bowls before being placed in the microwave. The idea sounded splendid, so I purchased a small quantity for each of my 4 stores as an "impulse" type product.
This turned out to be a huge mistake. The order arrived 7 weeks after she stated it would. However, I still proceeded to accept, stock and pay for the product. Within a week customers were returning the product, making claims that the screen would absorb the liquid and the access weight would cause the screen to actually drop into the food and or drink being microwaved, and even worse, the plastic weights (small red weights that are cheaply glued to the external potion of the screen), that are intended to hold the screen in place, would then melt into the item being microwaved. I immediately offered refunds and apologized to my customers, some of which have been customers since the inception of my first store. I immediately called the company and asked to speak with management. A man by the name of Ronald Kuczer picked up the phone and when I explained the situation he stated, "So what do you want me to do about it?". When I told him how the salesperson guaranteed the product, and how the salesperson stated all unused and unsold merchandise could be returned he stated, "We don't guarantee any of our merchandise and I don't believe my salesperson stated that." Needless to say, I was stunned. I have never had a vendor treat me in such a way. I have still not received any type of refund, exchange or credit, even after dozens of e-mails and phone calls (all of which have been ignored). If you own a store, chain of stores or if you are a purchaser for any buying group, retail chain or distributor, I would highly suggest steering clear of this highly unethical and immoral company.
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