Anyone else have issues with Direct To Consumer (DTC) brands

[Niall O C]

A couple of month's ago I was in the market for a new driving iron, so naturally I came here to see what the best driving iron would be. Based off the results from the 2023 best driving iron guide, I decided to given Sub70 a go. I have never purchased a club from a direct to consumer brand before so thought it would be good to give it a go.

I ordered the Sub 70 699 Pro V2 Utility from the European website over a month ago, but since then everything has just gone down hill. Firstly the shipping was £20, which is more then double what other distributers charge. But as they are not a large company, this was not a big issue. Next, as it was the European site, I mistakenly presumed they were in Europe. But they are not, they are in the UK. The issue with this is that any purchases that comes into Europe from outside has to pay custom tax. Even do the Sub70 website says that tax is included in the purchase, this is not the case. So this meant that I was charged an extra £35 before I could get my product (NOTE: other sites like Golfbidder are based in the UK and you do not get charged custom tax)

After paying the custom tax and receiving the club, it turns out it is not the club I ordered. So I got back onto Sub70 and they confirmed this was a mistake (after multiple messages on different platforms as I was not getting any responses) on their part  and would rectify it. That was 3 weeks ago, now they are just flat out ignoring my messages even do they are being read (e.g. on WhatsApp) 

So now I am £185 out of pocket and do not know if I will be getting my actual club

So has anyone else had experiences like this with DTC brands and this is expected with smaller companies or is this just one which has slipped through the cracks (unfortunately for me)   

[james777]

I haven't had such issues because I try to avoid online purchases because I never know when and what will I get in the mail.
What can you do is (if you want to escalate the situation) involve your credit card bank, you might be able to dispute the charge as you haven't received the correct product. This could put pressure on Sub70 to resolve the issue.
If you didn't use a credit card though you can escalate directly to Sub70 Higher-Ups, search for their contact info on their website, if they get cocky with themselves, then lawyer up and let them solve it in your place.

[Niall O C]

1 hour ago, james777 said:

I haven't had such issues because I try to avoid online purchases because I never know when and what will I get in the mail.
What can you do is (if you want to escalate the situation) involve your credit card bank, you might be able to dispute the charge as you haven't received the correct product. This could put pressure on Sub70 to resolve the issue.
If you didn't use a credit card though you can escalate directly to Sub70 Higher-Ups, search for their contact info on their website, if they get cocky with themselves, then lawyer up and let them solve it in your place.

Ya I am the usually the same. Usually I would only purchase equipment in person or from sites I know are 100% reliable. But said I would try DTC this time as you hear lots of good things about companies such as Vice, Takomo, etc.

But I don't want to just bash DTC brands in this thread as I believe they are/can do great work especially with a sport like golf which can be very expensive. But more find out if this type of behaviour is just part of purchasing from DTC (poor communication, limited/misleading  information, expensive postage, etc.) and usually does get resolved or is this just one of the rare occasions and usually DTC brands are very reliable 

[Golf2Much]

My experiences with Sub 70 and other DTC companies are just the opposite.  

I've ordered two sets of demo clubs from Sub 70 to try.  Each order went without a hitch.  They arrived on time, were in great shape, the return to Sub 70 was easy and the refund issued quickly.  When I had questions about their online fitting recommendations, I got prompt email responses and even phone calls from the owner offering even more insight into their products.   They could not have been better or easier to work with.

I've also dealt with OnCore and one other DTC ball company.   After getting a recommendation from OnCore on which ball would be best for me, I purchased two dozen to give them a try.  I didn't get quite the performance I thought, so I very nicely feedback to them in a private email (versus blasting them at the online customer service website that asked for feedback).  Within an hour, I received a response that they were sorry that the recommendation didn't work out and that they were sending me a dozen of each of the other balls they made at no charge hoping one would meet my needs.  To me, I think that's beyond what I expected.  I immediately signed up for their membership fee Club OnCore.

Overall, I found the DTC companies I've dealt with to be very customer focus, responsive and a pleasure to deal with and will continue to purchase from them in the future.

[RyanGi]

I’ve had the opposite experience as well. Prompt, easy to communicate with, and great products. Sub 70 is located in the US, maybe give them a call instead of email? I’m betting they can work it out. I’ve been truly amazed with their specific customer service. It’s better than almost any other company I’ve dealt with, of any kind, in recent history. Hope it works out for you!

[bens197]

I’ve never had an issue with DTC.  Several years ago I purchased multiple clubs from Ben Hogan and everything arrived in a timely manner.  Communication was efficient and the build quality was excellent.

Fast forward to this May, one of my friends at work wanted to get a new set of irons and I sent him directly to the DTC route.  Sub 70, Ben Hogan and New Level were the first three I recommended and of the 3 he went Hogan.

His experience was the same as mine.

Sorry to hear about your bad experience @Niall O C

 

@GolfSub70 posts here often so you should expect a timely response.

[GolfSub70]

On 8/12/2024 at 2:26 PM, Niall O C said:

A couple of month's ago I was in the market for a new driving iron, so naturally I came here to see what the best driving iron would be. Based off the results from the 2023 best driving iron guide, I decided to given Sub70 a go. I have never purchased a club from a direct to consumer brand before so thought it would be good to give it a go.

I ordered the Sub 70 699 Pro V2 Utility from the European website over a month ago, but since then everything has just gone down hill. Firstly the shipping was £20, which is more then double what other distributers charge. But as they are not a large company, this was not a big issue. Next, as it was the European site, I mistakenly presumed they were in Europe. But they are not, they are in the UK. The issue with this is that any purchases that comes into Europe from outside has to pay custom tax. Even do the Sub70 website says that tax is included in the purchase, this is not the case. So this meant that I was charged an extra £35 before I could get my product (NOTE: other sites like Golfbidder are based in the UK and you do not get charged custom tax)

After paying the custom tax and receiving the club, it turns out it is not the club I ordered. So I got back onto Sub70 and they confirmed this was a mistake (after multiple messages on different platforms as I was not getting any responses) on their part  and would rectify it. That was 3 weeks ago, now they are just flat out ignoring my messages even do they are being read (e.g. on WhatsApp) 

So now I am £185 out of pocket and do not know if I will be getting my actual club

So has anyone else had experiences like this with DTC brands and this is expected with smaller companies or is this just one which has slipped through the cracks (unfortunately for me)   

Hey @Niall O C sorry to hear about this. Our international distributors do operate independently of our operation here in the USA, but send me an email at Jay@GolfSub70.com and I will see if there is anything we can do to help get this resolved for you. We certainly pride ourselves on our customer service/experience and hope that any customer who buys Sub 70 whether it is in the USA or anywhere else in the world has a very positive experience. Thank you!

[Wolfstrum]

I bought a Sub 70 driving iron this year. I had an excellent experience. I am based in the US. As I was reading your story and hearing you are in Europe I suspected that Sub 70 must be relying on a 3rd party distributor for their Europe business. One of the challenges of a smaller brand is how to handle and manage international business.

Glad to see @GolfSub70 saw your post and is seeing what they can do to make things right.

I have bought from other DTC brands as well with positive results. There are some sketchy online sellers so always do your research first. 

[Hacker60521]

Generally DTC makes me nervous — especially for bigger ticket items. I know a lot of folks in this group are comfortable with DTC golf clubs, balls, etc. Maybe I’m too old school but I really like holding a club before I buy it, etc. I’m not reluctant to purchase from Amazon. But that’s a slightly different model for me where returns are easy and aren’t limited to store credit, etc.

[GolfSpy_APH]

No, but at the same time I have generally found their CS to be excellent and they will go above and beyond because it has a core part of their reputation attached to it.