Aero customer service-- can't be beat!

[tropicalbob]

HDJ, I just wanted to compliment you on your avatar (and kick myself for not thinking of it). Satch and Slip Mahoney were the role models for my friends and me when we were growing up. Great choice!

 

[Peacoat]

Wow, I can smell that hide from here! My wife has offered to take me up to Aero for my birthday, can't wait

When you go, make sure to wear your peacoat.

 

[Sloan1874]

An ANJ-3 (goatskin) made in USAAF style with the A2 wind flap.

NIce one. Look forward to seeing the pics.

 

[Plumbline]

I have to say I have seldom had poor service from any of the major repro manufacturers and csan compliment Eastman, Lost Worlds, Aero, Alexanders, Bill Kelso and Schott as those I have had to go back to on occasion. NONE have ever given bad service ( and I mean NONE).

I have a basic principle ( and I'm not for a minute suggesting anyone here doesn't do this) and that is that I try to be polite, clear and specific in any complaint and all of the above have bent over backwards to accomodate my requests ... however silly or mundane.

Most of the above rely upon reputation and repeat business ... and act accordingly, forums like this have made that response even more important asd the first recipient of bad service posts on here and elsewhere ad before you know it people are questioning their offering and going elsewhere.

I know there are examples of poor service in almost all of the above .. and I believe there always will be .... I just hope I never recieve it and I trust that forums like this will keep service levels at the high end

Keep up the good work people

 

[ButteMT61]

I think bad service from any biz that is established can be traced to either a PITA client, just plain bad luck, or unrealistic expectations (or combo thereof). Every vendor can have a bad day so it's how they hand the problems that shows character. Honestly, I've not herd anything that resembles any patterns here or elsewhere. If you handle your complaint politely and with facts and don't get emotional, I'd wager 99% of the time you'll end up happy.
And yes, these forums are a HUGE help.

 

[Jeff M]

I've run into some unfortunate "customer service" from jacket makers over the years.
Aero however has always treated me very well.

 

[Cooperson]

When you go, make sure to wear your peacoat.

Ha ha, got 2 to choose from now but it hasn't been cold enough this year to wear one, perhaps up there it might be. My kudu Pioneer is getting all the wear at the moment, its just so comfortable. Thinking of pulling in a trip to AL while I'm in the area too, just not sure which order to do them in or where to stay.

 

[Capesofwrath]

Ha ha, got 2 to choose from now but it hasn't been cold enough this year to wear one, perhaps up there it might be. My kudu Pioneer is getting all the wear at the moment, its just so comfortable. Thinking of pulling in a trip to AL while I'm in the area too, just not sure which order to do them in or where to stay.

This place was recommended by Holly when she was asked that here.

http://www.maplehurstguesthouse.co.uk/

 

[Cooperson]

This place was recommended by Holly when she was asked that here.

http://www.maplehurstguesthouse.co.uk/

Thanks for the link, looks perfect!

 

[hyptul]

It's not really a question of service, but the question of unfair advertising. I bought a-2 jacket in Aero on sale. At the site description jerky horse was listed, but in reality it is the steerhide. Site description promised perfect jacket, but in reality there are hide defects on the sleeves. Furthermore, epaulettes were made ​​wrong - in a single layer.
With regard to the substitution of horsehide with steerhide, it happened long after the scandal with Will and Amanda.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

It's not really a question of service, but the question of unfair advertising. I bought a-2 jacket in Aero on sale. At the site description jerky horse was listed, but in reality it is the steerhide. Site description promised perfect jacket, but in reality there are hide defects on the sleeves. Furthermore, epaulettes were made ​​wrong - in a single layer.
With regard to the substitution of horsehide with steerhide, it happened long after the scandal with Will and Amanda.

Did you contact Aero about your displeasure and discuss a refund..??
HD

 

[hyptul]

Did you contact Aero about your displeasure and discuss a refund..??
HD

No. I have problems with English, and I was too lazy.

 

[Sloan1874]

You're English seems fine to me, and Holly is always quick to reply and is extremely helpful - to me it sounds like a fairly straightforward transaction. Have to say, Hyptul, the idea of having wasted a lot of money on something would be motivation enough to get me moving.[huh]

 

[Jeff M]

Your English in describing the issue is perfect.
If you decide to "get off your lazy", you can contact Holly by sending her a private message here on the forum.
Her forum name is "cloudylemonade" .
Just copy what you wrote here and send it to her.
I don't think she checks her PM's all that often..so it may take a while for her to get back to you.
Your best bet is still to send an eMail to Aero. Again, just copy what you wrote here.

(First time I've seen a reference of an episode of "storse" since the management change. How do you know it's steer and not horse? It can be very difficult..nigh impossible...to tell them aprart in many cases, hence the reliance on DNA testing with those vintage WW2 jackets to see if steer was every used back then. It was.
I own an Aero A2 made with "jerky" horse hide that I received about 2 yeears ago. I had to return it as the fit was off. I was pretty sure the hide was not jerky horse.....it had very little grain to it, and asked Aero to double check if it was or not.
I was assured it was, and the replacement jacket had the same hide.
I think this was the old management however. :eeek: )

 

[Sloan1874]

Now you mention it, Jeff, it's rather odd to hear a steer/horse complaint a year on.

 

[ButteMT61]

Yeah. "I bought a new expensive jacket and it sucked and I didn't complain“? Except here? Interesting.

 

[sshack]

You should be able to tell Jerky HH from steer very easily. I have samples of the jerky HH and it has a completely different feel than the CXL leathers (horse or steer). The jerky is much lighter, and the top finish feels more slick and "plasticy" than the CXL. In other words, the top finish seems to have "skin" on it, as opposed to only dyes for the CXL.

 

[Jeff M]

You should be able to tell Jerky HH from steer very easily. I have samples of the jerky HH and it has a completely different feel than the CXL leathers (horse or steer). The jerky is much lighter, and the top finish feels more slick and "plasticy" than the CXL. In other words, the top finish seems to have "skin" on it, as opposed to only dyes for the CXL.

Aero offers more than just their heavy weight CXL Horween horse and steer hides. They also offer mid weight and relatively light weight horse hides, and a lighter steer hide for their A2's, shown here;

http://www.aeroleatherclothing.com/product-detail.php?id=104

I've got a very nice mid weight non CXL Horween horse hide Aero "Bootlegger", the hide completely different from the heavy horse hide on my other Aero's.


I don't associate a "slick, plasticky" top finish to the Jerky HH Aero uses, but rather with the "Smooth" HH they offer as another option on their A2's. You can see the difference in the A2 photos they have up on their web site.

Jerky HH;
http://www.aeroleatherclothing.com/product-detail.php?id=91

Smooth HH;
http://www.aeroleatherclothing.com/product-detail.php?id=92

I don't like that finish, hence, I went with their "Jerky" HH.
In person, My A2's Jerky hide didn't have as much grain as I expected from the web site photos / leather samples Aero sent me, but it wasn't the "plasticky" grain of their "smooth" HH samples.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Aero is closed now until January after the holidays.

 

[cloudylemonade]

It was at first. However I dealt with Holly, Denny and Ken directly for about a year.

I'm not trying to make a mess in someone elses thread, but after $1600+, I wish someone had voiced something besides a glowing report when I was shopping for them.

After my last email asking why my coat had an extra pocket, they stopped responding. Not good customer service. That's not counting all the previous history of more than 2 years to fulfill 2 jacket orders.

If it makes someone hesitant in the future, or ensures better customer service from them, it's a good thing to disclose a bad experience.

Can you PM me with your email address so I can look into this? I always try and respond to every email, but often I have to forward on to production for answers and sometimes when I assume they've taken this up with a customer they have missed it. It's very hard for me to keep up with everything I forward on, so on occasion when I've asked for someone else to deal with something and they haven't I'm not aware of this.

Thanks,

Holly