Sadly, another iKon Customer Service report

Hello folks,

On February 11, 2015 I ordered an iKon DLC Standard Bar razor with a Bulldog handle from Maggard Razors. I had done some research, but hadn't learned a lot about this particular razor or iKon. After ordering, I did a little more research and found out that iKon is a banned vendor here and found some "customer service" reviews. Oh boy...Of course, it arrived promptly from Maggard and I began using the razor.

Now...I want to preface this entire post with this: This razor is a very high quality product. This post is in no way meant to degrade the product. I love everything about it. The DLC coating is pristine and the quality of the handle is unmatched (I haven't had the opportunity to try ATT, yet). I love the fact that it aligns perfectly every single time and that the blade tabs are completely covered. It's a wonderful piece of work.

After using this razor for several shaves, I realized that it simply has too much bite for me to use it on a regular basis. My first thought was to ask iKon razors about the blade gap. That's the easiest way to compare it to other razors, IMO. On March 1, 2015 I sent iKon an email.

Well...that's where it all went downhill. Also, I work in Harley-Davidson sales. You'll see why I mention that shortly. The following are the actual emails between iKon and I:

egh128 said:

Hello,

I recently purchased a DLC Standard Bar razor from Maggard. I was curious as to what the blade gap of this razor is. It's quite aggressive and wanted to compare its blade gap to several other razors with known blade gaps.


Thank you!

Click to expand...

iKon said:

Our designs are all unique stand alone models, therefore blade gap is not relevant as the dynamic of each iKon or ShaveCraft presents a different shave.


Some other razors do indeed just shim the exact same baseplate to different heights and that would be cutting corners in our eye and then "blade gaps" would be used to judge the shave diffences.




Sorry brief as using iPhone.

Click to expand...

I took this as an easy way for a manufacturer to deny a customer the information that they requested. The blade gap would be very telling regardless of design. From what I had learned about this company's customer service, I wanted to press the issue.

egh128 said:

Thank you for replying on a Sunday! Do you offer exchanges for razors that do not work well for customers?

Thank you!

Click to expand...

iKon said:

We are not that desperate for business.


Can I buy a Harley from you and keep exchanging for a different model ?


Thanks for the emails.

Click to expand...

I did not expect full retail trade for my used razor. I would have been very satisfied had he offered to trade me out for one of his blemished razor heads. Or ANYTHING hospitable. Nope. "We are not that desperate for business." is what I got.

egh128 said:

Understood.

Sure you can. You'll just lose money on every trade. Your refusal to offer anything hospitable is a clear sign of what kind of professional you are. Consider this my first and last purchase from your establishment. I will take my issue to Maggard. I'm sure they will be more than happy to offer some sort of solution. All of my efforts will be directed at warning potential customers of your level of professionalism or lack thereof.


Thank you for your time.

Click to expand...

iKon said:

Enjoy !

Click to expand...

Full disclosure: I have not brought this to the attention of the Maggard's. They are my favorite vendor and I don't feel that they should be held responsible for this asshat. The customer service that you can expect from Maggard Razors is exemplary. If I buy anything shaving-related and it doesn't come from Maggard, it wasn't available at the time of purchase.

Again, this razor is a very high quality product. This is simply meant to show yet another example of the customer service that can be expected from iKon. I had a bad feeling as soon as I read that iKon was a banned vendor. Now I know why. Unfortunately, I'll have to ignore any product affiliated with iKon.

The moral of the story? Live and learn and buyer beware. There are other sources of stainless steel razors that will appreciate your business. ATT will get my next order.

I don't know Darren. Razors are a YMMV kind of thing. I wouldn't expect a manufacturer to take back a razor it you tried it and found it too aggressive. The blade gap is easy to measure with a set of $5 feeler gauges.

iKon said:

Our ''designs'' are all unique stand alone copies of vintage models, therefore blade gap is not relevant as the dynamic of each iKon or ShaveCraft presents a different shave. we have no idea what the blade gap is, since someone else designed all our razors decades ago.

Click to expand...

ftfy, Mr Ikon

GlennConti said:

I don't know Darren. Razors are a YMMV kind of thing. I wouldn't expect a manufacturer to take back a razor it you tried it and found it too aggressive. The blade gap is easy to measure with a set of $5 feeler gauges.

Click to expand...

I completely understand that. I wasn't trying to get something for nothing, but I wasn't trying to get insulted either. "We are no that desperate for business." translates to "I don't give a damn about a single customer of mine." to me.

The razor isn't the issue. I can have a 4 pass shave with no cuts, nicks, weepers, or irritation. It's just a little more "raw" than I would like. There's also absolutely zero description of the type of shave they provide.

I simply wanted to know what my options were and I had a door slammed in my face after spending $135 on a razor. Like everyone else, I work hard for my money. I'm not a lottery winner or a trust fund baby. This, to me, is completely unacceptable.

egh128 said:

I completely understand that. I wasn't trying to get something for nothing, but I wasn't trying to get insulted either. "We are no that desperate for business." translates to "I don't give a damn about a single customer of mine." to me.

The razor isn't the issue. I can have a 4 pass shave with no cuts, nicks, weepers, or irritation. It's just a little more "raw" than I would like. There's also absolutely zero description of the type of shave they provide.

I simply wanted to know what my options were and I had a door slammed in my face after spending $135 on a razor. Like everyone else, I work hard for my money. I'm not a lottery winner or a trust fund baby. This, to me, is completely unacceptable.

Click to expand...

You are right. iKon should not be rude or insulting to its customers. But I still think you should have been aware that you should sell a razor that doesn't do it for you as opposed to sending it back to the manufacturer. Just my opinion.

I'll back iKon on this one.

When you buy a product that does not offer a guarantee of pleasure, then you have no right to expect one. You were not complaining of a defect, just that you chose the wrong product.

Others may offer to exchange without questions asked, such as ATT. ATT also has a higher price and different business model.

As for blade gap, iKon is right again. Blade gap has no meaningful correlation with aggressive feel. It is MEANINGLESS.

The blade gap on my Feather AS-D2 has a blade gap of 0.74mm. On the ATT M2, it is 0.25mm. Having used the ATT M2 yesterday for the first time after a couple months of Feather use, I'd say the ATT M2 is far more aggressive than the Feather. That is backed up by surveys, that rank the M2 at 5.0 (IIRC) and the Feather below 2.

A guy with a gun shop told me once that 90% of his complaints came from 5% of his customers. When he told the 5% to bugger off, he stopped losing money and started making a profit. A business has no responsibility to offer your money back for any reason unless they want to advertise that policy to increase their business.

I've ordered several razors from iKon. If I'm going to be completely honest, the Shavecraft 101 head gives me as good a balance of comfort and effectiveness as any razor I own - including the Feather and the ATT. It is a quality product at a very reasonable price. I have an OSS. I don't like black coatings on a razor, but it shaves well and is a good razor for the price. When I order from them, I get an immediate response and the product is in the mail within 24 hours (unless I order on Saturday afternoon). I don't think their razors are of as high a quality as the Feather or ATT, but they also are not in the same price range. I think the Shavecraft line is an excellent value - a better razor, IMHO, than the Weber PH and at a lower price. My Weber PH has moved on, while the 101 can hold its own against the Feather and ATT razors!

I'm probably at the end of my razor buying spree. Between the 101, Tech, Feather AS-D2 & ATT M2, I think I have a wide range of shaving styles available in razors that will last me a lifetime. But iKon was right - they do not offer a money-back guarantee, and the blade gap is meaningless in determining aggressiveness or feel. If I were to buy another non-zamak modern razor, it might well be the Shavecraft 102...

Here's another interesting one:

iKon said:

Some other razors do indeed just shim the exact same baseplate to different heights and that would be cutting corners in our eye and then "blade gaps" would be used to judge the shave diffences.

Click to expand...

Well, the fact is that it works, and it's all it takes to offer a different shave. More blade exposure = more aggressive shave, period.

We all know which brand he's talking about. At least their designs are all ORIGINAL. That's not cutting corners.

Cutting corners is copying every single vintage design and call them ''unique stand alone'' models.

How lame is that ...

There is no excuse for being rude.

Did you mention at any time that you worked at a Harley dealership? If not, that's kind of creepy that he brought it up.

I'm sorry but I do NOT back iKon on this one. I've been in marketing and sales for many, many years, and regardless of the facts of the case, any customer rep of mine who responded like that would be let go immediately. There is absolutely no excuse for that kind of response.

When a customer complains, we take care of the customer first, THEN figure out a long-term solution. Sure we may lose money on some, but good customer service goes a long way in helping our sales. Not everybody does business that way, and I respect their right to make that decision, but I can also choose not to do business with them.

As far as this particular case, it really doesn't matter to me how important blade gap is, if they truly don't know what it is, then just admit it. And if every single razor has a unique blade gap, it just means that quality control there isn't important to them, in other words, they don't try to be consistent. If that's their business model, that's perfectly fine, but he could have said it much differently in the email.

I think the name of the company says it all, and I have no doubt someone will be along shortly to talk about puppies

bakerbarber said:

There is no excuse for being rude.

Did you mention at any time that you worked at a Harley dealership? If not, that's kind of creepy that he brought it up.

Click to expand...

My business information is in my email signature.

To those who "back iKon":

To each their own. As I said more than once in my original post, the razor is a very high quality product. I can handle the fact that it's more aggressive than I care for. That's on me. The fact of the matter is that I don't deserve to be treated like dirt after spending a considerable amount of money on one of his products. Period.

auparson said:

I'm sorry but I do NOT back iKon on this one. I've been in marketing and sales for many, many years, and regardless of the facts of the case, any customer rep of mine who responded like that would be let go immediately. There is absolutely no excuse for that kind of response.

When a customer complains, we take care of the customer first, THEN figure out a long-term solution. Sure we may lose money on some, but good customer service goes a long way in helping our sales. Not everybody does business that way, and I respect their right to make that decision, but I can also choose not to do business with them.

As far as this particular case, it really doesn't matter to me how important blade gap is, if they truly don't know what it is, then just admit it. And if every single razor has a unique blade gap, it just means that quality control there isn't important to them, in other words, they don't try to be consistent. If that's their business model, that's perfectly fine, but he could have said it much differently in the email.

Click to expand...

The sad part is, had I been treated with respect while still being denied an exchange, I would have continued to buy his handles for other razor heads. They're not the cheapest on the market, but customer service goes a long way.

This response alone tells me everything I need to know about their company:

We are not that desperate for business.

Click to expand...

They won't be getting any business from me and I'll make sure to reference this thread if anyone asks for an opinion. There is no excuse for such douchebaggery. Their smarta** comment about the Harley puts it over the top for me.

-Mc

You could have knocked me over with a feather.

ouch said:

You could have knocked me over with a feather.

Click to expand...

On the not so funny side of things: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...t-DE-I-can-t-figure-out?p=6066454#post6066454

and : http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...t-DE-I-can-t-figure-out?p=5930178#post5930178

FYI the mods and owner of this side got hit a lot harder.

I do not wish to comment on this matter any more.

I guess I don't believe the customer is always right. With some customers, you need to cut your losses. I think it is unrealistic to expect someone to offer to exchange your well built razor with a different model just because you didn't like the feel - UNLESS they advertise that policy.

I've sold several razors at 50% off. They were not heavily used razors, bad razors, or defective razors - just razors that didn't meet my tastes. So I sold them. I did not ask Merkur or Muhle or Edwin Jagger or iKon or Weber to take them back and send me a different razor. I would not expect Muhle to exchange an R41 for an R89 any more than I'd expect a gun shop to exchange a Ruger Superblackhawk for another revolver because "This kicks too much!" Try that at most gun shops, and you won't get a very understanding reply...

I think the OP is less concerned with what was said, and more about how it was said. I agree the iKon representative was a serious douche, enough so that I will also avoid purchasing their products. If they aren't desperate for business, then they surely don't need my hard earned dollars. Customer service is incredibly important to me, as is showing respect no matter the situation. This iKon loser failed in both categories, so an easy choice for me in my books.

An informed and satisfied customer is your best ally if you care about your reputation and getting repeat business.

rlsinaz said:

I guess I don't believe the customer is always right. With some customers, you need to cut your losses. I think it is unrealistic to expect someone to offer to exchange your well built razor with a different model just because you didn't like the feel - UNLESS they advertise that policy.

I've sold several razors at 50% off. They were not heavily used razors, bad razors, or defective razors - just razors that didn't meet my tastes. So I sold them. I did not ask Merkur or Muhle or Edwin Jagger or iKon or Weber to take them back and send me a different razor. I would not expect Muhle to exchange an R41 for an R89 any more than I'd expect a gun shop to exchange a Ruger Superblackhawk for another revolver because "This kicks too much!" Try that at most gun shops, and you won't get a very understanding reply...

Click to expand...

When did the OP demand ​the razor be exchanged? He simply asked a question.

I don't see the logic that you get to try various razors at Ikon's expense because you paid for one. And you didn't even buy it directly from them, this should have been Maggard's problem. If you've kept it for more than 2 days, dump it on the used market and eat the small difference, like everybody else.