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Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/11 14:25Anyone ever deal with Green Beanery? Well I did and it was a huge waste of my time. I decided (with the great help of Colin) to go with the Silvia and also convinced a cousin and an uncle to join me and purchase one also. In total I was in the market for 3 machines and 3 grinders. So I decided to call GB up and ask if they would give me a discount considering I'm buying 3 machines and 3 grinders. I spoke to a woman there and I asked if they could give me a deal and she said "Oh I think we can do something for you but I'll have to ask my boss..and I'll call you back later". So I was happy to hear that I might get a deal, so I patiently waited and yet no call back. I called back 2 days later and asked again. She replied again, I have to ask my boss and call you back. I wait again and again and again. Finally almost a whole work week later I get a response...."Sorry but no we can't do anything with the price." Now I'm pissed. First they say yes and then after waiting so long they say no. But the reason I am mad is not because they didn't give me a deal, I would have paid full price, it's because they made me wait so long to respond with a no after they said they could. But the real hair across my arse is that now espressotec (who I wanted to buy it originally from)has now sold out and now I have to wait god only knows how long to get my silvia and grinder. Anywho....sorry for the rant. Just thought I'd warn you folks about my experience with GB. Don't get me started on Gaggia House either. LOL
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colin
Admin Admin
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Re:Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/11 19:22Dom1183 wrote: Anyone ever deal with Green Beanery?
I actually visited Green Beanery while in Toronto a year ago -- Now THAT was an odd visit!Colin is the Senior editor and creator of the CoffeeCrew.Com Website
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delgesu
User Coffee Lover
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Re:Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/11 19:26I just dealt with Green Beanery for the first time last week, and have nothing but good things to say about the experience.
Through a lot of research from this site and others, I ended up getting a Silvia, and a Rocky grinder. When you go to checkout on their website, you will notice a few goodies, such as the stainless steel base ($125 value) gets thrown in for free. While you're at it, you can also get a deal on an RB Tamper on top of that.
Have a look at their website, you will notice that they are not your typical retailer, and what they do with their profits are commendable...
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caffiend
User Senior Barista
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Re:Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/11 19:52I would try www.caffetech.com. I think they're located in Edmonton. That's where my Silvia came from (well packed and in good working order, BTW). I believe they are affiliated in some way with Chriscoffee.com in the States. They often have specials, so maybe they can make you a quantity deal. Also, I think shipping is included in the price on larger orders (over $150?).
I just picked up a Rocky from Greenbeanery about 10 days ago to go with the beautiful new Silvia my fabulously awesome girlfriend gave me for Xmas (I'm still beaming...). Quite the place indeed. If you didn't know it was there you'd never spot it. Tried to get them to throw in a pound of espresso beans with the grinder but no dice. Don't feel too badly about it as it is a not-for-profit organization after all.
I was originally going to go for a Maestro Plus, but after getting a chance to fondle all of the shiny grinders they had on site, I went with Rocky. Was really impressed by the extra heft. (Actually, it was all I could do not to break the bank on one of the Macap's they had..)
Anyway. Really enjoying the Silvia/Rocky combo so far. I think both are plenty for (and probably exceed) my espresso/coffee needs. Hope your quest for Silvia improves.
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Zazenmaster
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Re:Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/11 20:47I think you have to cut Green Beanery some slack because they are after all a non-profit organization devoted to third world development.
It's a little harder to grant discounts when you know in the back of your mind that it means that somebody has to wait a bit longer for clean water or a decent school for their kids.
From a global perspective, we must consider ourselves fortunate to have enough disposable income to buy toys like espresso machines and grinders.
Robb
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Dom1183
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Re:Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/12 09:36I just wanted to know if the Rancilio combo you received is the new style Silvia with new drip tray and POD attachment. They told me they didn't have it and you couldn't get the combo with the new style. Please let me know.
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Dom1183
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Re:Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/12 09:44I understand that's it's a non profit org but as I stated in my rant I wasn't angry at the fact that they took a week to say no and wasted my time and now I'm stuck waiting on Espressotec until they have them in stock again...I would have paid full price, in fact I was just asking and thought they would say no anyway. Regardless...non-profit or for profit, service should not be compromised. I don't mind paying the full price but I better get quality service at the very least. Otherwise what's the point. I'd rather pay more and get good service.
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colin
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Re:Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/12 11:02Zazenmaster wrote: I think you have to cut Green Beanery some slack because they are after all a non-profit organization devoted to third world development.
Robb
If only -
From what I hear, they offer "International warranty" on everything they sell...
That means: If your Silvia breaks, you ship it back to Italy.
If they are really a non-profit, why are they selling espresso machines and going head to head with businesses in Canada that are trying to make a living selling and supporting espresso machines locally.
Anyway - correct me if I am wrong. Just read the fine print.Colin is the Senior editor and creator of the CoffeeCrew.Com Website
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Dom1183
User Senior Barista
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Re:Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/12 11:36Well you had the balls to say what I was thinking and I commend you for that. Sounds like a business just like all the others but with terrible service.
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Zazenmaster
User Zen Master
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Re:Green Beanery Rant - 2007/01/12 12:31You might as well ask why the girl guides are selling cookies and going up against legitimate cookie retailers. Because it's a fund-raiser! Do you ask girl guides how much discount you get if you buy three boxes? Of course not.
Yes they could have been better organized, but non-profit often rely on volunteers with more enthusiasm than ability. You can't expect them to meet the same standards as a for-profit company.
And Colin, if you have any reason to suspect that Green Beanery's non-profit shtick is a scam of some kind, I'd like to hear it.
Robb
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