Complaint Review: MATILDA'S MOUSE ANTIQUES - Valley Center San Diego California

I have been coming up to Matilda's Mouse in Valley Center, since the Fall of 2012.  I rarely miss an invitation date.  I look forward to each month and what new surprises it will bring.  The funny thing is, they have never taken anything I am considering buying, out of my hand.  The women are throughout the barn to help you if needed, and once you have a few things in your hands, will politely ask, would you like me to put that up front for you?  You have the option of saying, "No thank you, I'm still debating on these items,"  or "Yes please, I want to buy these and aren't finished looking around."  I have given both of these answers, without any problems. 

When I have finished and come up to the counter to pay, never have my items been already wrapped.  They get them out of my cubbyhole number, put them on the counter in front of me, then begin the process of putting their number or price into the computer, then wrapping them up for travel.  It is now Sept. of 2014, and they are still following these procedures. I buy a list of things each month, and have also enjoyed some of their big pieces of furniture, which look amazing in my house.

I have seen flower arrangements on display, inside watering cans, etc.  One I considered buying for a while, but decided the colors weren't quite right for my room, went up to the counter and asked to be able to put it back out for sale. There was no problem & it wasn't wrapped up. They happily put it back out for me. I love the profuse and different furniture pieces they get in each month, unlike antique malls who have little difference in each booth everytime I go. In antique malls, many items on display that I want to buy have NFS written on their price tags, which I learned stands for, Not For Sale. This is very frustrating. I have not found this to be the case up @ Matilda's Mouse.  In my opinion, if you listen to these 2 complaints made way back in 2012, and skip the trip up to Matilda's Mouse, you have been cheated out of a very plesant and fun outing.

  I took my 80 year old Mother in law, Pat, to Matilda's Mouse antique sale yesterday. While there Pat found a cute little flower arrangement in a brown pot with a price tag that read $22.00. Nothing else was written on the tag. A sales person took the flower arrangement to the front to hold for her. 

  Later, when we went to the counter to pay, I scanned the hold area for Pat's flower arrangement and didn't see it. After inquiring, the sales person brought over a plain little pot and said the flower arrangement wasn't included. This was not a vase with some flowers thrown in to show what could be done with it. This had been a full little flower arrangement with spanish moss, etc.

  Pat was upset and disappointed and wanted to pay more money to buy the flower arrangement, but the clerk said no. I felt so bad for my Mother in law, I vehimently protested such meanness and deception. I was told by the clerk that they do this all the time and they simply don't have time to mark the pieces that aren't included with each displayed item. 

 Luckily the item hadn't been wrapped yet or Pat would have gotten home with only a portion of what she thought she was paying for. She didn't buy the empty pot. This bait and switch tactic of displaying a product in one form and then stripping the item once behind the counter is just wrong. As the previous complaint stated, they often wrap the item before the customer sees what they have done. 

  Matilda is a cute dog and the property is beautiful, but that doesn't excuse fraudulent business practices or taking advantage of trusting people. Shame on you Matilda's Mouse Antiques!







    













    

Matilda's Mouse Antiques is a once monthly barn sale.  Customers line up an hour before opening to be one of the first to shop on our Friday morning opening. The barn is crazy with customers! In order to serve our customers, we approach them when their hands are full and ask them if they would like to have their items taken up front for them.  If they are not sure about their purchase, they tell us so and we do not take their items. If they are sure, we take them up front and place them on shelves with their name.  Because of the volume on Fridays we enter the items in the computer and wrap them and place them in bags, to help move the long check out lines faster. If a customer changes their mind on an item, they can tell us and we will remove it from their bag and invoice.

If a shopper is not happy about shopping in crowds and does not like our attempts to serve customers by being proactive to solve the long check out lines, they should come on Saturday or Sunday when the shop is much less crowded and customers items are not rung up and packaged as they are brought up to the counter.  We are only trying to be considerate of our customers time.