Jerry's Artarama‎

The customer service is terrible. They made a mistake in the billing (entered my address wrong), cancelled the order and refused to help at any point, continually saying it was the bank's fault, my fault... everyone but theirs. Even after I sent them screen shots of my credit card statement, they insisted the sale had never gone through. Even if it were not their fault, I would expect they would help resolve the issue. Instead I had to call them multiple times (waiting for an interminable amount of time each call because they take forever) and was just told that it is my problem and I'd have to cancel the charges and go through and redo my order if I wanted it. They definitely need some training in customer service, as a little bit of kindness and at least an attempt to help can go a long way.

Do not use Jerry's Artarama. Use Utrecht or Blick Art. I recently purchased #10 and #16 oil brushes. Upon receiving, I was shocked how small these brushes were compared to my other brand brushes of the same sizes. I wanted to return because of the unacceptable small size. They wouldn't provide a return label. They kept on saying that manufacturers can make whatever they want and label them as whatever sizes. Obviously, they make the price cheap for Artarama but send items that are not up to standard. So many Artarama products are like that. If the price seems good, be aware. Compare the three #10 brushes. The smallest one is from Artarama. They will send you sub-standard items.

Ordered an H easel. Arrived in flimsy punctured box. Had predrilled holes that had ripped the wood. One screw put in sideways and curled to a C. A crossbar with split wood. Screws too short to effectively join the parts. So, I called the day it was received and asked them about their 30 day guarantee. I had to prove my claim with photos. They agreed to refund, but they claim they need to have the use of my money for up to an additional week. Don't trust the reviews on their website. They offer a lottery for a big gift card and tell those with negative reviews to call customer service. They have so many competitors, I don't know why anyone would use them.

Ordered 5x7 panels, were shipped with a package and they were all damaged because of how they were packaged. They are cheap as can be and between calling emailing and they say a refund is coming. That would be close to 4 weeks of getting my money back if it even shows on my credit card in 2 weeks. And no email letting me know whats going on. I have to hound them, call, call, call and check my credit card statements myself. Seriously, I will never order from there again.

I have been a Good Customer for years. But This time was the last time. It says on thier site That it is free shipping with $35 or more. I placed a 300 order they chared me shipping sale prices were wrong as well i got charged full Price. So i called an WOW the service sucks. Very Rude Not Helpful at all i got charge full Price Plus Shipping because they said i had a PO BOx as part of my address UMM i had my Physical address listed an really its the same Ship it to me label i have Used for Years. I Love Wilson Bickford Products but from now on ill go directly through him. This Was so On called For!

Jerrys has been my go to to order oil painting supplies for at least twenty years. They noticed I was not ordering anymore and sent me a coupon. No thank you! I know what I want and what brand and size but have to hunt all over the place and scroll a million miles. Sometimes the buttons work sometimes they do not. To pay can be a hassle too. Too many buttons, too much pushing of poor quality junk. Too exhausting to shop this chaotic mess. SFK

I was on the site shopping to place my first order after receiving a promotional discount coupon. I had several items in my cart that were advertised for $1 or $2 to try out the product. When I went to checkout, everything from that promotion had gone up 25 cents. I understand its not much, but it was not what was advertised and I had a set amount to spend and this took me a few dollars over. I tried to email Jerry's and got an error message twice so I started a live chat. I informed Lex what had happened and that I checked on their home page and the ad still said everything should be $1 or $2. She apologized and said marketing was in the process of changing the prices and there was nothing she could do to fix it. I told her it didn't make for a very good first experience, but I understood.
Fast forward a few hours later. I open my email and apparently my original email that gave me the error message went through and someone had replied to me saying I was mistaken because the ad on the home page now said $1.25 and $2.25 for buy it/ try it products. I replied that I had already spoken to someone and I didn't appreciate being treated like I was reading things wrong and that there were at least two more ad spots on their site that still said $1 and $2. The answer I got was basically an apology for answering my email since I had already been handled and that she'd let marketing know about the discrepancy. There is still currently at least one spot on their site that has the incorrect pricing. I ended up placing a significantly smaller order because there were two items that were priced significantly lower than anywhere else I found. That is the only reason I gave them two stars. Most products were exactly the same as $#*! blick's website so I placed the majority of my order with them and even for small price increases, I would choose to shop somewhere else in the future.

Very, very bad customer service. I ordered six floater frames online and received three incorrect sized floater frames and three correct sized floater frames. I also ordered three wood panels at the same time and they all arrive in the correct size, but some of the corners were blunted, and chipped a little bit. However, I kept the panels, but could not use the incorrect sized floater frames. I called back the next day and was put on hold and had to listen to the recording for a long time, but finally got through to a customer service guy and explained in detail what I ordered (I gave him the order number, etc.) and what I received instead. He said he would send me the correct frames and I could return the incorrect frames in the same box with the provided return label. So far, just one evenings work ruined because I didn't have the correct materials -- but here is the unbelievable part. He sent me an invoice for the new stuff he was sending me (no charge) but he sent me three wood panels instead of the frames! I never mentioned the wood panels during the entire conversation with this person -- I am infuriated and will never, never, use these idiots again as long as I live. Please God no don't let me ever go there. To say that my day has been ruined is an understatement. I have a show and now who knows when I'll get this straightened out with these people.

I had purchased an e-gift card for a friend over the weekend, but she never received it after several hours. Unfortunately customer service was closed by the time I contacted on Saturday night, and I was not feeling very hopeful about getting the issue resolved quickly. I sent a message on the website to their customer service, and left a voicemail. Both were responded to by Monday morning. They worked with me to send the card to another email for the recipient, and it arrived to her within minutes of the customer service rep telling me it had been sent! I was not optimistic because of the reviews here, but I felt I should come back and share my positive experience, and let everyone know that they can resolve your issue fairly quickly. And if it happens over the weekend, it might take a little extra time, but they were very responsive in helping me resolve this problem.

I can't say enough good about this art supply company-they ship quickly and pack well-this is a great place for those who teach art classes as I do-quantity discounts are amazing and they have frequent special sales promotions-I have talked to their people on the phone in case of a problem-they are terrific-they have almost everything in art supplies-the website is easy to search if you remember its HUGE-I love them and to me they are far above $#*! Blick and others-hard to beat Jerry's prices and service

I would strongly recommend Cheap Joe's over Jerry's Artarama. This is why:

*the website is slow and even if you delete a product don't assume it's been deleted at checkout. Returns are very costly

*i ordered linen canvases and received the wrong ones. The packages were badly damaged. They will not accept online returns at the stores; yet charge you for return postage. For instance a $26 purchase costs $19 to return! Bull$#*!!

*A 1 1/2" linen canvas is $42.00 in the store; online it is $16. Same item!

They do not apply discount codes for exchanges and you are paying full current price for exchange. You also pay return postage which can cost more than the product

I strongly urge artists to go elsewhere to buy supplies. Until financial pressure is put on this business they will continue to put the customer last

Web site was clunky, I ended up ordering an item that I did not want, and when I removed it from my cart, it did not work. I already had the item.

I sent an email 15 minutes after the order, no one responded.

I called during business hours and no one picked up.

Someone finally responded AFTER I posted an online review on their site. They blocked my review because it was critical of my customer service experience. By that time, the product had shipped.

How reasonable is this? I would say -- not at all.

Products are great, and prices are the lowest I have found anywhere. I've been a happy customer for years.

Recently, I bought 5 plein air frames (a wonderful product which I like because of its rich gold finish). They are sturdily built but arrived damaged from abnormally rough treatment somewhere along the line. Jerry's replaced them quickly, with good cheer -- never any hassles with them.

Jerry's did not ask me to write this review -- I just want to reward their excellent customer service. I've never had any complaints.

I ordered some clay shaper tools from them that I couldn't find elsewhere. I paid double for "UPS premium shipping." This wasn't clearly explained on the website at all, but I had the impression it would get my stuff here faster, seeing as it was premium and all. My stuff has taken over a week so far, and it's supposed to be here tomorrow - but UPS has no idea where it is. It was last seen halfway across the country, and I highly doubt it will be here tomorrow. Very disappointed with the slowness of the shipping after paying extra to get it here faster. Emailed customer service about this twice with NO reply. I won't buy from this company again.

I never thought Id be writing this kind of review about Jerrys Artarama. I have been frequent purchaser on their web site for several years. I am a semi-professional photographer and they have been my go-to source for matting and framing supplies for a long time. Historically, their prices, selection, and service has been first class. Even back ordered items were shipped within a reasonable time and phone customer service was very good. Then apparently something went terribly wrong within this organization in the past six months. Let me explain.

In the fall of 2015 I was invited to exhibit a dozen of my framed photographs in a major exhibition to be held in late April 2016. I know this would be lots of work to pull together so I placed a sizable order for materials on November 13,2016. Some of the items were delivered just fine and others were back ordered until later that month and mid-December. The back order dates kept moving back until mid-February 2016. In January, I called and arranged for Jerrys to hold onto the items until I returned from travel in mid-March since I could not be at the delivery address until my return. They were very agreeable.

When I returned on mid-March I phoned to arrange delivery and was told that the order had been mistakenly canceled and the items were still back ordered. What followed was a litany of confusion, and several frustrating calls. At various times I was told that these items were back ordered, that two were in the warehouse, and that many were in the warehouse. Typically, I was told that the customer service staff could not make sense of the discrepancy of what was on their computer and what actually seemed to be in house. Most calls involved a long wait while the service reps called supervisors and others in the company. Almost all ended with an admission of error and promise to find out the status. While all service reps were friendly and reassuring, the problem just never seemed to get solved. I was promised return calls four times. Only two calls were returned and those were by Akesha (sp?) who finally figured it all out, called me twice with updates, and finally got the order shipped. Thank you Akesha, you were wonderful.

But the problems did not end there! When I got the billing receipt for the last shipment, the amount billed was 33% higher than when it was first ordered in November 2015! So, yet another call to Jerrys. The service rep offered only a store credit, not a refund. It took her two consultations with her supervisor and my threat to send the delivery right back to them to finally get a refund.

The last shipment arrived on April 4,2016, almost five months and countless calls after the order was placed. Now I am really pressed to get the prints prepared for the exhibition in time thanks to Jerrys.

So, what more can I say? The experience was miserable and I dont have any idea what happened to this previously smooth functioning organization. New management, systems, personnel? Who knows, but for those who choose to count on Jerrys Artarama web site for your artistic needs, especially if you need things sooner than five months out, be forewarned that it will likely be a very frustrating experience and you will have to be extremely vigilant and persistent. This experience has turned me from a satisfied longtime loyal volume customer into an embittered review writer. Ill be looking elsewhere to meet my matting and framing needs.