I’ll repeat posting the link I just posted for the thread about a lowlife barn contractor.
You might want to post on ripoffreport.com about your disastrous contract, too. 
[QUOTE=riopony;7928564]
I will also state that when Colleen came out she did tell me that my horse was hard to fit (high withered TB) and that she was the only one that could do it. [/QUOTE]
I guess she is just a one-trick pony.
When I saw this thread was at 11 pages I got all giddy that we had house guests. You all disappointed me.
On behalf of Adam Ellis Saddles;
I wish to confirm that Adam Ellis Saddles have corresponded with regards to this case, whereby a customer of Advance pd Saddle Fit has expressed concern pertaining to the customer service which she has received.
Adam Ellis Saddles do not employ any employee or director of Advance Saddle Fit and they remain an independent stockist of Adam Ellis Saddles.
Adam Ellis Saddles are Great British saddlemakers of high quality handcrafted genuine English saddles. We take our reputation and customer care extremely seriously and are extremely disappointed to hear of this incident and are continuing to try and resolve this matter with the stockist in question.
On behalf of Adam Ellis Saddles I wish to confirm that distribution and production of saddles from our workshop has continued to grow globally with stockists receiving their orders in a timely fashion. The issues raised in this case do not relate in any way to our production times.
Payments to our company are made by the stockists once they have received their order. However; following this incident we will be reconsider this arrangement for some stockists.
Adam Ellis Saddles welcome any direct enquiries with regards to this or any other matter pertaining to orders made to stockists. We will endeavour to assist in any way possible.
Kind regards,
Adam Ellis.
Obiwan, I had the same experience. I hope the saddle still fits when you actually get it. Mine didn’t but I was stuck with it anyhow. (:
I don’t know if she’s pocketing money, and I wouldn’t outright call her a criminal.
Here’s an easy test: has she given back your $2k? Yes, not a criminal. No, criminal.
Had it been me, I would have told her I was selling her demo saddle to recoup my $2k.
[QUOTE=AdamEllisSaddles;7943855]
On behalf of Adam Ellis Saddles;
I wish to confirm that Adam Ellis Saddles have corresponded with regards to this case, whereby a customer of Advance pd Saddle Fit has expressed concern pertaining to the customer service which she has received.
Adam Ellis Saddles do not employ any employee or director of Advance Saddle Fit and they remain an independent stockist of Adam Ellis Saddles.
Adam Ellis Saddles are Great British saddlemakers of high quality handcrafted genuine English saddles. We take our reputation and customer care extremely seriously and are extremely disappointed to hear of this incident and are continuing to try and resolve this matter with the stockist in question.
On behalf of Adam Ellis Saddles I wish to confirm that distribution and production of saddles from our workshop has continued to grow globally with stockists receiving their orders in a timely fashion. The issues raised in this case do not relate in any way to our production times.
Payments to our company are made by the stockists once they have received their order. However; following this incident we will be reconsider this arrangement for some stockists.
Adam Ellis Saddles welcome any direct enquiries with regards to this or any other matter pertaining to orders made to stockists. We will endeavour to assist in any way possible.
Kind regards,
Adam Ellis.[/QUOTE]
Thank you Mr Ellis. I don’t think anyone was finding you at fault for the actions of this stockist-which I assume is Britspeak for sales rep, which is what many so called fitters really are.
Thank you, Mr. Ellis. I think you have cleared up some questions. 
[QUOTE=AdamEllisSaddles;7943855]
… The issues raised in this case do not relate in any way to our production times.
…
Kind regards,
Adam Ellis.[/QUOTE]
It’s a bit buried in the message, but I take this as the key point. I read this as an Adam Ellis saddle has a predictable turnaround time. Any time over and above that is not due to production, it’s due to other issues outside of the saddlemaker’s production.
No, I think Mr. Ellis is saying she is NOT a sales rep. In the US, a sales rep represents one brand at a time, usually on commission. The sales rep has a direct relationship with the producing company, even if they are contracted and compensated in a way that means they aren’t employees. The customer makes payment to the name of the producing company, not to the name of the sales rep. The sales rep enables/connects the purchase but does not sell in their own name.
I believe I understand that the OP made her payment to the name of the saddle fitter. I believe that’s what Mr. Ellis means by “stockist” - a retailer who stocks his saddles and may also stock other brands. That relationship shifts responsibility for the customer from the producer to the retailer.
Had payment been made out to Adam Ellis this issue could not have occurred because the seller - the saddle fitter - would have no access to those funds. The saddle fitter would have handed the check over to Adam Ellis, and Adam Ellis would have paid a commission. Then it is up to the producer to deliver. That is a sales rep relationship. But that’s not what was described.
An illustration is a boot store that sells more than one brand of boots. You can go to The Local Boot Store and buy Tredstep, Ariat or Mountain Horse … that’s what this saddle fitter is doing, as I understood the posts. In the more formal boot store example, different sales reps from each of the manufacturers place boots with the retailers - an Ariat sales rep, a Tredstep sales rep, etc.
But in the case in this thread there is no sales rep, just the retailer (saddle fitter) who prefers selling the Adam Ellis brand, but does not have a contractual representation to promote only that brand, or to channel sales directly to Adam Ellis for a commission. As long as payments are made out to her name she is not a sales rep, she is the retail seller. That puts sole responsibility on her to deliver or make it right.
In this case she isn’t stocking a premises, she is making custom-fitted sales and then placing the order with the producer to fulfill them. That’s ok as long as the customer has a realistic delivery time frame and the retailer keeps the process moving timely.
I doubt it is clear to the customer what the relationship is - and that should be a concern for the producer. In this case the customer who buys an Adam Ellis saddle may be focusing on the Adam Ellis name as much or more than on the retailer.
IMO if a retailer is doing badly by a producer’s name, it is the producer’s responsibility to protect their name AND their end-use customers by clearly, publicly severing their relationship with the retailer. This protects the customer who relies on the producer’s name. Sounds like this retailer is saying things (and posting things on FB) to encourage placing blame on the producer and deflect it from themselves. And continuing to place more customers in jeopardy - customers who are relying on the Adam Ellis name. Just my point of view from what is posted in this thread.
I wish Mr. Ellis all the best in his business. Saw some photos of beautiful saddles from him - wish he were located closer to me!
You know, after all of this, if I were in the market for a saddle, I’d definitely look at the Adam Ellis saddles, just not through Advanced Saddle Fit
[QUOTE=NJRider;7923734]
http://www.bbb.org/concord/business-reviews/saddle-fitters/advanced-saddle-fit-in-marlborough-nh-92016249/complaints#breakdown[/QUOTE]
Wow. Just, wow.
[QUOTE=mvp;7927995]
I didn’t get it.
Don’t make a joke in public about a professional who is already on the ropes, ok? This is someone trying to make a living. The pile-on stops being funny when it’s messing with someone’s business.[/QUOTE]
When the “pile-on” is a direct result and consequence of the “professional’s” own actions, color me unsympathetic in the extreme. 
[QUOTE=eventing78;7929110]
My question to Adams email is why did he still take orders after this. I just found out a friend ordered a saddle in September. Why would he still be taking orders from her. 2 months after yours. When yours should have been done when this new order was sent in.[/QUOTE]
The houseguest puts in an appearance.
Has anyone had any recent experiences with Advanced Saddle Fit. I’ve just had a very distasteful one where my saddle order was delivered completely wrong; the order was replaced but I put it on hold within three days of the order going into England; then cancelled the order. Now she’s trying to charge me a 20% restocking fee for a non-existent saddle. She has over $4000 of my money. I’m beside myself as it is a much longer story that what I’m posting here…she was instrumental in my refusing another custom made saddle that I’d just received and losing my deposit on that saddle, in order to sell me a saddle that though the tree was correct for my horse, tore my hips apart (I had a loaner), which is why I cancelled the order - I was in so much pain I was about to give up riding.
Why post her personal fb page? That’s not called for here. Geez.
Spanish_dq,
Very sorry to hear [edit].
Most of her behavior is described accurately in this 18 month, ongoing COTH forum tribute to a woman who has sweet talked and ignored customers for several years.
Things to know about Colleen and Advanced Saddle Fit:
-
she knows you have a lot of money to spend and will part with it readily for a saddle
-
she has years of experience and no one else can fit a saddle as well. You will hear this incessantly.
-
she doesn’t respond to communication from you after she has your money unless there are fees she wants
-
she will not assist you in an manner after you receive the saddle (if you receive it at all);not warranty issues, fitting problems, etc.
I had a warranty issue with an Albion I ordered through her. I called her 50 times at least and left messages. Finally, when she figured out I was going to keep calling, her husband took my call and informed me that Colleen was not going to be responsible for any saddle issues. “Call the manufacturer’s rep” …“Click”
I highly recommend spending another 10-15% and serve/sue her in small claims court with the aid of an attorney.
Beware and be scared. She has a lot of experience in supplying bad business practices.
Good Luck!
Eridere, unless my information is a few years out of date (and it may be, you would have to check) Dutchess Bridle and Saddle of New York is the only Albion certified warranty shop in the United States. I should know because I have five of them and they have all been to her for fitting, and one did indeed have a warranty issue which she resolved. The service has always been done for me in a timely manner and they have gone above and beyond for me, and most recently my trainer with another make of saddle. I’ve been played by several fitters previously and they are now the only shop I’ll use. It’s a pain to take my own tracings and ship the saddles back and forth between Illinois and New York but has been worth it to me for more than ten years now.
I’m going to give her a few days to respond to my demand and if she doesn’t make me whole, I’m going to post here the complete story of her master manipulation of me. I will take her to Small Claims if she doesn’t make this right. I’ve disputed the charges with the credit card company, but I have a feeling they end up siding with merchants and will take her word over mine. Has anyone here heard of AST saddles? Apparently three independent saddlers that were to make my saddle. One is named Adam and my understanding the AST stands for the first initial of each saddlers name. I want to try to reach them as my order was cancelled within three days of it going in to them. She told me at most, they’d cut the leather. The saddle was never made but I want confirmation from them. I wonder if the order ever went in.
Last October, two saddlers came to our farm - Custom Saddlery and Colleen. I was starting to buy from Custom and took a look at what Advanced Saddle Fit/Colleen Meyer had. I decided against going with her back in October because it was obvious that everything she was selling was a wide twist. I’ve ALWAYS needed a narrow twist and prefer a monoflap because it gives me a closer contact with my horse. However, I now have a new PRE stallion who is VERY round and flat front to back. I did want him to be comfortable. So, I got caught up in the bling and designer aspect of Custom Saddlery and ordered from that fitter. I waited three months to get that saddle. It WAS a work of art - just gorgeous, but didn’t remotely fit my horse- rocked around on his back - the tree was all wrong for a horse like mine. However, before I could have the Custom Saddlery fitter back to look at it, on the day I got it, Colleen Meyer was at my barn fitting other horse. She looked at it and in no uncertain terms pronounced it an absolute disaster, told me that there was nothing the Custom Saddlery fitter could ever do to make that thoroughbred tree fit my flat, front to back, horse. I had a 10 day trial on the Custom Saddlery and what I knew to be at risk was my $500 non-refundable deposit and my fitting fee - about $650 altogether. With Colleen’s forceful opinion twisting up my thoughts, I never gave the Custom Saddlery fitter even a chance to fit that saddle to my horse, never even had her out. And naturally that very same day that Colleen trashed that saddle, she proceeded to sell me one of hers - one built on a cob tree, but a twin flap. I rode in the demo for all of 10 minutes and found it to be okay. I was impressed with how good my horse felt in that tree and I was convinced I was doing the right thing, completely forgetting my history in wide trees and twin flap saddles; swept up in Colleen’s conviction that it is ALL about the tree and the horse has to be comfortable first and foremost. I believed in her. To be sure, she also proceeded to trash the saddle that I had at the time - a $5700 2 year old custom made Schleese Link II. She not only trashed the saddle and how they are made, she trashed the tree and Jochen Schleese (I’ve had 3 of his saddles and I believe in him and the research that has gone into how he makes his saddles). But she cast doubt in my mind, nonetheless, to ensure that I didn’t back out of buying a saddle from her. My Link never gave me or my horse a moment’s trouble - I’d just gotten caught up in the designer aspect of the new saddles coming onto the market, which is the only reason I began to cast my eye around at other saddle.
So in February, after returning the Custom Saddlery Advantage R to the fitter and encouraged to take the the hit for $650 on that saddle, I ordered an AST Novio (three independent saddlers making this saddle on a cob tree - I can’t find them anywhere on the internet so don’t know who to contact in order to find them). After a two month wait, it came in April, but I was given the wrong saddle. Colleen delivered a saddle that I hadn’t ordered - wrong leather, wrong color trim, missing the patent leather in the front, though it had it in the back; utterly different saddle from what I’d ordered. I was stunned when she handed it to me and I uncovered it. Other than it being a MW - it wasn’t the saddle I ordered. She didn’t get defensive, she actually got huffy with me and took the saddle from me when I said “this isn’t the saddle I ordered”. That’s when she said “I’ll give you ALL your money back or you can keep this as a loaner while I get you your correct saddle made.” She said that she was going the extra mile to make me whole. I didn’t know what to do at the time…so I was rather cowed by her and went along with her. I didn’t feel I had any choice at the time.
At the same time, a barnmate had wanted to buy my Schleese Link II. During that same visit in April, Colleen (who knew my barnmate wanted my Link) talked her out of it, trashing the saddle, and proceeded to sell her one of her saddles. I had told Colleen the day before that I had a buyer in the barn for my saddle; she told me I was a good customer and she wouldn’t sell this person on one of her saddles. Nonetheless the next day, she not only talked her out of my saddle, but trashed it and sold her one of hers - okay that’s a side story - but goes to character.
So I ride in the “loaner” for three days and immediately send her a text telling her to put my order on hold; that I was experiencing horrible hip pain and didn’t know if I could ride in that wide twist. I went through all the things that people talked about on Chronicle about her - “your horse is difficult to fit and only I can fit him; he needs a cob tree; you, as the rider, just need to suck it up!” I’m a senior rider, but a very active lifelong rider all my life, but I’m sorry flexibility is something that leaves you as you get older. I tried using a foam roller, stretches, pain killers, everything. In sum, I put the new order on hold within three days of the new order being written and totally cancelled the ordeer a couple of weeks later because it was clear to me that I was not going to be able to ride in this saddle. I don’t even know for sure if the order was actually in. We spoke numerous times and I know that the manufacture of my saddle had been stopped and the most that had been done is the leather cut (according to her own words).
After chasing her for three weeks, with no response, I finally got a refund check. I had paid her $4,025 and my refund check was for $3,160 with a memo line reading “less 20% restocking fee.”
For her to charge me a 20% restocking fee for a non-existent saddle is dishonest. I received the wrong saddle; the second order was put on hold within three days, so saddle wasn’t in production. I’ve given her a chance to make this right, but have had no response from her. I won’t take this sitting down. Because of Colleen’s manipulation, I’m out a total of $1500 (the forfeited deposit on the Custom Saddlery saddle of $650 and now she’s trying to take another $900 as a “restocking fee”. She’s sold a lot of saddles at our farm. I’m not going to take this quietly.
I’ve disputed the charges with my credit card company and will not cash her check. If the credit card company doesn’t rule on my side, I will take this to Small Claims. I’m not going to let her ruin my life any more than she’s already down. She’s despicable. And I’m furious that she would have the nerve to do this to me under the circumstances.
1 Like
Wow, this woman sounds like such a shyster. The kind of person who could sell ice to an eskimo. I hope you get your money back, Spanish!
