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So we thought we'd heard it all—every Missoni for Target order-gone-wrong, randomly canceled, delayed for months, completely messed up. Turns out, we were wrong. There's more, and it's awful.
We've received countless emails from angry Target customers who are vowing never to shop Target again following the Missoni for Target launch day palaver—downed sites, an up-down-up-down mobile site, a broken phone ordering system—but some of the ones we're including (after the jump) really take the cake.
Check out this story, from an angry shopper whose bank account was charged $1,000 for her Missoni for Target order—for an order Target's claiming was never placed. Wow. And she's not alone—there's more after the jump.
Is this the worst Missoni for Target web-order horror story yet? You be the judge:
I live in Los Angeles, and I was counting down the hours until the website went live. I knew that the odds were slim of getting much from going to the store, especially in L.A., so I decided I was going to preemptively order online. I got up in the middle of the night, at 3 a.m., to place my order. The site was live, and almost everything was still in stock. I was super excited that I had managed to get in on the ground floor and get almost all of the items I wanted.And she's not alone. Another Target shopper who contacted us says that she's had to take up her $678 charge with her credit card company:I went ahead and placed my order for about $1,000 worth of merchandise. Now, I've never sold anything from Target on eBay, I just really like Missoni and I had saved up for this. Ironically the site would not let me use my Target card, so I had to pay with my bank card. I paid and got a confirmation screen, which I printed, and then I received a confirmation email. I even checked my banking website and my card had been charged. Victory was mine! Or so I thought. About an hour later, I was about to go back to sleep when I realized I should have gotten two of some items as gifts, so I went back online to check my order. It wasn't there. There was no order listed on my account screen. At this point the site was starting to get slower (i.e. busier) and I was getting worried about availability as a lot of items were now listed as out of stock. I called Target customer service, and after 45 minutes was connected to someone in India. I explained the situation and he told me that since their system was connected to the online system and both systems were down, there was no way for him to check the status of my order.
I asked to be transferred to a supervisor, who told me the same thing. He said there are actually two different systems, something called a "pre-order" system, and then the system that is connected to the online system (I think I got that right.) He said that the online traffic had crashed the site (that's right, I'd been on the phone so long stores were now OPEN on the east coast) and that there was no way to tell what was happening with my order. Then he hung up on me.
I watched in dismay as every single item I purchased sold out, without any way of accessing the site to place another order. My fiance and I went to the stores that morning, and everything I had wanted was gone. I attempted to call Target repeatedly throughout the week, and each time was told that they couldn't access the system. Finally, I spent an hour and a half on the phone yesterday afternoon, with a guy who was able to locate my order in the "pre-order" system, but explained that for whatever reason, the order had never been placed (wha?) and he would go ahead and re-submit the order. He put me on hold and checked the stock and assured me that while some of my items "might be delayed" I should eventually receive all of the things in my order. When he went to process my order, the system "gave him an error" and he said he had to transfer me to someone who could process it. At which point I was cut off... of course.
I called once more—because hell, at this point, it's the principle of the thing—and after half an hour of holding and searching a woman told me she had located my order in the "pre-order" system but could not process it. Again she transferred me to someone who could. In theory. I had to brief the guy on my ENTIRE order saga, and he said he had located my order and would—COULD—submit it for me. At this point I'm thinking that finally, I'll get my stuff. After ten more minutes of holding, he returns and says that he's checked the stock on my order, and that there is no more stock in the company or online, and thus he would be unable to fulfill my order and therefore he could not re-submit it for me.
He then suggested I "call the stores in my area."
In one week, I've now spent the equivalent of an entire workday on the phone with Target. I pointed out to him that I was a loyal shopper and Target card member, and that I had gotten up in the middle of the night to place my order to ensure I received my items, and that now, for whatever reason, people who placed their orders WELL after I did (days later, when the site went back up) would receive their items while I would get nothing. I reminded him that I had an order confirmation—and, unlike others, I never received an email that it had been delayed or canceled—and we had the following exchange:
"If we don't have the item in stock you aren't able to order it."
"So obviously you DID have it in stock, because I WAS able to order it. AND I got a confirmation."
"Well, we can't fulfill it now."
"Why didn't you fulfill it then?"
[silence]
"So for all my dedication, and time, and trouble, and inconvenience, I'm getting NOTHING."
To which he responded: "Well, I wouldn't phrase it like that."
I asked him how he would phrase it and he accused me of putting words in his mouth. I told him my attorney would be contacting corporate relations on Monday, and that I am never shopping at Target again.
So beware, shoppers, apparently even when you have two confirmation notices and they charge your bank account, Target still feels absolutely no obligation to fill your order.
But I'm sure they wouldn't phrase it like that.
I ordered nine pieces: three were for my nieces, one was for my stepfather, five were for me. Following the order I got nine emails from Target. Three items were delayed til September 29th. Fine. I okayed them. Then three were delayed til October 26th. Fine, I okayed them. Then one that was delayed til september 29th was now delayed til October 26th. Fine. Then another email: the remaining three pieces were delayed til mid October. Sigh. Again fine.We've heard from less than a handful of customers who've even received partial orders—but even when items do arrive, they may not be correct.Then I got email confirmations for each change. Then I got an email saying there was an error with my order and 5 items were cancelled. I could click through and resubmit the order... ummmm no I can't. I called them. I was on hold for 40 minutes. I spoke to someone in India that told me sorry, your items were sold to someone else, there's nothing we can do about it. I said go ahead and just cancel everything. I was told that couldn't be done, because had agreed to purchase the items and couldn't cancel... What the hell?! You can cancel, but i can't?! She said the items were shipping soon and couldn't be modified. LAUGHING! Really? Now they're being shipped soon? Delivery date is expected in October, but REALLY, they're prepped for shipping?! Why the hell do I want half an outfit? Why would I give my two-year old niece half an outfit? Why do I want a hair accessory to match a dress you canceled?!
The service is heinous. The absolute worst I've ever experienced. I will NEVER shop at Target again. Oh, and my card WAS charged $678 for the clothes. I've already called my credit card company and told them I'd be reversing the charges. Apparently, I'm not the 1st.
I signed on at 3:00 PST to get my order. I got through the website dumping stuff from my shopping cart several times and finally rushed to pay for my item. Saw the site crash a few times during this process. I got the same emails about my items being delayed or cancelled as everyone else had. One of my items was cancelled, a few got delayed.But don't worry! Target has apparently employed a top-secret "Investigation Team" to "Investigate" all these screwed up orders! One reader writes:Finally, my first item, the knit clutch arrives by mail. But, what do I see when I open my bag but THE WRONG COLOR clutch. Target, with all its website malfunctioning, mismatched the Missoni clutch colors to the picture. The picture you see on the site for the clutch that is described as Passione is actually the COLORE colored clutch. You would only know that if you look at the other items described as Passione. UGH! This was not the color I wanted to purchase. What to do?
I too managed to place an order very early Tuesday morning, before the site crashed and actually had no problems at all (no crashing, etc.). I got an order acknowledgment at 6:32 a.m. ET that said my items would arrive between Friday and Tuesday. Thursday night at like 10 p.m., I get the email that says there was a problem with my order and they canceled it, but to call them if I still want the items.Do you have any more war stories from trying to order Missoni for Target online? Drop us an email to share. Can you top these stories?So, I call Customer Service immediately. Though it says they're open until 10 pm CT, I get no answer. I then posted on the TargetStyle Facebook page and got an immediate response asking me to tell them exactly what was in my order so they could check it out. I responded and never heard back. Tried Twitter too—nothing. When I called Customer Service first thing Friday morning, the first rep I spoke to suggested that I simply "reorder the items." I was like, "Are you joking? They're totally sold out!" his response: "Oh." he kicked me over to some other rep, who kept me on hold for 30 minutes, only to come back and say there was no way to reverse the cancellation and that they had a team investigating why it happened, who would call all affected customers this week and explain. I asked what they would be explaining. She said they would call to tell us why the cancellation occurred. I said I wasn't interested in why it occurred, but rather how I, who had been among the earliest to order, would get my items, as thousands of others across the country (many of whom ordered later) were getting theirs. She said she didn't know if the "investigation team" would be able to help with that but at least I would know what happened. Great. That makes me feel much better. Thanks, Target. You're the best.
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