‘Rip off’: Melbourne business slammed

Custom Sneaker Co was launched during the pandemic by a Melbourne couple, who lost their jobs due to lockdowns.

Back in October 2021, they told news.com.au they had made $450,000 for the first eight months of that year and raked in over $116,000 in August 2021 alone.

However, unhappy customers have flooded a review website complaining about shoes never being delivered months after being ordered.

The shoes sell for an average of $300 and include a combination of hand painted, printed and stitched designs.

Karina Dorogi is one customer who feels “really ripped off” by her experience with Custom Sneaker Co.

She placed an order for sneakers that would have a sunflower design – something that had “special” meaning – as a gift for her daughter’s 18th birthday back in August last year.

The order cost $297 in total and a string of emails shows Ms Dorogi chasing the company each month for updates on when the shoes will arrive.

“My mum and my sister put in some money and I put in some money to buy these beautiful sneakers for her with sunflowers on them as her aunty died and her favourite flower was a sunflower,” she told news.com.au.

But six months later Ms Dorogi still hasn’t got the sneakers.

“I feel really ripped off … by people posting these beautiful items and then you don’t get them,” she said.

“I was really excited to buy these for my daughters as I thought it was such a special gift. I feel really disappointed and upset by it.”

The 51-year-old said it was too late to request a refund as she paid for the goods through PayPal six months ago but surprisingly still just wants to receive the sneakers.

She said it would be a good pick me up for her daughter who had been through hell in recent times.

“Last year Alexis my daughter she went to Bali and came back with dengue fever and Guillain barre syndrome and we nearly lost her and we have been through hell on earth and I was really looking forward to giving her the shoes,” she said.

“I know they are only shoes but ideally I would like the shoes. However, I don’t think we are going to get them. I don’t care about getting money back, it would be nice of course, because I am now going to give her money again to buy a pair of special shoes.

“So it’s not only cost $300 it will in effect cost $600 as she hasn’t got a present from her aunty and grandmother, it’s a double whammy.”

A series of emails seen by news.com.au show Ms Dorogi requesting updates on her order.

In October, an email from Custom Sneaker Co said it had purchased the sneakers from an international retailer and they were currently in-transit to their warehouse and they would be prioritised and sent out urgently once they had arrived.

Ms Dorogi chased the order in November only to be told the parcel was still in “hands of the postal company” and the company couldn’t give an “ETA” about its arrival as there could be delays that are “completely out of our control”.

The Adelaide woman was forced to follow up the order again in December and was told things had been a “nightmare” for the company but they were trying their “absolute best to get orders out as quickly as possible”.

“I want to be completely transparent with you, We’re absolutely smashed with orders at the moment as it’s just the two of us customizing shoes! We have tried numerous times to find someone that can give us a hand, but we just can’t trust anyone else to have the same quality of craftsmanship that we do,” they said in an email seen by news.com.au.

“On top of this, we’ve been experiencing shortages in stock as retailers have limited pairs. Every time we order bulk we basically sell out sizes, our orders are also getting canceled (sic) by retailers because they “oversold quantities” or because we’re not allowed to purchase that many in one go as it’s considered “reselling”.

“We’re being stuffed around by some retailers as they’re canceling our bulk orders and not telling us until we notice boxes haven’t arrived.”

Ms Dorogi was later offered a $50 voucher for the company as a way of apology for the delay.

In February, she was told the sneakers had sent out with Australia Post but it “may have been lost in transit”.

Custom Sneaker Co said it would replace and resend another pair by February 24, yet, the sneakers still have not arrived.

The financial business services owner said she could afford to lose the money but she was worried about other customers who had “saved up” to splurge on a special gift.

Jacinta Deigan is one of those customers who had excitedly paid $276 for a pair of Air Force 1 custom shoes with basketball player Kobe Bryant as a gift for her partner.

She placed her order in November and was told production would take four to six weeks, although Custom Sneaker Co noted this was just an estimation and “could change depending on order volume or factors that could cause delays”, in an email in December.

It also noted there had been an Air Force 1 shortage in Australia which had caused a delay in their process and it had to source stock from overseas as a result.

Another email on January 10 said the company was not “intentionally ignoring her” and provided her with the following update.

“In your case we are facing delays with stock of AF1s as all retailers in VIC/AUS are experiencing stock shortages of Air Force 1s,” it read.

“Due to there not being stock of your size at the time of purchase we had to source your shoe size from an international retailer and we are currently waiting for them to arrive.”

Yet, Ms Deign has still not received the shoes three months later. She claimed she had sent an email almost every week to find out what is happening but had not heard from the company since January.

“I don’t understand as I went online and you can literally walk into any shoe shop in Australia and buy these shoes straight away,” she told news.com.au.

“I’ve been blocked on Facebook so I can’t message or comment on Facebook. I have emailed and I haven’t heard back – I have emailed them at least 10 times.”

The support worker in aged care said her experience had “stressed her out so much” that she didn’t even want the order any more – particularly as her boyfriend’s birthday was a few weeks ago.

“I have no need for them now and quite frankly just don’t want my money given to people with such poor customer service and care.,” she said.

“Aged care people don’t get paid that much money so $300 is a lot of money for anyone especially now with everything rising.”

The 31-year-old added she thought she had found the perfect present for her boyfriend, who loves Kobe Bryant and is a shoe collector, but she ended up telling him about the surprise as she couldn’t deal with the stress.

“I just want my money back as its not going to be surprise for him anymore and it’s just disappointing all that stress for months – it’s just not worth it,” she added.

The Central Coast woman said she had seen a number of other customers complaining on social media that their shoes had never arrived despite placing orders months ago.

“I work hard for my money and I don’t think its right,” she said.

Ms Deigan said she had lodged a complaint with NSW Fair Trading and a dispute with her bank to try and get the money back.

The owners of Custom Sneaker Co, Audrey Palupi and Jeremiah D’Souza, said when they first started their business, it was a simple passion project that they never expected to take off as quickly as it did.

“We were just two young individuals with a love for what we do, and we poured our hearts and souls into growing our business to meet the demands of our loyal customers,” they told news.com.au.

“However, being a team of only two people has presented us with a unique set of challenges that we have had to learn to navigate through … One of the biggest challenges we face on a daily basis is trying to wear all hats of the business at the same time.

“From handling production to marketing, customer service, and everything in between, we find ourselves stretched thin juggling multiple complex tasks and finding new ways to keep up with the growing demand for our products and services.”

The couple said they wanted to “apologise to anyone who has experienced delays in their orders”.

“We understand how frustrating it can be to wait for a product or service, and we are truly sorry for any inconvenience we may have caused,” they said.

“We want our customers to know that we are doing everything we can to improve our processes and provide a better experience for everyone. We’re doing everything in our power to fulfil orders as quickly as possible, while still maintaining our high standards for quality.”

The couple added they were working “tirelessly” to solve problems including exploring adding a customer representative to the business to respond to inquiries more promptly as well as expanding their customisation team.

“We understand that communication is key to maintaining a strong relationship with our customers, and we’re committed to providing the best customer experience possible,” they said “However, these processes take time, and we appreciate our customers’ patience as we work to bring on additional support.”

The duo said they “rely heavily on the support of our loyal community” and were “grateful for the thousands of kind words, photo and video reviews” that have been left and would continue to work hard to “exceed” customer expectations.

“We want to thank everyone for their continued support and understanding as we navigate through these challenges,” they noted.

“We may be a small team, but we have big hearts, and we are determined to overcome any obstacles in our path to providing the best products and services possible.”