Headwinds Mfg. Status?

[Julius]

In my opinion, putting a hold on the money is making it worse. Now he won't have money to buy the parts he needs or pay whatever cost he has to pay and that is negatively affecting not only you, but everybody else who has ordered from him.

IMHO putting a hold on the money is not going to make him go faster. You just add up more problems to what he already has. This may result in making him go even slower. Think about it.

 

[Technonut2112]

Personally, I can't blame the OP for opening a PayPal case. If it were me, I would be getting nervous after having no personal communication from the seller regarding my jacket, especially with PayPal's 6 month cut-off for filing a claim being close. I actually would more than likely do the same thing TBH about it.

 

[ausreenactor]

Easier to turn off or cancel a Paypal dispute than miss out on the option for protection later. Cover your bases, just in case. Poor comms in these situations adds to the angst.

Good luck with it.

 

[GBoothroyd]

Upgraded this to a PayPal claim.

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

Considering how few firms operate in the Replica Vintage Leather Jacket business, it p*sses me off how many tarnish the whole genre
Every time someone does a "Bernie" and has "Made Off" with customers ££$$s leaving them with a wall of silence this hurts the whole industry
And Yes..............our own Mark Moye turned out to be closerly related to the ostrich family wnen things took a turn for the worse for AeroUSA
I often wonder do other industries attract such a high % of chancers? Itentionial or, as often seems the case, unitentional

 

[Smithy]

And Yes..............our own Mark Moye turned out to be closerly related to the ostrich family wnen things took a turn for the worse for AeroUSA

Whatever happened to him after that fiasco back in 2011/2012ish Ken?

 

[Persimmon]

Considering how few firms operate in the Replica Vintage Leather Jacket business, it p*sses me off how many tarnish the whole genre
Every time someone does a "Bernie" and has "Made Off" with customers ££$$s leaving them with a wall of silence this hurts the whole industry
And Yes..............our own Mark Moye turned out to be closerly related to the ostrich family wnen things took a turn for the worse for AeroUSA
I often wonder do other industries attract such a high % of chancers? Itentionial or, as often seems the case, unitentional

Of course this replica military jacket making industry is probably barking from tip to toe.
We pay a hefty sum for a jacket that we end up selling because it’s not perfect enough/ aged enough/ the grass or in this case a jacket is always greener, etc etc.

Would a customer pay the insane amounts of money being charged for a more “normal” leather style jacket. Unlikely.
No we want to have a stitch by stitch perfect 1942 in a box etc etc jacket that actually is probably nothing not like the rough and ready made up wartime jacket.

The issue though of paying upfront for months and .... years !!! is truly bizarre.

I appreciate it may even only be some sort of token deposit that can be taken by some manufacturers.
I guess there in itself is the temptation for some characters to come into the market. Money and more money coming in and you can just sit around and say this or that is not ready etc.

If you go into a store or purchase online an item you buy it and pay for it and you take it away or it’s delivered shortly afterwards.

But these leather jackets are not in the main off the peg. They are made to order.

Why does the retailer not manufacturer it and then when it’s ready contact the purchaser and he pays for it then.
And it’s delivered a few days or so later.

I guess the business does not want to take that risk of not receiving the money and suffer those upfront costs. Yet that’s what the customer has to do. It’s not exactly a two way street.

Again it does comedown to this length of manufacturing time that the Jacket manufactures are taking.
For some they are a one man band cottage industry.
Buy a sofa online. It’s manufactured and delivered pretty damn quickly and even though one is paying up front for it it’s fairly easy to spot an issue much much quicker to go down the channels of reclaiming methods.

With jackets weeks turn to months and months into many many months so after the total lack of reassurance communication very quickly concern occurs.

So it’s sad that as Ken states the industry may suffer because of the behaviour of the few.

But then if the purchasers only bought jackets from retailers who don’t charge upfront but when the jacket is ready to ship out and then you pay for it, it would perhaps eliminate the individuals causing the grief and concern.

Yes that may cause hardship for the cottage industry concern but perhaps it’s just bringing forward their lack of a working business plan.

As I implied at the beginning it’s a crazy little industry.

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

Whatever happened to him after that fiasco back in 2011/2012ish Ken?

Nobody knows, the South Carolina constabuary had a go at finding him, no idea how hard they tried.......
Aero compensated all the customers loss deposits although, technically his was a stand alone operation buying from Aero, and there was no legal obligation for us to do so. That probably took the sting out of the fraud as far as they were concerned

 

[Smithy]

Nobody knows, the South Carolina constabuary had a go at finding him, no idea how hard they tried.......
Aero compensated all the customers loss deposits although, technically his was a stand alone operation buying from Aero, and there was no legal obligation for us to do so. That probably took the sting out of the fraud as far as they were concerned

So he did a runner eh, I wonder where he buggered off to? That was damn good of you as a company to do that, well done.

And to Alan's well moulded post above, I think we probably are bonkers, especially from the perspective of the great majority. 99.9% of the population couldn't - and probably wouldn't actually care to even if they could - tell the difference between one of these high end jackets we talk about here and a leather jacket from a fashion shop.

There is a certain hilarious irony in the fact that leather jackets were, in the era that we tend to focus on, work wear, either in outdoor applications and pursuits (both civilian and military) where they were needed for protection against the elements, eg flying and motoring, and in blue collar trades and employment, once against for protection in environments and trades where it was necessary. The fact that now these things have become highly priced luxury goods is in direct contrast to how they were originally conceived and for whom.

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

How they should be worn

http://instagr.am/p/B05X29DgZpg/

 

[Skyhawk]

Hi guys! I appreciate all the support. Headwind is still in business. I just had some major set backs to overcome lately.

As you may have heard I have had a tough few months health wise. I was in such a poor state for a while I was unable to even get online. 90% of Headwind's operations are done by me so when I am down, there is really no one to take over and keep things rolling.

That being said, I want you all to know that I would never burn anyone on a sale. It is not in my character. The people who know me around here can testify to that fact. I appreciate those who have spoken up in support in my absence. I agree that at times some jackets take longer then expected to deliver, but the jackets have always been made and sent out. In a few cases, long delays have resulted in canceled orders. In those cases a full refund was issued. The OP's refund is being processed and will be issued shortly. A shame because his Russet knits that we have been waiting on for months just arrived.

We have an excellent quality track record and I can proudly say that we have had a near 100% rate of customer satisfaction. I think we have had something like 2 or 3 returns in all the years we have been in business. In those cases, the issues were resolved and the customers ended up with a jacket that was top quality and fit well.

Again I would like to thank all who have supported Headwind. We are working our way though our backlogged orders so if you are waiting on a jacket, we should have them completed very soon. We have a some exciting new projects in line as well for the fall so stay tuned for some really cool new stuff in the coming months.

All The Best,
Jay

 

[B-Man2]

Hi guys! I appreciate all the support. Headwind is still in business. I just had some major set backs to overcome lately.

As you may have heard I have had a tough few months health wise. I was in such a poor state for a while I was unable to even get online. 90% of Headwind's operations are done by me so when I am down, there is really no one to take over and keep things rolling.

That being said, I want you all to know that I would never burn anyone on a sale. It is not in my character. The people who know me around here can testify to that fact. I appreciate those who have spoken up in support in my absence. I agree that at times some jackets take longer then expected to deliver, but the jackets have always been made and sent out. In a few cases, long delays have resulted in canceled orders. In those cases a full refund was issued. The OP's refund is being processed and will be issued shortly. A shame because his Russet knits that we have been waiting on for months just arrived.

We have an excellent quality track record and I can proudly say that we have had a near 100% rate of customer satisfaction. I think we have had something like 2 or 3 returns in all the years we have been in business. In those cases, the issues were resolved and the customers ended up with a jacket that was top quality and fit well.

Again I would like to thank all who have supported Headwind. We are working our way though our backlogged orders so if you are waiting on a jacket, we should have them completed very soon. We have a some exciting new projects in line as well for the fall so stay tuned for some really cool new stuff in the coming months.

All The Best,
Jay

Jay
Glad to hear your on the way back and on the mend.

 

[Cocker]

Glad to hear from you, Jay! Hope things will be going smoother for now on!

 

[GBoothroyd]

We, in fact, received our refund today (08/17/19) from PayPal having been notified on 08/15/19 that the refund would be forthcoming. To be clear, the very day I opened a case through PayPal against Headwinds Mfg, Jason Hartley, Jay et al, was the day Jay contacted me to say my knits were in and that he could build me my jacket. I said no thanks and that my wife and I would like a refund. That request was met with no response wich subsequently led to me filing a claim. According to PayPal, he had until August 15th to resolve it.

That’s the way it went down. I did not see any proactive moves by Jay to contact me, build my jacket or refund my money until I made an issue of it with PayPal.

 

[ausreenactor]

At the very least you have your money back. Time to reinvest in the 'market'?

 

[Bombing IP]

We, in fact, received our refund today (08/17/19) from PayPal having been notified on 08/15/19 that the refund would be forthcoming. To be clear, the very day I opened a case through PayPal against Headwinds Mfg, Jason Hartley, Jay et al, was the day Jay contacted me to say my knits were in and that he could build me my jacket. I said no thanks and that my wife and I would like a refund. That request was met with no response wich subsequently led to me filing a claim. According to PayPal, he had until August 15th to resolve it.

That’s the way it went down. I did not see any proactive moves by Jay to contact me, build my jacket or refund my money until I made an issue of it with PayPal.

Well at least for you there is smooth sailing ahead for you you got your money back and you can buy your jacket else where ! .But don't expect blow by blow email updates from other makers .It a micro industry catering for us weirdos sometimes one man bands making the jackets . The public today are constantly on the phone type talking and walking into fire hydrants and such ,they have so much spare time on their hands they cannot understand why a maker does not have the same time also . The point I am trying to point out " is it is what it is " you place the order and wait. Your not dealing with fortune 500 companies with mega customer support . So GBoothroyd I am not pointing the finger at you but the chapter is over and you are preaching to the choir so lets close the book . Headwind is no better or no worse than the other players out there re communication but to be fair he did hit a bump in the road which was not foreseen .Jay wish you a full healthy recovery with your own health and affairs ,and maybe you could send a personal message to Mr GBoothroyd who is a new member ,just a suggestion .

Mr GBoothroyd one thing to remember about replica flight Jackets Per se the whole thing is F#%KING insanity .




Jeff

 

[GBoothroyd]

Well at least for you there is smooth sailing ahead for you you got your money back and you can buy your jacket else where ! .But don't expect blow by blow email updates from other makers .It a micro industry catering for us weirdos sometimes one man bands making the jackets . The public today are constantly on the phone type talking and walking into fire hydrants and such ,they have so much spare time on their hands they cannot understand why a maker does not have the same time also . The point I am trying to point out " is it is what it is " you place the order and wait. Your not dealing with fortune 500 companies with mega customer support . So GBoothroyd I am not pointing the finger at you but the chapter is over and you are preaching to the choir so lets close the book . Headwind is no better or no worse than the other players out there re communication but to be fair he did hit a bump in the road which was not foreseen .Jay wish you a full healthy recovery with your own health and affairs ,and maybe you could send a personal message to Mr GBoothroyd who is a new member ,just a suggestion .

Mr GBoothroyd one thing to remember about replica flight Jackets Per se the whole thing is F#%KING insanity .




Jeff

I see your point. However this is not my first go round. I have been a member here for some time (since March 2008) I just don’t post. I am also a member on a lot of other forums. I’ve been burned elsewhere. To be clear, I did not require constant updates from Jay. That’s not the way I roll. But when I ask a question and we’re getting close to six months, I expect an answer. That coupled with a website that went down for non payment and I got the distinct impression that I was about to get screwed. Moreover, I am at the point in my life where I feel I’ve earned the right not to take crap from anybody. Especially when it’s my hard earned money in the breach. You can do whatever you want with your money.

The point is, if he had responded and said he was having problems, I would have given him time. Just like I did the last time. Instead he chose to treat me like a mark/sucker. If you act like a mark you’l get treated like a mark. Personally, I don’t need any makers jacket that badly that I will put up with this kind of piss poor customer service/response.

Nevertheless, I don’t wish Mr. Hartley any ill will. Not at all. In fact, I wish him all the success in the world and that he and other makers might learn a thing or two regarding this particular transaction. He/they should learn that:

1. We are enthusiasts.
2. We like the jackets you make.
3. We know these things sometimes take longer than expected.
4. Just keep us informed of any unexpected delays (it goes a long way).
5. As the consumer of your goods we (as a group) have the power to make you or break you.

 

[Bombing IP]

Like I say it is what it is , love or leave it ! .

Jeff

 

[GBoothroyd]

Like I say it is what it is , love or leave it ! .

Jeff

It’s not a zero sum game. But if you let people walk all over you, they will. I’m staying but I won’t put up with crap. Sounds like you will.

 

[Bombing IP]

Then go ahead and change the world be my guest !. I'm done with this issue as I said before ,finished stum exit and left the building !

Jeff