Dear Mr [redacted] We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced When you do a Kickstarter campaign, you plan for success but even in his wildest dreams Ryan never imagined having to make more than 62,coolers The Coolest Cooler cost more than estimated but we have a path forward and are going to fulfill all backers as soon as we are able Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us to create something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledge to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the Kickstarter rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at that time I do see that you opted for the expedited delivery option, and we will be shipping out your Coolest Cooler by July 29th We appreciate your support, and certainly hope you will get some great use out of it this summer!
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because your "hold ups" and issues with not being able to supply your kickstarter "supporters" with their coolest coolers, is because you chose to go down other avenues with "Bigger" options for yourselvesLike the deal you made with amazon and others AFTER you received all the money you needed to fund your projectPeople who supported you and got your business started, ARE STILL waiting for there coolers while others were able to purchase there coolers on sites as amazon...so of course ALL the coolers you could make first would go to amazon, before they would go to any of usThen there was issues with factoriesand now not enough funding! So now the option is pay AN ADDITIONAL to receive a cooler by JULY or guess what we wait some moreYour "reasons" OR as id like to call them excusesare the reason why I will NEVER fund another project on kickstarter againWho would, if theyd have to wait YEARS just to get what they paid forIve seen MANY COMPLAINTS about your company and the so many of us who still have yet to receive their coolerI assure you, I am not the only one upset, dissapointed, and I feel your response within Revdex.com is comical at this pointSincerely, [redacted] ***
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced When you do a Kickstarter you plan for success But we could never have imagined that we would need to make more than 62,coolers and ultimately the cost was more than we had anticipatedThe option we offered recently for guaranteed delivery was just that - an option We will get all remaining backers their rewards whether they decided to participate or notPlease remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us tocreate something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledged to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time We recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we plan to restart production in the next weekOur plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, butwith your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: I have paid over dollars was the initial backer amount, and after "miscalculations" of shipping by your "business" I have paid above that amountPlease be aware I am well aware of the amount you have taken from my paychecks The terms of service, at the time of my purchase, clearly stated the "business" would provide the product at the earliest possible moment, this "business" has not They are currently selling their product not only on the most popular retail website in the world (Amazon) but also on their own personal website This shows they have product, but rather than sending this product to those who have paid for this product, they are selling it at a higher value for their own gain I fail to see this differently After this previous statement, I find it hard to see how "theft" and "fraud" do not represent the current situation If you have those who have paid and are waiting for a product not receiving it due to waiting for additional funds after selling it at retail, how does such match with any of the aforementioned statements? If product exists it should be sent to those who have paid If not, holding onto monies is thereby removing it from those who have "pledged." This timeframe is not a short one, but over two years Again, over two years When you pledge to a Kickstarter campaign, you pay for a product given at the earliest possible time You do not plan for success or failure Success is you receive the product Failure is you receive a refundPer the terms of Kickstarter For over two years I have not received either I want one of those immediately Please provide your audit for investment fraud The latest shipments were due to millions of monies added after requests from your "business." $per backerPer your April 12th email, while asking for additional monies, you stated, "I ever expected, but we have succeeded in making the Coolest Cooler a reality for more than 20,backersNow we need to get it to the rest of you." Well below the 35,you stated aboveThis was the same email you asked me for an additional dollars before you shipped my cooler You are selling the cooler for retail prices on multiple avenues I would like mine or a full refund immediately Please be aware of the following: http://chicago[redacted] /Multiple coolers were given away as prizes here: http://www[redacted] .com/en/ [redacted] And someone who explained things better than myself: "I will start with the points mentioned in her email: 3) With the exception of the last sentence directed at me, the entire email to you ( [redacted] ) is an exact copy of what has been sending in response to complaints through other organisations such as Revdex.comLet's just say I posted a response on a private forum which consists of 590+ disgruntled backers and none of the responses that ensued said anything positive about reply to you or Coolest Cooler Right, so with that out of the way lets me explain what has happened since Coolest Cooler were given $($of that is for international shipping) of my hard earned cash on 27th August 2014: 1) The attached PDF is a document produced by [redacted] Design LLC to portray how they designed the Coolest CoolerA quote from it says:"With the redesigned product in his hands, Ryan was ready to give the Coolest another chance in the marketBetween [redacted] ’s design expertise and Ryan’s crowdfunding experience, the new Kickstarter campaign was sure to succeed." The question that has to be asked is why were backer funds spent on improving the design, additional features and actually creating the Coolest LLC, none of which were in scope of the initial campaignNone of these activities formed the basis on what I was parting with $for and therefore it would seem like I was either misled or lied to from the offset A video here shows Ryan stating that nothing was ready for production, which is the opposite of what he claimed on the Kickstarter campaign and what I signed up to:http://www[redacted] .com/ / [redacted] - [redacted] - / [redacted] / [redacted] This is where the terms "fraud" and "scam" which are often used when discussing Ryan and Coolest Cooler come from 2) One of the "excuses" that has recently been communicated is that the product ended up costing much more than initially expectedThe previous mentioned PDF states:"Once Ryan signed off on all the aspects of the design, [redacted] helped Ryan create a working prototype of the new and improved Coolest CoolerThis prototype proved the function of the design and was used to generate preliminary pricing from manufacturers so he could start understanding his cost structure." The Kickstarter pledges had clearly been priced accordingly, but then Coolest Cooler decided to start adding more to the product and therefore inflating the costOnce again, this is not what I signed up for and highlights Coolest Cooler's apparent misuse of funds 3) Following recent updates, it came to light that Coolest Cooler were aware of many of the issues with manufacturing and the dwindling funds well before they were communicated out to the backersIn order to salvage this, Coolest Cooler started selling the product at RRP on Amazon (as part of Amazon Launchpad) which Ryan later revealed they were forced to honour due to contracts in place and "to keep the lights on"The Kickstarter backer and Coolest Cooler "contract" pre-dated any of this and should have taken precedence 4) Coolest Cooler then blames the outcry from backers and the resulting negative reviews on Amazon for why the product was further delayedClearly Ryan had expected to sell as many products as possible at full RRP and then resume production without anyone noticing One of the reviews dated 18th November caught many people's attention: "The Coolest cooler was a Kickstarter project, and yes, there are lots of backers who have yet to receive theirs and it's pretty obvious that these are the people posting all the [redacted] reviewsBut I love mine! The biggest difference between the Coolest and other coolers is obviously the featuresThe blender is powerful and makes great blended cocktailsThe speaker is awesome and the USB port very handy for charging my phoneI made pitchers of cocktails for people yesterday in Florida and they LOVED itThe wheels make it easy to roll and the my friends have just gone nuts for it! All the details (the built-ins are just insane) make it an amazing cooler to either tailgate, or go to the beach withAs a backer you have to be patient - 60K coolers is a lot of coolers to make! Be patient! I got mine and you'll get yours!" The author of this review was *** [redacted] Does this name ring a bell to you? This review is at:http://www.amazon.com/gp/review/ [redacted] 5) In January 2016, an update was sent out to backers asking for them to confirm their addressThe reason provided for this was to enable Coolest Cooler to plan their fulfilment and provide delivery estimatesIn February another update was issued providing backers with a "batch number"These batch numbers were not associated to any date and therefore clearly not an estimateOnce again this falls in line with the previous vague and useless updates provided by Coolest CoolerThis update also included an image, which I have attached as fund_breakdown.pngIf you take a look at the bottom right of this image it states that it is not to scaleWho in their right mind would provide a diagram such as this which is not to scale? It completely defeats the point of the diagram and highlights further than Ryan was trying to fool peopleIt was in this update where Ryan disclosed that they were out of money and looking for traditional investorsSo somewhere between the 21st January and 27th February updates, Coolest Cooler ran out of money? Surely if you were running out of money it wouldn't just creep up on you overnight? 6) Then in March Ryan beings to make excuses, which is where points 2), 3) and 4) come into play 7) Coolest Cooler are required to honour refund requests if they cannot deliverAs it stands right now, they are incapable of delivering my product and therefore I am entitled to my refund nowHowever, this is being refused and instead they state that they will give me my refund weeks before my Cooler is due to ship, which as mentioned before has no estimated dateI would like my refund now and not when Ryan or *** or anyone else at Coolest Cooler deem suitableCoolest Cooler claim that since they still plan to honour the original deal and supply the rewards, the refund request condition does not applyThat condition clearly states that they are required to do so if they are unable to deliver, which at this point they cannottheir determination, faith, willpower (whatever else you want to call it) is irrelevant 8) A video made by Ryan a few years ago surfaced on the internet and once it was linked to the Coolest Cooler, it was promptly removed by RyanFortunately it was downloaded by many people and I have uploaded a copy here for your viewing:https://www.youtube.com/ [redacted] In this video Ryan states:"you're leveraging a network of strangers to fund your projectThey're not giving you a loan; they're not taking equity in your company; they're not investingIt's basically money that never has to be paid back." "the beautiful part about crowd funding is the money you get from these strangers, never has to be paid back." Clearly Ryan thinks of the money as "free money", and now I want mine backMany many other backers are in the same boat and really need for this to be investigated by someone who has the authority to do so (ie DOJ) 9) A month or so ago, *** [redacted] posted on the Kickstarter comments page (which has exploded over the recent months with angry comments) requesting backers to stop filing complaints with the FTC and DOJShe claimed that these reports had no relevance to the status of backer refunds, when backers would receive their products or have any impact on Coolest Cooler (other than causing further delays due to time being spent on replying to them)It sounds like Coolest Cooler believe they speak for DOJ and FTC, and that is what actually prompted me to file my reportThere is no way I am letting a company whole has in effect stolen my $try and limit who I report their ponzi scheme to A comment was posted on the Kickstarter comments section about hours ago by a guy named ***: I've been contacted by *** [redacted] asking me not to be negative and stating they will not show such comments (I assume on facebook).Like this comes as some kind of surprise! She (as part of coolest) has been complicit in taking $from me (and other international backers) and spending this on supplying coolers to other people, including those who backed the project later Then, as the crowning glory they put the international backers orders to the back of the queue and exclude them from the 4th July delivery option.If she expects anything other than negative comments in light of this then in my opinion, she must be completely deluded.The way they have treated international backers is utterly disgraceful [redacted] , I apologise for the really long email, but I had to explain the position the majority of backers and I are in, and how the likes of *** [redacted] and Ryan G [redacted] are simply trying to cover it upIt would be greatly appreciated if you could review what I have said and even spend some time just Googling "Coolest Cooler"Most of what I have said will be found on numerous websites." I would like a refund or my cooler immediately Coolers are being sold at retail Where is my money or my cooler.Sincerely, [redacted]
Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] , and find that this resolution is satisfactory to meSincerely, [redacted]
We have apologized for the delay but the consumer should understand that Kickstarter is a platform that supports new products and projects The estimates given are that - estimates When the Coolest cooler project scaled to the huge extent it did, the manufacturing costs also increased We have delivered to more than 2/of the original backers and continue to do so We have explained why we need to sell at retail - to fund delivery to the remaining backers It's not ideal but it is the only option right nowWe have not broken the terms and conditions of Kickstarter and while we apologize for the delay, the allegations of this consumer are simply not true We have made and shipped more than 40,Coolest coolers and we are shipping to the remaining backers as we are able
We were funded in September of and shipped the first Coolest coolers in July In product development terms this is in fact a very fast timeline from prototype to finished product Furthermore we have to make more than 60,of them for backers The vastly increased scale caused some challenges but we have continued to make good faith efforts to fulfill every backer When a backer supports a Kickstarter campaign, they sign very clear terms of service that explaiin that the timeline is a best estimate and no guarantee of a delivery There is a risk involved that is inherent in any campaign To date, the Coolest Cooler remains one of the most complex hardware projects ever crowdfunded We have been audited and there is nothing irregular about our finances We apologize for the delay but the complainant signed the agreement to donate a pledge fund to the campaign Kickstarter is not a retail store but rather a way to support creative endeavors and bring new ideas to life We have at all times communicated regularly with backers and have a customer service team who respond to requests at [email protected] have communicated and responded to the Oregon Department of Justice who, due to the Kickstarter terms of service, are not pursuing any action This project is ongoing and while the timeline is not ideal, we will get there
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us to create something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledged to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time Our plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, but with your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us to create something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledged to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time We recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we restart production this week and will be shipping to backers again in the coming weeksOur plan is to resume shipments to all backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of remaining backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, but with your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: Some backers have already received their coolers for the same price everyone paid, while others will continue to have to wait and others have been given the option to pay $more to receive theirs by July 4th, with no additional perks besides receiving their cooler sooner That scenario is wrong in so many ways, but wait you can get a refund! Well that refund won't be sent until your cooler is about to ship, so why would anyone want to do that? The end game is we all want the cooler, but this companies missteps and empty promises has caused everyone to lose faith in this company! We all did our part, we pledged the money that was asked of us and have received nothing, so why would we entrust them with more money? Just so we can be disappointed again when their deadline is not met and they feed us more excuses? Absolutely ridiculous.Sincerely, [redacted] ***
Dear Mr***
We are incredibly grateful for your support, and are fully committed on delivering rewards to our remaining Kickstarter backers. Per the Kickstarter terms of service, Kickstarter does not offer refundsA Project Creator is not required to grant a Backer’s request for a refund unless the Project Creator is unable or unwilling to fulfill the reward. The estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time
This is taking longer than we expected, and that’s part of the risk of backing a crowdfunded project compared to purchasing a manufactured product off the shelves. We’re still hard at work doing whatever needs to be done to meet our obligations and take care of every Backer We have shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we were able to restart production earlier this monthOur plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewards to make up the additional costs of the coolers/service provided
Here is a link to our Kickstarter updates wall:https://www.***/***
We are indeed making progress through the remainder of our Kickstarter project
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us
tocreate something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledged to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time. One doesn't "buy" or "purchase" a product on Kickstarter - you pledge to donate funds to support a new project and just ten months after the campaign closed, we shipped the first Coolest coolers. Due to the scale (more than 62,backers) we had some unexpected challenges but we will get everyone their backer reward
We recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we restart production in the next weekOur plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, butwith your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
Dear Mr***,
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter (campaign date range: July 8, - August 29, 2014) and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced Please remember that your pledge to
back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us to create something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledg to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time. One doesn't "buy" or "purchase" a product on Kickstarter - you pledge to donate funds to support a new project and just ten months after the campaign closed, we shipped the first Coolest coolers. Due to the scale (more than 62,backers) we had some unexpected challenges but we will get everyone their backer reward
We recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we restarted production two weeks ago and will be producing 10,coolers in the coming month and a halfOur plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, but with your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
Complaint: ***I am rejecting this response because:
They are asking me to pay them an additional $for shipping for an item that is not ready to be shipped and will not be ready for some time to come and at the rate they are going may never happenThey are using the funds of future sales to fill the orders of existing sales, similarly to how a ponzi/pyramid scheme worksIn a recent email it was indicated that they have run out of money to produce the items for people who have paid for them and that 2/of the people who preordered still havent received themI want a guarantee delivery date before I pay them any more moneyIt's been 14-months already and I was one of the first people to buy itMeanwhile they are selling them on Amazon readily availableHow is it that they were able to send a large number of units to a major nationwide wholesaler, but cant fill orders for the people that prepaid months earlierIf they are having supply issues of their own, they should drop ship me a unit from amazon.
Sincerely,*** ***
Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. However, if the Company does not fulfill the order by the ship date provided in their response, we will open a new complaint. Sincerely, [redacted]
Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:
Some backers have already received their coolers for the same price everyone paid, while others will continue to have to wait and others have been given the option to pay $97 more to receive theirs by July 4th, with no additional perks besides receiving their cooler sooner. That scenario is wrong in so many ways, but wait you can get a refund! Well that refund won't be sent until your cooler is about to ship, so why would anyone want to do that? The end game is we all want the cooler, but this companies missteps and empty promises has caused everyone to lose faith in this company! We all did our part, we pledged the money that was asked of us and have received nothing, so why would we entrust them with more money? Just so we can be disappointed again when their deadline is not met and they feed us more excuses? Absolutely ridiculous.Sincerely,[redacted]
Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:
For the same reasons in my original complaint. They collected funds two years ago and have yet to furnish any product. HOWEVER they are fulfilling product to retail and online customers. Their first priority should be the original backers from who they have already collected funds. They are prioritizing original backers who pay an additional $97 per cooler underteh guise that there were "unexpected costs" and that if you elect to pay the extra $97 they will guarantee delivery of your order. It is not the customers probelm that they quoted, advertised and collected payment for an item that they did not source properly & consider all costs. Prioritzing customers willing to pay for their mistake is unethical at the very least.Sincerely,[redacted]
Dear Ms. [redacted],
We are incredibly grateful for all of our backers support, and we are fully committed on delivering all of our Kickstarter rewards. The Coolest Cooler cost more than estimated, but we have a path forward and are going to fulfill all backer rewards. We are making...
good faith efforts to complete the project and are indeed making progress.
We have recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we were able to restart production two weeks ago. We are making and shipping more than 10,000 coolers in the upcoming six weeks.
Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us tocreate something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledge to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward. Per the Kickstarter terms of service, Kickstarter does not offer refunds. A Project Creator is not required to grant a Backer’s request for a refund unless the Project Creator is unable or unwilling to fulfill the reward. The estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time. Our project is indeed ongoing, and we are making progress.
Sincerely,
Blake A[redacted]
Coolest Community Support Manager
We have apologized for the delay but the consumer should understand that Kickstarter is a platform that supports new products and projects. The estimates given are that - estimates. When the Coolest cooler project scaled to the huge extent it did, the manufacturing costs also increased. We have delivered to more than 2/3 of the original backers and continue to do so. We have explained why we need to sell at retail - to fund delivery to the remaining backers. It's not ideal but it is the only option right now. We have not broken the terms and conditions of Kickstarter and while we apologize for the delay, the allegations of this consumer are simply not true. We have made and shipped more than 40,000 Coolest coolers and we are shipping to the remaining backers as we are able.
Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:I can't believe that it would take almost 2 years to produce and ship this product and just an occasional email with another empty promise of a future delivery is supposed to make the backers happy? The lastest update date is they want even more money then has already been paid to insure that the orders are shipped out. SCAM, SCAM, SCAM! ASHAMED THAT I FELL FOR THIS!!!!Sincerely,[redacted]
Dear Mr [redacted] We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced When you do a Kickstarter campaign, you plan for success but even in his wildest dreams Ryan never imagined having to make more than 62,coolers The Coolest Cooler cost more than estimated but we have a path forward and are going to fulfill all backers as soon as we are able Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us to create something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledge to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the Kickstarter rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at that time I do see that you opted for the expedited delivery option, and we will be shipping out your Coolest Cooler by July 29th We appreciate your support, and certainly hope you will get some great use out of it this summer!
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because your "hold ups" and issues with not being able to supply your kickstarter "supporters" with their coolest coolers, is because you chose to go down other avenues with "Bigger" options for yourselvesLike the deal you made with amazon and others AFTER you received all the money you needed to fund your projectPeople who supported you and got your business started, ARE STILL waiting for there coolers while others were able to purchase there coolers on sites as amazon...so of course ALL the coolers you could make first would go to amazon, before they would go to any of usThen there was issues with factoriesand now not enough funding! So now the option is pay AN ADDITIONAL to receive a cooler by JULY or guess what we wait some moreYour "reasons" OR as id like to call them excusesare the reason why I will NEVER fund another project on kickstarter againWho would, if theyd have to wait YEARS just to get what they paid forIve seen MANY COMPLAINTS about your company and the so many of us who still have yet to receive their coolerI assure you, I am not the only one upset, dissapointed, and I feel your response within Revdex.com is comical at this pointSincerely, [redacted] ***
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced When you do a Kickstarter you plan for success But we could never have imagined that we would need to make more than 62,coolers and ultimately the cost was more than we had anticipatedThe option we offered recently for guaranteed delivery was just that - an option We will get all remaining backers their rewards whether they decided to participate or notPlease remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us tocreate something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledged to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time We recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we plan to restart production in the next weekOur plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, butwith your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: I have paid over dollars was the initial backer amount, and after "miscalculations" of shipping by your "business" I have paid above that amountPlease be aware I am well aware of the amount you have taken from my paychecks The terms of service, at the time of my purchase, clearly stated the "business" would provide the product at the earliest possible moment, this "business" has not They are currently selling their product not only on the most popular retail website in the world (Amazon) but also on their own personal website This shows they have product, but rather than sending this product to those who have paid for this product, they are selling it at a higher value for their own gain I fail to see this differently After this previous statement, I find it hard to see how "theft" and "fraud" do not represent the current situation If you have those who have paid and are waiting for a product not receiving it due to waiting for additional funds after selling it at retail, how does such match with any of the aforementioned statements? If product exists it should be sent to those who have paid If not, holding onto monies is thereby removing it from those who have "pledged." This timeframe is not a short one, but over two years Again, over two years When you pledge to a Kickstarter campaign, you pay for a product given at the earliest possible time You do not plan for success or failure Success is you receive the product Failure is you receive a refundPer the terms of Kickstarter For over two years I have not received either I want one of those immediately Please provide your audit for investment fraud The latest shipments were due to millions of monies added after requests from your "business." $per backerPer your April 12th email, while asking for additional monies, you stated, "I ever expected, but we have succeeded in making the Coolest Cooler a reality for more than 20,backersNow we need to get it to the rest of you." Well below the 35,you stated aboveThis was the same email you asked me for an additional dollars before you shipped my cooler You are selling the cooler for retail prices on multiple avenues I would like mine or a full refund immediately Please be aware of the following: http://chicago[redacted] /Multiple coolers were given away as prizes here: http://www[redacted] .com/en/ [redacted] And someone who explained things better than myself: "I will start with the points mentioned in her email: 3) With the exception of the last sentence directed at me, the entire email to you ( [redacted] ) is an exact copy of what has been sending in response to complaints through other organisations such as Revdex.comLet's just say I posted a response on a private forum which consists of 590+ disgruntled backers and none of the responses that ensued said anything positive about reply to you or Coolest Cooler Right, so with that out of the way lets me explain what has happened since Coolest Cooler were given $($of that is for international shipping) of my hard earned cash on 27th August 2014: 1) The attached PDF is a document produced by [redacted] Design LLC to portray how they designed the Coolest CoolerA quote from it says:"With the redesigned product in his hands, Ryan was ready to give the Coolest another chance in the marketBetween [redacted] ’s design expertise and Ryan’s crowdfunding experience, the new Kickstarter campaign was sure to succeed." The question that has to be asked is why were backer funds spent on improving the design, additional features and actually creating the Coolest LLC, none of which were in scope of the initial campaignNone of these activities formed the basis on what I was parting with $for and therefore it would seem like I was either misled or lied to from the offset A video here shows Ryan stating that nothing was ready for production, which is the opposite of what he claimed on the Kickstarter campaign and what I signed up to:http://www[redacted] .com/ / [redacted] - [redacted] - / [redacted] / [redacted] This is where the terms "fraud" and "scam" which are often used when discussing Ryan and Coolest Cooler come from 2) One of the "excuses" that has recently been communicated is that the product ended up costing much more than initially expectedThe previous mentioned PDF states:"Once Ryan signed off on all the aspects of the design, [redacted] helped Ryan create a working prototype of the new and improved Coolest CoolerThis prototype proved the function of the design and was used to generate preliminary pricing from manufacturers so he could start understanding his cost structure." The Kickstarter pledges had clearly been priced accordingly, but then Coolest Cooler decided to start adding more to the product and therefore inflating the costOnce again, this is not what I signed up for and highlights Coolest Cooler's apparent misuse of funds 3) Following recent updates, it came to light that Coolest Cooler were aware of many of the issues with manufacturing and the dwindling funds well before they were communicated out to the backersIn order to salvage this, Coolest Cooler started selling the product at RRP on Amazon (as part of Amazon Launchpad) which Ryan later revealed they were forced to honour due to contracts in place and "to keep the lights on"The Kickstarter backer and Coolest Cooler "contract" pre-dated any of this and should have taken precedence 4) Coolest Cooler then blames the outcry from backers and the resulting negative reviews on Amazon for why the product was further delayedClearly Ryan had expected to sell as many products as possible at full RRP and then resume production without anyone noticing One of the reviews dated 18th November caught many people's attention: "The Coolest cooler was a Kickstarter project, and yes, there are lots of backers who have yet to receive theirs and it's pretty obvious that these are the people posting all the [redacted] reviewsBut I love mine! The biggest difference between the Coolest and other coolers is obviously the featuresThe blender is powerful and makes great blended cocktailsThe speaker is awesome and the USB port very handy for charging my phoneI made pitchers of cocktails for people yesterday in Florida and they LOVED itThe wheels make it easy to roll and the my friends have just gone nuts for it! All the details (the built-ins are just insane) make it an amazing cooler to either tailgate, or go to the beach withAs a backer you have to be patient - 60K coolers is a lot of coolers to make! Be patient! I got mine and you'll get yours!" The author of this review was *** [redacted] Does this name ring a bell to you? This review is at:http://www.amazon.com/gp/review/ [redacted] 5) In January 2016, an update was sent out to backers asking for them to confirm their addressThe reason provided for this was to enable Coolest Cooler to plan their fulfilment and provide delivery estimatesIn February another update was issued providing backers with a "batch number"These batch numbers were not associated to any date and therefore clearly not an estimateOnce again this falls in line with the previous vague and useless updates provided by Coolest CoolerThis update also included an image, which I have attached as fund_breakdown.pngIf you take a look at the bottom right of this image it states that it is not to scaleWho in their right mind would provide a diagram such as this which is not to scale? It completely defeats the point of the diagram and highlights further than Ryan was trying to fool peopleIt was in this update where Ryan disclosed that they were out of money and looking for traditional investorsSo somewhere between the 21st January and 27th February updates, Coolest Cooler ran out of money? Surely if you were running out of money it wouldn't just creep up on you overnight? 6) Then in March Ryan beings to make excuses, which is where points 2), 3) and 4) come into play 7) Coolest Cooler are required to honour refund requests if they cannot deliverAs it stands right now, they are incapable of delivering my product and therefore I am entitled to my refund nowHowever, this is being refused and instead they state that they will give me my refund weeks before my Cooler is due to ship, which as mentioned before has no estimated dateI would like my refund now and not when Ryan or *** or anyone else at Coolest Cooler deem suitableCoolest Cooler claim that since they still plan to honour the original deal and supply the rewards, the refund request condition does not applyThat condition clearly states that they are required to do so if they are unable to deliver, which at this point they cannottheir determination, faith, willpower (whatever else you want to call it) is irrelevant 8) A video made by Ryan a few years ago surfaced on the internet and once it was linked to the Coolest Cooler, it was promptly removed by RyanFortunately it was downloaded by many people and I have uploaded a copy here for your viewing:https://www.youtube.com/ [redacted] In this video Ryan states:"you're leveraging a network of strangers to fund your projectThey're not giving you a loan; they're not taking equity in your company; they're not investingIt's basically money that never has to be paid back." "the beautiful part about crowd funding is the money you get from these strangers, never has to be paid back." Clearly Ryan thinks of the money as "free money", and now I want mine backMany many other backers are in the same boat and really need for this to be investigated by someone who has the authority to do so (ie DOJ) 9) A month or so ago, *** [redacted] posted on the Kickstarter comments page (which has exploded over the recent months with angry comments) requesting backers to stop filing complaints with the FTC and DOJShe claimed that these reports had no relevance to the status of backer refunds, when backers would receive their products or have any impact on Coolest Cooler (other than causing further delays due to time being spent on replying to them)It sounds like Coolest Cooler believe they speak for DOJ and FTC, and that is what actually prompted me to file my reportThere is no way I am letting a company whole has in effect stolen my $try and limit who I report their ponzi scheme to A comment was posted on the Kickstarter comments section about hours ago by a guy named ***: I've been contacted by *** [redacted] asking me not to be negative and stating they will not show such comments (I assume on facebook).Like this comes as some kind of surprise! She (as part of coolest) has been complicit in taking $from me (and other international backers) and spending this on supplying coolers to other people, including those who backed the project later Then, as the crowning glory they put the international backers orders to the back of the queue and exclude them from the 4th July delivery option.If she expects anything other than negative comments in light of this then in my opinion, she must be completely deluded.The way they have treated international backers is utterly disgraceful [redacted] , I apologise for the really long email, but I had to explain the position the majority of backers and I are in, and how the likes of *** [redacted] and Ryan G [redacted] are simply trying to cover it upIt would be greatly appreciated if you could review what I have said and even spend some time just Googling "Coolest Cooler"Most of what I have said will be found on numerous websites." I would like a refund or my cooler immediately Coolers are being sold at retail Where is my money or my cooler.Sincerely, [redacted]
Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] , and find that this resolution is satisfactory to meSincerely, [redacted]
We have apologized for the delay but the consumer should understand that Kickstarter is a platform that supports new products and projects The estimates given are that - estimates When the Coolest cooler project scaled to the huge extent it did, the manufacturing costs also increased We have delivered to more than 2/of the original backers and continue to do so We have explained why we need to sell at retail - to fund delivery to the remaining backers It's not ideal but it is the only option right nowWe have not broken the terms and conditions of Kickstarter and while we apologize for the delay, the allegations of this consumer are simply not true We have made and shipped more than 40,Coolest coolers and we are shipping to the remaining backers as we are able
We were funded in September of and shipped the first Coolest coolers in July In product development terms this is in fact a very fast timeline from prototype to finished product Furthermore we have to make more than 60,of them for backers The vastly increased scale caused some challenges but we have continued to make good faith efforts to fulfill every backer When a backer supports a Kickstarter campaign, they sign very clear terms of service that explaiin that the timeline is a best estimate and no guarantee of a delivery There is a risk involved that is inherent in any campaign To date, the Coolest Cooler remains one of the most complex hardware projects ever crowdfunded We have been audited and there is nothing irregular about our finances We apologize for the delay but the complainant signed the agreement to donate a pledge fund to the campaign Kickstarter is not a retail store but rather a way to support creative endeavors and bring new ideas to life We have at all times communicated regularly with backers and have a customer service team who respond to requests at [email protected] have communicated and responded to the Oregon Department of Justice who, due to the Kickstarter terms of service, are not pursuing any action This project is ongoing and while the timeline is not ideal, we will get there
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us to create something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledged to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time Our plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, but with your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us to create something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledged to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time We recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we restart production this week and will be shipping to backers again in the coming weeksOur plan is to resume shipments to all backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of remaining backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, but with your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: Some backers have already received their coolers for the same price everyone paid, while others will continue to have to wait and others have been given the option to pay $more to receive theirs by July 4th, with no additional perks besides receiving their cooler sooner That scenario is wrong in so many ways, but wait you can get a refund! Well that refund won't be sent until your cooler is about to ship, so why would anyone want to do that? The end game is we all want the cooler, but this companies missteps and empty promises has caused everyone to lose faith in this company! We all did our part, we pledged the money that was asked of us and have received nothing, so why would we entrust them with more money? Just so we can be disappointed again when their deadline is not met and they feed us more excuses? Absolutely ridiculous.Sincerely, [redacted] ***
Dear Mr***
We are incredibly grateful for your support, and are fully committed on delivering rewards to our remaining Kickstarter backers. Per the Kickstarter terms of service, Kickstarter does not offer refundsA Project Creator is not required to grant a Backer’s request for a refund unless the Project Creator is unable or unwilling to fulfill the reward. The estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time
This is taking longer than we expected, and that’s part of the risk of backing a crowdfunded project compared to purchasing a manufactured product off the shelves. We’re still hard at work doing whatever needs to be done to meet our obligations and take care of every Backer We have shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we were able to restart production earlier this monthOur plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewards to make up the additional costs of the coolers/service provided
Here is a link to our Kickstarter updates wall:https://www.***/***
We are indeed making progress through the remainder of our Kickstarter project
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter, and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us
tocreate something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledged to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time. One doesn't "buy" or "purchase" a product on Kickstarter - you pledge to donate funds to support a new project and just ten months after the campaign closed, we shipped the first Coolest coolers. Due to the scale (more than 62,backers) we had some unexpected challenges but we will get everyone their backer reward
We recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we restart production in the next weekOur plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, butwith your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
Dear Mr***,
We at Coolest are incredibly grateful for your support when you backed this project on Kickstarter (campaign date range: July 8, - August 29, 2014) and we share your frustration with the delays that we have experienced Please remember that your pledge to
back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us to create something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledg to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward Per the terms of service the estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time. One doesn't "buy" or "purchase" a product on Kickstarter - you pledge to donate funds to support a new project and just ten months after the campaign closed, we shipped the first Coolest coolers. Due to the scale (more than 62,backers) we had some unexpected challenges but we will get everyone their backer reward
We recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we restarted production two weeks ago and will be producing 10,coolers in the coming month and a halfOur plan is to resume shipments to backers in the coming weeks, as well as to sell at retail to fund delivery of backer rewardsEvery project has risks and challenges, but with your continued patience and support we’ll succeed together
Complaint: ***I am rejecting this response because:
They are asking me to pay them an additional $for shipping for an item that is not ready to be shipped and will not be ready for some time to come and at the rate they are going may never happenThey are using the funds of future sales to fill the orders of existing sales, similarly to how a ponzi/pyramid scheme worksIn a recent email it was indicated that they have run out of money to produce the items for people who have paid for them and that 2/of the people who preordered still havent received themI want a guarantee delivery date before I pay them any more moneyIt's been 14-months already and I was one of the first people to buy itMeanwhile they are selling them on Amazon readily availableHow is it that they were able to send a large number of units to a major nationwide wholesaler, but cant fill orders for the people that prepaid months earlierIf they are having supply issues of their own, they should drop ship me a unit from amazon.
Sincerely,*** ***
Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. However, if the Company does not fulfill the order by the ship date provided in their response, we will open a new complaint. Sincerely, [redacted]
Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:
Some backers have already received their coolers for the same price everyone paid, while others will continue to have to wait and others have been given the option to pay $97 more to receive theirs by July 4th, with no additional perks besides receiving their cooler sooner. That scenario is wrong in so many ways, but wait you can get a refund! Well that refund won't be sent until your cooler is about to ship, so why would anyone want to do that? The end game is we all want the cooler, but this companies missteps and empty promises has caused everyone to lose faith in this company! We all did our part, we pledged the money that was asked of us and have received nothing, so why would we entrust them with more money? Just so we can be disappointed again when their deadline is not met and they feed us more excuses? Absolutely ridiculous.Sincerely,[redacted]
Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:
For the same reasons in my original complaint. They collected funds two years ago and have yet to furnish any product. HOWEVER they are fulfilling product to retail and online customers. Their first priority should be the original backers from who they have already collected funds. They are prioritizing original backers who pay an additional $97 per cooler underteh guise that there were "unexpected costs" and that if you elect to pay the extra $97 they will guarantee delivery of your order. It is not the customers probelm that they quoted, advertised and collected payment for an item that they did not source properly & consider all costs. Prioritzing customers willing to pay for their mistake is unethical at the very least.Sincerely,[redacted]
Dear Ms. [redacted],
We are incredibly grateful for all of our backers support, and we are fully committed on delivering all of our Kickstarter rewards. The Coolest Cooler cost more than estimated, but we have a path forward and are going to fulfill all backer rewards. We are making...
good faith efforts to complete the project and are indeed making progress.
We have recently shared our path forward with backers in a Kickstarter update and due to the positive response, we were able to restart production two weeks ago. We are making and shipping more than 10,000 coolers in the upcoming six weeks.
Please remember that your pledge to back the Coolest Cooler project on Kickstarter, allowed us tocreate something that previously didn’t exist in the world and we pledge to make a good faith effort to fulfill each reward. Per the Kickstarter terms of service, Kickstarter does not offer refunds. A Project Creator is not required to grant a Backer’s request for a refund unless the Project Creator is unable or unwilling to fulfill the reward. The estimated delivery dates for the rewards were not a promise to deliver by those dates, but simply our best estimate at the time. Our project is indeed ongoing, and we are making progress.
Sincerely,
Blake A[redacted]
Coolest Community Support Manager
We have apologized for the delay but the consumer should understand that Kickstarter is a platform that supports new products and projects. The estimates given are that - estimates. When the Coolest cooler project scaled to the huge extent it did, the manufacturing costs also increased. We have delivered to more than 2/3 of the original backers and continue to do so. We have explained why we need to sell at retail - to fund delivery to the remaining backers. It's not ideal but it is the only option right now. We have not broken the terms and conditions of Kickstarter and while we apologize for the delay, the allegations of this consumer are simply not true. We have made and shipped more than 40,000 Coolest coolers and we are shipping to the remaining backers as we are able.
Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:I can't believe that it would take almost 2 years to produce and ship this product and just an occasional email with another empty promise of a future delivery is supposed to make the backers happy? The lastest update date is they want even more money then has already been paid to insure that the orders are shipped out. SCAM, SCAM, SCAM! ASHAMED THAT I FELL FOR THIS!!!!Sincerely,[redacted]