Outsidepride.com Inc

Unfortunately, hardly anything the customer said is true. I have contacted all of our staff and this customer was so rude we had to block hereFrom our support staff, "Initially after finding out she had done everything wrong (buried them too deep, and only watered a couple of times per week
I asked if she had more seeds and suggested she follow the changes I recommended (and I was nice, not rude as she claims) and since they were new seed and large, that she could put the seeds in the freezer for a couple of weeks and then try planting themShe said she did have more seedsThat was April 10thSo she didn’t follow my directions because I guess she emailed the support email last week (not me) and said that my method didn’t work even though it hadn’t even been a month since she had emailed, so if she froze them for weeks and the seeds can take days to germinate, it wasn’t enough timeI didn’t see anything else after April 10th until Monday when she was already rantingI never offered her free seeds because she said she had moreAnd Kim dealt with her on Facebook where she was VERY rudeCustomer refused to deal with me because of how rude I was(again you can read the entire conversation I had with her.) Kim can give you more info on the facebook stuff, but it sounds like she got so unhinged that Kim told her she was “done” with her and then had to block her.We sell lots of cupid's dart seed and nobody seems to have any problems except this customer. This is one of those people who likes to harass and threaten you until they get what they want even though our warranty is clear and she planted wrongWe are not going to apologize for having to block a customer that continually harasses us over tiny packets of seed

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: its falseI can provide all the emails and Facebook conversationThe person replying knows little about seeds, you don't freeze seeds to wake them upI did not bury them too deep and they were at different depths, all within range and some surface sewn to see if even that would helpIts amazing how they ignore that I had to purchase seeds from another vendor just to prove the seeds outside pride sent me were dudsI was not rude until I was ignored numerous times and was told I wouldn't be helpedI practically begged the Facebook people to have customer service email mePlease let me know if I need to send copies of the emails and Facebook messagesI cannot seem to do that from my tablet and will gladly do so from my computer
Sincerely,
*** ***

Will all due respect, your complaint is absolutely not true.  That is certified seed so please look up what certified seed is.  That means not only does a private lab do all the testing of the seed, the state is actually certifying the fields during the whole growing process. ...

Once the seed is harvested, the state actually pulls the samples of seed and sends them to the lab.  The state and the independent lab certify the germination,purity, etc. which has to meet the state's standards.  If the lab and the state says the seed has an 80% germination, then the seed has an 80% germination.  That is all there is to it.  To say you had the seed "inspected" is something I have never even heard of and I have been in the seed business for over 30 years.  There is no such thing as inspecting a seed.  That crop of seed that you say would NEVER germinate has germinated for every other person who planted it.  Do you think you the only person who bought that lot of seed?  Of course not.  Do you know how many complaints we have received on it?  One.  You people that say you plant "correctly" never do.  I have had people tell me that and then tell me they planted the seed 1 inch deep when the directions to say to not plant over 1/4".  I have people tell me they watered every other day when the directions say not to let the seed dry out which means watering 4 to 5 times a day.  We have had people put down pre-emergent herbicides right before planting so weeds don't come up which of course keeps the seeds from germinating.  If seed doesn't germinate, there is ALWAYS a reason which has nothing to do with the quality of the seed and that is a fact.  Our seed is NEVER sold unless it has a minimum of a 70% germination.

Complaint: [redacted] Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:#1  Outsidepride.com responded "Even in your above complaint you state, "special fertilizer."  Where in our directions do we say to use any type of fertilizer.  You can't use fertilizer when planting Irish Moss seed.  It has way too much nitrogen and will just burn the seed."  Yet, right in their website (http://www.outsidepride.com/seed/ground-cover-seed/irish-moss-groundcover-seed....⇄ they recommend using Shaker Seed Bottle with Special Matrix with the following description: "Shake 'n Seed - We are now offering shaker bottles filled with our seed starting matrix: rich soil, gardening sand, water absorbing crystals, and starter fertilizer. This not only helps dispense your seed, but it gets it off to a great start! Simply remove lid from shaker bottle, add seed from packet, put back on lid, shake the bottle vigorously for 15 seconds, and then shake your way to beautiful new plants! Use Shake 'n Seed over good quality soil, and then gently water to keep seed moist until it sprouts. Great for ground covers or mass planting flower seeds." Don't make fun of my comments until you read your own copy from your own website. Yes, I did use a "special fertilizer." One, in fact, that you highly recommended and sold as such. #2  Outsidepride.com responded "Planting any seed that has 80,000 seeds per gram is risky planting outdoors.  One hard wind can blow the seed away.  Are we responsible for the wind blowing the seed away?" Yet, in the product description and planting directions on the website, the following information is provided WITHOUT any warnings that doing so is "risky." Again, I quote from the company website, "Irish Moss seeds can be direct sown into the garden or in-between stones." WHAT? No warning of risk? And where the [redacted] did that tornado they refer to in the response come from? They respond, "One hard wind can blow the seed away.  Are we responsible for the wind blowing the seed away?" Seriously, this respondent's disregard for reality is one of the reasons I'm fighting so hard for this claim: they absolutely make things up. WHAT HARD WIND? Had they read ANY of the documentation I provide to them, they would be aware that this rectangular garden is enclosed on 3 sides by buildings. The single "open side" is 10' wide and is planted with 12 - 18' ornamental spruce trees and 8' mature butterfly bushes for privacy and protection. #3 The company responded, "Are we responsible for you putting down fertilizer?"Well, YES, because you sold it to me as indicated on the following address on the company's own webpage: http://www.outsidepride.com/seed/ground-cover-seed/irish-moss-groundco...⇄ The company responded, "Are we responsible for one hard rain shower washing the seed away?  Of course not."Again, had the company read any of my original information, they would be aware that the fact that the garden is surrounded on three sides by housing and that rain rarely comes from the open end of the garden, the "shade" garden remains inordinately dry even with surrounding rain. For this reason, a 100' soaker hose was installed beneath the mulch at the beginning of the spring to ensure that the area would receive adequate moisture. There is no place for the seed to "wash away" based upon the garden's location.Further, just how in the [redacted] does a company on the other side of the continental US decide that there was, indeed, "one hard shower" in Virginia from their location in Oregon. Yes, I know all about the internet, but I also know that when I travel for business and call the house sitter to remind him to close the windows because of an impending storm, 99% of the time he reports sunny skies and no sign of rain at all -- regardless of what my smartphone app, the Weather Channel and the NOAA App predict.#5 The company responded, "Your statement of nothing but terrible reviews is frankly just a lie."Frankly, no it is not. Your statement of a 99% approval rating on [redacted] AND a successful Revdex.com record are undocumented statements for which you provide absolutely zero documentation. On the other hand, here are the negative reviews on your company that I found after just 15 minutes of looking online:A) From [redacted] website ([redacted] they noted the following: Feedback History and Summary  33 positives, 15 neutrals, 29 negatives. Thus, your neutral and negative reports far outweigh your positive reports. Among the negative reports are quotes from customers who've been treated almost exactly as I have. The Revdex.com Investigator is invited to read the negative reviews further as they are quite enlightening. -- "I purchased China Aster Seeds in 2014 and I had great germination success. The following year (2015) I bought more seeds but NO seeds germinated and the seeds from 2014 had poor results. I contacted Outside Pride and got a response basically interrogating me about how the seeds were started. I have been gardening for more than 30 years, I am a Master Gardener and I have a small greenhouse business and also a vendor at our local Farmers' Market. Frankly, I know what I'm doing but the huge number of questions asked by Outside Pride made it sound like I didn't know what I was doing. After I was responded about how I started the plants I have not heard anything back from them. It's not the money but the reliability of a company's products that bothers me and lack of getting back to me for an explanation. Apparently the sides were old and not viable, especially the 2015 seeds"-- "Customer NO service. Let me explain that when calling the number listed for Outsidepride, it appears to be ONLY an ANSWERING ORDER SERVICE (who can only TAKE ORDERS or SEND EMAILS in regards to orders) even during normal business hours. THREE times I have called to resolve this and I'm told some one will be in touch via email. I requested to speak with some one from this company and was told I could not. I CANNOT GET ANY ONE ON THE PHONE but and ANSWERING SERVICE to help me, nor have I received any email. It has been two days (48 hours) since I first called and I have yet to get a response. June 20th I placed an order. On June 22 received email seeds had shipped. On Wed June 22 I received seeds other than what I ordered. The invoice included confirmed I had ordered correctly. I immediately called the listed number only to have an ANSWERING SERVICE operator tell me she would let the company know and that I would receive an email, as, that is the way Outsidepride communicates. I should have already received a replacement for what I ordered. If they mailed the correct seeds today it would be too late. I see a copy of this will be sent to the company. Perhaps this is the best way to get a response. Good bye, Outsidepride."-- "I concur with [redacted] and had a similar, horrible experience with their customer service. I am currently looking to purchase some sedum and succulent seeds. The have a wide selection however my previous experience made me hesitant. Reading [redacted] review reminded me of my experience and why 1 have stayed away thus far.They proudly advertise a high (70%) germination and that they stand by their product. However, when you contact them with an issue it is naturally your fault and you have not idea what you are doing.I ordered similar 2 varieties of sedums, planted them following their recommendations under the same conditions. One set of seeds germinated nicely while the other had <10% germination. When presented them with these facts, of course I am the it. I am no expert gardener and never claimed to be one. However, I am a scientist and when you have 2 groups with very similar characteristics under the same conditions you expect them to behave the same.Save yourself some agony and find another supplier."-- "The emails sum it up, read for yourself and you be the judge.Me: The Crimson Clover Seed - 2 LBS Inoculated you sent me was the wrong item. The packaging must have been labeled wrong because it said Crimson Clover on it. I planted it and something else grew. It's some kind of creeping vine and has taken over my yard. I attached a picture of it. The White Dutch Clover you sent me was perfect and is doing very well. I don't want to leave a bad review, how can we settle this?Outsidepride: Our crimson clover has 16 reviews rating it at 4 1/2 stars.  You can't get any better than that.  Not to mention of our web site we sell about another 10,000 lbs a year.  Not one single complaint.  It is impossible to ship the wrong seed.  What is growing there is just a weed from your soil.Me: Either way, I gave it months with regular watering and the Crimson Clover never sprouted. If you won't stand by your product then I won't be doing business with you again, and I'll make sure others know why.Outsidepride: Months with regular watering?  Crimson clove sprouts in about 5 days.  It is pretty obvious you had no idea what you were doing.  That is about the easiest seed in the world to sprout.  Stand behind our product??  There is nothing wrong with our product!  Look at the label and see the germination rate not to mention the fact we have had 2,421 orders of it this year and not one single complaint.  Try being logical.  Out of the 16 reviews, there is not a single one that is a 1 star or a 2 star review.  Even the 3 star review only complained because it was larger than they thought or the wildlife kept eating it all down.  There is not one single review out of the 16 posted complaining about germination.  What does that tell you?  Was the seed bad, of course not.Me: Since it didn't sprout within several months, then it must not have sprouted within 5 days, either. Obviously it is something wrong with your productOutsidepride: Actually I tutored statistics all through college.  What was obvious if you are sitting there waiting for it to sprout 2 months later than you have no idea what you are doing.  Obviously wrong with the seed?  Are you kidding me?  I saw the photo of that mess you called a planting.  It is also obvious there were herbicides used there?  Gee, I wonder if the herbicides could have anything to do with the seed not sprouting.  Gee, I wonder why out of 2,421 orders I am the only one who is complaining about sprouting?  Gee, I wonder why out of the 16 reviews posted on [redacted], there is not a single one complaining about seed germination?  Gee, I wonder why even the most recent reviews posted just last month, whose seed all came from the exact same lot gave it 5 stars?  You are obviously a liberal to be so illogical.Me: I really don't know what being a liberal has to do with this, but I am, as a matter of fact, a veteran of the United States Air Force and a conservative. The fact that you brought politics into a debate over germination times is beyond me. You'll grasp at anything and everything to keep from taking accountability. Your behavior is absolutely appalling.The emails went on in this manner, but I don’t have enough room to include them all.This person believes that Outsidepride is infallible, and that there is no such thing as human error. Their biggest argument was that they had “perfect” reviews and that “no one else” had ever complained before. But after looking around at other reviews, I found that it had been a common problem among other customers as well.The fact of the matter is, that if it’s inoculated seed you really can’t tell what seed is inside unless you wash it off. The so called "weed" that this person claimed was growing in my yard is in fact called Partridge Pea. It's indigenous to Connecticut. This person should know that since it is something sold on Outsidepride.com. The fact that this person called it a weed goes to show that they know nothing about their own product."So simply based on principle, don’t give these people your business."B) From [redacted], a review that I didn't even look up, it just appeared when I was trying to find the company website (https[redacted] The customer cites the following complaint -- is this beginning to sound familiar? "[redacted] 3 weeks ago-Bought some grass seed that would grow in my zone as stated by Outside Pride ad and confirmed by [redacted] thru email. I had mentioned that the big market local stores sell seed that only germinates about 75-85% percent and grows very poor and I was looking for shade grass that will look great. [redacted] told me that the Combat Extreme grass will grow great in shade and in my zone! Area was prepared by tilling, adding starter fertilizer and lime to dirt."C) Finally, from the well-known and respected [redacted] site (http://[redacted]) comes just ONE of the chilling feedback notes: "[redacted] ) I know this thread is old, but after someone on another forum mentioned this company and I did a little checking, I felt a warning to possible future customers might be a good idea. Beware of Outsidepride.com! After looking at their reviews on the other well-known gardening site, it's pretty clear that this nursery has major customer service problems, frequent lack-of-quality concerns, a propensity to send hate-mail/SPAM to their customers, and a complete lack of honesty. In fact, they were caught adding multiple fake positive reviews to their own Garden Watchdog page. This company is BAD NEWS!" Again, I STRONGLY encourage the Revdex.com investigator to read more of the [redacted] professional reviews -- many from landscapers and master gardeners. Thank you for the opportunity to respond to this poorly-run company's fairy tales.Sincerely,[redacted]