Radley handbag

Moody_Mare

Sorry just need to vent, back in march a good friend of mine bought me a gorgeous red leather handbag from Radley. I did not use the bag till July but bought the cleaning kit and protector and kept the bag out of sunlight in my home, all per the instructions. After a 2 week holiday down south the bag faded on one side to an awful shade of pink ( no doubt due to the sunlight ) when they said keep it out of bright light I did not think they meant only use at night:eek: Asked Radley for advice i.e any dye I can use and they said probaly not, would be patchy. I pointed out it is fit for the bin and they just said sorry. So much for customer service! The bag is sitting in my wardrobe and annoying me as my friend spent a small fortune on a leather bag for me that is now a mess.

I cannot even find anyone who would attempt to re-dye it, sorry just had to vent on this.

pulliptears

How did you approach Radley? I ask because I had a problem with a handle breaking on one of my bags, I telephoned them and explained the problem and was asked to post the bag down to them.
3 weeks later I received it back, repaired and cleaned and with a letter of apology.

Call them, ask them if they can take a look at it. They have their own team of repairers there so should be able to fix it.

Morty_007

They fixed a purse of mine which fell apart after 18 months...my experience is they are great! may be worth contacting again and asking for a solution again. do you/your friend have a receipt?

System

I have a designer bag which stated shouldn't be used in sunlight or in the rain. I though this was madness seen as I live in Britain! Anyway, I use this bag everyday, come rain or shine, and yes, the dye has ran...not terribly noticeable (i don't think anyway) but if its raining I do find the colour stained on my jacket. But I suppose I'm lucky in that the bag is very soft leather, so has the whole worn look to it, is the colour only adds to this. Most Radley bags i've seen are more strong leather, aren't they? So yeah, I'd imagine it would be really annoying if the colour has faded on that type of leather.

I'd phone (again if your original contact was by email) and explain again to someone different....persistence often works

Hope you get the matter sorted.

Moody_Mare

Thanks to all for their replies. I asked Radley is there was anything that could be done to re-dye the bag and if they could take a look at it. The bag is a soft leather and very noticable as red on back side and now washed out puice pink on the front. They asked the model and I said it was the Embankment bag at that point they stated these bags do have a habit of fading badly and there was nothing they could do. They said I could try a vegetable dye but they doubt it would work, they were simply not interested:(

marmitepotato

Is there a Radley or Tula shop near you? Has your friend still got the recepit? My hubby brought me a Radley bag for my birthday and a few months later the stitching round the handle had started to come away.
We took it back to the Tula shop where we had purchased it and showed them the bag and the recepit. They were brilliant, they took the bag and as there were no replacement bags of the same design I could chose another one to the same value (or over) as long as we paid the difference.
I would speak to your friend, i am sure she would be happy to find the recepit and to help you to get a new bag. She would probably be annoyed that such and expensive pressie is faulty, and be happy to take the bag back for you.
Dont give up, I have found Radley very accommodating but I think the recepit is the key to getting your bag sorted out. After all, if you look at it from Radleys point of view, anyone could buy a cheap second hand one on ebay and then try and get a new one out of them.

Good Luck, I am sure they will help you.

hippygran

I love Radley stuff!
Only own 3 items (presents off my wealthier sister).
After reading the way you have been treated I will be telling her not to get me any more!
She is always telling me off, because I keep them in their little bags and only use for special occassions, but now I will be too scared to use them at all.
I would be GUTTED if one got ruined, when it wasnt my fault.
I thought the whole point was they were supposed to be well made and durable!
If a problem such as yours occurs, then that particular design/style/leather/dye technique is not up to the quality the consumer expects from Radley, so they should sort it out.
Please let us know if they dont rectify, because they will have lost custom otherwise.
Not mine personally, (but hey - I MAY be rich enough one day!).
But certainly my sister wont be buying more for me and my other sister and countless other people she buys them for!

Foggster

Another satisfied Radley bag owner. I have a tote bag that I have used daily for 2 years and yes its worn but nothing I wouldnt expect of a bag that ends up on the office floor under the desk, by the side of me in shops and cafes and slung around the car!

However, red is an awful colour for fading, I have a slightly more expensive version in the shape of a car (needless to say Vauxhall werent interested when I complained). Radley have always been very good with repairs and replacements etc. and if they are admitting that the colour is subject to fading then you could reject the goods. I would get this in writing from them and go from there.