Bragging On Faber Castell Customer Service.

[jar]

Some time ago I reviewed some of my Graf von Faber Castell fountain pens to try to introduce folk to another German pen and their different styles. Some of the first images showed one of the GvFC boxes, one of their wood ones.

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All of the GvFC pens have come with very nice boxes designed to double as a three pen rest or desk display case.

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Over the years I acquired several Graf von Faber Castell pens and unfortunately either lost some of the boxes or in at least one case bought a used pen that did not come with a case. Since the boxes I had could accomodate three pens each I didn't much worry about it.

Little did I know how wrong that would be.

It was worse than a cross country drive with a passel of kids sitting in the back seat of a '67 Mustang. There was a constant chorus of "it's my turn to have the outside slot!" "They are smushing me; make them stop!" I can't see anything from back here!". It never stopped.

And then there were the sleeping bags. Graf von Faber Castell fountain pens come with a really nice canvas draw string bag to keep the pen comfy and protected but since I seemed to have lost a couple of them I was always at least one sleeping bag short and so it was "He got the sleeping bag last time! It's my turn!" .

Eventually I could stand it no more and began looking for a couple more boxes. On the off chance I went to the US Faber Castell customer support page and asked if they could sell me some replacement boxes, one for the Terra Cotta Intuition (they came in a nice fold over gift box like the one the Guilloché came in) and one for the Ebony Classic Anello (a hinged wood box).

The next day I got an email from Faber Castell US saying they did not sell replacement boxes.....







BUT ....


they were sending me two boxes by UPS, a dark brown wood gift box for the Ebony Anello and a fold over gift box for the Intuition.

In a couple days the Brown Truck showed up with the new boxes and each box also had a new sleeping bag and everyone got their own bed and their own sleeping bag and peace reigned.

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Then, last night, it began.

"Why can't I have a new bed?"

"Why do I have to sleep in this old sleeping bag?"

"I get scared when I'm all alone. Can I sleep with Grenadilla?"

 

[Edwaroth]

Nice boxes, nicer story! I confess however, I am quite more enchanted by the pens you have. They are indeed beauties Jar.

[kpyeoman]

This is good to hear. At the price point of these pens, this should be the customer service you receive.

[elderberry]

I just had another really good service experience at GvFC lately so I though I'd share it too:

 

I had (still have) a Pen of the Year 2003 which I hadn't inked for a while and when I decided to put it back into rotation I noticed that the nib had become very dry and there was hardly any ink flow except when exerting heavy pressure. I haven't found the reason to this day - it had written just fine before -, but no amount of flushing could change anything so I decided to send it in. I e-mailed Faber-Castell, also asking if I should add the warranty booklet as I had stored it away in the cellar and getting to it would require some digging. They replied telling me not to worry and send just the pen.

 

One or two weeks later the pen arrived, it had obviously been cleaned thoroughly and was writing somewhat better but still too dry for my taste. I e-mailed them again and they asked me to send the pen in again. After two more weeks the pen arrived back with a nice and juicy nib. Also the parcel contained a nice Faber-Castell ballpoint pen and two GvFC pencils "for my trouble".

 

The first PoY I got was a 2008 (satin wood). This year I noticed I was no longer happy with the F nib I had ordered it with so I talked to another PoY owner asking if he was interested about a nib trade for an M or B. He was willing but also pointed me in the direction of their service as he was optimistic they would work something out. I called them and they stated unhesitatingly that they would exchange the nib to a larger size - free of charge.

 

I've only just sent the pen away but I'm sure the results will be great again. They've been obliging and generous as no other pen manufacturer I've dealt with before. Keep up the good work, GvFC!

[jar]

Love hearing stories like that.

[Inkcamera]

I have also had several dealings with the Faber-Castell USA customer service department, specifically with Manager, Rene and customer service representative, Michelle. Throughout the years, in each case that I have contacted them about, they have gone over and above what is normally expected from a service department. Each interaction has been very professional and they treat you like family. You send out your pen and it has a fast turnover and your pen is returned in pristine condition. In my case, I have received personal handwritten notes letting me know what was done and that they hope it meets my satisfaction. They do not hesitate to place a phone call to me when needed. On one case in particular, the pen was slightly delayed in repairing so they included a bottle of Faber-Castell ink as a gift for what they considered a longer than normal turnaround of my pen. Any other company would not have even extended such a courtesy. I cannot say enough about Faber-Castell USA's exemplary customer service. Rene and Michelle are an asset to Faber-Castell and have made me a loyal customer and user of their products. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Faber-Castell's customer service and repair to anyone who owns one of their fabulous pens. Sincerest thanks to Rene and Michelle and Faber-Castell.

[jar]

I have also had several dealings with the Faber-Castell USA customer service department, specifically with Manager, Rene and customer service representative, Michelle. Throughout the years, in each case that I have contacted them about, they have gone over and above what is normally expected from a service department. Each interaction has been very professional and they treat you like family. You send out your pen and it has a fast turnover and your pen is returned in pristine condition. In my case, I have received personal handwritten notes letting me know what was done and that they hope it meets my satisfaction. They do not hesitate to place a phone call to me when needed. On one case in particular, the pen was slightly delayed in repairing so they included a bottle of Faber-Castell ink as a gift for what they considered a longer than normal turnaround of my pen. Any other company would not have even extended such a courtesy. I cannot say enough about Faber-Castell USA's exemplary customer service. Rene and Michelle are an asset to Faber-Castell and have made me a loyal customer and user of their products. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Faber-Castell's customer service and repair to anyone who owns one of their fabulous pens. Sincerest thanks to Rene and Michelle and Faber-Castell.

Welcome home. Pull up a stump and set a spell.