JC Licht Epco Paint & Decorating Center

I was in this store a few days ago and I must say I was very pleased. I have always been a Benjamin moore fan because of the quality. I have been going to the store in Northbrook and wasnt too happy. I found my new store!!! I highly recommend them

Stay far away from this place. Terrible customer service and sloppy quality control. As a previous reviewer mentioned, slimy is a fitting term for the management there (they did have some friendly sales reps though).
We used this location of JC Licht Epco to supply paint for our recent remodel. We repainted our entire house, so we purchased a significant amount of paint. All of the paint was Benjamin Moore and most was Aura. We also bought painting supplies here.
Prices were definitely higher than the competition (even after their volume «discounts»), but we went with them out of convenience… it was closest to our home.
I cannot recommend this place because the customer service is severely lacking. It started when JC Licht Epco provided the wrong color for one of our rooms. It was a mixup on their part. Every color we ordered for our entire house was a Benjamin Moore color, but for this one gallon, they inadvertently gave us a different color (the color was not even a Benjamin Moore color and a was completely different color from the correct color… not a difference in shade). They labeled the paint can with the name of the correct Benjamin Moore color, so our painter had no reason to know a mistake had been made, and proceeded to paint our bathroom.
JC Light Epco’s mistake in providing the wrong color was understandable. Frustrating, but understandable. Their total failure was in how they dealt with the situation. They pointed the finger back at us/​and our painter and would not compensate us to repaint the room. Although they did eventually agree to provide us the paint we actually ordered and paid for, they claimed they didn’t even have to replace the paint with the paint we ordered and were just doing so in this one case «due to the benefit of the doubt.»
Let’s be honest here. There is no doubt about what happened. JC Licht Epco messed up, but would not own up to it, because they did not want to be liable for their mistake. They would not compensate us or our painter for repainting the room to fix the mistake. We were not asking for much… far less than our painter charged to paint the room in the first place. Our painter, in a good faith effort to resolve the situation, would have redone the job for a credit of only 2 – 3 gallons of paint (realize we were purchasing more than 10 times that amount for our project). JC Light would not budge. Very disappointed. I expected better service given the prices we were paying and given how clear it was that they messed up.
Good luck dealing with them if you have any issues. I would not risk it. Save money and heartache, and go somewhere else.

I went to JC Licht epco paint center in Evanston on Friday. I had called in advance to have 3 gallons of Benjamin Moore Paint mixed. When I arrived the person at the counter said I must have called a different store by mistake, because they never received that call. I waited for 15 minutes while they called other local stores to see if they had my paint. Then one of the employees found the paper with my order on it. I waited another 10 minutes while they mixed my paint. No one apologized or said anything about it, but at the end he gave me a 10% discount off of my order.
One of the employees stacked the paint cans horizontally in a box and carried it out to my car, which I appreciated. When I got home, I decided to leave the paint in my trunk until the next day. When I went to get the paint, the box was right side up, exactly as the man had put it in my trunk. However, 1 gallon of paint had leaked through the box and all over my trunk! Clearly the can had not been sealed properly. I spent 1.5 hours trying to clean it with a bucket and sponges, and there is still quite a bit of paint in my trunk. I eventually gave up. When I called the store to complain, they said that a manager would call me back, but he did not. Someone else called me back. No one ever apologized. His first question was «What do you want from us?» They are going to replace the gallon of paint and give me some paint cleaner for my trunk. This store is convenient for me but I will NEVER go back.
Update: I increased my rating to two stars because I called the main customer service department and Diane was nice and very helpful. The company will pay to have the paint cleaned out of my trunk, which I appreciate. I still won’t go back to the Evanston location, but I will go to other branches of this chain.

The paint products are really excellent and yes, expensive too, though several times I’ve hit it good with bargain or clearance items that help save a lot of $s. For sure, the paint prices are high compared with the big chain stores, so I wouldn’t go here if on a tight budget, or if the quality of the job didn’t matter so much (much cheaper than having a decorator in, and in any case I feel it’s worth the extra $ when going to so much trouble with all the design & prep I put into my decorating projects). Service has been mostly good, some of the advice given has been very good, some not so great, but in general, these guys know their product very well and tell it to you straight, which I like. And I feel it’s important to remember that a big proportion of this store’s business is with contractors — folks who are very direct, know what they want, and don’t need a lot of advice – so maybe that might explain the sometimes ‘less than velvet gloves’ customer service style. Also, running a business like a paint store isn’t going to be an easy ride for most, so I don’t expect any special treatment or discounts for regular patronage as I rack up the years here in Evanston.

As another reviewer commented, the Saturday front counter staff are condescending and kind of slimy. I thought maybe it was in my head but I’ve gone in twice and dreaded it the second time because the first time was so annoying. It’s hard to put my finger on what specifically is the issue but there’s a vibe I don’t care for. They aren’t friendly or helpful. They’re smug, sort of like they’re doing you a big favor by selling you paint at all. They both treated me and the couple in front of me (man/​woman) in the same not-​great way.
My painting contractor also hates this store. We started buying paint elsewhere because it’s simply unpleasant.
Benjamin Moore Aura paint is awesome. Just don’t buy it here.

The employees know their stuff and the place has anything you might want for painting. You can get a paintbrush for $ 1.49 or for $ 10 and I’ve learned not to go with the cheap stuff. I went elsewhere for paint because of a Consumer Reports article that praised Valspar paint which EPCO doesn’t have (Millen Hardware in WIlmette does). When it comes to supplies, EPCO is the place to go.

Pricier than other companies but the service was excellent. The staff took the time to explain the different types of paint and technique and even had a couple suggestions for us. They have a small parking lot in the back — they went ahead and mixed up all 5 different shades of paint that we wanted within 15 minutes. My only complaint was how there were no price tags on anything and we felt silly asking repeatedly — ‘how much is this? What’s the cheapest thing here’