P.C. Richard & Son

Between Christmas and New Year’s we went to buy a new television.
The only guy available on the floor — two others (one manager ?) were locked in conversation and ignored us — actually discouraged us from buying. Very pessimistic attitude.
And he either knew nothing about the choices or wasn’t willing to talk to us about them.
We left, puzzled. Won’t be back.

I ordered a 55″ TV. I did not want to buy it in the store due to the difficulty of getting it home to my apartment. So I bought it online and get a 3 hour window for delivery from PC Richards with installation and removal of the old TV. One guy gets off the elevator on my floor shoving the box ahead of him (no hand truck or dolly). He pushes the box into the apartment. I asked him where the other guy is and he says they decided to split up because they had other deliveries in the area. I have to remind him that delivery includes installation and removal. I call the customer service number and I’m told «installation» is removal from the box and plugging it to make sure it works. Guy removes it from the box but then tells me that he can’t test the TV because it needs to warm up to room temperature and it’s really cold in the truck. (It was 52 degrees in New York at the time.)
I finally get it set up myself and, yes, it was damaged. More emails with photo and calls, pc richards sends a replacement. Got another 3 hour window on the date of delivery. So I wouldn’t have to go through this process a third time, I paid $ 100 to have the tv actually «installed.»
Avoid this store like the plague.

Happy ending after a very poor customer experience. I purchased a gas range, plus an extended warranty and other expensive extras, from salesman Julio Aragon. He was pleasant but misinformed me about what installation did and did not include, causing unnecessary stress and confusion for my superintendent and me. Then the store failed to send the certificate of insurance to the building. Not one, not two, not three, but FOUR times, I called the store and told a P.C. Richard person named Charles the COI was missing. He insisted they’d sent it (without taking the trouble to look it up). On the morning of delivery — literally at the last minute — my frantic super called me at work. Still no COI, and the range was on the way. I gave him the store number and wished him luck. Thank God, he managed to get them to email it on time, and delivery and installation proceeded. But the indifference and incompetence of store staff made it a deeply lousy experience.
The happy ending came when I posted this review, which just goes to show how great Unilocal can be. A manager named Nathan called me to apologize and said he would refund the installation fee. He said he had spoken to store staff to make sure such things are handled better in the future. I was impressed by his responsiveness and grateful for the refund.

I was supposed to receive a delivery from PC Richards today, it was an online order.
What a disgraceful disgraceful company.
They are ill prepared and Ill equipped to deliver a box spring and bed frame.
They delivery guys were rude and disrespectful, the supervisor of the customer service center was rude over talked me and would not listen. I told her I would not allow these guys in my home without removing their shoes.
They had no booties and their boots were filthy. I have a very light colored carpet through my entire home and everyone else removes their shoes.
I will never order from them again.
Update:
PC Richards put this whole matter right for me!
Thank you very much Michael

Just had an incredibly great experience buying a refrigerator here! This is the first time I have ever written a Unilocal review, But I was so impressed I simply had to take the time.
My sales person was Bryan, and he is the reason I’m reviewing. He was pleasant, friendly, and helpful when I was shopping in the store, but really showed what he was made of when things got tough. We have the classic nightmare scenario for delivery of a refrigerator. Our kitchen is down a narrow, curving flight of stairs. As a result it took three attempts to get the new refrigerator into the kitchen and hooked up, and the old refrigerator out, but Bryan took absolute ownership of the problem, returned my calls promptly, and stuck with us until the job was done. It may sound corny, but he really brings to life the PC Richards slogan: honesty, integrity, reliability.

Shockingly bad customer service and really confusing operations. First the «salesperson» said he was going to check something for me. He then walked away and didn’t come back. The guys stocking the store felt bad for me and tried to explain the product, which was kind but even more confusing (they couldn’t answer certain questions etc). They then called another salesperson to help and it became this confusing episode of whether they had the stock, what stock they had, how much it cost etc. I could tell the poor second sales person was a little out of his depth. In the end, I spent more than 45 mins in there yet walked out without a product and left with a lot of frustration. Will not come in here again.
*update: good follow up customer service. Had an email exchange with their manager who was apologetic and wanted to help. They may need to train all their salespersons a little better but they have good follow up service.

Hank and Carlos — two top notch people. I went to buy a window A/​C unit and Hank was super helpful in explaining what I needed and why. Not pushy at all and actually took the time to answer my questions. Walked out of the store with the unit, all smiles.
Fast forward 15 days later and the unit’s compressor is busted. Yes, during the first «heat wave» in NYC. File that under, «shit happens.»
Carlos to the rescue. Carlos is the store’s GM and was beyond helpful. He didn’t have any delivery or install guys available… SO HE DELIVERED AND INSTALLED the unit himself. That is some A+ customer service. And all free of charge.
Thanks guys!

Just purchased another AC as this location. The salesperson did a great job recomending exactly what I needed to cool my living room. I went in thinking i needed an 8000 BTU system and he explained to me why i needed the 10,000. He was not pushy at all and I got a great deal from them. I saved a little on the actual price of the unit. Great store to shop at even though i live in Queens i go to this PC Richard store all the time.

I needed some window A/​C units and I went to PC Richards after doing some online research. I had already dome price comparisons so I knew I was getting a good deal. No pushy salespeople just trying to make a dollar, instead this guy (Hank) ACTUALLY helped me. He knew the pros and cons of every unit and what would work best for my situation. He also made sure they were installed the same day since I have a baby. Hank is the best. I went in at lunchtime and had A/​C by 8 pm during one of their busiest times.

Worst experience i’ve had purchasing an appliance. TV. Too traumatic to tell you the whole story, but wanted to give my vote.

Forget about their pushy, lying high pressure sales people. Forget about their dishonest prices. Forget about their rude, incompetent support. I would never, ever purchase anything from PC Richard & Son for the following reason: Their terrible, awful return policy, reprinted below:
If opened and/​or used, the following merchandise is non-​returnable & not sold on a trial basis:
Home Appliances
Air Conditioners
TVs — 50″ & Larger
iPods
iPads
Computers
Video Game Systems/​Games
Samsung Smart Watches & Fitness Bands
Mattresses & Box Springs
I know of no other store that doesn’t allow at least 15 days to return an item you decide is wrong for you. The AC is a little too weak or strong (but not broken)? You’re stuck with it. Decide you want the higher level washer? You’re out of luck. Prefer a four slot toaster to a two slot? You shoulda shopped elsewhere.
Really, I think you would have to be a crazy person to purchase an item at a store that does not allow returns, especially considering that just about every place else allows returns.

Horrible service. The sales people are rude and totally unhelpful.

I bought a TV over a year ago (6 weeks over) in this store and they gave me an excellent treatment, they helped us out with selecting the best TV for me and my wife. We were offered the extended warranty option, which we paid (3 years extension, for $ 200). So we ended up spending around $ 2000.
Right two months after that we decided to move out of NY and moved to FL (where they don’t have physical stores, however you can buy online and get products shipped…).
We enjoyed the TV until it decided to stop working, so I called customer service and when all the bad service started… first of all they wanted to refund the money I paid for the extended warranty, merely $ 200 and not send anybody to check the product. So I complained and told the lady on the phone if they did that on a regular basis, keeping the money if the product doesn’t break, and refunding the warranty money if it did… right away she said, hang on a second will send someone to check your product.
It turned out that the product was unrepairable (the technician they sent said so), so the guy called customer service to report about this and they asked him to send an email to the customer service (or customer support) manager, which I had to do, since the poor technician didn’t have a computer on him… nor a fax.
So, after 6 – 8 calls I managed to reach the manager to ask about the status of my order and he said, yeah, I am handling this, I sent it to the store, they have to review it and then they will call you with the outcome. I asked him what’s to review, since they sent the technician and he said the product is broken and urepairable. He just told me that I have to wait for the store to call me back once they review my case, when in the contract I signed it clearly states, and I quote: «1. If P.C. Richard & Son determines your product is unrepairable, it will be replaced with a product of comparable performance, not to exceed the original purchase price… 5. There is little that can happen to your covered product that is not covered by this agreement…»
So, I ask myself again «WHAT’S TO REVIEW?» the had the evaluation done by the technician they sent…
All that said, I still don’t know what they are planning to do, and here I am without being able to watch the TV I bought.
So, three things:
1. I will never buy anything with them again (even if they open a store near to where I live)
2. If you can get the manufacturers warranty extension instead of PC Richard’s, please do
3. If you get the extension with them, make sure you read the terms and conditions, because there might be more than «little» that can happen to your product so they don’t have cover it…
Waiting for them to call me back… when will they? not sure…

We have purchased a few items from PC Richards over the years, including a wall unit a/​c for a previous apartment. We recently moved to a new apartment with two window units that looked too scary to even turn on (think musty, mold). So in March we decided to take advantage of an off-​season a/​c sale and get ready for summer.
Initially two salespeople approached us and we asking questions about the size of the room to ensure we chose something with enough BTUs. Unfortunately, the salesperson who stuck around was a prick named Trifon. (Or Trifling, as I like to call him.) He totally tried to pressure us into buying a unit that was more BTU that we needed. We had considered buying a smaller unit for our bedroom at the same time, but due to Trifling’s high pressure we decided to wait.
As we went to check out, he continued to try to pressure and upsell us. As he took down our info and discovered we lived on the fifth floor, he insisted we buy an a/​c shelf/​support, telling us, «It’s the law.» He also told us we needed to buy additional foam padding for after we installed the a/​c. He argued with us when we said we didn’t want to pay $ 80 for delivery/​installation. (We planned to take a cab and carry it ourselves.) He argued with my partner about the PC Richards additional warranty, which we also did not want.
I was very irritated because I came in with a budget and due to essentially being forced to buy the installation shelf and padding, went over it.
Fast forward a few weeks when Trifling calls me because we hadn’t picked up the a/​c. Now instead of charging us $ 80 for delivery, he offers it for $ 60. No dice. We go into the store and ask to speak with a manager. We talked with Pierre, who was very nice and worked out a deal with us for a reasonable delivery charge. (We were willing to buy two a/​c units if Trifling would have thrown in free delivery but he refused.) We also insisted that Trifling not receive any commission on the delivery fee.
So we get the a/​c home and go to install the shelf only to find out it doesn’t work with the structure of our window sill. In addition, there is already foam padding included with the air conditioner, so we also did not need the extra. We returned both the shelf and the padding for a refund. (Also, have you ever looked at how many a/​c units in high rises have no support frame?! If it’s against the law, then the city is missing out on a huge revenue stream from fines for that!)
The way Trifon treated us made us NOT want to ever spend money there again, and we went out of our way to return the items Trifling insisted we needed. We will likely go there again for smaller items but we will never work with Trifling Trifon again.

SNEAKY — UNTRUSTWORTHY — DISHONEST — AND UNAPOLOGETIC ABOUT IT!!!
Took my friend who doesn’t speak English as her first language to this store to buy an air-​conditioner that was on sale in and ad they had. We told them what we wanted (the air conditioner in their ad that was on sale) they went to get it and then we paid for it and I noticed the price was off. They had not gotten us the right air conditioner and had basically tried to up sell us without even mentioning it, thinking we wouldn’t notice. Sneakiest people I’ve ever met. Basically they tried taking advantage of a person who was not from here and doest speak English as her first language.
And how do I know it wasn’t a simple mistake on their part? When we noticed that was a higher price and that it wasn’t the same air-​conditioner on sale we told them we wanted. They didn’t apologize or anything!!! They just started saying «this is a better air conditioner for just a little more money» we were doing you a favor b.s., etc.
Well how about saying this before you take our money. How about telling the customer, hey we have this other model you might like better. Let the customer decide! Not sneak in a similar but different and in my opinion and the reviews I read online — lower quality air conditioner that just cost more!
I have never heard of or had such bad customer service. I asked to speak to the manager and told them what had happened and it was like he endorsed this kind of thing his employees do. It was utterly one of the craziest most perplexing and horrible customer experiences I had ever had. Because the purchase had been made, with them basically by sneaking in a substitute item. We returned it immediately without leaving the store but were made to get in a long return type line!
They were trying to take advantage of someone who didn’t speak English as her first language, it was obvious, and seemed like they would do this to anyone they they think they could possible take advantage of, based on how the manager reacted. So anyone who is maybe older, less informed shoppers, people who shy away from conflict or have trouble speaking up for themselves, maybe people with disabilities, they knew 100% what they were doing. And it is despicable!
P.C. Richard’s doesn’t realize how much business they lost by treating us this way. We went to their store because we wanted to shop at a more local type place. Not only will I never buy anything there and had they been nice I would have bought many thing there. My friend, myself and another friend of ours all went elsewhere to buy our air conditioners, and everything else we needed after moving to NYC. And that was a lot! Also my friends and I will never shop there and have recommended other stores and warned all our friend to stay away from P.C. Richard’s. It’s amazing how word of mouth can spread among friends. And communities of people from other countries who live here in NYC. So my advice — unless you want to end up with a more expensive and lower quality item than you go in for, and to be treated in a sneaky, shady way. DON’T GO HERE OR TO ANY P.C. RICHARD’S.

BUYER BEWARE _​NO. 2.
For one, my neighbor just made the mistake of buying a fridge from them and it arrived dented and damaged and they were difficult and unprofessional about returning the item — which was so clearly not inspected (or even sold second-​hand) prior to delivery.

As for myself I went in the other day and had a simple polite inquiry about the signage. They mark up the prices with signs you cannot clearly understand but that all make the pretense that every singe item is on «special.» When i suggested to the salesman it might be easier on the customer if the signage was clear, he ignored me — and when the manager, Joe appeared he was extremely brusque and unprofessional. Instead of saying thanks for the suggestion in a courteous manner. He started yelling. I was shocked by his behavior. It is obvious they deal in dubious sales tactics. Sort of like a used car sales lot. They also don’t look happy. The place has a terrible vibe.
This is the type of store you use to LOOK at appliances. Then go order it from somewhere else — and yes — you will find cheaper prices online.
There is no excuse whatsoever for a salesman, much less a manager — to behave n a rude manner. They should treat all customers with professionalism.
So — go look — but then go home and surf the web. Also, do your own research on products. You will not get the best advice from salespeople at this store.

This place is the worst. Even though there’s at least a 4:1 ratio of associates to customers (I’ve never been in & seen more than 5 other customers…), no one can be bothered to be helpful or courteous.
The first associate who was working in the section where I needed to purchase my product was too distracted testing out the sound system on a computer with loud salsa music to help me. The second associate unceremoniously passed me off to another cashier after getting my ink cartridge out of a case — I guess he couldn’t make enough commission to bother?
I was also treated to 4 – 5 associates loudly bro-​ing out while watching Sports Center on the display TVs while it took me 2 associates, 2 broken registers & almost 15 minutes to purchase my ink cartridge (I was the only person trying to pay at the time).
Definitely seems like the workers there are more excited to be playing with the products rather than trying to do their job & sell them.
I hope this location closes — it’s terrible.

I really don’t understand all the hatred for this store. Every time I’ve been there the customer service has been excellent — and their prices can often be similar to Amazon’s, depending on the item.
One recent successful transaction: I went to PCRichards looking for an older model SD card for an older camera. They actually didn’t even sell this style SD card any more it’s so old. However, the sales guy realized that they had one sticking in an old computer that was on display and he said I could just take it free of charge!
Anyway, I recently moved away from this neighborhood (I’m up at 101^st now) and I truly miss having PC Richards right down the street. I always knew they’d have what I was looking for and always with a smile.

BUYER BEWARE!!!
My family and I have been a loyal customer of P.C. Richards since it’s opened at this location. I recently purchased a Sharp air conditioner. Upon installation, I noticed that it was excessively loud, would shake, and made a horrible rattling noise. It is so bad, that I cannot watch TV or talk on the telephone until I turn the air conditioner off!
I had service people come to my house, but it was 61 degrees outside so the air conditioner was on its best behavior. They said it was installed perfectly.
A day later, I looked out another window and noticed intensive damage to the back of the air conditioner. It was only a week old! There was NO WAY that this happened on installation because I watched the whole thing. It looked like Iron Man used the back of my air conditioner as a heavy bag
I went to PC Richards, and they said I could return it. I came in the next day to schedule a pick up. I spoke to «Freddie». I explained the issue. He proceeded to get extremely angry and loud. The reaction was terrifying and irrational. He used curses and when I asked if I could speak to someone else, he went bonkers. He swore up and down that PC Richards never ever sells anything that it used or damaged.
Upon speaking to someone else, who was much more polite, I was told that P.C. Richards has a 20% re-​stocking policy. RIGHT! So they DO re-​sell appliances! How could they possibly have a re-​stock policy if they never re-​stocked items!!!
All in all, I purchased a $ 350 air conditioner. I was given a broken and used one. I was insulted and called a «bitch» when I simply told them that this wasn’t what I purchased. I spent $ 50 delivery, $ 100 installation… so to return the USED air conditioner, I would have to spend another $ 100 to UNinstall, $ 50 to return, $ 50 to get a NEW one delivered, and $ 100 to install that one. THEN at 20% re-​stock fee — grand total = $ 370 EXTRA BECAUSE PC RICHARDS SOLD ME A USED BROKEN AIR CONDITIONER!!! I did NOTHING wrong. They were the ones at fault, but I would be the one paying for their fraud.
Now, I have a broken air conditioner, and I have to take them to small claims court and waste 2 days of my life. BUYER BEWARE!!!

Avoid all PC Richards and Sons!
They don’t take returns for ANY reason!
I bought a GPS and it works terribly. Its not broken, it is just junk, it shows me being 40 feet behind where my car actually is.
Bestbuy or other big corporate stores would just take it back, no questions asked.
Not PC Richards and Sons! If its broken, they’ll insist on sending it back tot he manufacturer to be repaired. But if it is just junk and you have second thoughts, all sales are final.
So just go to BestBuy, where you can at least try out the product, and if you are not happy with it, you can bring it back no questions asked.
Also, most of their «discounts» are bogus because they jack up the MSRP (manufacturers suggested retail price) of an item. So an item that has an MSRP of $ 200 everywhere else, will have a $ 250 MSRP at PC Richards. So they say they have discounted it to $ 200 and you think you are getting a great deal, but actually you are just paying a normal price. And you could have gotten it cheaper elsewhere.
I like to supprt small family stores, but these guys are actually a huge chain, so just avoid them and their crappy return policies.