This luggage company won my traveling heart
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I've been an AWAY Travel Customer for some time now, and when my Carry-on Suitcase had a small break in one of the zippers, here's what happened with their customer service.
I was blown away. Literally. I was on my way back from a trip to Miami, and perhaps had a few too many items in my carry on bag.[/vc_column_text][vc_separator type="transparent" thickness="20"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_single_image image="26021" img_size="full" qode_css_animation=""][vc_separator type="transparent" thickness="20"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_separator type="normal" color="#c9c9c9" thickness="1" up="10" down="20"][vc_column_text]WHAT HAPPENED[/vc_column_text][vc_separator type="normal" color="#c9c9c9" thickness="1" up="20" down="20"][vc_column_text]
Perhaps I had one too many items on the flip side of my carry-on. After trekking through multiple cities, from New York, to Connecticut, to Miami, before heading back home to Los Angeles I knew I would be taking on a few more items after the convention that I was in New York — that part was a given. See the clip below for a sample from Foundermade.
Upon trying to close my bag, and my last destination of Miami, the zipper portion where I typically store my packing cubes of clothes popped off. Now, the suitcase wasn't fully broken, it was the metal piece that held to the zipper. Not the end of the world, but still a little bit of an inconvenience.
I managed to close the bag successfully, which did fit on all carry on on my way back to Los Angeles. However, upon searching on their website, and seeing that they had a physical store location in West Hollywood, I decided to give them a ring back home in Los Angeles and see what we can do.
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The customer service was ever so kind and patient — whether he was located in West Hollywood or was part of the centralized answering system I'm still unclear of. However, he very kindly offered me two solutions: I could either go to the store and have it looked at and fixed and swapped out or I could contact customer service online and they could help me out.
Of course, one of my first fears of contacting customer service online is that they would either give me a hard time, or they'd want to take my suitcase to repair it and I would therefore be left without a suitcase and the potential of traveling with it. Now my away bag is my main travel suitcase.
Like I mentioned earlier I don't usually check bags and I certainly am not about to start checking a bag just because I'm getting a zipper repair.
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I was incredibly shocked and blown away that they said no we will send you out a new one. And you won't have to send anything back until you've already received the new suitcase under your limited lifetime warranty.
I was doing all of this through an online chat that took literally under five minutes and was almost speechless through type in keyboard after they said you will not have to send your bag back we will send you one and only then do you have to send the bag out. So I would basically never be left without a bag.
Wow. That same day, they had already shipped out a replacement suitcase to me. I have yet to receive the suitcase but I am already so impressed with their customer service that I would not have to be without a suitcase because the way my life works and the way my schedule is I could have a call to travel and the next two days in need that suitcase it is not the end of the world to not have a suitcase I am fully aware of that.
However it could be a very big inconvenience should the time or case arrive No pun intended. So the fact that away is aware of this and without question or struggle or hassle offers such an easy solution.
AWAY has won my heart, my travel heart and my passports heart over this is the kind of customer service that they don't see that often. And while I am still waiting for the full repair to finish and process, I can tell you I am already considering buying a tote and and a new toiletry bag through a way because of this incredible customer service experience.
This goes to show you above and beyond how you're taking care of as a customer and consumer, especially in today's society, and especially when it comes to travel can really go the long haul way.
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