Several years ago we had shutters installed in our bedroom, and they quality was terrific. When we had new windows put in our house, I called the company to have shutters installed in one of our other bedrooms.
The company had been bought by Elizabeth Ashley, so since I was only doing one room, I got an assurance that the shutters would be the same quality and they gave me an estimate over the phone and I had them come measure the window. The salesperson was to arrive between 8 and 9 a.m. on a Friday morning. When she arrived at 10 minutes after 9:00, she measured the window and said that their cost would be 50% higher than the estimate. Again, since it was such a small job, I just went ahead and placed the order because it really was not worth my time to get estimates from another company.
It took over 2 months for the order to be ready, and then they scheduled a time for installation. The installer was scheduled to arrive between 8 and 9 am. At 9:00 a.m. I called to see when he would really be arriving. Finally he arrived at 9:45 and rushed through the installation. I didn't notice it, but he had put a nail through my window sill, causing slight damage. So, I called them to have the installer come back out to fix the damage. The first time they had available was a month later. On the appointed day, the installer was scheduled to arrive between 9 and 10 am. At 10:30, I called to see when he would really be arriving. Apparantly his 8 to 9 am appointment in San Jose (which is 40 miles away) had not finished on time and so he was stuck in traffic.
They offered to come the next day between 12:00 and 4:00. Now, I don't know about you - but the last thing I want to do is take a WHOLE Friday afternoon off, and wait for a shutter installer who probably won't even show up anyway.
So, while the quality of the shutters is fabulous, Elizabeth Ashley really is not worth dealing with.
more