The Butchers “Organic and Naturally raised meats shop” has sold over 15,000 coupons in Toronto for approximately $175 each worth of meat at the cost of $55. It is over $2.6 million dollars worth of meat. If we take an average price of the most selling meats by The Butchers as $30 per kilogram (chicken, ground beef, etc…), we get about 90 tons of “organic and naturally raised” meat. For a really small shop! Everyone can speculate about these numbers and conclude that it is not possible to meet this huge demand without dramatic decrease in quality of meats and service.
The Butchers shop has been featured by Webpiggy, Dealgetters, DealFind, Dealticker, TeamSave, BuyTopia daily deals websites (did I miss anyone?). There were a lot of complaints on service, products and prices at The Butchers after the major offer on DealFind. It turns to be a scam at some discussion forums. They simply can not handle all the customers. They significantly reduced working hours, assortment, quality, etc. The only thing they should care about now is to service all customers with already purchased coupons because The Butchers has real problems with it (actually vice versa – many customers have problems with The Butchers). But! What do they do instead?
They are offering another deal on WebPiggy again:
$100 for $400 worth of organic and naturally raised meat from The Butchers, inclusive of a $50 credit to the opening of Marlin’s Fish Shop. Don’t miss The Butchers 10th Anniversary, Deal of the Century!
It is running through the weekend (April 8 – 10) and 1600 already bought the deal. I think they just need more cash to purchase more meat from some cheap place. I don’t see another explanation.
Well.. There were only speculations before in this post.
Now Trueler provides real proofs of how “Organic and Naturally raised” the meat from The Butchers is and what it actually worth.
Most of the products purchased with one of the coupons at The Butchers in the beginning of April 2011 were of bad quality. I have prepared and described facts about sausages bought at The Butchers. They definitely do not worth $10.99/pound (or $24.40/kg). Probably $1.99/pound is a fair price for them (I’m not sure what is the exact percentage of starch and carrageenan they have added to the sausages).
Let’s see what “Organic and Naturally raised” sausages from The Butchers represent.
After thawing of frosted sausages there were about 50ml of water in the plastic bag per 1 lb of meat. It is over 10%. Here is a picture:
The consistence of sausages were very suspicious to be claimed as “Organic and Naturally raised”:
It looks like a sponge which is a sure sign of starch presence in the meat. I used Iodine Test to show everyone that sausages from The Butchers contain a lot of starch. Iodine reacts with starch to produce purple black color or blue black color (depending on how much of starch is present in the product). I’ve written a letter “S” by Iodine on the cut of sausage and it turned purple black:
It means that there is a lot of starch in those sausages. Here is a comparison to understand the reaction. Potato contains starch and pear does not:
Iodine written “S” remained brown on a piece of pear. Iodine reacted with starch contained in potato and “Organic and Naturally raised” sausages from The Butchers.
Is the starch used by The Butchers organic and naturally raised? It could be. But it also could be a modified corn starch or even something less natural. I don’t know.
But sausages with significant amount of starch definitely do not worth $24/kg (or $10.99/lb)! It is like cheap prepacked sausages from the nearest supermarket.
Let’s try to cook them!
I have never seen good barbecue sausages exploding when cooking…
It is because of natural sausage casing which does not crack.
Sausages from The Butchers started to crack quite soon:
Then sausages exploded!
This definitely means that sausage casings are artificial and NOT natural.
Meantime Iodine almost evaporated from the pear without reaction, but left its footprint on the sausage made from starch:
After cooling sausages significantly shrinked:
Inflation of sausages in the oven, shrinking when cooled, excess water – all of these is a sure sign of carrageenan (E407 food additive) in the meat. It is used in the food industry to increase or even double the weight of meat. Carrageenan may cause allergic reactions for some people.
Â
Scented sausages with preservatives from The Butchers
(update as of April 11)
I left piece of UNCOOKED sausage out of the fridge at a room temperature for about two days.
It did not spoil at all! It has absolutely the same smell as it had two days ago. Natural meat should spoil in a warm place very quickly. However sausages from The Butchers kept their scent which is most likely artificial. Unfortunately I can’t post and share the smell here, but it is absolutely the same as two days ago. It definitely means that at least preservatives have been added to the meat being claimed by The Butchers as “Organic and Naturally raised”. It is a sure sign of artificial flavor added as well. Or has the meat been raised with antibiotics?
This is just one example of bad quality products from The Butchers. For other products and services I have not prepared a visual demonstration, but can add the following:
- Beef had almost the worst quality I have ever tried. It was sinewy and hard (cooked well as usual)
- Poor choice in the store on weekend at around noon
- No receipt provided!
It looks like a million dollars scam with current unfair support from WebPiggy who manipulates with comments on their discussion board by removing valuable truthful posts from the customers in order to conceal information about The Butchers and promote the scam.
Too many unnatural things are happening at The Butchers, don’t you think so?
Â
The “Last and Final” deal from The Butchers?!!
(April 12, 2011)
Unbelievable! Now on Buytopia with the “Final Deal“:
$99 for $400 Worth of Organically and Naturally Raised Meats from The Butchers – LAST DEAL FROM THE BUTCHERS
Is it really final? I hope this scam will end soon… Will anyone buy this deal from Buytopia.ca after all things happened with previous deals from The Butchers on other daily deal websites?
Â
Update: We have a report from one of the customers:
Where do The Butchers “Organic meats†come from?
Â
One more “Last Deal” at DealTicker
(April 15)
“The Butchers” deal on DealTicker with the same $99 for $400 deal. One more last deal?! Let me guess… Next one will be on…
$99 for $400 worth of Organic and Naturally Raised Meats and More from The Butchers (includes a $50 credit to use at soon to be launched Marlon’s Fish store) ($400 Value)
Â
Attention!
The Butchers website states that the deal on DealTicker is NOT valid!
However DealTicker still states the opposite and encouraging to buy more and more coupons:
What the heck is going on?! Just another promotion?
Here is the answer from DealTicker who sent an e-mail to subscribers very late:
…
It has come to our attention that The Butchers are turning away customers and refusing to honour vouchers purchased through our site.
This action has been taken unilaterally by The Butchers without consultation with or prior warning to DealTicker.
As a result of this conduct, we are obliged to discontinue this deal. We are currently in consultations with our legal team and are considering all legal remedies available against The Butchers.
…
We sincerely regret any inconvenience the actions of The Butchers may have caused.
…
DealTicker was knowingly running the not valid deal for almost entire day looking for profit. Moreover, they solely blame The Butchers for this. This is the worst thing the daily deals company could do. They wanted to sell thousands of deals in five days making tens or hundreds thousand dollar profit regardless of all the negative experience about redeeming earlier coupons shared in the Internet by coupons holders. Unfortunately DealTicker let their users down.
Â
The article in The Globe and Mail
You may find the original article here:
Ninety-nine bucks for $400 worth of organic meat. Seriously?
written by Tim Kiladze for Saturday’s Globe and Mail.
Â
Several interesting things in the writing caught my attention and I’d like to comment on them:
Â
1. Looks like The Butchers is very short on cash now, so they asked daily deal companies for a quicker payment plan.
Â
2. Marlon Pather and The Butchers are going to run more deals (maybe later).
Â
3. The author and editors of The Globe and Mail are not aware that Chemistry is indeed science. Here is a definition from Wikipedia for those who still in doubts: “Chemistry is the science of matter and the changes it undergoes”.
Â
They also claimed:
Then there’s the marketing potential. “What people don’t realize is every customer that’s come into my store, they write their e-mail address,†Mr. Pather says
Has anyone been requested to write e-mail address in store?
Â
Siesta at The Butchers every weekday!
The company made it almost absolutely impossible to redeem the coupons for people. The Butchers is closed now from 11:30am until 1pm during weekdays and does not accept vouchers on weekends.
For most of the customers lunch time is the only possible time to visit the store during a working day.
This is one more very serious change to the voucher conditions by The Butchers. “Keeping our standards”…
Â
What’s next with The Butchers? Re-branding!
Marlin’s Fish Shop, Marlons Butchery, Marlon’s Meat
Even if The Butchers goes under there is a good plan. But maybe it is the plan itself… who knows…
@ Gerrard B.,
This is how you “CAN” redeem on Thursday and Friday between 6:30pm and 9:30pm:
– It was closed last Friday due to some excuse
– It was closed another Thursdays at around 8pm
– It has many hours lineup when really open
– It’s going to be closed soon for a long time due to “renovations” or their team going to the beach
– You can’t get the products which were promised
Is this “CAN”?! I thinks it really means can NOT redeem…
Please read another post to get an idea where The Butchers get their meat from. Nobody knows what is the origin of their meat. It is a chain of re-sellers.
It is a scam not just because they were excited…
Thanks,
Trueler
Also, just thought you’d like to know, they get their meat straight off the bone, and from there they cut it and put it in the display counter, so how can they put additives in their meat? I’ve seen their process before. As for the “scam”, it started off as a promotion that they got a bit excited about and put the vouchers on multiple websites and it got out of control when too many people bought them and tried to redeem them at once. Next time you make a page about something, try to have ALL the facts, don’t just make them up.
I have bought and redeemed vouchers many times, and had absolutely no problem with anything. Not the meat, the service. Nothing. You CAN redeem their vouchers only on Thursday and Friday between 6:30pm and 9:30pm. I’ve asked Marlon myself many times to confirm.
@Gerrard B
Did you buy the coupons and tried to redeem them? Here is to share your experience, good or bad.
Why more negative comments over positive ones.
Don’t come here and bull shit please.
I got some sausages there a few weeks ago.
They all blew out the ends and dribbled out onto my bbq and I lost a lot of the meat through the grill. Every single one is like this of the 10 I bought. Somehow I guess they have to be tied properly and they were not. Made in a rush I suppose. I could not slit them because any pressure pushed more meat out the ends. They were also REALLY REALLY FATTY, lots of flames.
Taste wise, they actually were pretty good, what was left of them but I was sad so much was wasted. The membrane kept shrinking when it was cooking and pushing out all the meat.
And @Bernie Madoff – seriously? Marlon is simply opening a new store so he can offer a wider range of seafood to his customers. Also, his last name isn’t Madoff as you said in your post. Are you sure you’re talking about the right person? Maybe we should laugh in your face.
@ Gerrard B.,
No, you can’t really redeem the vouchers even on Thursday and Friday between 6:30pm and 9:30pm
You can redeem the vouchers. They clearly say Thursday and Friday between 6:30pm and 9:30pm. Maybe other people should do their research first before they fly off the handle because something isn’t the most convenient for them.
Oh my Stupid Children.
Stupid Butcher Pumper Shills!
Go eat an inorganic sausage.
Marlon Madoff has transferred assets to a new corporation!
So Brilliant!
You dumb customers will be broke as a joke soon!
I cannot wait to laugh in your face!
Contact your credit card companies immediately and tell them you were fraudulently sold goods/vouchers that were not received.
They will refund your money immediately.
24 people on other websites have confirmed this.
I want this list to grow!
Buytopia is a scam. They are on the run – refund your money immediately!
If you do not – do not come online and whine about anything in 2 months – I will laugh in your face.
Look at me – people say I allegedly lost money! They are liars. I am not a crook. I am a good man.
@ Jessica Lynch:
Am I supposed to slit raw sausages? You’d better teach The Butchers how to make them, rather than me how to cook…
Good sausages in natural casings do not explode even if you don’t slit them.
Maybe you can advice me what did I have to do so those sausages would not shrink and wrinkle and get really disgusting look when done?
Again, it never happens with good sausages as well.
Thanks,
Trueler
@ Gerrard B.:
Really?! Please do your own research first ;)
Petroleum is full of organic molecules as well. Would you like it to be added to your food? It’s purely organic!
Rubber is also an organic compound! Maybe it is the reason why The Butchers meat is so tough?! Someone from there should have really good skills in chemistry…
Actually “the only problem they’ve had with the coupons” is the fact that there is NO way to redeem coupons and get what was promised.
Thanks,
Trueler
P.S.: Do not mix up terms organic food and organic compound!
Um.. You do realize that the sausages only exploded because you do didn’t slit them like you’re supposed to. You’re just trying to make the business look bad for some random reason.
You should really do your research. Although people think starch is an inorganic compound, it’s actually not, it’s full of organic molecules, secondly, the only problem they’ve had with the coupons is the fact that people don’t know when they can redeem them because they don’t bother to check online. This whole page is just one big lie. This page is the scam.
That or he’s hiding the money offshore so that if/when he gets sued or claims bankruptcy nobody can seize it.
I think technically the deal is over anyway. I mean you can’t get close to the store for the 1 hour they are open thurs or fri and then they run out of meat fast and close early. Its just the days old meat. I had to wack the steak kabobs I got last time with a steel mallet for 15 minutes to be able to eat it as a steak sandwich.
Now he claims he will be closing for ‘renovations’ I think we all know what that means…. For anyone to crash and burn their reputation like he did to all the customers in the GTA, I do not think you can come back from that.
This store will close soon and re-open across the road as a Butcher that also sells fish.
they’ve cut hours down to 2 days a week now, that’s 6 hours per week where you get a chance to buy table scraps. They’ve sold roughly 15000 coupons, that means the Butchers has to redeem approx 48 vouchers PER HOUR, assuming you could even redeem $400 in one shot which we know is not happening lol Run for the hills and demand your money back NOW!!!
I thought all the information about meat quality at The Butchers, about outrageous service, about “organic/natural” sources of their meats, etc., will drive people just to get a refund from deal companies and forget about it. However, there are a lot of people who still want to get “organic” meat from this deal… Well. It is everyone’s choice. I’m not forcing all coupon holders to return vouchers. Everyone who still wants to “make a try” can definitely do this.
I think Ellen Roseman from Toronto Star did it absolutely right by not going to The Butchers store trying to redeem her coupon: “To tell the truth, I’m nervous about going into the store”. It would be just a waste of time and nerves going there without a microphone or video camera. Going there as a representative of mass media may just bring a story as Sean O’Shea from Global Toronto Consumer SOS did. I think it did not add any value to the resolution of the problem.
The story on Cosumer SOS did not cover the major issue about quality of their meat. Maybe I missed it? Sean also advised at the end to get a refund from daily deal companies. But he did not mention how difficult it is, and that Webpiggy, Buytopia and credit card companies even refuse to issue any refunds (there are already several cases of refusals reported).
The story on CBC The Current was pretty interesting and informative. Thanks for covering this! Marlon was behaving as he was supposed to behave. Not admitting anything and blaming customers… The best thing he could do…
Claiming by Gary from DealFind that they rely on the merchant to have an ability to serve all the coupon holders without any quality loss just does not make any sense. Absolutely. $2 million worth of organic meat sold just on DealFind. A lot before. How it can be handled? DealFind knew that (could easily calculate before committing the deal). Maybe they are relying that 30% of the voucher holders will forget about it, and these money will be used to refund persistent customers?
When I used my second voucher to The Butchers and got the meat of the worst quality, I’ve almost immediately asked deal company for refunds. They agreed. It was a long time ago when deal companies still had money from the deal. Then they paid to The Butchers. I’m not sure if they have anything left… Probably it is the reason why Webpiggy and Buytopia refuse to make refunds to the customers.
Credit card companies won’t help also, because they claim that the product (voucher) has actually been delivered. They send customers to sort things out with deal companies and The Butchers.
Risk of just loosing the value you’ve paid for the coupons increases every day.
Regards,
Trueler
OH MY YOUNG CHILDREN!
I have been telling you for MONTHS to get out of this.
I listened to my Son, Marlon on the CBC today crying like a little ladyboybitch. Made me so ashmamed of him.
Leave him alone, let him get away with this. He needs to make money like his father did!
The only way our Ponzi-Marlon Madoff scam is if you keep buying more and more and give up. Your money is gone – it has died and disappeared into money heaven.
Do not cry. Everything will be okay! Marlon, my son, has bought a new store across the street and transferred over all assets to a new corporation!!!
Amazing!!!
Oh poor bagholder what will you do when The Butchers closes down?
Oh stupid bagholder what will you do when there is no money left to refund?
Oh idiot consumer what will you do when your Credit Card company refuses to refund your money even thought people told you a month ago to get a refund??
Whatever will you do Butcher Pumpers??
Marlon is incompetent, but he has broken a legal contract and all without a huff and a legal puff?
Amazing. Such stupid people on Yonge. They are so Yonge and Naive.
If I were in your position, oh stupid consumer, I would call my credit card company immediately and tell them goods have not been delivered by the Deal site company and the Butchers.
Do not deal with such dishonest and dishonourable people again. Marlon looks, sounds, and acts dumb.
Call your Dealfind company and request a refund, followed by calling your credit card company for a refund.
If you do not do this, You will lose your money.
Do not cry then. It will be too late.
And nobody will care, because you will be just another stupid bagholder.
Worked at The Butchers”.Marlon Pather is a SCAM..His meat was never organic or naturally raised.He buys his meat in some chinese wholesalers,boneless breast for $1.99/lb and sells it organic @ $13.99/lb.Buys some of his meat at local supermarkets (metro,sobeys,no frills,etc.etc.},re sells it to his store.I hope he’ll go down this time.
If you listen to the CBC Radio segment, it seems Marlon suddenly “plays nice” when he realizes the media is there recording everything. So if you want to redeem a coupon, hold a microphone, have an accomplice carry a camcorder, wear fake but realistic looking press badges (to be funny, put “The Onion News Network” logo on your badges and equipment!)…
I bought the $99 for $400 worth of meat. Before purchasing the voucher I called and asked if they would deliver to Georgetown they said yes for a $5.00 fee. I decided to purchase the voucher. I emailed my order waited a few weeks, I then received an email saying that they will not deliver to GTown. I call and call and finally got a hold of Marlon he said he would deliver no problem. After a few more weeks had past I called again, again and again, when someone would answer they told me that I had to contact head office to get my order. I went on the butchers site and ordered on line as well hearing nothing. I called head office several times and no one would answer. I kept calling the main store and got a hold of a women and asked her if I can come down and pick up my order (Thursday) and she said no problem. I drove from GTown to Toronto first thing in the morning I arrived when they opened only to find a note on the door saying that Vouchers cannot be redeemed until 6:30pm Friday. The women opened the window and told me that I was not aloud in the store especially with my daughter and that it was a police manner. I asked to speak to Marlan and brought a copy of the email, police were there, people very angry that they will not be honouring the vouchers, police were going to lay trespassing charges OMG!!!! It was bad, I was finally able to get in, speak to Marlon and he let me redeem my voucher all of it, but when I left I did not recieve $400 worth of meat, I had 2 bags of food. Whole chichen $25.00, 3 lbs of ground chicken/beef $35.00, bacon 1 lb $24.00/3 spareribs $105.00 I did receive some chicken legs, breakfast saugage. these are just examples I was so glad to get out of there but what a rip off!!! There was no selection at all, no steaks, hambergers, duck etc…I will never buy one of these vouchers again!!
CBC Radio’s The Current covered this story. Worth a listen:
http://www.cbc.ca/video/news/audioplayer.html?clipid=1972834249
I’ve had the same bad experiences with Buytopia. They will not answer any emails or telephone calls regarding a voucher refund from the Butchers.
And my Butchers delivery has been cancelled twice.
If people are planning on taking legal action, what would be the next step that we as a group can take?
Thanks!
I think we are the ones who should be calling the cops.
The website now change the time to only Thur & Fri 6:30 to 9:30pm since Jun 2 to redeem the voucher so I went there on Friday June 3. I arrived there around 8:15pm and the store was already closed. Just want to advise everyone, don’t waste your time.
Hey, did anyone go up last night for the new hours with security? Curious how it went. Decided it wasn’t worth the drive…
I am also entertaining the class action route. Also keep in mind that the websites that sold everyone a voucher are actually 100% liable. Any websites or butchers “policy” is overruled by law. Plain and simple. In Canada, when you pay for any goods or services you are legally protected and if those goods or services are unavailable, withheld, or denied for any reason beyond the buyers control the seller must offer a full refund. This has been a well known scam for a few months mow and any website selling coupons for this butcher since being exposed is now additionally liable for fraud.
Here are just a few criminal charges the butcher is guilty of:
-Knowingly selling fraudulent vouchers.
-customers paid for goods not received.
-Changing redemption rules thereby making redemption impossible.
-Raiseing prices to profit unfairly .
-Selling inferior products different from advertisement.
-Stress and of course resulting damages.
All it takes is a simple fileing, let’s take this guys home and buisness and protect our fellow torontonians.
Anyone selling theirs?
I think I’d be willing to buy, their steak was not so nice, but I love their chicken wings!
do not worth $10.99/pound
do not worth $24/kg
Has anyone given thought to a class-action lawsuit against the deal sites and The Butchers (and possibly Marlon himself)? My wife and I purchased four vouchers from BuyTopia and it’s been an absolute joke thus far trying to redeem them. What’s worse is that a co-worker of mine purchased two vouchers from BuyTopia based on my recommendation, and she can’t get anything.
My wife has called BuyTopia for a full refund, but we were asked to put it in writing and they will investigate the matter. I am now in the process of writing BuyTopia, but if that fails, I would like to proceed with a class-action lawsuit against all the parties involved. Would anyone else be interested in pursuing legal action against The Butchers and the deal sites?
Tony
This butcher is a thief, a fraud, a scam artist and a total asshole. He should be shot for what he’s done. Time make him pay!
Smeh, you can contact this person as I believe they are going to do a story on it.
Heba Aly
Producer
The Current
CBC Radio – Toronto
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Desk: +1-416-205-3390
Cell: +1-647-702-4322
heba.aly@cbc.ca
http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent
I have been reading all of the posts and while I somewhat comforted in not being alone in my frustration in getting things resolved, it unfortunately doesn’t make me any less angry about this situation.
My own situation is that I placed my order online, received confirmation of delivery and after waiting for most of the day for the delivery, only to be told that they couldn’t fill my whole order.
After multiple attempts at this, I turned back to Buytopia who is the group that I purchased my vouchers from. They of course, do have a refund policy.
I spoke and e-mailed a “Ryan” from Buytopia as well as their customer support on May 17th, May 24th and May 30th looking for either a resolution or, to have a refund processed. On the first 2 occasions he assured me that he would assist in getting my order fulfilled. On the last I just asked for a refund. I mentioned that I would be contacting Visa to have the charges disputed if they can’t.
To date, no products and no refund.
Well, it is now May 31st, and I just got off the phone with CIBC Visa who has just informed me that they are not able to dispute the charges with Buytopia – that I would need to get them to refund me. I did explain (or rather attempted to, the CIBC Customer Service Rep wasn’t interested in listening to the full explanation but instead cut me off to give me the CIBC policy and view point even when I explained that it didn’t make sense.) I further explained that the charges were in fact fraudulent that Buytopia advertised and sold something that they have failed to deliver. According to this CIBC Service Rep, it isn’t fraud because I gave them my credit card and they provided me with a voucher. Of course, I supplied the card in good faith in exchange for goods which I trusted would be forthcoming. If you purchase something that is to be mailed and you don’t receive it they will then dispute the charge. Why not in this instance? In that case you do get an order confirmation via e-mail (ie. a vouher).
At this point, I want to take my example to the papers – can anyone recommend where would be a good avenue? I also want to mention how unhelpful CIBC Visa was with this whole matter.
I heard they set up a booth near the neighbourhood fun fair today and were selling hot dogs and hamburgers there for cash. Of course the store was out of hot dogs and hamburgers for coupon holders. This was one big ponzi scam from the beginning and like Don says, my wife was also right. These guys make all sorts of stuff up when I call and excuses galore. Also, the people I have got on the phone sound like 14 year old girls on drugs and I can’t get a straight answer out of them either. This guy is exploiting like mad.
I agree with many that this all sounds fishy (no-pun intended). Why would any sound business continue to run deals, if you couldn’t even satisfy the prior runs? Bernard Madoff above said it right, looks like a Ponzi scheme.
Just like many people, I went the day after the deal from Dealfind. The place was crammed and choatic. Lucky, I went early and they still have quite a few things left. I purchased a whole chicken, some legs and breasts and some NY Striploins. The chicken wasn’t too bad but not as flavourful or juicy as Cumbraes which cost less or even McEwans which carries Mennonite Chicken @ $4.99/lb. The steaks were comparable to meat from large chain supermarkets. However, for that price it’s subpar for my standards. Wet aged and tasteless, hence higher margin. Don’t let the dry aged sign and the Prime Rib aging in the fridge throw you off. If you want to know what a real steak should taste and look like go to Cumbrae’s. For the same price, it’s naturally raised and dry aged for 35+ days.
And of course, I was greedy and had bought a large amount of coupons even against the better judgement of my wife… “Yes dear, you are right.” So when I went back for more, like everyone else I was shocked to see they changed their terms. Going to see about a refund for the remainder.
Allow us to join the chorus of former regular customers of the Butchers who have been totally alienated. We also purchased a couple of the Dealfind vouchers. We have now been told that the terms of the vouchers have been unilaterally changed. If anyone is organizing a class action lawsuit you have our support. This is greed and incompetence gone wild.
New hours for vouchers redemption 6:30pm to 9:30 pm. They don’t have selection during the day. How can that help to resolve the issue. Or they are trying to tell all voucher holders that your vouchers are useless now.
Try to get your refund ASAP.
Look at what they said on their website:
Due to the overwhelming success of our vouchers we have encountered numerous issues in our store with the behaviour of voucher customers. Our staff have been verbally and physically abused. We have met with police to ensure this behaviour does not continue. Because of this we will have police presence at the store beginning next Tuesday May 31st.
They told the world they were the victim, voucher buyers were to be blamed!!
Is it a joke! Wondering why no media disclose this whole scam.
Get your refunds while you can – Dealfind refunded all of the vouchers I had purchased (I had bought a bunch for gifts). When dealing with any of the web groups that offered the various deals, you only have to state that The Butchers has changed the terms under which you bought the deal. You’ll save a lot of time – I guarantee he won’t have any more selection of meat any time you check! It was a greedy move on the store’s part – likely to fund the fish store. And it’s alienated thousands of customers – and should be studied as a case of what can go wrong with web deals. Marlon (owner) thinks it’s okay to yell at and abuse customers – a new concept in marketing!
I bought Dealfind coupons for The Butchers months ago ($55 for $175 of meat). Due to their various and ever-changing restrictions I have not even been able to redeem one full coupon. Today I learn they are now only accepting coupons from 6:30-9:30 pm (starting May 31). Until now I have been very patient, but this is a step too far. They are required to accept the vouchers according to the original conditions.
I have contacted a law firm about starting a class action lawsuit against The Butchers and all the group-buy firms that have sold vouchers for them. Stay tuned.
I bought 4 $100 voucher for $400 worth for The Butcher. As I did not live close by the store, I went one Sunday to check out the meat quality and planned to order online for delivery. It was a Sunday morning, just after they opened the store, but there was nothing to select, some whole chickens, chicken breasts & thighs, ground beef, some pork chops may be. No steak at all. The little boy told me the compressor was broken down and they did not get their delivery and was sorry about that. After reading some posts, it seemed they like to use this as an excuse.
The Butcher also kept changing the store hours, rules to order and redeem coupons. All of a sudden their website became one page. I placed my order online around end April and so far I got no reply/confirmation at all.
Something is going wrong and I don’t want to lose my $400, so I e-mailed webpiggy for refund and they did that right away.
Just check The Butcher website today and they will not honour any voucher until May 27. Store hours changed again and there will be police present in the store.
On my voucher, it said $50 towards Marlin’s Fish Shop, which will be open in early May. Today is May 25 and where is Marline’s Fish Shop!!
Yes, they sold more coupons than they can handle. But they totally aware of it and purposely doing it too. Now money is in their pocket and they can set whatever rules they like for redeeming the coupons.
What a scam!!
I bought a $100 voucher for the butcher for $400 worth of meat. the first time i went to redeem it i was only allowed to redeem it for $60 worth of meat. the next time i went in i wasnt even allowed inside the store because i had a voucher. troubled by this, i called the website i had purchesed my voucher requesting a refund. they did not want to do anything about it and said i should keep trying to redeem my voucher. they also used the fact that i had partially used $60 of the voucher as an excuse; not to refund. this really angered me. so i called back and asked to speak to their legal department or manager. obviously they did not have a legal department buy some guy took the call and said he was a manager. i told the guy about my experience and that i was going to file a case with the Small claims court for the full $400 value of the voucher as that is what is stated on the voucher. i said i would also sue for my time, transportation, etc. the guy immediately offered to refund my credit card in full!!! the lesson here is anyone who has a voucher and wants to get a refund should go ahead and do so ASAP. do not accept a web credit for future purchases!! ask for a full refund back to your credit card. if the website where u bought the coupon refuses, simply take the matter to small claims court for the full value of the voucher. the fee to file a case in small claims court is very reasonable (usually $50) and there are small claims courts throughout the GTA. the best thing is you do not need a lawyer to file a claim in small claims court! group buying websites will never want go to court because they know they dont have a case and they would have to offer a full $400 refund if they do go to court. also if there is a single ruling against them (which i’m sure there will be very soon)it will open the floodgates and set a precedent for several lawsuites.
We’ve been waiting to use our voucher and have already receive the “ORDER AFTER JULY 23rd” email, so we went in today, excited to FINALLY redeem and were greeted by a rude man (the owner I imagine) and a sign on the door that basically says “Coupon holders get lost” until further instructions online regarding times for redemption. The poor girls that work there…
Apparently there will now be security guards at the front and EVEN SHORTER hours for redemption, such as in the evenings only!! So disappointed. But not surprised. I have a strong feeling this ‘butcher’ is going down in the not so far future. I 100% regret buying this scam and would like my money back – will try and seek redemption from Buytopia.
I placed an online order over 3 weeks ago and never got a response or a delivery so…
After checking The Butchers hours on their website, I went across town last Thursday to redeem my voucher. I arrived at 10:30 to find a sign on the door that said “Closed until 1:00 due to meat shortage”
I paid for parking and waited. I watched DOZENS of people stroll up to the door, attempt to get in and walk away annoyed. At 12:00 they opened a window to allow some fresh air in. The staff started letting select people (people they knew) in one at a time, locking to door behind them. I approached a staff member and spoke to him the through the window, explaining I had been there for 2 hours and had also waited 3 weeks for my online order which never showed up. He immediately escalated and said I could come in but only to use $60 of my $175 voucher. When asked why he would change the conditions of my voucher, he said “Because I can and if you don’t like it, get a refund” and instructed his staff member to close the window. I’m disgusted with this business ~ get a refund while you can!
I’m sorry, I don’t usually blog but I just have to say that Meat Eater’s comment was perfect:
(p.s. I’ve redeemed 2 vouchers from BuyTopia and have been incredibly impressed both times, by the quality of meat and the nice service at the counter).
I have been in twice to redeem my webpiggy deal. First time told I could only spend $75 worth of my $400 and second time $60. I was very frustrated as I was hosting a dinner and there is nowhere it is printed on the deal that there is a limit. In the end it actually didn’t matter much because the first time they barely had anything left even though it was mid afternoon after their “lunch closing” and second time they had NOTHING!! I was told to email an order in so this evening I did.
This is the auto reply message I received from them “Unfortunately email orders for delivery and pick up are booked until June 23rd; therefore we are no longer taking orders until after this date. Please feel free to come by The Butchers and select your desired items. This can be done during our voucher hours. We are open from Tuesday to Friday 10am-11:30am and 1am to 6pm. If you wish to place your online order, please resubmit your order to thebutchers2636@yahoo.com after June 23rd. An email response will be sent to your account withing 10 business days.
For any inquiry regarding our products and service please email butchersinquiry@yahoo.ca
We are very sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused.”
What a total SCAM! I am looking forward to when I finally can use my voucher up so I will NEVER have to return to their store. They have lost myself and many other customers I know who were previous regulars!
RE Gary’s comment on the email he received May 12 at 2:44 – I received the same exact email on May 12 at 2:54. I placed my online order April 26 & never received a confirmation reply within 5 days or at all. Now I am told (via email) to reorder after June 23rd. I need meat now & they have my money. Also I’ve been unsuccessful in contacting them by phone. I don’t want to drive for an hour to find out they do not have meat or that they won’t honor the voucher for the full amount. This is not what was advertised. I’ve requested a refund from Webpiggy & will let you know how that goes. It was good to read on your blog that some people have been successful with refunds for this no-deal.
I managed to get 4 peoples money back totaling $800, This was with webpiggy. Would be willing ti try to get a few other people money back.
I purchased the $55 voucher and had no problem redeeming it on weekends. The meat (steak & chicken) was delicious. The staff was pleasant, and service was courteous. No complaints. Glad I took the chance.
I really enjoyed the work you have done on these articles. The meat I’ve tasted from the Butchers so far has been good quality, but good investigating!
@Trueler
AHhh thanks and I thought we could get some clarification. Oh well.