Well, unfortunately I have to join the "Dark Side" of the Venus Vaporizer Brands' Customer Service.
It hasn't been but 2 months since placing an order for what I was told would be a "New Apollo2.5's 50w" and a little over a month with it. The original plan was to have the device shipped to a family member in either Finland or Swedin and have them bring it back through US Customs during the holidays to avoid the VAT (Taxes to us Americans and the Tax is 24% for "Proof that the device left the EU"). He said he would work with me by going through the PalPal F&F payment plan because the discount he was giving me was too big for the E-Commerce Checkout link to register without him making a separate link for a single unit at the price we negotiated. After discussions with
@stickstones on whether I just shot myself in the foot by doing so he convinced me that I really shouldn't worry.
For the first time, an Artisan vape manufacturer gave me a good discount and a bunch of extras. I asked him If there was anything I could help him do to show how much I appreciated the gesture and he said nothing. So I took it upon myself to look back through the threads and look up questions that went previously unanswered before his return to the scene from his 8 month Hiatus and any updates he had made and hadn't shared with potential customers and relayed that info from him to here mainly.
During this time period I asked him why my Apollo wasn't like every other Apollo picture or functional like in the videos. I was told 1 or 2 seperate times that it was Normal.
After another week the Metal Sleeve became so loose that the vibrations from the Haptic Feedback shook the Heat Element, bulb and all, & sounded like a Big Fly caught in a small area. I was finally told that "The Metal Sleeve surrounding the Bulb is supposed to have a Ceramic based Adhesive capable of withstanding ~1700c of heat + centering the post so you can insert the chamber and push down on the Glass MP to Lock in the Vapor Cooler in one smooth action". This time showing him in the same picture I posted here where the whole Heating Element is literally resting against the front-right part of the metal sheet protecting the wood
"I now remembers which unit I sent..." yet in his emails prior to the sale he keeps saying "I only have one more 50w model left" so how could he forget that the ONE unit he has, has this "Old-School build" he "Now remembers he didnt add the glue to that particular Unit" and admits to sending out a faulty/incomplete unit and also states that he will send me a new unit of my color choice from the upcoming batch that was set for Dec 1st
Now at this point im still trying to help him grow his presence and he offers to send me 5 units free of charge "if i can show him a good plan on how to sell them." I told him that I wouldn't feel comfortable taking 5 units off his hands for free incase the worst happens and I sell none. He takes a huge hit from the VAT cost plus S&H for 5 (+ my 1 "New" unit so 6 technically). So I tell him ill put up the +€1000 for the first batch and if all goes well then every month I don't have to keep sending him the amount we agreed upon for the units. The funds transfer into his E-commerce link and he sends me a small percentage of the units I sell to pay me back for the original 5 units until we're square.
All was going as planned except when I ran a poll on 3 people who were openly interested in the Apollo2 50w and 2 of the 3 said they had no problem with the price point, it was their worries (of whats happening to me right now...) of not being able to get in contact with him when they need to AKA Customer Service & Support.
So it didn't matter what price I Would've set them at here in the US b/c unfortunately his (Ville's) reputation is damaged from previous times he's gone Dark and that's not something I can fix...only he can by coming on here and telling people himself and thats why I had to back out of the VERY loosely based agreement and even THAT was hard for me b/c I believe Mr. Savolainen is a genuinely good guy who just happens to live in a Socialist Country stopping him from maximizing profits outside of the EU.
I sent him the email stating that his Lack of presence & difficulties with reaching him are what SEEM to be affecting the business rather than the price or availability in many more words as not to put it so bluntly. It's been about 2-3 weeks and since have sent another message saying how hard of a decision it was to make but the risk was too big especially since there was no room for profit as this was a venture purely to help him and his business and the fact that im a Government paid employee and the Gov't is Shutdown right now and would actually be illigal to log on and work on to get paid, even things I need to catch up on that I should've already completed.
I have politely asked Ville and his Wife who is listed as the person who handles Return & Warranty email, that's also the same as the genral email =/, to keep separate business & consumer matters because he offered to send me replacement New unit BEFORE the talks about helping him set up a distribution post on this side of the world and i've been completely ignored even though there has been multiple changes to the website, from the Helios being taken off as an option to buy and he even took the advice about more detailed information to inform customers from the same emails that I told him why partnering up would be extremely hard (ignoring the profit factors that every normal distributor would've wanted.)
So it's hard to say that he hasn't gotten one of the 3 Emails sent to his private Email, the Venus Vaporizer Email link, and/or the Warranty & Return email link...
I understand I offered to help him
And not the other way around so I expect nothing in the way of payment for helping him in terms of his business or anything else. I just want a fully functional AS ADVERTISED Apollo "2.5" 50w that I paid for. I have confirmation on exactly what was supposed to be delivered, Ville stating that it was an "Old Style Build" that he thought wouldn't require the Ceramic Adhesive making it an Unfinished or at least a different model than i paid for and if I had to place a bet id say the post is free floating at this point and im suprised it hasn't disconnected the halogen bulb or broken it.
As i've learned from a previous company on FC who tried to go back on their words said via Email I cant post a manufacturers Emails, posts, or private messages without their consent or else id post the entire Email chain but if you'd like proof to everything i've stated send me a PM with your Email and i am more than happy to forward all Emails but the parts pretaining to his inner workings of the business (like the bare price/ model. Part distributors and their locations, ect.)
I'd be lying if I said this wasn't somewhat personal as it took about a month and a possible €1000+ paycheck for him to admit he sent me an Unfinished/"Old School Build"/Faulty Apollo at the price of a normal New one.
I hope im wrong and he's just taking Holiday time off before he responds to Emails but it sure feels like im being ignored for one reason or another...