Madagascar Minerals???

Pretty sure he is a member here. Can't recall his name here -

oh yeah.... stonemaster499

broseph82: Perhaps you should look closer, and read the site prior to posting like this?

for example glimpsing through our press releases , or visit our factory , or check out a few of our mining properties.
You might have come across one of the schools we built, and maintain Madagascar - for example our Bakonky school at our Labradorite mine.
You could have seen our gallery in Tucson.

That all being said, there are thousands of products on that site, and it is a challenge to maintain it. We make mistakes all the time with the pricing, descriptions..etc.. so this is an area we are always working to improve.

We are a group of companies (NMG) headquartered in Madagascar; including 2 US companies:  Norcross-Madagascar (US) LLC.
and Gem Surfaces.  Madagascar Minerals (including MadagascarMinerals.com ) is one of our registered trademarked brands since 1999.

Every material you see on the site originates from one of our mining claims.  We have a factory in Antananarivo producing and processing all our materials.
Our business has been around since 1992. 

I joined this site last Aug, as we opened our tumbling factory (now open).  I learned things here from a lot of great members and read a ton of posts, but it is this sort of witch-hunting that keeps me from coming back to participate.  There is a lot of misinformation and out-dated methods unintentionally posted all over here, so I hope to help people, and promote this hobby.
"Type in subject matter and throw a dot com behind it. Just wanna see what you folks think compared to if I link it and someone from the company comes and defends it."
I really had to think twice about whether or not it is worth even responding.  I come here for pleasure not business.

and this is why I made the thread.....

-5/13/2013

"I have never come across such a dishonest Company from the representative Stephanie to the manager Carolyn to the owner Robert to whom according to

them both calls all the shots.

It took 2 weeks for the Rep to finalize my order. I was shipped substandard low grade merchandise which was shipped in a makeshift box which miraculously

didn't fall apart in transit. Upon arrival it was on its last leg.

It was stuffed with newspaper, shredded personal material, used foam & just about any garbage they could get their hands on. I have never seen anything like it. Bubble wrap or Styrofoam peanuts is obviously foreign to this

penny pinching Company.



I purchased over $700 worth of goods & was quoted one price price on the phone due to the quantity i was buying but was charged way more on the invoice. I was sent low grade merchandise. I was not informed that the prices had "suddenly gone up". The Rep Stephanie did not bother calling me to tell me about the price hike & told me later it slipped her mind to call and just went ahead & charged my credit card on prices we had NEVER agreed on.



I received an email with an attachment of an invoice with brand new prices. I called immediately & Stephanie with whom i had completely dealt with up until that moment suddenly had to transfer me to her supervisor. Prior to transferring me i did ask her one single question. DO YOU WORK ON COMMISSION? The answer was YES. Now i could see these cunning tactics were all about her making her cut but the story unfortunately didn't stop there. I was transferred to her supervisor Carolyn. A sketchy woman who has obviously played this game many times before.

She claimed her Rep was unaware of the new prices (much smaller discounts to collectors such as myself) & the invoice had to be altered. Altered without my authority & ok to go through with the order or credit card?



I had the honor of speaking with this supervisor on 2 separate instances & both times Carolyn did absolutely nothing but lie through her teeth & insult my intelligence. That's only the beginning of how horrendous these people truly are.



Many of the pieces I received were substandard & low grade & had to be shipped back. I had to pay the initial shipping & then to ship them back. Stones are heavy & therefore shipping is not cheap!

I asked to be refunded or compensated since i was exchanging a few of the returns & Stephanie said the company would lose money if they had to pay for return shipping. They probably would with all the garbage they ship to customers & try to get away with.



For weeks Stephanie dragged this exchange. Every few days i would call & ask if she pulled a few of the items i wanted & this time i wanted to see pics. She would send me pics here & there with no price. Her excuse "I have to ask the owner Robert for the price". A large company like that & she has to ask the owner for the price of a sphere? Don't these people have set prices? No, no set prices for those they try to rip off. I am sure this is a policy the owner has instituted & is well aware of & blesses. I am sorry to say what you do won't bless you Norcross Madagascar!



After shipping back some really poor quality stones i came to realize that one of my larger purchase was not what they claimed it to be. It wasn't until i had decided to return that substandard sphere that i was way over charged on by at least $150 that i noticed that UPS showed the sphere weight to be an entire pound less than what i was charged. That's when i realized i was overcharged by a pound on that sphere. I then proceeded to weigh each of my other spheres -- a total of 5 & found that i was overcharged on another by an entire pound as well.

If you are charged $25-$30 per pound that can add up to a bit of your hard earned money.



Unfortunately this is not the end of the story. I had purchased many other pieces from them which were alright but i can honestly say most were not great and i was hoping

they were going to make it up to me in quality, at least that's what the Rep.

kept on telling me and reassuring me... That never happened! The Rep Stephanie was extremely deceiving & would sell you any garbage she can't get rid of.



After weeks of waiting for price quotes & exchanges i decided to once more call

Stephanie. Immediately she told me i had to speak to her supervisor. Carolyn gets on the phone to inform me that i will be charged a 25% restocking fee. THIEVES!

First time i had ever heard of it. I told that supervisor that i would not pay a restocking fee on merchandise that was low grade & that should have never been sold to me to begin with.

The next day i received an email from Stephanie with an itemized credit memo deducting 25% for restocking fee.

I contacted my credit card company that very moment. Filed a claim & emailed the Rep. Within minutes my phone rang informing me that i will be received a full refund & restocking fee would be removed."



www.yelp.com/biz/madagascar-minerals-tucson

I have always found stonemaster499's posts to be interesting and sometimes educational. He deals with rocks on a level that most here can't even dream of. Although, I would like to tumble 700 pounds at once just once in my life!

I'm sure there is no business in the world dealing with as many people as his company does that has a perfect track record. Even when things are done right, sometimes people/customers complain. I sure wouldn't want to have to deal with what he must.

While the story above cites a bad experience with a "sales rep" from the company, we are also only getting one side of the story. Even IF true, an owner can't babysit each and every employee. One may only hope that their people are well trained and represent the company well.

stonemaster499 seems to be a great source of info. I have gotten nice rocks from him.
Can be a tough biz.

Say what you like about Yelp, it is indeed for all forms of customer service oriented entities. Maybe the original purpose has evolved, but you are welcome to check the performance of your local post office on Yelp. Odds are good, the reviews exist. I have issues with Yelp and their predatory business practices, but it certainly has become a review site for all entities.

That said, When I am in the market for Malagasy stones I will offer you another opportunity. Fair enough.