Rate your registry!

[PG-rated]

I thought this could be helpful for any brides in the early planning stages. We had very different experiences with each of our three registries, and if I were doing it over again I would make some different choices.

1. Williams Sonoma: A-
We LOVED Williams Sonoma. Lots of fun stuff, plus all the basics, very easy to set up and manage, and almost nothing was discontinued during the year the registry was open. There were only two small drawbacks - the first time we went to register, the store's computer lost all of our information, so we had to scan everything in again. Also, a lot of their stuff is more expensive than it needs to be, so you can't really have it as your main registry without risking the possibility of pricing out some of your guests.

2. Crate and Barrel: C
We set up this registry 6 months before the wedding on a bit of a whim - they had stemware we really liked, and we discovered that some of the gadgets we picked at WS were cheaper here. However, within 2 months of setting up the registry, a whole bunch of items were discontinued, including half of the stemware we loved so much. Over the 6 months leading up to the wedding, I would estimate that almost half of the registry ended up being discontinued. More than once, I picked a replacement for something that was discontinued, only to have the replacement be discontinued, too. :rolleyes: I wrote to Customer Service and got a stupid form email back telling me that I should be excited to update my registry constantly with "the newest and coolest items." The whole thing was so frustrating. On the plus side, many guests seemed to like the registry, since it was reduced to almost nothing by the wedding.

3. National Wedding Network (May Company): B
The May Company has department store chains around the country, which was a main reason we chose it - Filene's was close to our guests in Connecticut, while Hecht's was convenient to our DC-area guests. Unfortunately, they're still working out the kinks in the "national" part of things. The store you originally register at becomes the default store, so anything that particular chain doesn't carry can't be ordered online (like, for example, our entire casual china line), even if other chains do carry it. You also couldn't add items online until about six months ago, but now that feature is up and running. Registering was pretty easy, although finding an employee who knew how to work the registry computer was hit-or-miss. And the completion discount is pretty stingy - you only have 3 months to redeem it. We were still receiving gifts 3 months after the wedding. However, you can keep the registry open after you use the discount.

OK, those are mine! Anyone else?

[maplekitty]

1. The Hudson's Bay Co ( Canada ) -

Registering at the Bay is what most couple's in Canada do, since it's the major national department store. Registering was relatively easy, and made you feel very special. You sit down with a consultant and go over all the details...this is good if you've never registered, however I can imagine it would be annoying if you know the drill.
The website is not *great*, but they are making improvments. The only downfall is the use of abbreviations, so sometimes you can't figure out what the heck the item is. There are also no pictures. But the lady said they are working on it and it should be much more advanced by next year....great for next year's brides I guess ;) :p
Calling in to change something is pretty easy and if no one answers and you leave a detailed message it is usually gotten to by the end of the day.
All in all, The Bay is a great place to register.

[Aug2002Bride]

Anyone tried a Pampered Chef registry?

I currently sell Pampered Chef and Ive never had anyone do this...So Im wondering what people think that have done it?

[greenbunny]

Bed Bath & Beyond:

They added a random stranger's stuff to my registry for some reason. Our names weren't even similar. I checked up on it one day and to my horror found it full of fuzzy purple throw pillows and Sponge Bob Squarepants comforter sets. I called and they assured me it was fixed and it had only been that way a few hours.

Then when I told the story as an anecdote at my shower, everyone was scared to death that they'd gotten something I really didn't want. I had to reassure everyone a hundred times that I really did want and like what they'd bought. I should have kept my mouth shut.

[Sazoo]

Anyone tried a Pampered Chef registry?

I currently sell Pampered Chef and Ive never had anyone do this...So Im wondering what people think that have done it?
I was invited to a wedding this summer where the bride & groom had a Pampered Chef registry. I thought that was a totally cool idea & ordered them a gift from it! Their other registry was at Target, but I figured probably a lot of guests would shop there, so I focused on the Pampered Chef one. I bought them the Entertaining Set. I could have had it shipped directly to them, but since gift wrapping wasn't an option I chose to ship it to myself, wrap it, & then re-mail it (it was an out-of-state wedding that we were not able to attend).

I think it's a great idea!

[Kimberland30]

Bed, Bath and Beyond: B+

The only reason I didn't give them an A is because when we initially went in there, we told them that we were only registering for a few things since we are both in our mid-30's and have everything we need. We were just upgrading. Give us the scanner and turn us loose. We ended up meeting with the bridal consultant which would have been helpful had we needed a lot of items or were just starting out. Also, when we finally got to scan, we had a million workers ask us if we needed help. I'm all about customer service, but this was almost stalking. :)

Target: F F F F F

I really like Target but their registry sucked. We got a notice a few months before our wedding that certain items were being discontinued. So I took them off our registry. I'd check it every couple weeks to make sure we still had items, and told my mom and DD to do the same so I wouldn't keep peeking (it didn't work but I made the effort). Anyway, we got a few things and when we got back from our HM we went to Target to get some things...mainly our bedding. Wouldn't you know that out of all the items we registered for, at least 80% of it was discontinued and not in stock? But on the website it said it was still available??? Unbelievable!!

[filmgirl7]

Bed Bath and Beyond: A I don't think we've had any problems with them at all. In fact, they sent us a "registry completion" code so that anything we buy off of it is 10% off. :)

JC Penney: D We chose this as our "local" store but whenever you'd go in there to buy something, they wouldn't have it in stock. Lots of family/friends commented about that. They also discontinued half of what we put on there, so we ended up just closing it down.

Fortunoff: A No trouble with this one, and in fact, I love that a lot of the stores have our dishes and such in stock, so you can go in there and walk out with what you want and not have to order it online! They also do giftwrapping! :)

[Aug2002Bride]

Bed Bath & Beyond A~~ Didnt have any problem with anything being bought off the registry or anything being discontinued or not available....Great because my family all over the US could buy from it...We used this as our main registry. Everything was great and getting the coupon to buy anything else left on registry was nice too!

Target F~~ Never had anything consistently in stock, stuff got discontinued, return policy sucked, my family in Vermont only had access online to it..no actual stores up there. I just didnt have a great experience with it at all!

[DiscoDiva]

Target - A. We didn't have one single problem with it, but I hear that most people do have problems.

Sear's - A? Not one single person bought off our Sear's registry! But, we had no problems registering.

[shaqangel]

Pier 1 AAAAAA +++++++++
they were awesome!!! it was the first place we registered at - 3 days after we got engaged!!! we had no problems with discontinued stuff and in fact when they had their sale, our everyday stuff went on sale! great for our guests:) i love that we got basically 85% of the stuff from that registry. the staff were friendly and knew me by name, which is awesome and its even greater that they remember who i am to this day!!! LOVE IT!!! got the completion coupon within a month, and had no problems with returns. HIGHLY Recommend them.

Target B
We never had any problems, except for a duplicate registry. but other than that it was fine. just hated that stuff got discontinued so soon and things that we didnt get for the wedding we would have like to buy on our own but couldnt find it:(

Pampered Chef A
i highly recommend this! i didnt have a registry but i guess the way my MOH and Bm's did this was sort of like a registry. my MOH wanted to do a PC party and since my BM is a consultant - they teamed up, gave me a catalogue and asked me to create a wish list. at the shower i had list of the items i liked and i wrote them on post its and stuck it on a wall. after the demonstration, everyone pulled of the sticky with the item they wanted to purchase and ordered it for me. our kitchen is definitely a pampered chef (and pier 1) kitchen! what was really good is that i got 90% of the stuff i wanted and what i didnt get as a gift, i had points that added up (since i was the bride) and i used those points to get the rest of the item. people also bought stuff for themselves. so my BM did close to a $600 for my shower, which was pretty good.

(ps i know this was detailed regarding Pampered Chef but i guess i wrote it out more for Aug2002Bride....hope that helps! )

[BethElena]

I wish I had registered with Pampered chef! My mom gave me two spatulas and a can opener from them, and these are the best gadgets I've ever had!

BB&B - A for registering stuff, D for returning---Took forever!!!

[Aug2002Bride]

Shaq-
Thanks so much for letting me know your experience! Im definitely looking into ways to promote this part of my Pampered Chef biz! I think its an awesome idea and I wish I would of known about it when I was going through the whole registry thing. I would of definitely did it because I love PC products! I guess thats why I sell them now! ;)
The idea with the sticky notes is such a great one too! I think Ive read about that on some message boards with other consultants, so Ill have to keep that in mind!

I just found out recently too (Im still pretty new to selling aspect of PC) that the registry can be used for anything you want. Its not just for a wedding...so another consultant was telling me she actually promotes it for like the "what do you want for your birthday" question that alot of people get from family/friends! I thought that was a great idea also!

[shaqangel]

Aug2002Bride
u're welcome!!! i've also been to housewarming parties that were pampered chef - my pet peeve with those though was the fact that they never said it would PC party and when i got there the host had a wish list u could order from for her (i guess it would have been nice to know before the party that it was a PC party!!!)

good luck!!!

[ce_Kathleen]

Aug2002Bride I had a PC shower for my wedding and it was awesome! My Aunt was the consultant and I put a wish list together for her of all the stuff I wanted and then at the shower she did her demos to kind of showcase the stuff I wanted. People then bought stuff for me and for themselves and since it was my aunt she gave me all her points or whatever for being the hostess so I got TONS of free stuff too! It was the best thing I ever did and I love all my PC stuff and find that I wish I had more!

[Linz]

How sad...I absolutlely LOVE Target and we were going to register there but I have only heard bad things about their registries. :confused:

[Aug2002Bride]

Thanks for all the PC registry opinions! It definitely helps me be excited about it when I know that people really like it. I might go find some bridal shops to see if I can leave some flyers around them.

Thanks:)

[Sazoo]

How sad...I absolutlely LOVE Target and we were going to register there but I have only heard bad things about their registries. :confused:

We didn't have any problems with our Target registry, really, & quite a few of our guests shopped from it. We initially registered in the store, but we also added some items on the website. We did get one duplicate gift from Target, but it was quite easy to return the extra one after the wedding & get store credit. I say if you LOVE Target then go for it. ;)

[heather1029]

Williams Sonoma: A+........But the wedding hasn't come yet, so we'll see if they keep everything in stock

Hechts: A.....Except their selection of products in general isn't very wide

Linens N Things: B......cheap stuff only. We registered here for people who couldn'd afford much.

Crate and barrel: don't know yet. We registered for furniture! Doubt anyone will buy it....

[PG-rated]

Thought I'd bump this up....

We've used our post-wedding discounts for two out of three stores so far. Filene's was OK, but it took FOREVER, even though we showed up with a list of exactly what we wanted. A lot of stuff had to be ordered for us, because it wasn't in stock right there. Also, a few weeks later we got another registry coupon in the mail, but it was good only on a specific day at the store where we set up the registry. This posed a problem, since we live in DC but set up the registry in CT. We mailed the coupon to my mom and she managed to convince the manager there to honor it.

At Crate & Barrel, we almost had a heart attack when a clueless associate told us that all of the casual dinnerware we wanted was discontinued, despite its prominent display in the registry section. Luckily, we asked another associate before we gave up and left, and she found everything for us.

[kemaji]

Williams Sonoma - A - We didn't have any issues with it, I registered online and never had to step foot in a store. Returns were easy, and it didn't take long to get our refund merchandise certificates.

Pottery Barn - C - I didn't have any issues with the registry portion. We used the discount to purchase our bedframe (Sumatra bed), we had a horrible experience waiting for delivery. We were scheduled to get the bed at the end of August and only received the bed last week. It took them 3 times to get an undamaged bed and that was after many calls on both mine and DH's part. Now that we finally have the bed, we love it.

[Whitters20]

Bed, Bath and Beyond (A)-we had absolutely no problems. They were very nice every time I went in and didn't hassle me at all. A wide selection of products at reasonable prices. Anything we needed to return or exchange was super easy. They even gave us cash for some things.

Linen's N Things (B-)-registering was pretty easy although 2 times I went in and their computer and printer were broke and it took me forever to get someone to help me. Their customer service was pretty poor which is the reason they got a B-. Everything else was fine.

Dillards (D)-they didn't have scan guns which made it difficult to register (we only registered for a few things). And the saleslady followed me around and tried to talk me into registering for china and fine silverware which I didn't want and had no intention of registering for (I had already told her this). I finally pretty rudely had to insist that she leave us alone. I was so unhappy with customer service that I decided to not inform anyone we registered there. But a few people did get us things off the registry and we had no problems with the gifts we got. One item was broken when we received it and they easily replaced it.

[PinkGirl]

I haven't had any showers yet, so 99.9% of my items haven't been purchased yet, but I'm going to rate anyway...

BBB - A Love it so far! Great customer service when we went to register, easy online system.

Williams-Sonoma - B Great selection, love their stuff, but a few items have been discontinued.

Pottery Barn - D About to cancel this one. Everything I like has been discontinued! And none of it was seasonal.

Kohl's - C Just registered there tonight and it took 30 minutes for them to figure out how to get me going with the gun... then when we were done, they spent another 30 minutes trying to figure out how to upload what we'd chosen. FH and I are reasonably sure everything we chose has been lost. :mad: But... they have the only bath stuff we have liked anywhere and reasonably priced everydaywear (sp?) that we love. Another problem with them is the online selection is different from what's in the store.. usually there is much more in the store than online b/c I would love to do this registry all online if I could. Forgot another good thing about Kohl's - their completion discount is 15% - the highest I've seen.

[SlvSpring]

Macy's- A- I thought their selection was great and so was their in store customer service (a tad bit overbearing, but great nonetheless). I wish their registry completion discount lasted a little bit longer though... they give you 3 months at 10% off.

Crate and Barrel- B I LOVE their selection at C & B and their prices are pretty awesome too. I'm guessing a lot of our guests liked it too.... this is where we got most of our gifts from. The reason for the B is 2 things. 1) Some items did get discontinued, which was kind of pain to keep track of and replace things while trying to plan a wedding and 2)Their completion discount policy. You get a coupon for 10%. So you have to decide all in one trip all the items you want to buy.(Unlike Macy's above where you get the 10% off at any time and as many times as you want during the 3 months) Well, anyway, that was a stressful afternoon for DH and I trying to decide which items to get and which ones not to.

Target- D - I really, really like to shop at Target and I figured it would be a perfect small registry for out of towners that didn't have either one of the 2 stores close by. My problems with Target- 1) Their items were discontinued ALL THE TIME. There were maybe 3 items on the registry that I didn't have to replace. They also notify you of this really late. 2) Their completion policy SUCKS. It is only online, not in the store. Well, for only 10% off you are actually paying more online because you have to pay for shipping. When I explained this to them, they said, "oh well, sorry."

Wow, I really wrote a lot. :o

[endymion411]

bed, bath, and beyond--A++++

this was our only registry. we didn't hear any problems from our guests, customer service was very helpful when we were registering. could add/modify registry online (which was great because dh and i lived in 2 different states). had no problems with returns--whether it was repeat gifts, or we just had second thoughts and didn't want it--got cash back for everything (good for paying rent and tuition!)

[Rosebud]

Macy's: A
We registed for the bulk of our items at Macy's and had a very good experience with them. Not many of our selections were discontinued in the 6-8 months they were on the registry. Everything was shipped promptly and arrived in perfect condition. We returned items in the store with no hassles whatsoever. We were really pleased with this registry.

Williams Sonoma: A-
We also registered for a long list of items at Williams Sonoma and were very happy with their service. Everything purchased for us arrived in perfect condition and we returned items at the store with ease. The only drawbacks were that a lot of the things we registered for in the store were not available online (the way most of our guests bought gifts). And several things were discontinued, so we had to go back and re-register online for some things. Overall, I'd highly recommend them, though.

Pottery Barn: B-
We had no issues with service here. Everything was great. It was just that we only registered for maybe 10-15 things here and almost everything was discontinued by the day of our wedding. It just didn't end up being a very useful registry for us.

Amazon.com: A
We used this registry to select some "guy things" for DH. They have a tons of items you can register for, traditional and non-traditional... from fine china to tool kits to electronics. We only told close friends about this registry and got some really nice things from Amazon, including a Belgian waffle maker and an AWESOME wine fridge. Service was great, no hassles with shipping. I kind of wish we'd registered for more things here-- it's a good system.

[littlelove8138]

Target- D - My FH and i like to shop at Target so i thought would be a perfect boy was i wrong!!
Their items keep getting discontinued and i have to keep checking just to make sure there is lots on there. i haven't even had any showers yet but target is giving me such a headace that i went to another store.

Linen's N Things B+ the only reson i'm giving them this is nothing has gone wrong yet but i just started with them last week. it was really easy to take care of everything online. so far so good we will see how easy it is for guests to buy later .....

[vwinkel]

Bed Bath and Beyond - A
I had great customer service from the time I signed up to adding items while in the store to returning duplicates. Their online system was great too and updated immediately. I thought their return policy was great - no gift receipt or regular receipt needed. If the item was on your registry - they gave you cash back! You could also receive 10% off on items that were not received.

Crate and Barrel - C-
I didn't find as many things as I thought I would here so my registry ended up being fairly small. I didn't like hearing that everyone who registered one week after I did would receive a free gift (champagne flutes I think). I had to hand over my driver's license in order to get the scanner to register and finding someone to help me was a nightmare. No one wanted to! Unlike PP, I did not receive a coupon to buy the remaining items from my registry. I even called and asked because there were a few things I really wanted. Nope, they said no (maybe it's by store??).

Bergner's/Carson Piere Scott - B-
Their cookware was very reasonably priced. They did not have an online registry (this really bugged me). Associates were very helpful while I was in the store registering.

[pyjammy]

Oooh, fun! Even though we've been married for 7 months, I'll play!

Dillards - C
Down here, you have to register at Dillard's, or any little old ladies in your family won't know what to do when it's time to buy you a gift. :rolleyes: So we registered for towels, our flatwear, the crystal, Fiestaware and a few other odds and ends from here. Unfortunately, one color of the towels got discontinued and they never let me know. Their website isn't great, but not terrible either. At least you can modify the registry from there. But the worst thing was, someone bought our hostess set from the flatware and we never got it. I don't know whose fault that was, but they didn't seem inclined in the least to help us get it.

Bed, Bath, and Beyond - A
Loved this one. Easy returns, lots of choice, and of course their great coupons. Nothing to complain about (except for one gift from them that we didn't get either. But for some reason it doesn't bother me as much as it did as the gift from Dillards. Hmm.

Pottery Barn - A
Well, two months before our wedding, hurricane Katrina forced every Pottery Barn in Louisiana to close, so there was no way I could return anything until they reopened (several months after our wedding.) Not their fault, of course. We ended up getting lots of gifts from there anyway, due to a lot of OOT guests, and the best part was our wine cabinet that we got at a pretty good price, after returns and the completion discount.

[PG-rated]

Thought I'd bump this up again. One really nice perk of the Williams Sonoma registry that we discovered when we went in to use our discount coupon was that the discount is good for everything you buy that day, whether the items were on the registry or not. So we picked up a few extra things that we hadn't thought to register for beforehand. :)

[DisneyGirl]

Bed, Bath and Beyond: B+

The only reason I didn't give them an A is because when we initially went in there, we told them that we were only registering for a few things since we are both in our mid-30's and have everything we need. We were just upgrading. Give us the scanner and turn us loose. We ended up meeting with the bridal consultant which would have been helpful had we needed a lot of items or were just starting out. Also, when we finally got to scan, we had a million workers ask us if we needed help. I'm all about customer service, but this was almost stalking. :)


I agree..there customer service is just ao annoying..like you I don't mind being asked if i need help but to be asked 1000 times its gets so annoying that I just want to run out of there..FAST!


Target: F F F F F

I really like Target but their registry sucked. We got a notice a few months before our wedding that certain items were being discontinued. So I took them off our registry. I'd check it every couple weeks to make sure we still had items, and told my mom and DD to do the same so I wouldn't keep peeking (it didn't work but I made the effort). Anyway, we got a few things and when we got back from our HM we went to Target to get some things...mainly our bedding. Wouldn't you know that out of all the items we registered for, at least 80% of it was discontinued and not in stock? But on the website it said it was still available??? Unbelievable!![/QUOTE]

That same exact thing happen to me when i was married a few years back..I guess nothing has changed!

[jessesgirl]

Sears: F

Customer service was bad, they could never get the scanner to work and when it did, we would lose have the stuff we scanned. It was a complete waste of time and after four times of dealing with it in one evening, we told customer service we were done and didn't want to deal with it anymore.

We did a few things at Walmart and I would rate them as C because they only had one scanner and if it wasn't there, you were SOL.

Bed, Bath, and Beyond: A

Was very happy with it all the way around, but I wish they all carried the same things so you didn't have to worry about what you wanted not being in the store your guests shopped at.

Target: B

They are a seasonal store so you can't register for stuff early because it might not be there when your wedding came around. Also had issues getting registry cards. They would only give you one pack at the time you registered and we were never told you had to call a certain number to get more.