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Note: As of April 2014, Stork Stack has merged with bluum.
I have been delaying posting my January 2014 Stork Stack review because I didn’t want to have to come back and edit it 20x, but I think all the issues associated with this one (and there were a lot) have been resolved, so let’s begin!
Stork Stack ships via USPS and took the standard few days to arrive. This month’s box was delayed and shipped almost two weeks later than Stork Stack normally does. I believe the first delay was because of the holidays which is understandable and then it was because of the cold weather (per their Facebook page).
The first look? Kind of brown. I knew Stork Stack had partnered with a new company this month so I thought maybe that was what they were supposed to look like? I was already a little confused.
Stork Stack had been posting that they were trying something new for their January 2014 Stacks, so I think everyone was super excited to see what this would mean! It turns out that the surprise was that they partnered with a brand new company “A Harvest Company” to allow us to be some of the first people to try their brand new products, which are made from “natural & recycled materials like rice hulls, wheat straw, wood, potatoes, corn, wheat, soy, bee’s wax, bamboo, cotton & cardboard”. You can read more on the card here. Sounds cool right? I totally thought so when I got the e-mail, but when I got my Stack in the mail I realized that something was up! Here’s what was going on:
~A Harvest Co. Cork Block Stackers: The tag on these says it was a set of five, which turned out to be an error as there are were only three. Stork Stack says that there were only suppose to be three, so okay, whatever. The real problem here is that these are made out of, well, cork and crumble if someone bites into them which a baby totally would since they are labeled 6+ months. As a result, A Harvest Company has issued a voluntary recall on these (aka stop using these and throw them in the trash) and Stork Stack is offering everyone who was affected by this a $15 refund (you can read more on that here). A Harvest Company says these should have been labeled 3+ years of age, but then again we wouldn’t have received them (nor would have Stork Stack have likely ordered them since they only go up to age 3) if they were for kids 3+. There are no prices on the Harvest website, but $15 is half of the box price, so that seems fair?
~A Harvest Co. Wheaties Car: At first glance I thought, umm, okay, this looks unfinished, but then thought maybe that was the idea? Turns out it is NOT the idea. The products posted on the Harvest website look 100% different than this one. It appears to be that Harvest bit off more than they could chew with this one and when they realized that they wouldn’t be able to properly finish these in time, they just sent them as is. The difference in the pictures is night and day!
~A Harvest Co. Bunny Car: Same story with this one as the last one. I thought at first this was just the way it was (which would have just made it a boring looking toy), but no, it’s flat out not finished. I know some people had trouble with rough edges and the like, but mine was fine in that regard. It just wasn’t done. Again, the comparison pictures are like night and day.
~KIND Bar: Nothing wrong with this one! It was good and probably the best KIND bar I have ever had.
~Child’s Play Eating Well Book: Cute book. WB wants to rip the flaps off this one so badly, but so far I have been quicker than he was!
Since the A Harvest Company website doesn’t list any prices and that was mainly what was in this box, there is no way to do a price breakdown on the box. However, after the refund, the box worked out to about $15 for two unfinished toys, a book and a snack. Not exactly worth it! Had the toys been finished and just the cork stacker been recalled, I likely would have been more okay with it and would have just thought the cars were a little young for WB (although he can happy ram any car into a wall, even a car for babies).
In emails sent out from A Harvest Company to Stork Stack subscribers (I believe these should all be sent out by the end of the day tomorrow?), they have started that they will be issuing a $15 credit towards their products for all these problems. That’s on top of the $15 refund from Stork Stack. However, since I have no idea how much these toys are, I wouldn’t know what that would even be able to get you?
All in all, while I am generally happy with Stork Stack every month, I feel like they should not have sent out these boxes this month. In hind sight, they probably should have just issued refunds once they realized that the toys were unfinished (I am assuming they knew they were not suppose to look like that?) and explained what happened.
Did you get Stork Stack this month? What’d you think? Are you sticking with then for another month or did you cancel? If you are interested in signing up or just want to learn more, click here and use the coupon code “popup20” to get 20% off your first Stack! I am hoping these next few months are fabulous to make up for this month!
WOW we don’t get this one but I’ve been seeing the issues online. I knew about the stackers but didn’t realize the others were unfinished. I can’t believe either company would have sent such unfinished toys out especially to such little kids. Both companies now look bad for it. 🙁
I didn’t really realize it either until I went on their website and saw what they were suppose to be!
I can’t believe they sent those, especially it being a new company they are trying to get out there. Doesn’t make them look very good at all. I agree, they should’ve just sent credit for the month, or maybe a mix of older things, and explained the issue. I just signed up for stork stack in the last few weeks for my 6 month old. So I should receive my first box in February. Let’s hope it’s a better one. Love your blog 😉
Thank you! I am looking forward to seeing what happens in february!
OMG! I am actually taken aback that companies would actually send out unfinished toys and subscription companies would simply pack and ship!
That’s terrible.
I think Stork Stack lost some credibility as putting children first and Harvest is so out the door.
I would assume that they knew they were unfinished, but heck who knows? They didn’t look done to me I know that!
I got this box too, and already cancelled. I’ve been thinking of canceling anyway for the past couple months, because the toys just seem too young for my almost 2 year old. She has older siblings, and just doesn’t enjoy the baby toys anymore. I’m not sticking around for the next ones.
What was in yours? Did you get the chalk blocks? Those kind of looked neat but I don’t know what they were like in real life.
I got mostly the same box, except my book was different, it was called “Party” (all about planning a birthday party.). And instead of the rabbit, we got a set of play keys, also unfinished. It seemed odd because most little ones use keys like that as a teether. I wouldn’t want my child to put something unfinished like that in their mouth.
So odd! The stuff looks cute all finished!
This is such a train wreck. I honestly just feel so bad for all the companies involved, but am also annoyed they would think this is okay. The book and KIND bar look great, though!
The KIND bar was good and I’m usually not super into them. This had the potential to be great, but wasn’t ;(
All the toys in my box were finished products so I won’t even bother pursuing the refund from any company. I ended up cancelling my sub and going with Bluum. I really loved Stork Stack up until recently and then this little debacle kind of sent me over the edge so I figured it was time to part ways.
What’d you get in your box?
I cancelled right away…I have been giving Stork Stack second chances for the past few months and when I email with a concern about receiving items too young for my daughter I’m met with a generic reply…considering I spend $30 on the box every month I was extremely pissed off by the way they handled the whole thing and I did contact them and tell them they should have taken the loss and given customers a refund. I never received a response after that email so I am glad I cancelled even if the next boxes are great..it’s just not worth the $30 I spend every month because their boxes are such a gamble and we usually like one thing out of the box. Truth is I should have cancelled a long time ago but I kept holding out for fear I would miss a really great box. This mess finally opened my eyes to see they are just not that great of a company.
Are you trying a different baby box next month? Which one??
I actually just cancelled as well, and wrote a note explaining why. I got back a GREAT response, very personal, and they let me know that they appreciated the feedback. It really impressed me and I almost forwarded it to Ramblings because it was so cool. I also really respected their apology on the website–they were kind of like, we’re not a big corporate entity, just a small family business and we’re having an awful time sorting this out. I feel bad for them! I do understand where you are coming from, but its interesting that I had such a different experience.
I’d love to see it!
I cannot believe they sent out unfinished toys! The only plus is that they were trying a different, new brand but obviously did not do their research. The bunny car is really cute when finished.
It does look cute finished! I think I am going to let my kids paint it!
This was my second month with Stork Stack and I am really hoping this is a one-time fluke. My sister has been getting this for months and just raves about it, so I am surprised this happened. I have an 8 month old and we got 2 unfinished cars, one bunny and one duck which are almost identical to the other. The edges of the cars are extremely rough so I am not giving them to my son. I thought about canceling right away but I want to see if they can redeem themselves first. I do appreciate the $15 credit but I was hoping for a refund of the box. If next month is not better, I will cancel.
I’ve never seen anything like it in the 1+ years I have subscribed!
I’ve been doing Citrus Lane and was thinking of switching to Stork Stack but between this and the fact that everyone seems to be complaining about “under” aged boxes, I think I’ll wait til something better comes along.
Have you tried Googaro or Silly Rhino?
My box was similar to yours, I got the stackers which I ended up throwing out, and the car, which I also ended up throwing out since the edges seemed very rough. I got a key teething ring, which I think was supposed to stay together, but immediately the keys fell off the ring. I am considering throwing that away as well. I am disappointed that Stork Stack sent out items they knew, or should have known, to be faulty.
What were the keys made of??
That Kind bar looks delicious, I really want to try some of those bars!! On a total side note I had a dream last night and I was buying curly wurlys for you in it haha! It was so random!
xoxo
Stacey
Ha! I love it!!
And on top of the issues already mentioned Harvest has awful customer service. They have been deleting all posts on their FB page and blocking people from posting. They tell you to email them with concerns and then never respond. And the biggest problem…there is absolutely NO record of A Harvest Company ANYWHERE online other than their website and FB page. Something isn’t right…
Post if you hear back!!!!
I’ll let you know if I receive a reply. I’ve been looking into the company and it’s owners (who SS originally said owns it) a bit…and found some interesting info online. It’s no wonder they don’t want any of us to know who they are. Ha!
I got this box too. Instead of the rabbit car, they sent a set of keys with like a cardboard texture though. I was not impressed but I thought they were suppose to look like that. Seeing the car now; I think it looks 100 times better finished.
The kind bar was delicious and the book was cute. My daughter loves any type of book.
Way better finished!!!
I loved stork stack and bummed they merged with another company. I used stork stack to prepare for a baby due the end of 2013 and I was happy with all the boxes. I was hoping to find the previous owners and tell them I am sad to not see them selling stork stacks anymore. I stopped the boxes in late 2013 because baby was born and I needed to save for diapers.