Reader Rick S. writes in today with a story about a DucDuc nursery order gone wrong:

I’m one of the million of people who’ve read Babybargains in preparation for their first child. And I’m one of the millions of parents who, lost in the myriad of products out there, relied on Babybargains advice, reviews, and suggestions to prepare.

Of the hundreds of items I’ve purchased, 90% were based on Babybargains reviews, and most of them have turned out to be great purchases. With one huge exception, everything has been right on the mark (and the money). The exception, unfortunately, also turns out to be the largest ticket item in my shopping cart: the crib + dresser from ducducnyc.com.

After spending $4,000 for the “Dylan crib” and the “aj 4 drawer changer”, I find myself in a dispute to send this horrible product back while scrambling to get a replacement set. To make a long story short, and in the hope that this will give a sense of reality to the actual review grade of this company on Babybargains, this company shipped the product 3 months after it was ordered.

Countless calls to check on the status of the order were met with genuine rudeness and appalling attitude. About a dozen shipping dates were generated only to be postponed due to a variety of absurd excuses (e.i.: “the crib is finished but we noticed some defects so we have to redo it; it will be a few more weeks”); the shipping company apparently held the order in their warehouse for 2 weeks before they delivered it – their warehouse is 57 miles from the delivery destination.

During the two weeks in the warehouse, the shipping company did not return a single phone call.

The furniture was supposed to be “white glove delivery” (delivered and fully assembled on the spot). The unassembled parts were instead left wrapped in the nursery. Now to the assembly part: the instructions showed parts that had no equivalent, nor any resemblance to, the parts been delivered. Most of the bolts included in the assembly package do not fit in the corresponding holes.

In short, the crib can’t be assembled and I do not have the time to wait for any kind of replacement part (baby due date is in 5 days). I’ll need to find a substitute crib elsewhere and send the useless ducduc crib back (along with the matching changer), hoping to get the money back. As a first time dad, I would prefer to focus on other things than on patching up for ducduc’s incompetence. I hope you consider this review next time you evaluate this company’s products.