Caxton Audio, 18 Latrobe Terrace, Paddington

Reviews

• Ian Macpherson

  19.08.2018
  ★ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
  I rarely write reviews, but as others have had such a poor experience with this business owner, I thought that I also had a responsibility to warn others of my bizarre experience with this establishment. In April/May this year, on my 2nd visit to Caxton Street Audio, I underwent the worst customer sales process I’d ever experienced. Initially I thought I might have just caught this guy on a bad day, but as things progressed during my brief visit, I realised that the owner had some very acute attitude issues.
  
  At the risk of making light of this, if Basil Fawlty and Bjork had a love child, this guy could easily be mistaken for the end result. To elaborate further, on my 1st visit I purchased a piece of equipment (DAC) for approximately $500-$600 which was returned within 2 days due to a fault (random power cycling). It was returned in good order in the original packaging and as there were no replacement units, rather than ask for a refund, I opted to purchase a more expensive item (a MC Cart) that cost approx. another $700 more.
  
  A week later I returned to the shop with a budget of $2.5K in anticipation of purchasing a new turntable that would better suit the new cartridge I’d previously purchased from him. When greeting the owner, I felt I got a rather odd and frosty reception, but disregarded this and continued to enquire about his range of turntables and asked for his recommendations. It was then that the owner replied quite curtly to me by saying “I can’t help you”, and I asked what do you mean and he said, “I don’t want to deal with you”. It was such a random and strange response; I actually couldn’t believe what he said. I said, I beg your pardon and this time, he very aggressively replied “you heard me” …. “I’m not here to crawl up anyone’s a@rse” (this is verbatim what was said). Again, a really bizarre thing to say to a customer simply seeking helpful advice and who was genuinely about to make another purchase. I was stunned into silence and just stared at him in disbelief. After a moment I gathered my thoughts and I once more asked him if he was serious as I thought it might be some weird joke. He replied, “I have nothing against you personally, I just don’t want to deal with you”. It was then I realised he was actually dead serious and my $2.5K and I beat a hasty exit from his establishment, vowing never to return.
  
  I feel that this guy’s attitude went well beyond the norm of “a bad day at the office”. His absurd behaviour and comments were so erratic he would do himself an enormous good deed, by seeking professional medical help. After reading all the similar negative reviews that echo my experience, it beggars belief that he’s actually still in business. I doubt he will be!! As it turned out I ended up purchasing a new turntable that day from one of his competitors.
  
  My footnote to the Owners Response below………Shame on you!!!
  
  After reading the owners response, I felt compelled to reply in kind as I resent being labelled a liar and stand 100% behind the events as documented in my original review.
  
  Apart from being an objectionable person, if you read between the lines, his response identifies him as delusional as well.
  
  Conclusion
  
  What an absolute shame this business owner didn’t use his opportunity to respond in a positive manner. Instead he chose to exacerbate things by fabricating a raft of blatant mistruths to deflect blame from himself. He could’ve simply responded by saying. “I was having a bad day and I’m sorry”. That would’ve been the end of the story and my original post would’ve been removed. I ask all who read this, to use their own judgement and read all the other reviews. They also provide a pretty clear indication of this business owner and his integrity.

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