Christina Bi wasn’t happy to see the condition of her $4,600 Chanel purse after it was taken to a leather repair store in Etobicoke.
Bi said the purse was in near mint condition with some minor surface scratches that she wanted to have removed, so she decided to visit Trillium TLC’s Love Your Leather, a store that advertises specialty purse cleaning for designer handbags.
“I Googled ‘bag repair Toronto’ and his website popped up and it looked like a reputable website,” Bi said.
“I had called to speak with somebody and they had reassured me that they would be able to repair my bag and bring it to almost showroom condition.”
The store offers a complimentary pick-up and drop-off service. A driver came to pick up Bi’s bag, but when she got it back a few days later she said the purse looked damaged.
“The threading was completely frayed and sticking out everywhere,” she said, adding she called the store’s owner Tony Kantazavelos to complain.
When Bi went to pick up the bag Thursday, she said she was met with hostility.
“He was just screaming, ‘Pay for it’ and ‘Get out of the store… you’ve been a problem customer since the start’ … I just remember feeling like I was in danger, feeling threatened,” she said.
Bi’s friend Jenna Pelechaty was with her and she said she was also taken aback by the store owner’s tone.
“He was screaming this close to her face and I was just so shocked at what I was seeing. I couldn’t believe that this grown man was speaking to a woman like that let alone a customer,” she said.
Bi said the owner expected a payment of over $300 for the repair job, which she wasn’t prepared to pay because of the alleged damage that was done to the purse.
“I just thought that it was completely unfair that he expected me pay for this kind of service when he ruined the value of my item,” she said.
Kantazavelos said the store did the repair Bi asked for and that’s why they requested payment. He said he was not pleased with how she handled the situation.
“When people are swearing at you, you react in a funny way and that’s the way I reacted. I’m not proud of it, but I’ve learned from it,” he said.
“We run our shop like a family business… We take pride in our work and occasionally things go left or right and we don’t want that… We always look after those customers.”
Bi and Pelechaty left the store that evening without paying for the service.
The Ontario Ministry of Government and Consumer Services said there have been no formal complaints launched against the leather repair company, but Bi said when she posted her story on social media other women came forward saying they had a similar experience at the store.
Bi said she is looking for an apology and compensation.
“If somebody is offering a service and they claim to be an expert and fixing the item, then you would expect the item to be fixed when it comes back in possession,” she said.
“In this case it was an expensive item I took into them and I trusted them with it and it’s completely ruined.”
Kantazavelos said he plans on reaching out to Bi by the end of the week.
“Of course I’m sorry. Who wouldn’t be?” Kantazavelos said.
“You have to keep your cool.”