Narin Creative/Dollfair Waitlist and Resolution

[Sillypeach]

That's odd mimiko, becuase Catrina said several times she wasn;t going to turn over any of her customers orders to bimong, becuase she didn't trust him - she was just going to refund everyone.

Stella Maris - You will probably have better luck insisting dollfair just refund you, like some other people have. I know Bimong made that promise awhile ago that he would finish all the dollfair orders for people waiting, but I think it was mostly hot air.

Especially since he seemed most worried about his reputation- he thought people weren't going to buy from his new site becuase of the problems with dollfair. But now people seem happy to buy from him anyway and he has quite alot of orders on his new website, I don't think he cares about the dollfair fiasco anymore - . -

At the end of the day Catrina was the one you bought from, she is the one that has the legal obligation to refund you if she can't come up with the goods. Keep insisting!

[obsessed_mimiko]

That was my understanding also. My initial request when I became aware of the Dollfair/Narin situation was for her to hold onto my refund so that if she and Bimong were going to come to some resolution she would already have my money in hand but that if she felt that that was not going to happen then just to give me my refund. After I e-mailed her, I also e-mailed Bimong to get his input. Bimong strongly suggested I just get my refund so that's what I did. I e-mailed Catrina 2 days after the previous e-mail for just getting my refund but never got a reply so I assumed I was going to get my money back. I also called Catrina on Oct. 25th, 2010 and left a message just to reconfirm again that I wanted my refund. I specifically requested to get my refund so that I may proceed to order (by myself) direct from Bimong. I guess there was a huge misunderstanding on her part because she just assumed that was my OK for her to forward my order on.

Several hours ago I e-mailed Bimong since Catrina claims she has place my order with Bimong and have receipts as proof (receipts I am still waiting for). I don't even know the exact date of when Catrina placed my order with Bimong. Bimong replied quickly and said he didn't have my money or my order but he will work with Catrina's current interpreter on getting my money back. So who really knows what's going on.

[kayjay]

sorry ignore this

[bimong]

Dear valued customers,

I would like to clarify things with everbody today.
My 5-year contract with Narin Creative has been terminated as of April, 2010.
The benefit I have been receiving from the contract has been very unfair and it caused me a huge financial damage.
The damage includes both invasion of my copyright and monetary fraudulence.
I had no choice but to sue Narin Creative to regain my rights on April, 2010 and I have won the case in August.
During that time, Dollfair (Catrina) has created a lot of confusion for my customers.
Catrina has paid $4000 to the casting manager whom I work with and I received $2000 from the manager.
Half the money was to be used not only for producing my dolls but also for producing 20 dolls for a French artist.
Catrina has never sent the dolls to the French artist and she suddenly changed her words by saying that the entire money was for producing my dolls.
I have repeteadly told her not to accept orders for my dolls anymore during the legal procedure (from April through August).
To do a favor for Catrina, I allowed her to accept orders only for Neferti Head 30 limited edition, which would be our final business together.
But I could not get a hold of her since August. She simply disappeared.
She promised me to send me the profit of the sales (the conversation via Skype has been saved so I can prove this)
but she did not give me any updates on the progress or payment for weeks thereafter.
The only news I heard about her came from her translator who is now working with me in Korea
I asked Catrina through the translator why she hasn't contacted me and why she hasn't sent me 70% of the profit that she promised.
According to the translator, Catrina could not give me part of the profit from Neferti Head 30 Limited edition.
I got angry and I removed the "limited edition" option of Neferti Head in my website (art-bimong.com).
What is important is that she wasn't keeping her promise with me in the first place.
I never allowed my agent to whom I supply my dolls exclusively to sell dolls made by other artists and Catrina promised me that she would
never sell dolls made by other artists starting from the end of last year.
There are three people who witnessed Catrina making such promise.
I heard from the translator that while I was busy with the legal action that I had taken against Narin Creative,
Catrina was selling and promoting dolls from other company and she was also making a new website for dolls from another artist.
I felt so betrayed by her selfish action and I have came to decision that I would never work with a foreign agent.
I have tried very hard that customers would get their money back- the money which Catrina has been collecting without my approval.
Bu she is still not answering to some of the customers who have not received their money back.
I am getting tons of emails from her customers everyday.
Most of the emails are about people wanting their money back.
I wish I could help them but it's just not possible at the moment.
But if I can get back on track financially, hopefully in the begining of the new year, I am, upon my honor, planning to give them what they deserve.
I have been making dolls for 11 years now and I have tried very hard to raise the value of my name high but my agents or the companies that I worked with have been using me all along because of money.
Since the beginning of the year, I have been returning favor to my fan club members and my customers by introducing new products that I feel proud of.
All those who wish to contact me personally can always do so by coming to my website (art-bimong.com).
I promise that I would help those who have not gotten what they wanted and I will reestablish my impaired reputation.

Bimong

[iamsiam71]

Wow... There are two sides to every story. Catrina says Bimong has emotional problems; Bimong says Catrina has been unreliable. What the hell are we supposed to believe???

[Stella Maris]

Bimong has had my order since two days after he opened his website. I asked him at that time, I don't remember was it October or November, I have to look it up, was he going to fulfill my order. The reply was yes, that my order would be filled and thank you for loving and supporting our dolls and so on. Two days ago I asked on the Q&A board what was going on with my order and the reply was that the order had been canceled. Canceled by who? And for what reason? I have written back, but I really have no hope of getting my doll. I think this whole deal was completely shady. And I know who I trust. I not only have dealt with Dollfair for the past five years, and I have bought eight dolls from them, but I know that Catrina has proof that she paid Bimong for the orders. I know who to trust. Bimong has never run this business by himself, it was always through Dollfair or Narin creative. I think he funded his venture on the monies he received from our orders and left Catrina holding the bag. She doesn't have my money any longer so it would be unethical for me to be refunded from her pocket. The right thing would be for Bimong to either make the doll I ordered or make a replacement, that is what I want, and that is what would be fair.
I respect Bimong as an artist and I hope that he takes the high road in this situation. I sold my original Narae because she was not right for me, I had always intended to replace her. I was going to buy a 2/3rds WS girl, but then I saw the Neo Narae and I fell in love with her. If I could not get her for some reason I would be thrilled to go with my original choice.
I don't want the money, I want what I ordered. Now if Naraes were not being made anymore, that would be a different story, but they are.

[armeleia]

Bimong, if Dollfair was asked not to sell your dolls from April to August, where did she acquire the photos, prices, and instructions for your newer products (Neo Narae and Narin Dreamer) that had their first order period in mid-April?

I am the advertising manager for den of angels, so I remember this ad campaign and the money Dollfair spent to promote your products at that time. Could you give more information about that timeline?

[Tosh]

can someone tell me the correct email where i can get an answer?

[I_DekuPhantomme]

can someone tell me the correct email where i can get an answer?

I had been getting results with dollfair@mac.com, but my last couple of emails haven't been answered.

[haru-jen]

This is all just... wow. I can't imagine this happening in any other business venture. I'm not at all sure what to think. So many stories, so many wildly varying opinions... I just want my head, and for this to be finished. My daughter also spent some very hard-earned money on the Neferti as a special splurge for herself, and she's so disappointed. And so many other people who've been waiting for much longer! Is this going to end at all? Surely somehow someone can finish this debacle?

[obsessed_mimiko]

I had been getting results with dollfair@mac.com, but my last couple of emails haven't been answered.

I found out about another e-mail for Catrina on Bimong's page, it's datatexmedia@mac.com
I e-mailed 3 times to that address but have only gotten 2 replies back, so give that one a try. Honestly how many e-mails does Catrina have? Having multiple e-mails and barely replying to customers is just going to get her deeper in the hole.

[Stella Maris]

This is all just... wow. I can't imagine this happening in any other business venture. I'm not at all sure what to think. So many stories, so many wildly varying opinions... I just want my head, and for this to be finished. My daughter also spent some very hard-earned money on the Neferti as a special splurge for herself, and she's so disappointed. And so many other people who've been waiting for much longer! Is this going to end at all? Surely somehow someone can finish this debacle?

There are opinions, and then there are facts. Personally I don't blame Catrina for not being as responsive as might be liked. She spent the last five years doing nothing but impeccable business, and now people are jumping on her as if she created this mess. She did not.
Bimong claims that he cares about his reputation, let him prove it. Catrina took out a personal loan to pay people back, as she had already sent the money for the dolls to be made. Bimong admits he was paid, yet he has not produced a single doll from that order. What does that tell you?

[Sillypeach]

It's one step forward two steps back with these people. I thought we had finished with the blame game.

Why has Catrina started the refunds but stopped, leaving some people out in the cold? Why isn't she getting the neferti heads finished? I'm not a complete heartless monster and usally I would not bregrudge someone running a small buissness a week or two not replying to emails if they are sick, but after all that has happened, you think she would try her best not to disappear. The faster this is finished, the faster Catrina can put it behind her, wouldn't that be great?

These two both seem pretty incompetent. Bimong might have felt he got a bad deal from narin creative but at least things ran smoothly while they were around. With them gone, Catrina and Bimong don't seem able to organise piss up in a brewery between them

[Stella Maris]

Sorry, not biting. There's no "blame game" here, just the truth, and a whole atmosphere of hot air contrasted with it. If I was Catrina I would have gotten an attorney and not refunded anyone one single penny. I think this situation has really brought out the worst in people, and certainly soured me at least temporarily on this hobby.

[DevKimiko]

None of the direct parties involved in this drama are faultless, but by turns only Bimong, Catrina etc know the truth of the matter and it is up to them to explain it if they feel it necessary. The rest is merely conjecture.

[Debra]

I am sorry, but my contract is with Dollfair, I paid to have a doll made. It's up to Dollfair to either send me the doll I ordered or refund my money. They should have insurance for problems like this. I have sympathy but business is business and I want my money. No more excuses, or noncommunication. Just makes them look bad.

[Stella Maris]

I am sorry, but my contract is with Dollfair, I paid to have a doll made. It's up to Dollfair to either send me the doll I ordered or refund my money. They should have insurance for problems like this. I have sympathy but business is business and I want my money. No more excuses, or noncommunication. Just makes them look bad.

What type of insurance do you think would cover this? Seriously? Tell me. Business is business, and this is in no way as clear a situation as you make it out to be.

DevKimiko, This situation has been explained. Read the thread. What is unclear to you?

[I_DekuPhantomme]

I don't think we need any more nastiness in a thread that's already tense. People are anxious because they feel they have no control over what has happened to their money or to their order, and after a painful, protracted time period with several unfulfilled promises, they still don't have any hard proof--not of either side of the corporate debacle, nor evidence that their waiting isn't simply diaphanous and stalling. It's reasonable for customers to feel frustrated this far into the wait with no clear signs of what is afoot.

I personally am still going to wait on my original order, because I feel I can trust Catrina to fulfill it. All that many are asking for is a sign that they aren't simply waiting for nothing, because even if they aren't, that's what it looks like because of the slow communication process. I can be patient, but after this long, I would also feel empowered by clear information.

obsessed_mimiko: Thank you! I'm going to try this email if I don't hear something by the end of the week.

[Stella Maris]

I would like to clarify, although this situation has made me upset and continues to do so, I am not trying to be nor am I being nasty. I just want to be clear, from here on in. I have already been slapped for expressing myself in a sarcastic manner. I won't do that again, but I will be clear.
I will wait for resolution. I was promised resolution from Bimong. Now it seems he is waffling.
I never asked, nor would I ask for a refund from Catrina. I don't think she owes it to me, and besides, I don't want the money. I want the doll I ordered.
I don't think it is ethical to ask Catrina to refund monies that she has already paid to Bimong. I have to sleep at night, and I can only do that if I feel that I have behaved in an ethical manner, in this, or any situation. I can't just say oh well tough luck for you, and carry on.

[DevKimiko]

You were speaking of facts and blame games and truths. I was merely stating that as outsiders it isn't really our place to put a stamp of truth or untruth on this matter, because honestly we don't know. All we have are the personal explanations from people involved.

Catrina took out a personal loan to pay people back, as she had already sent the money for the dolls to be made. Bimong admits he was paid, yet he has not produced a single doll from that order. What does that tell you?

You ask a leading question placing blame on Bimong, and I consider that conjecture. What did or did not happens, and the reasons for that, are not questions we can answer.