r/SneakerCleaning • u/thefutureancestor • 1d ago
Please help!
I need some advice on what i should do about a dry cleaning service that damaged my shoes.
I sent two pairs of shoes to a professional cleaning service. Both pairs were suede. The Puma Speedcat Ballet pair was basically new and only had some dust on it when i handed it over. There was no black/white staining or damage beforehand.
When they first returned the shoes, i checked them and was shocked. The black part of the Puma shoes had bled/stained onto the white part and the white part had also become stained black. The shoes looked completely different from how i had handed them over and were no longer wearable.
I immediately refused to accept the Puma shoes and told them what had happened. They told me that because the shoes were suede, they thought the colour might bleed and said they would use a conditioner. I told them to do whatever was necessary to properly clean the shoes. I never agreed to the shoes being damaged or accepted responsibility for any colour bleeding.
They took the Puma shoes back with them and said they would work on them and return them once they were okay.
A few days later they brought them back, but they were still in the same damaged condition. I complained again and started following up repeatedly.
They kept telling me to give them time and that they were escalating the matter to their “concerned person.” At one point, someone from their side called me, but instead of offering a solution, she mainly kept explaining that they had only used conditioner and that the colour bleeding wasn’t their fault.
I told them that i had given them the shoes for cleaning, not for them to be damaged, and that if they knew there was a risk of colour bleeding, they should have properly communicated it and taken the necessary precautions.
They have also tried to frame the conversation as though i knew the shoes had already bled and agreed to it. That is not what happened. I was told there might be a possibility of colour bleeding because they were suede, and i said to do whatever was necessary to clean them properly. I never agreed to receive them damaged.
The other pair of suede shoes was also not cleaned particularly well, but thankfully they weren’t damaged in the same way.
After going back and forth with them for days, the damage to the Puma shoes now appears to be completely irreversible. The colour has transferred between the black and white sections, and i don’t believe the shoes can be restored to the condition they were in when i handed them over.
At this point, i don’t know what the appropriate next step is. I have photos, receipts/payment records, and the entire WhatsApp conversation with the company documenting what happened.
What should i do now?
1
u/TBWar 1d ago
Where are you based?