I see why there's nothing but bad reviews for Crate and Barrel in general, and for the Corte Madera store in particular. These guys lie about having something in stock, trying to get you to do a store pickup, and then call you to tell you it's not there an tell you it MIGHT show up sometime if the truck is big enough. This is NOT how to win business in 2013. Very dumb move. I will take my business to West Elm, Target, Bed Bath and Beyond. Anywhere but Crate & Bottom of the Barrel. read more

I love this Crate& Barrel location! I pop in occasionally, usually to buy gifts for my loved ones. At this store, I always finding my favorite items in stock. I appreciate the staff for their courteous and prompt service. read more

Terrible service. I have been in there twice trying to get some help to be sold a three piece sofa/chair set only to be ignored by every single sales person on the floor. I have sat on the furniture, studied the swatches, checked the prices, lifted the cushions, checked the piping, you name it. BIG clues to a sales person that "Hey, I can either continue to sell these dried branches in an vase for $500 - OR - I can sell $4000 worth of furniture to this younger middle aged guy who may have just moved into a larger home. However since people that young probably don't work for Google or Facebook, or other internet giant, I bet he can't afford it. More branches for you, old guy?" Apparently they preferred to help the elderly purchase wine hardware gadgets rather than a nicely dressed 37 year old dude. No eye contact. No welcome. No sale. This happened over the ENTIRE store, not just the furniture section over a 45 minute period - on both visits. Went over to their competitor across the walk way and it was night and day with similar designs and quality and great service. I came home with three swatches of fabric and will be returning to purchase there if it works out. Insult to injury: one of their Camden (yes I remembered the name! The one on the left facing the matching sofa) display chairs has faint, greasy stains on it near the crotch. I can only image what goes in there after hours. Check it out. It's hilarious. Hopefully Crate and Barrel will see this and fix it - not like they're getting my business back. read more

I normally love C & B but for making my first large furniture purchase with them and I am very disappointed. From the buying experience to the lack of information to the rudeness of customer service. I ordered a couch which I received today and it looks great however when you sit on it it sounds like sitting on a hard plastic container. Not the quality I expected. Color and fabric are great but the insides are not what quality I would expect from them. I called the store I ordered from and I was told a manager would call when nothing worried I called at 6:50 even though it says they close at 9 and the gentleman that answered was very short and unhelpful and basically said we can't do anything you can try customer service and after explaining really bad service with them he said well we close in 10 minutes nothing I can do! I couldn't believe this is the service I received! read more

If you are looking for excellent customer service, good quality products at an affordable cost, this is your place. As an interior designer who's worked with vendors all over the spectrum of costs/quality, this CB store has consistently been above and beyond what anyone else offers for similar prices. I work with Sarah, and she is simply terrific. She's been consistently helpful, 100% reliable, keeps a good check on stock, delivery times, and is just a pleasure to deal with every single time - even when unexpected things happen our end. And everyone else I've dealt with, from store employees to delivery teams has been great. The products are really well made and they are still VERY reasonably priced. I won't even compare them to the competition that cuts costs and leave you hanging with months of items out of stock, and nightmarish customer service. This CB store is in another league. So when one of my client is shopping on a mid-range budget, this is my good-to store. For me, it's a matter of delivering the best experience and end product to a client, and CB does that better than anyone else. read more

The only advantage to Stockton Street in the city is the parking lot. The staff here was not nearly as helpful as the one in SF, and it is a smaller store. But if you live in Marin, I would think this would be SUPER convenient. It did have everything I was looking for. And the displays made me want to buy a house with a yard so I could get a patio set. read more

My sister, friend and I went in to look around and see what my sister could buy for her new apartment. It was fine for a few minutes but after getting through half the store an older woman began watching us, asked if we needed any help and we said no thank you. We continue to shop around and can see she is still following and watching us from every corner, another older woman began to watch us as well while we are just looking around. We grab a basket and fill it with what we had been looking at, and can see that the 2nd woman had still been watching us from afar. Checking out had been with the 2nd lady watching us and she wasn't communicating much when we were confused with the pin pad machine, this was a very poor and upsetting experience and did not happen the last time we had been in there. I'm not sure if it was because we looked young that led to us receiving this service but it was very unpleasant and we will no longer shop there again. read more

The store and employees are lovely but the customer service of this company is an utter disgrace. They actually told me that a delivery on May 23 was on time for a mid May delivery. I don't know what kind of calendar they are looking at, but that's not mid May by any stretch of the imagination. My custom chairs were estimated late April to mid May. Don't fwith me, I'm a scientist and when you give a range it should not exceed that range, which my delivery exceeded. Mid May should have been the latest time, not the earliest. You folks are a disaster and I most definitely recommend people steer clear of this store for any custom orders unless you enjoy disappointment. Please advise how to private message as you've suggested. Thank you! read more

being new in the area and transplanted from the East coast I wondered in to see the CA lifestyle . It was the run of the mill, so to speak. The staff was pleasant and helpful but felt uninspired. All in all the store has the basics to make any newbie feel welcomed. It's nice to know its there when I need it. read more

Crate & Barrel is always an 'experience'. I don't really mean that in a good way. I used to shop them more when I lived in So. Cal and had more money because you could find some nice accent pieces or more unique items for the dining table. I guess now it is just a nostalgic trip for me. I kind of miss having lots of excess cash to buy expensive things. There were a few fun kitchen items I filed away for Christmas Gift ideas. But with the higher prices it just might not make it. It would be nice if they had a coupon once and awhile. But with all that I would probably buy things online first. Why? Quite honestly the service was pretty bad and I have a hard time spending money at a store where they don't care. Two people working were just talking while sitting on the furniture closest to the register. Not even up for a lazy, "Can I help you with anything?" when we came it. So to review I like the cool and fun stuff they have. The prices are just as high as always. The service is awful. Oddly enough that is exactly the way I remembered the So. Cal stores to be. Ah the memories! read more

The furniture has great coordinating pieces but if you special order one simple thing like four small legs to a sofa it takes a QUARTER OF A YEAR to receive it -- something that can be done by an experienced carpenter in an afternoon's work. After a month we grew a little impatient with the process and could not understand why it took so long for such a minor addition. The sales rep we spoke to at the store, Christie, was completely unsympathetic and rudely reminded us that we knew about this when we ordered it. She had no answer for why it took so long but there were no apologies and in fact, she sounded perturbed and tried to cut the conversation short. This is bad customer service, especially when their competitors seem to try harder at keeping the golden rule of retail -- "The customer is always first!" We have purchased at C&B before and would have expected better service for repeat customers. To be fair, there are reps at the store that are very friendly and helpful no matter what the issue is. We think that Lydia demonstrates the higher standard of what service and attitude should be. Moreover, the prices at C&B are too high compared with the quality of workmanship. We purchased a pricey desk set with accompanying credenza and bookcase and you cannot drop a closed pen on the desk without making a mark. We felt that this whole set was better as a showpiece than for use in a real life situation. Their solution to the problem of easily nicked but expensive furniture pieces -- "Go buy some color sticks at a hardware store and touch them up." That was their advice for a desk set that cost about $2000.00. The above experiences are shared here to show that you may get more than you bargained for when shopping at C&B -- headaches, anxiety, frustration and unsympathetic responses when you run into problems with their craftsmanship or customer service. Buyer beware! read more

Horrible! Horrible experience! Do not shop here! We purchased a kitchen table and chairs: mango wood, made in Indonesia, when we received the table we noticed the wood had a terrible smell, I called their "Dr." helpline, I was asked if I could put the table and chairs in the garage while it "de-gassed! We waited a few more weeks and just couldn't take the smell, we rented a truck and brought the table, chairs, and seat-cushions back to the store, wanted it out of our house. It has been months now and Symphony Bank keeps sending us a bill claiming we did not return everything! Believe me EVERYTHING was returned, their salesperson screwed up on the return!!! read more

While we enjoy the product. The on-line purchase experience is not what we fondly recall of Crate & Barrel of the past. We live less than 2 miles from the Marin County store. We ordered something during a recent sale that is listed on our wedding registry. We did not need it right away and would have happily picked up curbside in a month (or 3) when the store reopens. We were on hold over 118 minutes to no avail on customer service lines and dropped twice from Chat. I was charged $30+ dollars shipping for something I could have walked to get in 15 minutes. Ridiculous. Customer service disappointment. C&B will not post our review on their site and suggested we contact customer service (again). read more

We just bought a new home and purchased several items from the Corte Madera store. Among them a sectional that had to be delivered, curtains and hardware and decorative pillows. Each time we went to the store we were assisted professionally and immediately greeted when we walked in the door. Each of the sales associates was knowledgeable and helpful to us as we made our purchase decisions. Scheduling the sectional delivery was also very easy, even though we had to reschedule while waiting for our home to close escrow. Not only are the products and designs current and high quality, the durability of the fabrics on the sectionals are legendary. I had one couch for over 10 years and it looked brand new when we moved from our vacation condo and no longer needed it. Highly recommend Crate and Barrel for their beautiful designs and consistent high quality! read more

Painfully slow service. it took 30 minutes of the prime part of Sunday to return an item and find out that another item was not in stock even though the staff said it was. I'm not sure why things can't speed up here but it seems I'm not the only one with this opinion. Save your time and shop online or go elsewhere. read more

Ordered a piece of furniture in late Feb, was told by the salesperson the order would be delivered 'early March'. Still waiting. No correspondence, no apologies. Radio silence. read more

Terrible experience here with a salesperson named Cheya. I was returning some glasses I had purchased online. I had literally only unpacked one of them. My husband felt it was too big and heavy so we packed it right back up. Cheya insisted it had "signs of use" and that he could not take it back. I explained I had not used it but in the end just said that he could just keep it and not reimburse me for it. He gave it to his colleague Sharon to discard and she literally stood off to the side for 2 minutes inspecting it because she couldn't find anything wrong with it. She even called someone else over to look. Yet Cheya maintained it had been used. I could care less about the price of a $7 glass but the attitude of this salesperson was really off-putting. read more

I guess I am joining the party of those who think the service at this store is lacking. I signed up for an online coupon which I could not get delivered to me no matter what I did. I wanted to purchase an item and asked the staff if they could help. It was a pretty short response NO. It is unfortunate that the merchandise and marketing of this company are more capable than their capacity to provide reasonable customer service. read more

Good sale! we were assisted by Sara. She is so nice. We bought an indoor outdoor rug for the back of our car when we have the seats folded. It is such a cool rug and goes with the car perfectly. Sara made the sale and she was super! Funny and friendly too. read more

This store made an unusual return incredibly easy. Thanks Kristen and Crate!! Staff is courteous and helpful, store well organized and obviously beautiful. read more

IIt was early so no shoppers yet. Two SA I passed by didn't even greet me but continued to talk. Finally after browsing and not finding what I wanted I asked one SA to help. She was helpful in directing me to the area. But when I got to the display there was no follow up like did u want me to get you out one so you can see? Just walked away. The table cloth were hanging up nicely so felt bad taking down their display and no inventory on the below shelves to look at. I figured oh well it's a tree skirt with simple red green plaid design how wrong could it be. So I went back to register ask them to get one for me to purchase. The lady said thy are upstairs pausing as if I should know where it's at and I should just go get it. After a moment she went to get it. She must have left to the Netherlands to get it. So after circling the store again and went back to the counter I said I'll be back to purchase. Please ask her to hold it When I came back after looking at a few stores I went back. She had sold throne she grabbed! Ugh. I wouldn't have been so annoyed if she didn't take another trip back to Netherlands to get it. I stood there for another 15 minutes. Impatient i asked the other lady at the counter if i should grab it myself. oh no its stocked all the way in the back? FINALLY she came back. How do they do their stocking system? I mean what if was really busy ? Would they run upstairs each time a customer wanted something ? Really frustrating. I like the SF location. Ladies here in their 50s seem as if they're working for part time gig or forced to work for whatever reason just aren't trained or interested in customer service. Think they'd rather be at a nail salon on Saturday. read more

Wow! I was really surprised to read some of the poor reviews of the Corte Madera store! Perhaps the store has revamped its customer service policy over the past year or so! Because I had the exact opposite experience! I found the sales staff to be attentive and helpful and found so many lovely items in their store. As a new shopper to Crate & Barrel, I was really pleased with the Corte Madera store. In my opinion, one of the best evaluators of any retail establishment is the merchant's ability to solve a problem or complaint. In the case of Crate and Barrel, I had purchased a vase that although advertised as waterproof, was not. Mine apparently was the only one with this defect. Unfortunately, the vase leaked water very slowly on to my solid oak dining room table. The stain was very deep. After evaluating the defective product, the manager of the store went above and beyond the call of duty. She made sure that not only would she refund my purchase but would take responsibility by ascertaining that my table would be refinished as well, at their cost. I was able to choose a reputable firm who did a great job. Crate and Barrel's insurance company expedited the payment for the repair. At all points during this process, my concerns were addressed courteously and professionally. I was so impressed with their professionalism, concern and positive response, I just had to add my review on Yelp! My hat is off to Crate and Barrel! read more

The store was clean and everyone was helpful! I went in to buy one decoration and SHARON helped me pretty much re do my living room. She was amazingly helpful, had a smile the entire time, and knew her decor! Go see Sharon she was amazing! read more

Found what I needed and the staff was helpful. I somewhat like that it was a bit smaller than some other locations so that I could peruse everything without feeling overwhelmed. read more

Yesterday I went into Crate & Barrel to see if they had a painting that I saw at the Crate & Barrel in Walnut Creek. Low and behold they had it and it was on sale. I asked for assistance and received immediate attention. She(sales clerk) checked their stock and found that they have them boxed. Since I have a small sports car I thought I had to come back to pickup. She assured me that their stock room staff could assist. Came to loading area and stock persons said no problem he took the pictures out of the main box and was able to individually load them into my car. What a "Wow" experience. read more

I like this store for its quality, selection and location, especially. I've also had some great service here as well, especially from more experienced staff. Sometimes the less experienced staff could step up a little more; but that happens in retail. My most recent experience consisted of purchasing two patio chairs. I knew exactly what I wanted as they were featured in the window. They had to be special ordered as the color I wanted wasn't a stock item. No problem. They wrote up the order and told me it would be about 8 weeks before the chairs would be delivered and gave me a website where I could track the progress. I did and admittedly, I was getting anxious for them after a few weeks as 8 weeks seemed like a long time. However. In less than 8 weeks, I got a call from the Crate & Barrel with the happy news that the chairs were in and they wanted to set up delivery. We easily worked out a convenient date and I was told they would call two days ahead to give me a 2 hour delivery window. They did just that. What I was especially pleased about is that the drivers called me early that morning about 8:30 and sheepishly asked if they could deliver a little earlier than expected (they were due to deliver between 10:15 and 12:15). I asked how much earlier and they said, how about 20 minutes from now? Yes, of course, I told them. They were there in 15 minutes! The delivery guys were professional, polite and delivered with expedience. I can't complain about anything. Everything worked as it should have. The only reason I didn't give them 5 stars is for the pricing. I think they are a bit high, but then again, sometimes you get what you pay for. In this case, the chairs were a little more pricey than others I had seen out there, but the quality is second to none. I'm a very happy customer and I'll be back. read more

I bought a $2,500 sofa bed from these people. It seemed a comfortable and attractive sofa. I discovered,however, that there was no way to tuck in bed linen when you needed it for guests!! (You could lay the sheets and blankets on top of the bed, but could not keep them in place). I went to the store and spoke with a knowledgeable sales person who agreed that something was very wrong. He in turn talked with his manager, who supposedly talked with corporate and the manufacturer! No remedy for an insoluble problem! The salesman just called and said, "Sorry". If this is the way this retailer deals with obvious flaws in this product, they must be as unhelpful with other flawed products they sell. STAY AWAY FROM CRATE AND BARREL!! read more

Consistently well-designed quality products. Store is very pleasant, well planned and well stocked. Sales staff are helpful and knowledgeable. My go-to store for my home. read more

I am a big fan of Crate & Barrel and often visits there for my household things.. Quality is good and you can find easily what you are looking for.. customer service ok ok.. read more

High praise for Carla P.! I have been displaced by a fire and had to refurbish a studio while I Wait for the Reno. Carla was the best thing that has happened to me since the fire. She really understood. Was helpful and showed me stuff that helped make the temporary place a home! Crate and Barrell, you have a wonderful employee, so even if you hate crate a barrel make the trek to Carla, she understands what it takes to meet the needs of the person. She is worthy of the trip and she know her stuff!! read more

Some things are over priced but at the same time you get what you pay for! I absolutely love my linen bedding from here! So far its held up well too! Downside, I had to go to two different stores to complete the set. read more

I had a recent experience that made it necessary to contact Customer Service at the Corte Madera store...which turned out to be a very pleasant experience! I received timely responses to my questions and concerns, and the issue (no fault of anyone's at the store) was quickly and professionally resolved. There are less expensive places to shop for home decor and furniture, but you get what you pay for...I'd rather save up for a bit more and pay for quality and good service. I've been a loyal customer of C&B for many years and will continue to give them my business! read more

This is for their online purchases, not store. I ordered a bed, said it was available in 5-7 business days. The actually ship date was 11 days once I spoke to the customer service team. Was on hold for over an hour with prompts promising me "it will be 30 more seconds" about a dozen times. Order now cancelled and I will go to someplace with some degree of service. read more

Very frustrated that I was told when I was in the store that a table would ship within 1-2 weeks, only to call and find out it would be over 1.5 MONTHS at minimum! Clearly this location does not prioritize keeping its sales staff up to speed, so the customer loses out because I have based my moving on the timing I was given and now face financial consequences. UNSATISFACTORY CUSTOMER SERVICE & no remorse from store manager!!!! read more

This rating is for Paul in particular. I called in about an item that I needed to return and he was beyond professional and knowledgable about not only what I needed to return, but other similar items. We will do all of our business here thanks to Paul. read more

LOVE Crate and Barrel -- I was so glad when they moved back into Marin! The store is smaller than some of their others, but very pretty. The sales staff is warm, funny, and really helpful -- I was getting a wedding gift and really appreciated their suggestions. All in all I felt comfortable and very at home here -- I would love to buy almost everything in the store. I will definitely return again and again! read more

Beautiful store - very well put together. Regarding service, I have been very pleased every time I have visited this store.

I've been shopping at this store for many years. I can't say enough about the design of the store and the variety of products available on the floor. More importantly is the service. Everyone in the store really makes the shopping, selecting and designing of any space a pure delight. One of their best sales people is Paul.He comes as close as you can get to a personal space designer that you can find in the retail environment. He knows the C&B inventory like no one else .He just helped me and my husband design a cost effective and spatially considered lounge area on our deck. It looks beautiful...and doesn't overpower the space. He has helped us countless times during a 2 year remodel on our home. He's patient and through and doesn't give up until he solves any challenge like exchanges and or damaged deliveries or anything that might happen that he can then make right. If you happen to like C&B products and their price points and you live in Marin this is about as good as it can get. The folks at that store like their jobs and it really shows. read more

We've bought several things at this Crate & Barrel. I perused the reviews and have to agree with the comments regarding how nice the store looks but we've had a different experience with the staff. Last year we saw a small leather couch marked down. We were thinking about buying it if it went on sale and there it was, floor model on sale, marked down 40%. We got the salesperson over who said she wanted to check if the price was the most recent markdown. It was not so she marked it down again so it was even cheaper! That was so nice of her. Couple of months later we saw a chair I've had my eye on for years, the metropolitan chair with natural cow hide fur cover instead of smooth tanned leather. Kind of cowboy chic/funky. Anyway, again it was a floor model sale but not as good a markdown. We debated whether to wait a week or so for another markdown with possibly someone else snatching up the chair. What to do, what to do. The salesperson came by and saw us hanging out, sitting on the chair, way longer than is natural and we got to talking. She explained that this particular style was being discontinued. From what she told us, other stores may also have the same chair marked down. Discount hounds that we are, we thought we'd check with the other Crate & Barrels and see if they had the same chair and what their mark down was. FIrst the outlet in Berkeley (we're shameless, aren't we?) They didn't have it. San Francisco did have it and lucky for us, it was marked down more! First thought, let's get it there! Second thought, will Corte Madera C & B match the SF store price? The sales associate called the SF store, then talked to her manager and we got the same price! That was so nice of her. Sure, you can walk in circles for hours at the store and begin to believe that you are invisible. But on the other hand once you shout out that you need help and you have the attention of one of the sales associates, they are helpful and willing to take those extra steps to make the customer happy. We certainly are with our experiences there. read more

I'm surprised to see negative reviews about the service. I have always been blown away by how friendly and helpful their sales associates are. Perhaps it is because I treat the sales associates like people, not subordinates. I live in SF but choose to shop at this store. I have bought a couple pieces of custom upholstered furniture and lots of kitchen stuff here. I got a lot of great advice on choosing the right fabrics for my pieces. They'll let you know about upcoming sales. During one visit I realized that my wine glasses were being discontinued. A sales associate tracked down a dozen at a store in So Cal and had them shipped to my house for free. read more