In April 2016, I stopped in to request a custom order (messenger-style bag). The craftsman there…read morewas very friendly and enthusiastic about the work. He said it would take a couple of weeks, depending on when the leather showed up and how much other work he had to do. We agreed on a price and I gave him my contact info.
I stopped by a few weeks later - bag wasn't ready. I stopped by the next month - bag wasn't ready. I stopped by again just before leaving town for several weeks in the summer - bag still, two months later, was not ready.
When I got back to town, I stopped by again. Apparently the craftsman finished the bag, but the owner sold it while I was gone. They had made no attempt to contact me to let me know it was finished. The craftsman told me he had another, similar one in the works and it would be ready by that Saturday. I stopped by early the next week - bag wasn't ready.
Stopped by today (mid-August - weeks later) - bag isn't ready. It's Birkenstock sandal season, and that's the main thing he does, especially in summer. They have a contract with Birkenstock, so that work takes priority. He told me to come back in a month.
These guys might be wizards at leather work - I wouldn't know. As far as the business side goes, I can't endorse them. I don't even want the bag now - it's just going to remind me of getting jerked around. I wish it were otherwise. There are very few "old Fayetteville" businesses still around, and I would have been glad to support one.
I guess if you bring in something with "Birkenstock" printed on it, or you're shopping off the racks (or the craftsman's counter, where my bag apparently was when it was sold), you'll be fine.