Not impressed. I swear to god I've never had so much trouble trying to get a company to take my freaking money. I'm trying to buy a furniture set and umbrella from the place. When I went into this store, it took over five minutes for anyone to even greet me when I entered. (That was super surprising since when I left I walked by their desk where there were four employees just sitting around--not including the one who did finally come ask if I needed help--one of whom was playing solitaire on the computer.) I was going to make a purchase when I went in, but apparently they stopped taking checks a year ago "due to fraud issues". That's all I had on me to purchase. When I called the next day to order over the phone I was told that, "due to fraud issues", they could only charge me $300 and I'd have to come in to pay the remaining balance. (How is this company still in business if they are encountering fraud at every turn?) I'd called to try and give a commission to the person who helped me but going into the store in the middle of the week isn't terribly convenient so when I asked about ordering online, I was told there'd be a shipping fee that was higher than the delivery fee if ordering through them. So I tried continuing to pay over the phone... but the guy didn't tell me he couldn't hear me reading the card number to him until after I'd read the full number, then for some reason two credit cards that have no balance didn't go through. And at this point the conversation, probably both length and the fact that I had it on speaker, woke my toddler who was upset so I had to deal with that. When I'd gone into the store and asked when their current sale would end, I was told that they didn't know, that "prices are set by corporate and they just find out when they log in that day". Everything about this company makes me not want to do business with them, but my problem is that I don't have unlimited funds and the price I found here is half of some similar sets. For the umbrella I want to purchase, they charge $25 to INSTALL ROCKS in the base! That's on top of the $149 they charge to assemble the furniture itself. It's simply ridiculous. I'll purchase from The Great Escape, because I need a set now, not in 2-3 years when I've been able to save a few thousand dollars for a set from another, perhaps less rage-inducing company. But from the "corporate policies" to the individual store-level service, this place is a joke. I went to the Wilmette store to make my purchase and the difference in my experience was night and day, and much more satisfying. And they didn't charge me for delivery at the Wilmette store! (It's 5-7 miles closer, so that would be the only reasonable explanation for why--perhaps I'm slightly outside the delivery zone for the Schaumburg location, though it's not coming from the store directly so who knows.) Anyway, if you want to buy from this company go to Wilmette and ask for Dana. read more

See all

Hopeless service--they've been trying to arrange the delivery of a hot tops for six months now, and they still haven't done it.

Great selection, friendly service and a lot of cool products available for purchase. Would definitely recommend if you need to upgrade your patio/basement read more

Posting this to complain about solar cover. Bought the most expensive one last year they said it had a better warranty, but they only want to cheer for the seams.! All the bubbles came out. Which every pool cover does.... Amazon two year warranty 1/3 of the price.... So yeah I'm a little pissed. I bought the pool there I bought the heater there I bought all the other stuff there only warranty for the seams I'm not going to say what I'm thinking right now read more

very helpful and great service. Came in to ask about my pool and showed me exactly how to do it and what parts were needed!

Customer service at this location is awful. They also told me my product would be return/exchangeable and then when I wanted to exchange certain chairs they said they can't due to the order being a custom color. ??? read more

I would give them a -5 if I could. Purchased a sofa that fell apart not even a year into a use. It's been 1.5 years that I have been trying to service it since I have purchased warranty. At this point I don't want to deal with the extensions, and I want this out of my home and money back. Store is blaming the service and service is blaming the store and no one is taking care of this. read more

I went in today because I am considering buying an above ground pool. Walking in, I knew nothing about owning a pool. I was greeted by John who gave us all the information we needed and really spent a lot of time with us. I walked out an expert and will be back to buy my pool. Thanks! read more

My wife was just in the Schaumburg store buying chlorine, when asking the price she was told 200 dollars!! When she questioned the price, the salesman said he would check and it was 125 dollars. The man in front of her had just bought the same amount of chlorine and it was 125!! The salesman new the price but tried to sell it for 200?? WTH!! Then they didn't even bother to assist her in carting it out! I've been shopping there for 20 plus years!! Never again!! read more

Bought all my pool equipment here including heater pump filter sanitation system stairs but, They don't sell dougboy pool liners. Horrible manager michael who his rude and not knowledgeable about pools at all. Wouldn't give me the name of a pool contractor to do my liner replacement unless I bought a cheap knock off liner thru the store. If they SOLD genuine doughboy liners I WOULD buy from them! I understand that you aren't a doughboy dealer. The guy at the desk tried to get me to let him place an order off the Internet for a knockoff doughboy expandable liner. When I told him I wasn't interested in anything but a real doughboy liner he said that he wouldn't give me the name or business card of a person who'd do the liner replacement for me unless I let him order the liner! FYI These pool guys who's cards you have behind the counter ARE NOT EMPLOYEES OF GREAT ESCAPE. They are independent contractors. YOU don't install ANYTHING at great escape, you simply REFER people to contractors!! You mean to tell me that you won't give customer of yours for the last TEN years the contact info for a pool guy to replace my liner?? Really nice of you!! read more

During this time of Covid-19, you would think this location would answer emails or take phone calls, but oh no. Terrible service to the public by MAKING them have to come into your store to ask a question. I'm looking the "recent" reviews for this store and seems nothing has changes since 2016. Not impressed by the owner's bio from The Great Escape website... "Hi, I'm Michael Cortina and I'm the Manager at the Schuamburg The Great Escape. After 11 years with The Great Escape, I'm proud to say that I've picked up a few product certificates from Brunswick, Jacuzzi and Sundance. I almost studied business at DePaul University for some time." #1 learn to spell the city your store is located.. SCHAUMBURG, #2 So you "almost" studied at DePaul for "some time". What does that even mean? Maybe you should have completed your degree and implemented customer service! read more

Place is trash, didn't even acknowledge me and my family when we walked around looking for patio furniture, NOT EVEN A HELLO!!!! Don't understand your customer service tactics, however we walked the entire store and nothing, so you didn't deserve my money or business! read more

A huge gust of wind caught my patio umbrella and it flew into the pool and speared the liner. It caused a tear in the liner which made me lose a lot of water. When I called to inquire how much it would be to replace the liner. He suggested I use a $2 patch instead. The patch is holding up, and saves me a lot of stress and $$$. Thanks. read more

Horrible service!! When we came into the store, no one else was in the store, yet it took forever to get someone to help us. We spent a lot of money ($7500) approx for media chairs. We bought the warranty to cover scratches to the leather (We have 4 cats with claws) we were told this would be covered. Also it would cover the electronics for the chairs as well as the light bar underneath. When we explained we wanted the scratches repaired and the arm rest which has cracks approx 2 in long (in 4 places) do to normal use (leaning on it) and part of the light bar burnt out. After fighting with them for almost 8 months they reimbursed us for the warranty instead of fixing anything. What a bunch of crooks, go elsewhere!!!!!!! T & B read more

Not even the basic customer courtesy when you enter their store, the three idiots just sit there and look at you, silent. The worst.

I bought a patio conversation set and patio dining set from here last week. Aaron M. helped me every step of the way. He dropped everything and showed me several options. He paid close attention to my needs and knew his stuff well. Aaron took his time with me and I absolutely loved the customer service. He reviewed everything with me carefully and got a delivery within the week. Yes, I spent a lot of money because I bought a lot of high quality pieces, but his help to get me exactly what I was looking for was invaluable. It looks awesome on my brick patio! So pleased! read more

This place would get no stars from me if it were possible. Back in April, After discovering a rusted out hole In one of of the panels in our 30x15 pool we called this place and spoke to an associate/salesperson and referred us to a couple Installers who work with great escape. When we inquired about just fixing the one panel that was rusted out we were told they would not repair the panel alone and we would need a whole new wall. We told the manger who was placing the order that we couldn't believe we had to buy a WHOLE NEW WALL when it was just one panel. And he agreed. His exact words were "yeah, that's how they get you. They don't just sell one panel. Never once did anyone from great escape tell us repairing it was even an option so we were under the impression that's it! Guess we'll have to buy a whole new wall. Total damages $3000! We didn't want to buy a whole new pool obviously for another $3000. So back In April when we went there In person to order one, They said 4-6 weeks until wall would arrive. they set up install date of May 30th. So then they switched it to June 20. So we obviously called other installers to get it installed earlier as that's a loss of a month of summer use. Come to find out, they both said they could repair the panel alone we didn't need a whole new wall. So we called great escape to cancel the wall we were told we needed to order. To the tune of $1400 alone not including install and liner. Total damages $3000!!!!!!! We decided we would just repair the panel, we were so happy!!! But... Great escape refused to cancel the order Bc we signed and sealed it. And claimed we would not be reimbursed For ANY of the $770. Then proceeded to tell us if the wall that they were stuck with sold they would let us know.... to date THAT still hasn't happened. You will, once again be placing another follow up call. But I'm sure it will be another wasteful job. 8/12/19 Got a reply from Dana, manager at Schaumburg location, asking us to call or email her. She's claiming HER installers, employed by great escape, would NOT repair, or in our case, patch this wall. But when we contacted OMNI pools, the installers they referred us to, stated that whoever would sell us a wall for a 15 year old pool should be reported to the BBB. She stated they would never warranty that because it's a 15 year old pool!! EVERY INSTALLER (3) they referred us to AFTER we ordered the wall to the tune of $1400 w a deposit of $770 /(special order) could not warranty putting a NEW wall on a pool that was 15 years old. I contacted Russo Pool, from whom we ordered a new Heater year before that was better quality and less $ than great escape. The only reason we contacted great escape about the wall was Bc that was where we purchased the pool originally. Thinking they were the experts/professionals. Russo came out and quoted us a price of $200 with a 2year warranty. Thus we have been able to enjoy our pool since the start of the summer. We are out $770 and when asked what was the best they could do, they stated if they sold the "special order wall sitting in their warehouse" we could get our deposit otherwise he (Brian) could give us a "great" deal on a new pool. Brian (manager) at the time, stated that was ALL corporate could do. They should have told us THAT first before they had us special order a whole wall. Sorry, no more calls to anyone at this company. Waste of more time. $770 down the drain... but we are enjoying our pool, brand new liner and wall fixed, thanks to Russo. Game over Russo wins. Next pool.... guess who we're not calling..... so very sorry to have to post a review like this. It is what it is. read more

Such poor service that I'm glad they (apparently) did not have what I wanted so that I could take my business else where. When I came in I had to approach the young woman at the desk to ask if they had any pool covers. While "talking" with her I noticed two other (I assume) sales people who could not interrupt their game of chess to help a customer. When I asked the woman if she had any pool covers she struggled to answer without me giving further prompts. I finally asked her to just point me in the direction of covers so I could look for myself, but then she told me they were in the back. She did not offer to check to make sure they did not have what I was looking for, or offer me any other assistance. I simply walked out. Not sure where else I can go to look for a pool cover, but the (lack of) service here was RIDICULOUS!!!! read more

After visiting 2 locations (Schaumburg and Algonquin) we can say the service is horribly absent as a standard operating procedure. We are looking to buy a playset and the store was a ghost town at both locations. Not busy whatsoever. Schaumburg did not sell playsets but Algonquin did. Not sure how both places survives, but we at least got to play on the equipment to test it out and then found a better deal online! read more

Walked in with my family to look at pools. They did not acknowledge us when we walked in. No one came up to help us by the pools. We asked if we could see the pools outside and no one responded. We walked out and still no one said anything. Would never spend a dollar here for lack of customer service. read more

I needed my motor to be replaced the company scheduled me a week out only to come and install the wrong pump. I verified my model before they arrived but they said they needed to come back a week later to reinstall the correct motor. They came back installed it and left. As soon as I filled it up it started leaking from the motor. When I called to talk to a manager they tried to blame the leak on me to avoid fixing it. She said she would call me back that day but did not until the following day. Meanwhile my hot tub leaked until empty. The manager called the next day after talking to the technician and finding out that it was indeed his fault for forgetting to install yet another piece to the motor. No apology was given by the manager she just asked to reschedule again. read more

My husband and I walked in and walked around for 10 minutes looking for patio sectionals. Nobody approached us and about 8 people were standing around the circular cashiers area it seemed. Many of them saw us, but nobody approached, even when I walked right past the desk. After we saw something we liked, I walked back over to ask for help. The not so friendly salesman with clipped answers to our questions, could care less whether we bought the set or not as he stood there holding his drink in one hand. read more

Just received beyond excellent customer service from John N.. I was in a real bind with my filtration system. He thoughtfully worked the problem and I came home with a working filter. It's folks like John, that bring customers back to the Great Escape. Thank you John! read more

Doing business with the Great Escape and their manager Noel have very good customer relations are very concerned with your needs and want to make you 110% happy it's a very great place to do business with and I will always meet your needs customer relations is very important now and they do a very good job at it and their staff read more

I do not normally take the time to write company reviews. However, my recent visit to the Great Escape on Irving Park Road certainly warrants one. This was one of my best customer service experiences in quite some time. My wife and I were shopping for billiard cues and a dart board for our new sunroom. The store manager, Noel approached us asking if we need help. We had quite a few questions regarding the type of equipment we needed, Noel was informative and knowledgeable. Not only did we get our dart board, but the store manager offered to personally bring another one from the Batavia store, I wanted another one for my brother in law. We are also researching pool liners to replace in the spring, the staff at this store are product knowledge experts. If you are looking for a store that offers great prices and kind staff, visit the Great Escape on Irving Park Rd, Schaumburg. You will not be disappointed. I have found my store for outdoor patio furniture and home upgrades. read more

I have never in my life been so disgusted by a business to go onto a website and write a review. The customer service at this location is horrible. Of course, when in the process of purchasing the pool, everyone was great, but when things go wrong (and a lot of things did) they could care less. Have been waiting 8 months for simple fence caps. Have called several times and getting promises that they would get the caps. Today I finally stopped in the store and some rude employee said there was no way they could get this part and to call customer service. Is there some reason why I was not told this 8 months ago?!?! Called customer service and they were more rude then the guy at the store. I guess The Great Escape could care less about their customers after they pocket the money. So disgusted and will be sure on telling everyone I know not to go here! read more

First, I'd like to say the new Manager, Noel, fixed my problem the best he could. He is a good guy + cares about customer service. IF YOU GO TO THIS STORE, ASK FOR NOEL + ONLY WORK WITH HIM. Having said this, do not go to this store + buy anything from Mike. I purchased a dining set from Mike + had numerous things go wrong w/ my order. I will not waste your time going into details, just know it was extremely aggravating + ruined the dining set being a Father's Day gift for my husband. read more

I have waited a month for my hot tub cover! I call every week and they dare tell me it has not arrived?? Shop here if you enjoy getting the run around. The manager has no respect for his customers and has a short temper. After reading the other yelp reviews I decided to take a stand for what's right and create an account. I will never shop here again unless I need chemicals or parts for my hot tub. read more

Bad service, store is filthy and dusty. You have to really try to flag someone down to help you. I have purchased a hot tub from here, any repairs or service is a total headache and hassle. They really make it hard to get anything accomplished on a repair or replacement part. Better off going literally anywhere else. read more

I purchased a replacement pool for my 20 year old above ground pool. I wanted a good liner so I paid an extra $90 for an upgraded liner. I had a pool guy that I wanted to use for installation, but they discouraged me from doing that stating it would cost me more and they would not fix anything if there were problems so I went with their professional installers. The pool has been up about 3 weeks and I have had to add water several times. Have only used the pool twice. I finally discovered that the liner is leaking. I contacted the store manager, but thet refuse to replace the liner and indicated at one point that I must have damaged the liner while vacuuming, but I informed them I have not had to vacuum yet and have only been in the pool twice. (I have never heard of a pool liner being damaged by vacuuming, if that is true of their upgraded liner, what is the standard liner like?) They still refused to come out and replace the defective liner.. They did offer me a $4.00 patch kit for free if I wanted to go there and get it. I purchased the same size pool I had but the new one is at least 2 inches shorter than my previous pool and the quality of the pool is not half what the old pool was, I will be surprised if it lasts more than a couple of years. I finally filed a complaint with the better business bureau and am waiting for a response. I would never purchase another pool or anything else from this store, their products are cheaply made and their customer service is terrible. Received a call from the store in response to my complaint with the BBB. Their solution is for me to purchase a new liner from them, get it installed and cut out the bad spot from the existing liner and bring it to the store and they will refund the cost of the new liner if the leak is in the seam. If its not the seam, they again offered a patch kit. So it will cost me at a couple hundred dollars to buy a new liner, $400 to get the new liner installed and I might get back the liner cost. This is a brand new pool and should not be leaking and I feel they should fix the problem regatdless of where the leak is. Why would anyone be willing to purchase another liner from them that may or not not leak. I recommend that anyone in the market for a pool, stay as far away from the Great Escape as possible if you want a pool that actually holds water. Their products are cheap and they do not stand behind them, you are on your own if there are any issues. read more

Walked in, no greeting, one of two families in the store. 4 guys standing around a computer desk. Walk around 20 minutes, still not even a hello. Wonder how those guys get paid? I would close the store with those guys working there! read more

Stay away this store has worst customer service ever.i purchased a 1500 grill and was supposed to get a cover with grill.it took a month to get my grill after numerous calls.still after two months no cover.stay away complete lack of customer satisfaction read more

A while after I wrote this review, I was contacted by this location's new manager, Noel. He had apparently read my review and wanted to discuss my experience at the store. He was apologetic, refunded my delivery fee, and offered coverings for my patio set. It was a nice gesture, and obvious Noel considered customer service important. read more

Drove 40 minutes to get to this store thinking I would be able to get help with buying a solar heater for our above ground pool. There were 3 men sitting at the service desk having a great time talking to each other. I asked for help and they kept chatting with each other. One man actually turned his back on me instead of helping answer my questions. The young lady tried to help but was literally just a cashier and not very knowledgeable about pool supplies. It was a waste of my time and my gas driving over there. Pitiful service. Will not ever go back. read more

I had a few hiccups with the fire pit I purchased but the hiccups were with the product itself was defective and the warehouse delivered the wrong item when they tried to fix the problem. During this I spoke with the manager Noel, who was very understanding and helpful. Beckie from customer service was also very helpful. The end goal was to make me the customer happy and I believe that will happen when my new replacement firepit is delivered next Wednesday . Again a huge shout out to Noel and Beckie for all their personal service!! read more

We were in today to The Great Escape to look for a few pool supplies. We met Jonathan, the sales associate. He was able to come down in price on one of the items. The other item we bought ended up being not the right size, so we had to go back. The part we were looking for is no longer made. One of Jonathan's co-workers went to the back room and looked through a box of spare parts and found the exact part we were looking for. On top of that they did not charge us anything for that part. Jonathan made our experience with The Great Escape very pleasant. The customer service we received was more than 110%. We will refer all of our friends to The Great Escape. read more

Do not use for pool services! I know they are one of the only places to serve pools and hot tubs in the area, but we were told it was STANDARD POLICY to serve our hot tub when no one was home and charge us an extra $100 for labor than the last time we had the same service because the servicer had to clean out the intake. Once again, no one was home to witness this so called extra labor so what proof do they have that he worked $100 worth of extra time? The servicer had a window to arrive, but of course did not come during that window. He took it upon himself to go into our backyard and work without anyone knowing he was there. Then they charged our credit card that was on file without leaving any paperwork stating what the charges were for. Again, they say this is standard procedure. Invasion of privacy by entering our backyard when no one is home/ no one gave prior approval is standard procedure? Charging a credit card without prior approval and not leaving paperwork is standard procedure? This is on top of the usual repairman not showing up in the reported window/ not calling to say he would be late, which apparently is standard procedure for these types of businesses. I'm reporting them to the Better Business Bureau and advise you to look elsewhere for your pool/hot tub repair services. read more

I saw the other reviews on this site about this company and i was skeptical about buying anything from them. I stopped by them in mid august of 2012 to look into buying a hot tub. After several visits back and forth trying to decide on what to buy i finally purchased a viking royale. Buying a hot tub is kinda tricky there many brands out there and every place is telling you what to believe and what to buy. My salesperson i had at the great escape was great he explained all the difference on all the brands he had and even commented on other brands and what they have to offer as well... I liked the fact that he did not bash other brands but really explained the differences between them. I have had the hot tub for over 4 months and have had no problems or issues with the tub. I would definintely recommend them read more

We bought a Jacuzzi from The Great Escape, in Orland, two months ago. The day we hooked it up, we had problems with the electrical board. After 37 call to the service department (who never pick up the telephone) and speaking with our salesman (last name White) who was a complete jerk to us, we finally had service. Again, a few weeks later, the same problem occurred with the electrical board. I then called American Express to contest the payment of this product. The Great Escape did eventually come out, sent the service notes to American Express; and, ultimately, we had to pay it. Now, for the third time, there is no power getting to the tub and the board is dead! The tub has completely drained. As stated above, called the store, can't get any response. Service is out because of the holiday. I just want a total refund. I do not want to go through another repair. If I have to, I will file a lawsuit. read more

I purchased some high end expensive patio furniture, (Haminent) and it not only faded in 2 yrs which they say is normal, the bottom legs on a # of pieces began splitting. They never drilled the wheeping holes for water and during the winter they froze. Finally after I had to educate the service personnel with pictures because they would not come out to look, they finally agreed there was an issue. This took 5 weeks and too many calls and emails. It is now 13 months and they have yet to complete the corrective action. Like the other reviews the personnel on the phone are nice but that's how it ends. If you do not stay on them they forget they ever opened a work order for corrective action. Despite numerous promises for service and making it right, they do not have the ability. Now they claim the parts are not in after 4 confirmations and three scheduled service visits. I would suggest if you have the opportunity to shop elsewhere for outdoor furniture, do so. You would have to be less disappointed than I have. You really do not want to go through what I have and they still have not corrected the issues. read more