Customers Say Karma Couture Won't Return Clothes or Money

The owner of the Karma Couture consignment shop, which closed its Main Street storefront earlier this year, said she is working overtime to resolve customer complaints after more and more people are claiming that they have not been paid, can’t redeem store credit or get their clothes back.

In an e-mail, Karma Couture owner Sandy Picard said she has had website problems after a family member stopped handling technical things but a link to place a store credit order should be up on website this week.

“As far as refunds go, all orders that have been placed online or via email have been pulled and have either already been shipped or are being prepared for shipment now. Admittedly I’m running a few days slower than normal in getting packages out just due to the backlog. The voicemail greeting on our phones was changed to instruct customers or consignors with questions about their accounts to email us at info@shopkarma.com. I’m personally responding to each one just as quickly as I can. Again, there might be a bit of a delay but I am working overtime to get caught up,” she wrote.

The store, which still lists items for sale on its website including Luis Vuitton handbags and designer clothes, started generating a string of complaints last year when customers began reporting that their items were sold quickly but they never got paid.

In a series of Yelp reviews, customer after customer describes being told a variety of stories as to why their payments are being held up. Or they describe items being dropped off only to find that the store gave them away after they sat for a week or more, or worse.

“I brought in some items to sell and the woman working there said they would be a great fit and she would get back to me with pricing info. I didn’t hear back so I called the store the next week and I was told the items were out of season and I should pick them up,” Lauren S. of East Greenwich said. “When I came back I was told my items had been “donated” because I took too long to get them (it had been 1 week because I was out of town). I asked to speak to a manager and when I made a scene in the store asking where my close and shoes were the manager went in the back room and miraculously came out quickly with all of my things.”

WPRI reported that the state Attorney General’s office is investigating complaints.

Many customers said they have filed complaints with the local police, the Better Business Bureau and the Attorney General’s office. Several said they finally got checks after threatening legal action and hiring lawyers to go after the store.

Picard said she is still deciding whether to reopen the store or sell merchandise online.

The store’s Facebook page was not accessible as of Tuesday, though its Instagram and Twitter feeds remained up with the most recent activity occurring the first week of April.