The spring in the latch on my Big Joe III has gone bad and I went on their site to see about ordering a new one. Seems to me that some private equity a-holes have acquired Kamado Joe and are intent on wrecking the brand.
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Oh No! I love my Joes. Says it aint so Joe! So many reputable brands are bought out then ran into the ground. Examples could fill this page. -
hoovarmin Dave I think Smoking Dad of YouTube agrees and he is back to the BGE
Kamado Joe VS Big Green Egg: 3 Reasons I Switched Back To BGE!
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"Seems to me that some private equity a-holes have acquired (insert company here) and are intent on wrecking the brand."
This is the way of everything right now and it absolutely sucks.
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Private equity was involved in the Bass Pro buyout of Cabela's.Comment
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Overpriced part? Overpriced shipping? Poor quality leading to part failure? Unwillingness to replace part under warranty? All of the above?Comment
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They are not alone in gouging for shipping. I used to like the BBQ Guru folks - I have a Party Q and have bought several Weber kettle adapters for fans. I needed a replacement probe for my PartyQ, and they wanted like $15-20 or something crazy to ship a $9.99 part. I just started using a Thermoworks probe with it instead, and a Thermoworks grate clip.
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It seems like this is pushing brand loyalty to its limits. I have a friend who was one of the founding members of a creative start up, and when they brought in venture capital the company went under.Comment
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How long have you had it? The warranty on metal parts is 5 years. That is the same as BGE.
I had to replace the hinge on my BGE when it developed an underbite that couldn’t be adjusted away. I spoke to a very nice woman in their warranty department who was sympathetic, but pointed out that the hinge is a wear item and couldn’t be expected to last forever*, and that it had been redesigned a few years ago to correct that occurrence. I went to Ace Hardware, and a new hinge was A HUNDRED AND EIGHTY DOLLARS. I signed up for their loyalty and agreed to emails etc and got something like $25 (or so, in that range) off. The new hinge is definitely better, but the lid doesn’t open as far as it did with the old hinge.
*My hinge lasted about 15 years. The last 5, it had the underbite but still sealed well, until last spring. I would have expected your latch spring to have lasted at least that long, 5 year warranty notwithstanding.Comment
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Private equity prioritizes profit, when they move in it’s time to move out, the human element has been removed. I’m guessing views of private equity depend on which side of the coin you are on 🙄Comment
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KJ was acquired a few years ago by Middleby: https://www.middleby.com/all-brands/
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I would contact Kamado Joe and initiate a warranty claim. I did that about a month ago for the hinge on my Classic Joe. Within five days of doing that, the new hinge was shipped free of charge.Originally posted by hoovarmin View PostThe spring in the latch on my Big Joe III has gone bad and I went on their site to see about ordering a new one. Seems to me that some private equity a-holes have acquired Kamado Joe and are intent on wrecking the brand.
I have never had a problem with Kamado Joe in terms of warranty coverage. I have contacted them multiple times regarding issues with accessories (cracked soapstones, etc.) and have always gotten replacements for anything that wasn’t right. As far as I’m concerned, their customer service is top-notch.
I’m hoping that nothing has changed in that department!Comment
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As an aside, our robotics team just paid $140 in shipping costs for the game elements this year. Yowza.Comment
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