The Ries Tripods business status thread

[darr]

I don't want to get overheated about this here but I am still interested to know which forums and other platforms would be most impactful as to warn others and prevent Ries tripod to do more harm.

Thanks in advance,

Vania

Check Payment Protection: If the purchase was made using a credit card, bank transfer, or a payment service like PayPal, review their buyer protection policies. Many payment methods offer protection for non-delivery of goods, allowing you to file a dispute and potentially receive a refund.

File a Dispute or Chargeback: If the company remains unresponsive, contact your bank or credit card issuer to file a dispute or chargeback for the transaction. Provide documentation of your attempts to contact the company and any other relevant information.

Report to Consumer Protection Agencies: Report the issue to consumer protection agencies in France and the United States. You can contact the Directorate-General for Competition, Consumer Affairs, and Fraud Prevention (DGCCRF) in France. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) may also be helpful.

Consult with Legal Counsel: If the purchase amount is significant, consulting with a lawyer specializing in international e-commerce disputes may be advisable. They can help navigate the legal options available, including potentially taking legal action against the company.

Leave Reviews: Consider leaving honest reviews on platforms like Trustpilot, Google Reviews, and social media. Publicly sharing your experience may encourage the company to respond and resolve the issue.

Contact Local Authorities: If you suspect fraud, you can report it to your local police or cybercrime unit in France. They may have international cooperation agreements that can assist in resolving the issue.

You may have done all of the above or not, but if you did use a credit card, that would be the best avenue to concentrate on to get your money back. The longer you wait, the greater the chance you could lose the money. Yes, it is a hassle, but you must advocate for yourself. This is ‘the forum’ and photrio for wood tripods, as most non-large-format photographers use cheap carbon fiber or metal tripods.

Good luck.

[vvplem]

Thanks Darr!

Check Payment Protection: If the purchase was made using a credit card, bank transfer, or a payment service like PayPal, review their buyer protection policies. Many payment methods offer protection for non-delivery of goods, allowing you to file a dispute and potentially receive a refund.

File a Dispute or Chargeback: If the company remains unresponsive, contact your bank or credit card issuer to file a dispute or chargeback for the transaction. Provide documentation of your attempts to contact the company and any other relevant information.

Report to Consumer Protection Agencies: Report the issue to consumer protection agencies in France and the United States. You can contact the Directorate-General for Competition, Consumer Affairs, and Fraud Prevention (DGCCRF) in France. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) may also be helpful.

Consult with Legal Counsel: If the purchase amount is significant, consulting with a lawyer specializing in international e-commerce disputes may be advisable. They can help navigate the legal options available, including potentially taking legal action against the company.

Leave Reviews: Consider leaving honest reviews on platforms like Trustpilot, Google Reviews, and social media. Publicly sharing your experience may encourage the company to respond and resolve the issue.

Contact Local Authorities: If you suspect fraud, you can report it to your local police or cybercrime unit in France. They may have international cooperation agreements that can assist in resolving the issue.

You may have done all of the above or not, but if you did use a credit card, that would be the best avenue to concentrate on to get your money back. The longer you wait, the greater the chance you could lose the money. Yes, it is a hassle, but you must advocate for yourself. This is ‘the forum’ and photrio for wood tripods, as most non-large-format photographers use cheap carbon fiber or metal tripods.

Good luck.

[jaybob20]

Just called and someone answered and told me Ries Tripods is out of business.

[Conrad . Marvin]

A sad day.

[David Lindquist]

I'm very sorry to hear this. I bought my first Ries used in the early 1970's. It was a model B, had "Junior weight" legs and a 6 inch diameter crown. I re-finished it and back in the day at a Friends of Photography workshop Morley Baer asked me where I got a new Ries tripod. I think back then Ries was selling mostly to customers like Stoddart Aircraft Radio Co. and not really marketing to photographers who, like me and Morley, figured they were no longer in business. Later bought a 4 inch crown from Ries, transferred the legs and ended up with the equivalent of a J-100.

Still use this, along with a model C-100 I bought new some years ago, shortly before Ries discontinued that simpler model, along with a jatoba wood J-100 bought new in early 2017. That latter purchase was basically "retail therapy" as my wife would put it.

David

[Merg Ross]

Sad to see them go, but they had a pretty good run from 1936.

[Keith Fleming]

The website is still up and running.

[vvplem]

The website is still up and running.

And they still take people’s money if they make an order, including mine. Very dishonest practice. They deserve what’s happening to them. Someone from the US should warn the local authorities to avoid more victims. I tried, but being french they would not register my complain.

[Drew Wiley]

Websites can go on and on for years if they're paid up in advance. But their contact link has been disabled. Small dying manufacturing enterprises often get caught in a tailspin cycle, essentially a shell game of needing to take in cash to get the necessary parts made, but becoming unable to deliver orders as their suppliers and employees get increasing impatient about not getting paid on time, or at all. Eventually they resort to bankruptcy, or just hiding under a rock. It's sad to see that in this particular case, what was once a very fine tripod model never got delivered.

It's ironic that they ran a 25% off sale on their A and J tripods earlier this year in May. Was that in effect a liquidation event, or an attempt to jump start things again? Hard to say.

In such scenarios, it's complicated enough trying to get hundreds of thousands of dollars back, where lawyers have a bit of an incentive to look into where the money went. In many cases, it has just "evaporated". The little guy doesn't have much recourse beyond Small Claims Court unless the credit card company refunds it.

[Carlos R Herrera]

When I was trying to get my camera screws back, Spencer told me they had a flood in their main facility and that caused delays. That would haven been Dec 2022 (I think). I finally gave up earlier this year. Camera screws are small compared to losing money on a tripod. They also had a another machining business (maybe primary?) https://www.facebook.com/ariesefd/