Levi's Jeans

The items I insist on buying the name brands for are random.  Bottled water?  Give me whatever is cheapest.  Cereal?  I want the name brands.  Jeans?  I don't care.  If it fits, I'll buy it.  With that in mind, I picked up a pair of Levi's jeans that were on clearance back in August.  Here in Myrtle Beach, you don't really need jeans in August.  You barely need them in September or October either.  I didn't even wear them until the end of October.  Let me tell you how that went.

I usually buy jeans that are a bit on the stretchier side, and I don't like belts.  This means my pants are constantly trying to escape.  The Levi's I picked up just so happened to be the kind of jeans that don't really have a lot of give.  Finally, I had a pair of pants that stayed up!  They were a bit baggy in the butt, but I could live with that.  The length was good; the price was right.  I was pretty happy.

Last weekend, I washed my new Levi's for the first time.*  When I went to put them on, they were a bit snug because I put them in the dryer.  There is a pretty good chance that you know how that is, but I got them on just fine.  We were zipped, buttoned, and good to go.  They were sitting a bit weird, so I grabbed the belt loop to adjust them.  This was a mistake, as it ripped right out of the jeans.  Let me make sure I'm clear.  I was not using the loop to pull the jeans on.  They were already on; I was merely using it to move them a bit around my waist.  They had been worn once and washed once.

Needless to say, my anger was immediate.  With the hole, they can no longer be worn.**  I probably shouldn't be that upset, as I got them for around $20.  At the same time, I expect jeans, even cheap ones, to last for more than one outing.

I decided to email Levi's to let them know what had happened.  I don't know if I was blinded by rage or just dumb, but it took me a while to find a place to get in contact with them.  Once I did, it was the usual internet form.  I sent off my comments.  Since it was late, I didn't expect to hear back immediately.

What I expected was an automatically generated email.  I was happy when I got an email in the morning that was specific to my problem.  It was probably a form email, but I'm okay with that.  At least it wasn't one of those ones that tells you they care about your problem and will be in touch.

The email was pretty good customer service.  It was timely, and it apologized for the problem, while offering a possible solution.  While it will cost me shipping and handling, I can send the jeans back to be checked over for flaws.  I'm going to try and do so, but it's hard to get to the post office.***  Sending them doesn't guarantee me anything, but it's probably better than leaving them up in the top of my closet for the next couple of years.

Let's sum up.  Levi's jeans are not as high quality as they used to be, but it seems that they're willing to see what they can do.  I don't like that I have to pay shipping to find out their decision, but it's better than nothing   I'll let you know how it goes.

*Hey, like I said, you don't need to wear jeans a whole lot here in Myrtle Beach.  Don't judge me.

**Well, technically, I can still wear them...if I want to look like an idiot.  I don't need any help with that.

***Also, I'm lazy.  I had a package in May to mail to my family, but I'm pretty sure it didn't get mailed until August or September.  It had gifts for Mother's Day, Father's Day, Cristy's birthday, and Casey's birthday.  I was done shopping for all of those events in May.  As you can see, I am a champion procrastinator.