I ordered furniture in August 2025 and paid for it in full -- only to learn seven and a half months later that the company wouldn't be fulfilling the order. In the process, Pompanoosuc Mills' owner seemed to show as little regard for a longterm employee as for me as a customer. To me, the company's self-professed promise was not kept: "... If you ever have a question or concern about your order, we're here to help--every step of the way." Few will want to hear the gory details, but here goes:
When I needed some new stools, I saw a sample in the Copley showroom that was exactly what I was looking for; I ordered three stools in August 2025, paying in full. Erin, the Showroom Manager, told me that it might take 4 months or more to take delivery, which was OK with me. I asked if I'd be able to order a couple more in the future; she assured me 'they still make everything they've ever made', so it wouldn't be an issue.
email from Erin on October 19, 2025: "A quick note to let you know your stools are in production. I will continue to follow the build and update you when they are near completion."
email from Erin on 11/28/25: "The stools are currently in the assembly department - a fire at the mill set us back a bit. I will contact you again when I see they are near completion." (from Valley News coverage, the fire was October 13, before the first note). I asked Erin for an update 1/17/2026. Erin: "...I have been asking about their progress since then, most recently on the 8th of January. I have yet to get a response."
By this time, I was beginning to hear there was a problem sourcing spindles for the stools, since their prior supplier was no longer making them. Not sure how that squares with the "in production" message from October and the "assembly dept" message from November, but it was evident that Erin was getting no better information than me. In the weeks that followed, there was a series of messages (generally with delayed responses from Erin) where there was an effort to get me to switch to a different style, or switch to a different wood. I returned to the showroom to consider, but neither would have matched anything in my house.
email from Customer Service 3/5/26: Good news! Your Pompanoosuc Mills furniture order is ready for delivery. We have you on our white glove delivery schedule for 3/12/2026 between 12:00 PM - 3:00
I waited dutifully that day. In the late part of the delivery window I got a call from Erin: "Did they call you?" I said they had not. She said the stools on the truck were walnut, not the oak I had ordered. So...no stools for me.
email from Pompy Customer Service on 3/26/26: "First, thank you so much for your recent order. We hope you love your new Pompanoosuc Mills furniture! To that end, we'd love your feedback. Our survey takes about 5 minutes. We'll ask about your experience in our showrooms, our website, your delivery, and your first couple of weeks living with your new Pompy furniture."
Somewhat amazed by their poor record-keeping, I filled out the survey by saying I had not received anything yet and was still waiting. I forward the email to Erin saying it was further evidence of the company's dysfunction. Incidentally, my critical survey submission got nary a response. You would think somebody on the other end would have been embarrassed enough to reach out with an apology.
email from Erin on 4/1/26: "I finally had a face to face with the owner after I sent this to him. He thought I said you would take the walnut stools. I reminded him I would ask you and you decided no after coming in to see what the walnut wood looked like. He has now definitively told me we will not get the parts for these stools because the people who made these in the past are no longer doing it. It would have been nice to know this last August......Apologies are hardly enough."
I'm not in the furniture business, but I find it hard to believe there is no one they could find to sell them oak spindles to fulfill a properly placed and fully paid order. But it's more the careless attitude that is galling. read more