First, I don’t doubt @Vivektoybania 's good will. I don’t know of anyone having an issue with him that he failed to make right, even at his own personal expense. The Ting series, the Thing, etc., are all great yoyos that have enriched the scene.
You all may know that he plans to permanently close his store as a result of financial issues. I do not wish to create additional financial problems for him or any of his employees.
With that being said, I am not confident that Vivek is currently able to fulfill individual orders reliably.
I ordered a STOOPID (Blushhh) from Vivek’s store on June 7 of this year. The tracking on the store website isn’t working, so I reached out to him over discord about a month later to check in. At that time, he confirmed my order and indicated that it had shipped and that he would get back to me with more details the next day. After about a week without getting responses to my messages, I asked on the main discord channel if anyone had heard from him, with another customer reporting that Vivek had changed shipping companies and that orders would be going out in a week or two.
On July 24, I filed a case with Paypal, noting that I hadn’t gotten the yoyo or tracking information. On July 28, Vivek responded through Paypal, reporting that his phone motherboard was fried, that he therefore didn’t have access to tracking receipts, and that the package would be delivered within the next two weeks.
On August 11, PayPal informed me that I would have to escalate the issue to a claim or it would immediately resolve in Vivek’s favor. Since I felt like I didn’t have a choice, I made the escalation. On August 21, with no response to the escalation from Vivek, Paypal closed the case and sent me a full refund.
As I’ve been refunded, there’s nothing for Vivek to make right. He doesn’t owe me anything, and I wish him nothing but luck and success in the future. If the yoyo manages to show up in the mail three months after the order was placed, I’ll post an update to let everyone know about it and will reach out to Vivek immediately about re-sending the payment.
However, people on his store’s discord are encouraging buyers to save Vivek money on fees by dealing with him directly, rather than through the storefront, and yesterday @Thruwell posted some very attractive pictures of the Doc Pop collaboration STOOPID next to the OD Panorama. I’m worried that people might end up placing orders without being informed and protecting themselves.
The STOOPID is in stock at YoYoExpert and other retailers. Doc Pop editions of the STOOPID and Thing can still be had. If you can’t skip the discount, make sure you are protected as a buyer. It’s my hope that a retailer can give Vivek a fair price for his remaining stock so he can turn the page and get a strong start on the next chapter of his life.
