Pothek 

First of all, there were some glitches with the site flow during the ordering process. I contacted the company about this, no response. I added items to cart, went to check out, was prompted to enter all new info to create an account, which is normal and expected. But then was sent back to the home page or an empty cart (I forget precisely). Upon adding items again and checking out, I was likewise sent through the same loop, prompted to create an account, which is not being handled properly. I had to manually go back to home page, create the account FIRST, and only THEN was I able to successfully proceed through the checkout. I have coded web sites and eCommerce sites in the past. Bugs happen in development, I get that. But that's why you do testing, and that's why you fix them, usually and preferably BEFORE putting a code into live production. But att he very least, fixed within a short time AFTER you receive your first complaint, at least within a week, preferably same day within a few hours, even if it means you stay late through half the night to GET IT DONE RIGHT!

Secondly, the processing took about 5 days, which is a little too long. Processing of CC data should occur within the first 24 hours, usually done in a batch job at night to reduce payment processing costs. I used to work on eCommerce sites with custom shopping carts that integrated with numerous payment processors, at an internet company that itself sold services online. It was a small company, less than 10 employees in it's entire history. No excuse for taking 5 days, unless injury, illness, natural disaster, etc. Likewise, there was no response from customer service. To be fair, I later realized that I typoed my phone number by one digit, so I don't know if that would cause a CC slowdown, but I was never contacted about any problems or clarification.

Thirdly, I ordered two different tubes of Tom's of Maine toothpaste, advertised as 6 oz tubes. I was given a DHL tracking number, which DHL never recognized. I tried plugging the tracking number into FedEx or USPS but likewise not recognized. The package arrived roughly within the estimated time frame, at the end of the window. I do remember the days when we did not have tracking numbers. But nowadays, it eases the customer's mind to see the package is in carrier's hands and making steady progress, or even to go online and divert packages if there's an anticipated delivery problem, like not being there to receive, etc.

Fourth(ly?), when I first picked up the box, it rattled, because the items were placed in a box 5x bigger than the tubes of toothpaste with no packing material. So the boxes had been moving around a lot. When I opened the box, the tubes were half out of their individual boxes. You NEED packing material for two reasons! Prevent the items from moving, causing damage, but also to strengthen the box against impacts. If the box is compromised, then catastrophic failure can occur, and there go your items all over the place.

Finally, when I looked at the toothpaste, they were the flavors that I ordered, but were 5.5oz. The site also advertised 5.5oz, but what I ordered said 6oz, and that is what I used to calculate cost per ounce, when comparing prices. If the box says 5.5oz, and you can type in 5.5oz then there's no excuse for false advertising. Even the Pothek inventory sticker on the box says 6oz, so may indicate an inventory process that needs correcting. These tubes come in a few different sizes. Advertising correct and accurate size, not rounding off when it's such a small quantity to begin with, is important. Maybe the toothpaste company doesn't even make a 6oz, which is why I thought it odd. Anyways, 5.5/6.0 is 91.6% hence the title of this review.

Edited this review several times to include as much detail and as accurately as possible, in the hopes of helping this company recognize areas for improvement. I want to believe they are decent, hard working Americans, making an honest living, and striving to provide value and service to us all. I respect that, and want to see them succeed! They're maybe a relatively new company, and have some growing pains to go through. They have all the elements for success right at their fingertips, and they are so close, I can feel it. They just need to ensure they hire a few key individuals willing to go above and beyond the call of duty to get things running smoothly. Then they will be golden. The business model is sound. There's no shortage of people showing up, interested in products, and ready to remain loyal. They just need to polish the execution, make things right with customer complaints, develop a more positive response, gain back the trust and confidence in the customer base by consistently staying on top of problem areas, making changes more quickly to adapt business processes as needed. I truly wish them the best of luck, and willing to give more chances.

Not only did they send the wrong item to me, but it took me several attempts to even place the order after having issues with site errors.

My order took 3 days to ship and even then the tracking info was slow to come. In total, it took 10 days to order and receive. I did get a good deal on my purchase and I had time before I was going to use it. I would look at this place again for their prices.

The same product I was buying for many years with bigger prices.

Great value.....fast delivery! !!

If I could give zero stars I would. I placed my order on the 23rd of March and just got an email today, May 6th, saying that it was shipped. My items were in stock and supposed to ship within 2-4 business days. I sent several emails inquiring about the order and they never responded. I actually assumed that the order wasn't going to come. NEVER AGAIN!

I purchased some organic soap, which I received a week later. Seeing the other accounts, I am lucky and was happy with the fast shipping, however they never updated the tracking info while it was shipping so I was in the dark.

However, when I opened the package, the bottle was already opened. The consistency was watery and we could smell the soap before I even opened it.

Seems to me like they're opening products, watering them down, and shipping them, which would explain the cheap prices. Horrible company, WOULD NOT RECOMMEND!! I gave 2 stars for the fast and free shipping.

Company does not deliver as promised. Still waiting for shipment.

Company does not respond to email or phone calls.

I'm always on the lookout for the best price on protein bars but always wary of low priced vendors offering old stock and slow processing and shipping. Pothek promptly shipped me fresh product at the best price. I would have given them 5 stars but the shipping box was bigger than the product and no packing was used to fill the empty space. Thus the product boxes looked a little battered when they arrived. This wasn't an issue as the protein bars were intact but that might not have been the case with a more delicate product. Hopefully management will increase quality control. Either way I will purchase from them again.

fast shipping and no tax not sure about the quality of the product

This company was quick, well priced and had no tax or shipping. I will definitely be ordering from them in the future. Thanks!

I think I ordered the Stim-u-dents on a Sunday and received them either Tuesday or Wednesday. Amazing!!

Ordered a product and it literally arrived the next day! Great prices compared to other web vendors!

I have called for two days trying to locate my order, and have yet to speak to an actual person. I have left multiple messages that have not been returned. Very frustrated to say the least. I will be opening a paypal dispute if my issues is not resolved today by the company think twice before ordering.

Received wrong item, sure it was similar but cheaper. I immediately emailed about it, still no response after weeks and almost a month.
I would not recommend.

The absolute best value and speedy delivery to the arctic where I live! I will be a forever customer!

Pothek had absolutely the best price on a supplement I was interested in purchasing. On top of that there was FREE SHIPPING with no minimum purchase amount. I received the product in 4 business days after ordering. I couldn't be happier with the product, price and service I received. From now on when purchasing supplements I will undoubtedly check the Pothek price.

Update 04/21/14: I just received my 2nd order from pothek.. Again received product in a matter of days. Expiration date on supplement bottle was the year 2017. Overall, pothek has some of the lowest prices on supplements I've found. This is not to say they always have the lowest price. I always compare with other vendors and sometimes pothek is lowest and sometimes they are not. I continue to recommend them highly.

On April 3rd I placed an order for 2 bottles of MCT oil. The order wasn't shipped until April 8th. Prior to my order being shipped, I contacted Pothek both by phone and email to request that my order be cancelled due to the length of time it was taking to process. Both of my messages were ignored. Now on the 14th I checked the FedEx tracking information (# 9261293150677320401712), and they are unable to deliver my order because it has been damaged in shipping. Note that the package contained two 32 oz *GLASS* bottles of oil. I can't imagine the terrible mess that made. Not only is Pothek slow and uncommunicative, but clearly they don't know how to package an order properly, either.

Please, please don't order from this company, if for no other reason than the way they have treated so many other customers. They really don't deserve anyone's business until they clean up their act. According to the pie chart on the upper right corner of this page, you have less than a 50% chance of your order being processed without incident. After reading all these negative reviews, is a lower price really worth the risk?

Something else to keep in mind: Pothek is run by a parent company named HDI Commerce. HDI Commerce runs two other websites known as BodybuildingWarehouse.com as well as HealthDesigns.com. There may be others as well.

Thanks for taking the time to read my review. I hope you will seriously reconsider purchasing from Pothek.com. For the sake of past customers and perhaps for your own peace of mind, it'll make you feel good not to purchase from this company. :-)

I am very happy with all of the products I recently purchased from Pothek. The quality and price are both excellent.

Ordered an instock item. In 2 weeks it still hasn't shipped. No update from seller.

I sent an email asking to cancel the order, explaining that 2 week delay is unacceptable. I got a response back stating that "order has been canceled" no apology, no nothing.

Avoid these guys like the plague!