Shades of Coffee Reviews 

Great service, great value for money!

The product was exactly as described, very well packaged and with a thank you note. Very fast delivery! Definitely would recommend! Thank you very much!

Received everything I ordered. Fast and well package

They are the best if you want to upgrade and customize the Gaggia. They are very receptive and ready to provide the best advice.

I purchased the Top box kit with PID and flow control, the LED light kit. Great kit, fits really well and the taste of espresso really improved! It’s night and day! If your asking yourself should I do it? Do it! I would have done it sooner of I’d known.
I had a trouble with the steam SS-Relay when finished with the installation. I emailed them and with a few back and forth of testing with my multi-meter, they sent me a new one free of charge.
Thank you Ade for the great customer service!
I will purchase their the steam valve to replace mine that’s dripping.

The following advice on deliveries is given on the Shades of Coffee website :-

("IMPORTANT: Please ensure you understand the risks involved in NON-TRACKED delivery before selecting it!

AND

Where possible, for smaller and lower value products, we use "Royal Mail 1st Class" postage for domestic UK customers, and "Royal Mail International Priority" postage for our International shipments. These are NOT tracked services and the limit of any compensation claims for lost or damaged shipments is only £20 GBP so please consider any potential financial risk should your non-tracked parcel go missing or become damaged in transit - though we do provide tracked options (with a minimum compensation limit of £50 GBP) at additional cost if you wish to use a tracked service.")

Shades of Coffee should make it clear that the above is only applicable to customers wanting deliveries OUTSIDE THE UK.

Vendors in the UK send tracked orders to protect themselves because they and NOT the consumer are responsible for the safe delivery of goods they are selling online. If they chose not to track their delivery they are doing it at their sole risk.

To quote from the consumer experts at Which? :-

Missing or late delivery? Complain to the retailer
You should complain to the retailer, not the courier, about a missing delivery.

This is because your contract is with the retailer, and the Consumer Rights Act makes the retailer responsible for the good condition and safe delivery of your order.

Here are six must-know consumer rights if your delivery hasn’t gone to plan:

If your order is late, missing or has turned up damaged you'll want to complain to the retailer - even if you think it’s down to a poor service from the courier.
If you paid extra for special delivery and your order arrived later than agreed, you can claim back the extra delivery cost as the service wasn’t delivered.
Be aware if you give permission for your delivery to be left in a specified safe place or received by a nominated neighbour and something goes wrong, you will still be considered to have received the delivery. Think very carefully about those options when you’re making a purchase.
If your order arrives damaged or faulty, you have a right to refuse it and get a refund, repair or replacement. Understand your next steps if your goods arrive damaged in the post.
Your delivery must be made without undue delay and within 30 days from the point of purchase unless you and the retailer agree otherwise, this is stipulated by the Consumer Rights Act.
You can also cancel an order for most items ‘bought at a distance’ - for example, online, over the phone or a mail order catalogue.
Cancel your order
If you’re tired of waiting for an online order, you can exercise your right to cancel.

Under the Consumer Contracts Regulations you can cancel orders for most goods bought online from the moment you place your order until 14 days from the day you receive your goods, and get a full refund.

So remember, if you want delivery within the UK, there is no need to choose other than the least expensive delivery method unless you need the item as soon as possible and you are happy to pay extra for it although charging £5.99 for delivery of a 52g small parcel may be a UK record. Online small parcel price is £4.09 first class and £3.25 second class since you asked me about Royal Mail prices.
You just keep on and on about International Customers. I have repeatedly pointed out that I'm referring to UK customers only and ask that you amend your information so that UK customers realise that if shipments need to be tracked it's your problem. In several of your one star reviews you point out to International Customers that they should have selected a tracked delivery - I have no issues with that.
While you continue to suggest that my review is misleading, I have no option but to point out your misinterpretation of a review specifically and clearly pointing out UK Consumer rights. I would not suggest that you don't abide by the letter of the law but UK customers need to be told that in the event of a lost or wrongly delivered item it is your problem and not theirs and your current information is lacking clarity in that regard.
You point out the record number of edits. I have deleted my original comments and offered clarification. You have not toned down yours. You still accuse me of misleading while you go on about offering tracked delivery for UK customers. Again, UK customers don't need tracked delivery, it's just extra cost for no benefit.

SHADES OF COFFEE !!! THUMBS UP !!!
LIGHTNING FAST ANSWERS TO MY QUESTIONS!
EASY TRANSACTION, FAST DELIVERY TO GREECE !
VERY REASONABLE PRICES !!!
THANKS A MILLION !!!

Great quality portafilter for my Gaggia Classic. Shipping was really quick too.

I only buy gaggia parts from Shades. Quality, Availiability, and technical/customer support is unparalleled.

Help was proffetional.

Adrian is such a helpful and knowledgeable guy and offers great products to maintain and upgrade your Gaggia. I have the pid, light kit, and spring upgrade for the safety valve/opv and all are superb bits of kit. I had a query regarding how to fit the pid and reached out to Adrian was very helpful and quick to respond. Highly recommended as your first port of call for any Gaggia Classic spares or upgrades

Informative webshop, fair price, quick delivery, good quality product, user-friendly installation manual, everything went well. Thanks!

Having ordered a shower screen for my Gaggia Classic on a Saturday I realised I also needed a new portafilter. I contacted Shades of Coffee the following Monday and they very helpfully suggested a way to add the order and get a refund on the original postage for the shower screen. This was all done within a matter of hours and the parcel arrived here in south west France four days later. Very happy with the service and very happy with the quality of goods.

Products all of a high quality, customer service and support is superb. Have bought several items from here over a number of years and everything I've bought has been exactly what I wanted. And on the one occasion where something wasn't entirely right (which ultimately was not their fault, but that of their supplier), the customer service and support experience was superb. Can't ask for more.

My impression of Shades is that the company creates and/or resells the products which they want for their own machines. They’re passionate end-users themselves and they’ve created some quality upgrades for the Gaggia Classic which reflect that. I’ve installed 4 mods in total now - a dimmer, switch bank, steam valve and SuperSteam+. I’m a relative novice but found all of the installs to be not too challenging. For some installs I’ve had to read the instructions through a few times as it’s not straightforward for someone unfamiliar, but once I’ve done so, it does make sense and it’s all there - plus, I feel I know my machine much better for it, which has helped with further upgrades and maintenance. I reached out for some clarification after the latest install and got an answer on live chat in about 5 minutes, with the agent sticking around for further general advice for a bit longer. All in all I’ve been really happy with the service and the products and wont hesitate to purchase from them again.

The Supersteam kit (purchased before Christmas)- for my Classic Pro has revolutionised the steam output. I now have beautiful froth on my milk.
I was considering selling my Gaggia as it kept running out of steam. This kit and the upgraded thermostat, all costing around £30 has saved me over £1000.
The Shades staff are always extremely helpful.
Thank you, I highly recommend.

I bought my PID, top box and dimmer mods for my Gaggia Classic from SoC. Support has been top class and was able to resolve a couple of issues over the chat.

They are friendly, supportive and I highly recommend them.

Terrible service. The equipment is first rate. Transaction and delivery both ran smoothly. Instructions are all pdf. The instructions are often counterintuitive and therefore confusing. When I reached out to SoC I was given no support. Now when my PID appears to have stopped working SoC support reverts to uninvited personal opinions in regard to my character. PLEASE AVOID.

Quick update equipment has now (just over a day since fault first registered) completely failed.
Given previous interactions with SoC I'm calling this one a bust and will put this whole experience down to "experience" rather than endure SoC "service".
My experience in short, equipment looks ok (I'm not an engineer of any kind) but appears a short lifespan and customer service seem confused (as SoC highlighted, each contact before December 2024, was along the lines of no we don't do this or provide that you've now been helped and supported).
I wish all staff working with SoC a happy life and peace moving forward.
PLEASE STOP EMAILING ME SoC.
I HAD A BAD EXPERIENCE AND SHARED SUCH ON A REVIEW SITE WHICH YOU JOINED FOR CUSTOMERS TO SHARE THEIR EXPERIENCES. THERE IS NO NEED FOR YOU TO CONTINUE TO CONTACT ME ASKING ME TO CHANGE MY REVIEW.

Great advice and products. Highly recommended.