Furniture Scamplace
On Sunday June 19th, Vincent Viola, 74, and Terry Bollia, 71, went to the Furniture Showplace, a relatively new store that opened about a year ago, on Utica Avenue in search of buying a coffee table and two lamp tables. They found what they were looking for and payed their due amount: $130, but what they didn’t expect was to be robbed blind. Mr. Viola was told he would recieve the tables when they were shipped to the store, but a few days turned into a few weeks, and still no sign of the tables…or the staff at the Furniture Showplace. Mr. Viola went back to the showplace for a straight week, but the lights were off and nobody was there. He spoke to other Furniture Showplace customers that had shown up to the store while it was (and still is for that matter) abandoned only to find out that they were going through the same problem he was. One customer he spoke to said he paid on May 5th and still has not gotten his furniture. He decided to investigate and spoke to the owner of Furniture-To-Go, a block away from the Furniture Showplace.
According to Mr. Viola, the owner there said that he is the brother of the owner of Furniture Showplace. He told him that he doesn’t speak with his brother and that he has been in business for 25 years and runs a legitimate company while his brother, on the other hand, has only been open for a year. I did some research on my own after this story was uncovered to me and found something that completely shocked me. Channel 7 News had done a story on them months ago! It turns out that another woman had been swindled out of $800 dollars and decided to get Channel 7 News and Tappy Phillips to investigate.
Take a look:
The woman in this video had a happy ending, but unfortunately Mr. Viola, Ms. Bollia, and apparantly many others have not. I went to the Furniture Showplace yesterday, July 2nd, to find out what was going on, and this is what I saw:
The store has a sign that says they will be back.
But the store is empty and disheveled.
There is trash everywhere and things are clearly out of place.
The sign claims that they’ll be back, but with all of this controversy it makes you wonder. Will they really?
These scam artists even found a way into the Daily News.
This certificate on the window of the store says Business Integrity Commision. The Company on the card says G.B Carting Corp. The only thing is…there is nothing about them at all on the internet.
I decided to walk the block to Furniture-To-Go to see if they had any information, but they were closing shop for the day. I did manage to get a few minutes with a salesman who worked there and asked him about the Furniture Showplace. He told me that a lot of people have been coming up to him about the Furniture Showplace but claimed that “We’re not affiliated with them dudes.” When I asked whether or not the owners of both furniture stores were brothers, he stated he knew nothing about that and quickly walked away.
For those of you who live in or around the Mill Basin area might remember not too long ago that this Furniture Showplace used to be the Apple Tree:
This google maps view of 2385 Utica shows just how new Furniture Showplace is.
If anybody has any information on the Furniture Showplace or has had this happen to them by the Furniture Showplace, please contact me via millbasinblog.net.
Also, if you would like to contact furniture showplace their number is 1718-253-0100, and once again the address is 2385 Utica Avenue, Brooklyn N.Y 11234. According to Manta.com, the President of the company is named David Kaminsky, if that’s even his real name.
Posted By: MillBasinBlog.net July 3rd, 2009 under Utica Ave.
Comments: 12
Wow! Great Story.
G.B Carting Corp I think is a dumpster company but I could be wrong
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That’s really messed up of them. Thanks for letting people know about this. Good shit.
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FWIW, my wife just told me that my son got a great deal on bedroom furniture when he payed cash for the set last November from the store on Utica Ave next to Petco. This article seems to be referring to two different stores so I’m not sure which one is the ripoff artists & is now closed and which one is still in business.
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Raymond Reply:
August 25th, 2009 at 2:20 pm
the store I’m referring to its in the picture number one with address
2385 Utica Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11234-4640
(718) 253-0100
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The one around the corner from Petco is Furniture Showplace, blueMagoo.
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I ordered furniture from Furniture Shitplace. I was luckier than most because I got my money back with the help of my credit card company. The store creeped me out and so did eveyone that worked there. You never knew who the owners were or who the sales people were. I think that there was more then furniture selling going on there. Someone I know fell on their property because there was a big hole in their parking lot. They did not even help them up or offer any medical attention. It does appear that they have closed up their operation as the store is almost empty. I prayed that they would go out of business but I would not be surprised if they open up shop again selling something else.
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On March 24 2009 I paid cash $4,050.00 in full and was given a receipt. For a living room set (sofa bed, loveseat, coffee table, side table) and bedroom set (bed, mirror, tow night stand) and sofa table set (table, Mirror) they promised me in a week I would get the furniture. I received the delivery a week after but without the bed and the sofa table which estimated of $1,450.00. I called the store and they confirmed with me another delivery day, after 15 days they delivered me a wrong order (Wrong bedroom). I refused to receive it and I sent it back. I Called them again to see when I will receive what I ordered. But they came back to me with another excuse, Which is the bed has to be special order because the size which I demanded is been discontinue and also the module of the sofa table is been discontinue. They gave me another delivery date June, 17 but again they never deliver anything to me. I called the store back and gave me July, 17 as a new deliver date. Days later I Called the store many times, but was no answer, I went to the location unfortunately they are no longer in business. The store appears that they have closed up their operation as the store is almost empty. I learned a very good lesson. Only buy from a reliable well known company.
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I purchased furniture from there a couple months ago and it was a wonderful experince, a young gentlemen helped me furnish my whole house. He gave me the best price out of all the stores on flatbush. It was also delivered within a couple days, I would send my family and friends there.
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i always shop at National Furniture on Flatbush. They have been there for years and always give me a great deal. Stay away from these fly-by-night furniture shops.
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Drove by this morning, appears fire has destroyed the furniture store.
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On July 24, 2009 I saw that this store was going out of business and figured I could get a good deal on a dining room set. I was offered a five piece set for $395.00. I paid in full and was told delivery would be made on July 29, 2009. On July 29, 2009 I drove by the store to ensure that the table was in and would be delivered. When I arrived I saw all doors and windows boarded up and both telephone numbers disconnected. I am going to take every legal course of action available to me to try to get my money back and ensure that all those responsible for this scam are made public.
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Nice site!
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