A blog on issues affecting Australia's newsagents, media and small business generally. More ...

Beware of Bee Printing

In one of my businesses we contracted a company called Bee Printing to print some boxes for us. Our contact at Bee Printing was Steve Davis. We though we were dealing with a local company. Events since indicate that they may be offshore using phone routing to make them look local. The goods arrived more than a month late, the material was not to spec and the printing is not what was approved with the proof. On raising these issues with Bee Printing they have not responded to me. I will never use them again.

15 likes
Ethics

Join the discussion

  1. Lance

    With some of the poor spelling and grammar shown on their web pages I’m surprised it past the ‘local’ test Mark.
    It’s a shame I can’t print boxes…..:-(

    2 likes

  2. Mark Fletcher

    Yes. I did not choose to use them. For those who did – lesson learned.

    3 likes

  3. Anon

    I am having the same problem. They owe us $1000 and I can’t even get an ABN online to lodge documents against them. Mark any advice in how to reclaim?

    1 likes

  4. Mark Fletcher

    Anon, the ABN I was given turned out to not be for them. Depending on your state I’d suggest action: VCAT, QCAT etc.

    1 likes

  5. Anon

    Thanks Mark. We’ve been through VCAT and looks like the company doesn’t exist so we can’t do anything about it (This was after paying an additional $160 to VCAT and lodging forms with all the information we had against them).
    They even charged us GST in the deposit that they took form us. Very tough lesson to learn for a start up company!

    1 likes

  6. Mark Fletcher

    Anon, the ABN I have seen them use is not for their business. I’ve reported them to the ATO.

    1 likes

  7. shane

    If you used a credit card to pay for your goods you can raise a clame thru them, they will reverse your payment and hold it a holding account until the matter is resolved.

    1 likes

  8. Anon

    Thanks Shane and Mark. Unfortunately we paid through the bank. Tough lesson to learn.
    We are going to drive to their address tomorrow they have.
    Absolute joke they are charging GST and not even a registered business….

    1 likes

  9. Tanya Kennedy

    I have recently used BeePrinting but i found them good as their prices were reasonable and printing quality was good. I am writing this here because i happen to visit their store in Adelaide and everyone in the store was kind to me. Not sure why you guys have bad experiences. I met with Sonya in the store

    1 likes

  10. Mark Fletcher

    Tanya the Bee Printing I am referring to does not have an office in Adelaide as far as I know. The Bee Printing I am referring to provided me with appalling service and bring job results which are not up to spec and where not delivered even close to on time.

    0 likes

  11. Mark Fletcher

    Heard from more people complaining about Bee Printing. This is a company to avoid in my opinion.

    0 likes

  12. Annette

    Hi
    I have gone through a similar thing with bee printing recently. Its a complete scam no customer service and ignore my emails.
    Did you manage to build any case with them as I am going to get the website taken down.

    0 likes

  13. Mark Fletcher

    Annette unfortunately there is not enough information to commence a case against them. They are 100% scammers.

    2 likes

  14. Shebby

    Hi Mark

    I also used the services of Bee printing and that is really impressive. They are so fast in their work and provide me awesome printing work. I really appreciate the staff and they talk very nicely and help immediately.You can contact them again, i am sure they will help you out.

    2 likes

  15. Mark Fletcher

    They are appalling. Our job was late, wrong and unusable. It was not the proof we agreed. Utterly dishonest.

    3 likes

  16. Matthew

    Utterly Fradulent company. Every positive review of them reads like it was written by the same person. Every Address in Australia is a fake, and other websites hosted by the same guy include other printing sites with false addresses in London and New York.

    2 likes

  17. Mark Fletcher

    I agree Matthew. Run by con artists. Everyone ought to stay away.

    1 likes

  18. Mark Fletcher

    In our case the product was delivered late, not to spec, not fit for purpose. It was trashed. They have not responded to out attempts to contact them.

    0 likes

  19. Sarah

    Hey Guys,

    Did a resolution ever come about for this?
    I have just come about another company “The Sticker Printing” which I feel is connected.

    0 likes

  20. Mark Fletcher

    No, unfortunately. We reported them to the authorities with no success. The goods eventually arrived and were not what we ordered and paid for. They were useless. People should be wary of this company in my opinion.

    0 likes

  21. Bryan

    Definitely a company to avoid. I am in the UK and contacted them through their UK website, assuming they were based in London. Ordered £330 of vinyl stickers, which when they arrived from Lahore, Pakistan, didn’t even stick properly. Now Steve Davis who was my only contact, is refusing to respond to messages. The fact I’ve now found out they are based in Australia as well means I can’t even chase them in the UK for a refund, so just throwing money away. Not happy.

    0 likes

  22. Tracy Griffith

    WOW! Steve Davis at Bee Printing just yelled at me on the phone and called me “a lowly employee” and said “I now what girls like you are like” after I called and said that our £975 worth of business cards were smudged, split and cut badly. Unreal that they can keep going ripping people off like this. Apparently they print in Lahore, Pakistan? So- yes, along woth Bryan and Mark Fletcher, Shebby ad Matthew- we have just thrown away almost £1,000 and wasted three weeks fpor the effort. What can we do, folks? I feel bad letting this wretched business continue and then screams at you and calls you names on top of it.

    0 likes

  23. Tracy Griffith

    Whatever I can do to help take their website down– please advise. Terrible thing, they are doing…

    0 likes

  24. Mark Fletcher

    Tracey I am sorry you have this experience. In my opinion, Bee Printing is run without any interest in ethics or customer service. I wasted thousands of dollars on them. All we can do is to continue to talk about how they rip people off.

    0 likes

  25. Lance

    Have any authorities been approached regard Bee Printing ?
    What can be done about this crappy business apart from complaints on sites like this.
    They reach an audience here, but a very small one in the whole scheme of things.
    It needs to be taken much higher.
    Are there currently any actions pending ?

    0 likes

  26. Mark Fletcher

    Yes, ASIC, ATO and consumer affairs.

    0 likes

  27. Lance

    Thanks Mark.
    I wonder if any of them have the teeth and guts to actually DO something about this criminal.
    I certainly hope so.

    0 likes

  28. Mark Fletcher

    ASIC told me the have no mo new for this type of matter. I heard nothing from the others.

    1 likes

  29. P

    I cannot begin to explain my anger towards this company. I, too was scammed. $2k down the drain. When I called them urgently several times immediately after I inspected the absolutely appalling print job, to which they did not answer, when they finally called back they say to me ‘did someone die? no need to call us 100 times’. To this day, they blame the blurred printing, shadows, unreadable text on ME. They also provided a guarantee in writing that the stock would be suitable and very adhesive. It isnt, it rips and does not stick at all. They told me they ‘can write in golden words and I still will not get a refund’. WOW, I’m speechless.

    2 likes

  30. Upile

    Hey all,

    Have just been scammed as well. Used BeePrinting to print our wedding invites and they rocked up discoloured, blurry graphics (was all vector), incorrect stock and unreadable text. I have just got off the phone with Robert Fern – a 25 minute phone call with him insulting and yelling at me, saying to email him and he will have a look at it, but was unwilling to open the email even though I sent it whilst on the phone? Told me he refused to get back to me tonight and that he wouldn’t call me back but would email me due to me ‘saying the same thing 700 times’ and ‘repeating myself for 20 minutes’ and accusing me of ‘being pushy and demanding’. I have no hope of getting a refund, let me know if anyone has any luck. Absolutely appalling!

    1 likes

  31. Upile

    I recorded the phone call if that helps get us anywhere.

    0 likes

  32. Martin Samuels

    I’m from the UK and ordered via beeprinting.co.uk . I only found this blog after I’d placed my order which got me a little worried but as these guys seem to “bee” getting a fair bit of stick here, now I’ve received my goods I feel I should at least report that my dealings with them were fine. These guys don’t appear to be con men at all.

    After a bit of back and forth by e-mail with the aforementioned Steve Davis, I ordered some cardboard CD cases from them on a Wednesday and they had arrived in the UK the following Tuesday morning. The print quality was perfect and the only thing I found strange was that they had chosen to supply far more cases than I had ordered and, given my designs were clearly meant to be for a two CD set, more of one design than the other! I can’t complain though, I had more than enough for what I wanted.

    Things got a little strange three weeks after delivery when I received an invoice from DHL for “import duty” which claimed the prints had been dispatched from India (so beeprinting are clearly neither an Australian or UK company) but after a brief e-mail exchange with Steve it was apparent that beeprinting had genuinely made a mistake by not paying the duty themselves in advance and I was soon refunded for this unexpected charge direct to my bank account.

    I can’t excuse the reports of how some of you appear to have been treated by some of beeprinting’s staff but, those of you complaining of lost or delayed items, maybe they are getting caught up in delays at customs as they are clearly being sent from outside of your own country.

    Personally, I’d have no hesitation using them again.

    0 likes

  33. Mark Fletcher

    Martin you are lucky. Here I am two and a half years on with no resolution. The printed materials were not to the agreed spec. Plus they were delivered late. The whole job had to be scrapped, at my cost. Every attempt to speak with the company was ignored by them.

    4 likes

  34. Sarah

    I was scammed too. $1000. Product was utter crap and unusable. I dealt with Steve Davis also who was so incredibly rude. I reported to ATO, ASIC and ACORN but got no where with that. I just want them shut down so no one else gets scammed. Fake address, fake ABN, product is unusable.

    The Sticker Printing
    The Bee Printing
    The Banner Shop

    All run by the same thugs

    2 likes

  35. cluedo

    Steve Davis real name is Ramazan Kocabicak and is a sole trader not registered for gst. These goods are not produced in Australia

    2 likes

  36. Kasey

    Same! They are horrible! Steve is the only one there-runs it from his home – absolute scam!!

    0 likes

  37. Lance

    Surely the ATO would be following up on reports of this fraudster.
    Has anyone contacted or reported him to Centrelink for possible fraud ?

    0 likes

  38. Mark Fletcher

    I reported the business to ASIC and the ACCC and the ATO four years ago. Heard nothing.

    0 likes

  39. Lance

    I guess privacy and confidentiality concerns would preclude them from giving you follow up info.
    A call to Centrelink with any and all known details could create some interest for them.

    0 likes

  40. anon

    I almost just got scammed as well – asked me for $35 for a single swing tag sample when I was about to spend $3k and when I asked why he got all smart arse with me so I bailed then a little search and I found these comments – lucky escape!

    0 likes

  41. anon

    looks like printroo.com.au are run by the same scanners!

    0 likes

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Reload Image