I have used SEMO for the majority of my orders. They always go above and beyond to get me my orders and when they make mistakes, they correct them with no hassle.
I have recently done 3 orders with F&M. Well, one order and tried to do 2 others. I tried them mostly because of the .15 1 color sale and I wanted to see if their white ink has a better shelf life than SEMO.
I did the first order and had several back and forths about the artwork, etc. They are very strict on the ganging of images, but given the price, I decided that didn't matter. Their sale, their terms.
The transfers shipped quickly and work very well. They are a heavier hand than my typical SEMO, but they explain that clearly on the website and I expected it.
I tried to do a second 2 color order with them because they offer the bigger size transfer and it worked with my design better. Upon submission of the artwork, they had about 10 things that were not acceptable, many of which would mean a complete redesign.
I have done literally thousands of transfers with SEMO and very rarely have artwork problems, so I sent the artwork to them to review. Bre was very clear that certain parts of my artwork were pushing the limit in a few area, but because it was black ink, she was pretty sure it would print fine. I placed the order and they turned out great.
I just tried to submit another simple one color order for two separate prints. To save time, I just put the artwork on the same file, well separated and emailed them to let them know it was ganged and that I knew they would split it and charge me two setups.
They immediately emailed me and said that I would have to submit two orders.
Quite frankly, I find this completely ridiculous and have come to the conclusion that F&M just doesn't want my business, which I am all too happy to oblige. They could have spit the artwork in less time than it took to compose the email telling me they couldn't do it.
I am not going to spend money with a company that goes out of its way to find problems with my order. Like I said, I have been doing transfer orders for YEARS with SEMO and rarely every have artwork issues (except forgetting to convert to curves
) If I am given a set of specs, I am perfectly capable of creating artwork to those specs and submitting it in a method that is efficient for me and the vendor.
I am sure everyone's experiences vary and I know that FM produces high quality transfers in a timely manner.
So, in the theme of the thread, I am fed up with a certain other company and have chosen to go elsewhere...
SEMO is not perfect, but they have always treated me like the appreciate my business and have always been willing to correct errors.
DaveW