Updates: Stephen Bonnano Closure, Lilly Pulitzer Estate Auction

Hello-Hello, and happy Wednesday.

We had hoped that by this morning things would be getting back to normal for all of our friends in the south and southeast after yesterday’s ice and snow storms.  For those who might not have seen news about the ghastly weather, here’s a look at I-285 north of Atlanta yesterday.

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Michael King/WXIA-TV via The Weather Channel Facebook

The ice made road conditions so perilous some drivers had no choice but to get out of their vehicles and start walking. Thousands upon thousands of people reported 5 to 7 hour commutes; and that’s a broad interpretation of ‘commute,’ as the word implies movement. In some cases there was no movement. At all.

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WSB-TV

Above, near Stone Mountain, Georgia. Below, another highway cluttered with cars.

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Twitter

People sleeping overnight at a Publix supermarket.

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Mike Seidel/The Weather Channel

Roads were so dangerous it wasn’t safe for school buses in many areas; not all parents were able to pick up their children. Below, students spending the night at Birmingham’s Glen Iris Elementary school.

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WVTM-TV/Birmingham, AL

Conditions yesterday on Birmingham highways.

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Alabama’s 13 Twitter

Others spending the night at an Atlanta Home Depot.

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WSB-TV/Atlanta, GA

This little one will have quite a tale to share, she was delivered on Interstate 285 last night.

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WSB-TV/Atlanta

Unfortunately, it didn’t look much better in Atlanta this morning.

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Michael King/11Alive

Nor in Alabama.

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ABC33-40/Birmingham Alabama

Very, very scary.

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We move to an update now on the troubling tale of Stephen Bonanno. We originally posted about the company’s problems in June of last year, when reports began surfacing from customers who had ordered and paid for sandals, but never received them.  Many ordered during the brand’s 50th Anniversary Sale in January.

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Stephen Bonanno

Stephen Bonanno said they were overwhelmed by the volume of orders, and in May this was posted on the company’s Facebook page.

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Stephen Bonanno Facebook

The last post on the Bonanno blog was also in May, alerting customers the website was “back up and running.”  The company’s final Facebook post was in September.

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Stephen Bonanno Facebook

I had actually forgotten about the issue until reading Suburban Charm this morning. From her post:

I ordered four pairs of monogrammed sandals…two for me and one pair for each of my girls.

Well…..here we are a YEAR later and NO sandals.

Seems Stephen has disappeared off the face of the earth with my money… and about 200 other women’s.

She noted the complaints filed with the Better Business Bureau.

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South Florida Better Business Bureau

WPTV-TV looked into the problems in late October.

Consumer Watchdog Jenn Strathman tracked him down…. but he drove off. A few minutes later, he returned and answered the questions that have surrounded Stephen Bonanno Sandals since the company held a rare fifty-percent off sale in January.

“We’re not closed, first off. We are just moving to a new location. We have two places we are looking at right now. That’s why we have all the boxes. Right now we are moving them into the new place,” Bonanno explained.

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StephenBonanno.com

The situation is the same when visiting BonannoFactory.com.  Back to WPTV’s story:

Bonanno replied, “I know customer service is the most important thing. That’s why we lasted 50 years in business because we gave great customer service throughout 50 years. This latest tailspin has hurt us and has hurt our customer service as well as our brand. Of course, we want it back. We want our customers to believe in us again, and we will get that respect and appreciation back from our customers again,” Bonanno said.

Bonanno said his company will call all the customers still waiting for orders and offer refunds if they want.

“Everyone will be taken care of,” Bonanno said.

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Stephen Bonanno

I’m thinking there are quite a few customers who aren’t feeling the peace and love.

You can read the entire WPTV story here, and Suburban Charm’s post is here.

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We also want to update our post on the upcoming Lilly Pulitzer Estate Auction. The catalog for that auction is now available to view at Leslie Hindman Auctioneers.

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Leslie Hindman Auctioneers

You can bid on items online if so inclined.

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Speaking of footwear, we have a “Just Say No” today, via the one and only Lisa at Privilege. Behold, the distressed sneaker.

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Francy NYC/Barney’s

Not just any distressed sneaker, mind you. This is the $565 distressed sneaker. From the product description at Barneys:

Ultra-distressed suede high top sneaker with exposed side zip and silver-tone hardware. Detailed with a sequin covered ‘NY’ on one shoe and the printed skyline on the other. Small hidden wedge and terry lining. Scuffed midsole.

Thank heaven they didn’t forget to scuff the midsole.

With that, we send hope that things thaw quickly for those dealing with the extraordinarily bad weather.