Status:

The suggested 800 number gets to the main TUMI voice mail where after a few menus I left a message which wasn't returned promptly.

So I called Franklin's office, thank you for that phone number, spoke to Vivian, who sounded very competent and helpful and said she'd have my call returned.

I then spoke to the Customer Service Manager who said he'd call back with options.

Which he just did.

He says the product is defective and Tumi can't repair it. I understand that as "won't" repair it because it will be very costly; it needs to be rebuilt.

He has no more in stock. The product has been discontinued.

His is willing to offer me a leather version, retaiing for $165 more, for only $100 more, and not require me to return the defective one.

I said no, I didn't want to spend another $100 and that if I'd wanted leather I would have bought it in the first place. After some back and forth I offered another $50 for the leater deal and he refused that. He didn't seem to understand why I didn't want to spend another $100 to have Tumi honor the warranty.

I have his supervisor's number, Vivian in Franklin's office's number, could I suppose go to small claims.

At the very beginning, Tumi offered a $185 Tumi gift certificate and I would mail the defective bag back. I don't want a Tumi gift certificate, but if anyone here wanted to buy that from me make an offer, I could take that and use the bag as is or take it for repair to a shoemaker.

I was pretty calm, until the very end, assertive, and we left it that he would talk to his supervisor and call me back.

My bottom line is I want to keep the bag, keep using it.

Suggestions please.

Sylvia