Elite Premium Fish House

[bASS_BLASTER]

Anyone have one? Any experience? Any feedback welcome.

I'm interested in their 8x20 Toy Hauler but in hydraulics. Want it in an RV Edition, toilet/shower so it can be used year round.

I'm going to call them but figure I ask anyone with first hand experience.

[Hazzard]

I contacted them last spring asking for a quote and they never got back to me. Maybe they had enough business.

[bASS_BLASTER]

Its either 8x20 Elite or 8x21 Galvanized Hydraulic frame from Ice Castle with Artic Insulation Spray. Problem I have is, I'm reading too many mixed reviews.

[elkoholic]

From what I have heard be careful, don't put money down!!! Pay for it when it's done/if it gets done!

[Tigs]

we put money down in July 2015, promised a house by Sept 2015, then Oct, then Dec, then March, then two weeks...it now June 2016 and we still don't have a house OR our money back.  AND, we can't find his physical address anymore because he removed it from his page.  BEWARE!

[Lip_Ripper Guy]

My hope is that these posts will survive to help protect people from dealing with exactly what you are going through.  Far too many fish house builders have taken advantage of their customers through the years.

When I look at this company, I see a lot of red flags:

1) A very high bad review to good review on the 2 or 3 message boards I frequent.

2) No physical address on their page.

3) A whois search of their domain reveals that the owner has paid to have their name, address, email, and phone kept secret.

4) Only a 800 number on their page.

5) Zero social media presence.  

Everything I see points to someone who has set up a business that collects money upfront, has really poor delivery of their product, and has set themselves up to lock the doors one day and ride off into the sunset.   

At some point you have to decide if you want a fish house, or your money back.  At this point I'd be going for money.  If you eventually do get the fish house, you become a bit of a billboard for Elite, and almost accept their business practices.  Other people see it on the road or on the ice, and think Elite must be a good company.  I've seen a half dozen of these posts in the last two years regarding Elite, and that is without even looking for them.  They are not putting out enough fish houses that your situation is some strange anomaly of their business practices.  Heck, I've never even seen a finished one on the ice.  Good luck!  I hope it works out favorably.  

 

Edited June 4, 2016 by Lip_Ripper Guy

[elkrivermn]

11 hours ago, Lip_Ripper Guy said:

My hope is that these posts will survive to help protect people from dealing with exactly what you are going through.  Far too many fish house builders have taken advantage of their customers through the years.

When I look at this company, I see a lot of red flags:

1) A very high bad review to good review on the 2 or 3 message boards I frequent.

2) No physical address on their page.

3) A whois search of their domain reveals that the owner has paid to have their name, address, email, and phone kept secret.

4) Only a 800 number on their page.

5) Zero social media presence.  

Everything I see points to someone who has set up a business that collects money upfront, has really poor delivery of their product, and has set themselves up to lock the doors one day and ride off into the sunset.   

 

Well said!!!  I would run and run fast from Fred, there is no shortage of  reputable manufactures.

[Tigs]

It's just SO SAD there are people like this in the world!

[RiverChuckNorris]

Sad, really feel bad for Tigs and anyone else who is awaiting a house and put money down.  Makes you wonder how people like this go to sleep at night?

Hope things get straightened out.

[hdbiker]

I ordered a house back in September and finally got it in May. Was told so many stories from Fred and all I can say is don't believe a word he says. He told me at one point in February that he was finishing it up. So I took a drive up there without telling him and he hadn't even started it. So I filed a claim againist him and filed with the BBB. That got his attention. 

When I got the house he was working on 7 other tandem axles and was swamped. I am pleased the way the house turned out. I got just a shell. 

[BartmanMN]

1 hour ago, hdbiker said:

I ordered a house back in September and finally got it in May. Was told so many stories from Fred and all I can say is don't believe a word he says. He told me at one point in February that he was finishing it up. So I took a drive up there without telling him and he hadn't even started it. So I filed a claim againist him and filed with the BBB. That got his attention. 

When I got the house he was working on 7 other tandem axles and was swamped. I am pleased the way the house turned out. I got just a shell. 

Sure looks nice.

[leech~~]

It's really kind of sad to see a small bizz owner who has a good product and orders to build. That just can't seem to manage what they have. Hire a few high school or college kids home from the summer to shag parts, cut metal and drive screws for pete-sakes!

[Elite Fish Houses]

Hello to all of those who are skeptical and ignorant on operating a small business.

I’ve finally got the nerve to reply to this forum. I feel it is important to defend some of the things mentioned in this thread as being false and for the most part defamatory.

First let me introduce myself, my name is Fred Sanchez. I manage Industrial Design & Manufacturing, LLC makers of Elite fish houses. I am taking the position to defend our product and company for the sake of the employees and all individuals who are affected by the above statements. Please think twice about the statements you make as it does not just affect just one individual. You are jeopardizing jobs and overall security for our employees and their families. They take tremendous pride in their work and have the right to do so. I will do anything in my power to protect them.

To all of you that post comments and your real identity is hidden behind username and general locations, you are accusing us as being guilty of something that you yourself are doing. It’s easy to say anything hidden behind the keyboard and internet mask.

Physical address: The purpose of no physical address located on my page is only there for one reason. That reason being we are not a “walk in” shop. There are many “tire kickers” out there that stop in and want to see how things are done. I have always had an open invitation for serious buyers to see the difference. We operated the business from a home address our home property to get started. People were stopping in at all hours and weekends. My wife and my 2 children are entitled to our privacy. So the decision was made to move to a larger manufacturing facility.

Whois search: I really don’t know how to explain this. Other than I have never registered, paid for, or signed up for a service or listing intentionally hiding my contact information.

800 number: A toll free number to contact us. What’s wrong with that? Really?

Zero social media presence: We are not staffed to manage social media accounts. This costs time and money to manage. We feel a frequently updated page is our best exposure at this time. Once again, a business decision based on ROI.

Hiring of temp help: Hiring summer high school students and college kids is not something we are interested in. Constructing a fish house is not just cutting metal and putting in a few screws. Let’s be real about that.

Our product is superior to any other ice house manufacturers product. I believe that in my heart and soul. We are a small company (less than 6 employees) dedicated to quality. There have been several major manufacturers that have taken some of our designs and manufacturing techniques. We even had one company steal our plans for a frame design. That says something! It is our belief that this product takes skilled labor and craftsmanship to produce the level of quality that we expect. Our company continues to grow and expand. I admit, there have many growing pains along the way that have caused lots of issues. I’m assuming that no individual here has experienced this from an operating business standpoint.

Thank You.

[Moon Lake Refuge]

I have experienced small business growing pains and the best way to keep and gain customers is to be 100% honest about delays.  Also, In the process of building a house from scratch, for the first time I can say two things.  1 There are plenty jobs you can bring in inexperienced help on. 2. The mark up on custom houses should allow for some discounts if you are substantially behind on work.  Not talking about weeks but if your months behind with little communication as to why cut the folks a break.

[Elite Fish Houses]

Ok, moon lake. I sort of agree with your thought process. But, I don't beleive you understand the cost associated with your simple solutions. Did you consider the cost of training, workers comp, payroll, insurance and other such added cost in your thought process. I'd like to ask how many man hours you have into your "from scratch" fish house project? Please be honest.

Pehaps you would like to share your business consulting company with me and I will make sure to steer people away.

[Moon Lake Refuge]

13 hours ago, Elite Fish Houses said:

Ok, moon lake. I sort of agree with your thought process. But, I don't beleive you understand the cost associated with your simple solutions. Did you consider the cost of training, workers comp, payroll, insurance and other such added cost in your thought process. I'd like to ask how many man hours you have into your "from scratch" fish house project? Please be honest.

Pehaps you would like to share your business consulting company with me and I will make sure to steer people away.

Are you sure you don't want to open a FB page?  Your public relations are top notch.  Rather than make good, you are picking fights with the very people in your market that would have the potential to recommend your houses.

And probably 200ish... but if we're being honest, that isnt very comparable to someone who does it for a living is it?

Edited August 8, 2016 by Moon Lake Refuge

[YettiStyle]

At the end of the day, all of those problems are YOUR problem, not your customers.  If you can't deliver at a reasonable time or communicate delays then maybe you should stop accepting new orders.  I applaud you for starting your own small business and understand the growing pains and headaches associated with growing your brand and business.  Wheel houses are not cheap and when people spend that kind of hard earned money they expect a quality product (which I'm sure you deliver) and for it to be on time.  I don't know the details of when you said you would deliver hdbikers shack but 9 months just for a shell is ridiculous, specially without any communication.  I don't care if you do build the best quality shack, if customer service is lacking I'm looking elsewhere.  It's not just this post or forum either, I've heard plenty of negative feedback about your turnaround and lack of customer service. 

 

It's very easy when it's your own business and product to take all of this personally but trust me when I say this, "the customer is always right".  Take all this criticism constructively and grow from it, don't lash out at the customers.  Now they may in fact be wrong but trying to correct them doesn't come off well.  I'm sure your intentions here are very sincere but this isn't the correct way to try and attract future business.  Its your business and you can run it the way you please but none of this is helping your perceived reputation and future business prospects.  I guarantee most anyone who reads this post and your responses will probably get rubbed the wrong way a little. 

 

[Rick]

@Elite Fish Houses I've messed up plenty myself. From my experience, you would be best served by not making excuses and being transparent with respect to customer issues. Acknowledge them and let us know what you are doing to correct them. It does appear you are making a quality product which will tend to sell itself.

Unfortunately customer satisfaction issues, lack of communication and customer service issues will kill your business. The ship can be righted if there is continued demand because of the quality of your product. You must address the issues and let folks know you are doing that, then follow through.

Social media ROI is greater than you think. Please message me if you would like to talk about any of this.

[walleye44]

I am in the market for a nice wheel house this year. I had thought your advertisement did sound like quality, but I trust my regular fish guys on the forums way more.  I can be honest in that these posts I have been reading have affect my decision to not go with Elite Fish houses. Very interested in reading that you stand behind your products. We work hard for our money & deserve good quality products too.

[Lip_Ripper Guy]

On August 7, 2016 at 11:27 AM, Elite Fish Houses said:

Hello to all of those who are skeptical and ignorant on operating a small business.

I’ve finally got the nerve to reply to this forum. I feel it is important to defend some of the things mentioned in this thread as being false and for the most part defamatory.

First let me introduce myself, my name is Fred Sanchez. I manage Industrial Design & Manufacturing, LLC makers of Elite fish houses. I am taking the position to defend our product and company for the sake of the employees and all individuals who are affected by the above statements. Please think twice about the statements you make as it does not just affect just one individual. You are jeopardizing jobs and overall security for our employees and their families. They take tremendous pride in their work and have the right to do so. I will do anything in my power to protect them.

To all of you that post comments and your real identity is hidden behind username and general locations, you are accusing us as being guilty of something that you yourself are doing. It’s easy to say anything hidden behind the keyboard and internet mask.

Physical address: The purpose of no physical address located on my page is only there for one reason. That reason being we are not a “walk in” shop. There are many “tire kickers” out there that stop in and want to see how things are done. I have always had an open invitation for serious buyers to see the difference. We operated the business from a home address our home property to get started. People were stopping in at all hours and weekends. My wife and my 2 children are entitled to our privacy. So the decision was made to move to a larger manufacturing facility.

Whois search: I really don’t know how to explain this. Other than I have never registered, paid for, or signed up for a service or listing intentionally hiding my contact information.

800 number: A toll free number to contact us. What’s wrong with that? Really?

Zero social media presence: We are not staffed to manage social media accounts. This costs time and money to manage. We feel a frequently updated page is our best exposure at this time. Once again, a business decision based on ROI.

Hiring of temp help: Hiring summer high school students and college kids is not something we are interested in. Constructing a fish house is not just cutting metal and putting in a few screws. Let’s be real about that.

Our product is superior to any other ice house manufacturers product. I believe that in my heart and soul. We are a small company (less than 6 employees) dedicated to quality. There have been several major manufacturers that have taken some of our designs and manufacturing techniques. We even had one company steal our plans for a frame design. That says something! It is our belief that this product takes skilled labor and craftsmanship to produce the level of quality that we expect. Our company continues to grow and expand. I admit, there have many growing pains along the way that have caused lots of issues. I’m assuming that no individual here has experienced this from an operating business standpoint.

Thank You.

As I was the one who made many of the points you commented on, I wanted to respond directly.  Keep in mind, I know nothing of you, Fred, nor your operation.  What I have seen is a half dozen different people on forums questioning their purchasing decision, and I was making an attempt to help them do some digging to protect themselves.  Any info I posted is factual, publicly available, and certainly not defamatory.  You seem to have valid reasons for much of it, but know that they can appear as red flags in situations like the above.  I certainly meant no harm to you, but I can understand how it may appear so on the surface.      

There are two really simple (and free to you as the business owner) ways this entire situation could have been prevented, and your business could have rave reviews online, rather than the opposite:

1) Honest timeframes given upfront.  This might initially cost some orders.  Telling someone 6 weeks (for example), and it taking 6 months costs exponentially more.  

2) Communication.  This is the most important, but if some is told their house is going to take 6 months upfront, there probably won't need to be (as) much of it.  Perhaps a system of giving a text, or sending an email every few weeks with an update would be appropriate.  I can crank out a couple dozen emails with a few sentences in a very short amount of time.  Not responding to a customer will never be tolerated.  We live in an age where the consumer wants almost instant response.  They'll probably accept one business day delay but more than that will be detrimental.     

Your customer is either your biggest advocate, or your biggest critic.  A quality product is but one piece of the puzzle.  The great part of owning your own business is that you get to decide exactly which pieces you want to prioritize.  When all is said and done, it's the customer is the one who decides if the operation is good or bad, and you either reap the rewards or the ramifications.  

I wish you the best of luck.  It appears you build a top notch product!

[Elite Fish Houses]

To all,

Of couse I understand  the importance of "the customer experience". My intention to participate in this forum was to clear the skepticism of the individuals posting here. Quite honestly, it was from the request from one of the employees here to defend and promote our product. I was fully aware of the consequences of my interaction going in. I thought it may be a good idea to hear it from the horses mouth. Pride sometimes gets in the way and thats on me. Our team puts their blood, sweat, and tears into this product each and every day. We provide for our families from it. Its disappointing to hear that people are quick to make judgments on things when there is more at stake. Who would have thought that fighting for something you believe in would be a bad thing?

We are passionate about our products and will continue to improve and innovate as we move into the future. I'm positive you won't find this level of commitment with other manufacturers. 

Please feel free to call me anytime. A personal phone call goes a long way.

Will the moderator of this forum please remove all personal information posted in this form. My family and I have the right to privacy of our home residents and etc.

Thank you.

[Moon Lake Refuge]

Nobody is arguing your quality or your teams commitment.  The houses look great, however you could have a million dollar house but without customer service your not going to sell many of them.

[Elite Fish Houses]

RebelSS, will you please post your real identity, phone number, and home address? 

[Moon Lake Refuge]

To my knowledge he isnt running a business out of his home.  Correct me if I'm wrong reb?  And the underground brothel isnt a business.

 

[YettiStyle]

1 hour ago, Elite Fish Houses said:

To all,

Of couse I understand  the importance of "the customer experience". My intention to participate in this forum was to clear the skepticism of the individuals posting here. Quite honestly, it was from the request from one of the employees here to defend and promote our product. I was fully aware of the consequences of my interaction going in. I thought it may be a good idea to hear it from the horses mouth. Pride sometimes gets in the way and thats on me. Our team puts their blood, sweat, and tears into this product each and every day. We provide for our families from it. Its disappointing to hear that people are quick to make judgments on things when there is more at stake. Who would have thought that fighting for something you believe in would be a bad thing?

We are passionate about our products and will continue to improve and innovate as we move into the future. I'm positive you won't find this level of commitment with other manufacturers. 

Please feel free to call me anytime. A personal phone call goes a long way.

Will the moderator of this forum please remove all personal information posted in this form. My family and I have the right to privacy of our home residents and etc.

Thank you.

Once again, it's not the product and quality you have to defend here.  I don't think anyone here (or anyone else with one of your shacks for that matter) are doubting the quality of product you deliver.  What you have failed to yet display is any responsibility for YOUR lack of customer service and communication with your customers or any assurance that this won't be a problem in the future like it has been in the past.  You defer with sob stories about your employees and yourselves lives are being jeopardized.  It's definitely no one here's obligation or responsibility to purchases your product and keep your business afloat and their jobs secure, that's YOURS. 

The whole premise of this post was asking about your brand of fish house.  ALL of the feedback pertaining to the original post was about customer service/communication, or the lack thereof.  In fact, the only mention of product quality on this post was from hdbiker after he received his shell and he mentioned how he was pleased with the product. 

All of this talk about your product quality, employees, blood, sweat, tears, ect... does nothing to solve your #1 issue.  There may/may not be some other issues mentioned elsewhere but the only "product skepticism" mentioned here is the customer service expected by customers who work hard and are spending their own blood, sweat, and tears to purchase your product.  It shouldn't take customers calling multiple times, let alone drive to your shop, to get an update from you months behind schedule. 

Edited August 9, 2016 by YettiStyle