SharkDesign launched their NuDock product on Indiegogo last year where it quickly raised over $780,000. The cool looking power station was perfect for Apple fans combining docks for an iPhone, Apple Watch, spare battery and an LED light to present everything like tech-art. As the tech press piled on the digital love, NuDock received the support of 6800 backers. About 5 months ago, NuDock creators announced the first batch of backer perks were ready to ship.
“We have improved the quality issues, which were responsible for our last delay. We have taken our time to make sure you guys receive a premium product that we are sure you will love as much as we do,” stated the campaign creators.
Jump forward to today and issues persist. According to NuDock creators they need more money to finish the product as ongoing manufacturing issues have imperiled their project. Even worse, it appears that other manufacturers have copied their product and are selling it under the NuDock name;
“We have had a meeting with Indiegogo at their offices to discuss the current situation. We have faced a tremendous amount of problems with the manufacturer and other manufacturers copying our products, using our brand name and actively selling them. Over the last few months we have been working on a transition to another manufacturer. During this period we have had to open new moulds and re-produce the remaining orders and pay again. These two issues have caused us considerable damages financially and for our reputation as a new startup business, legal action will be taken.”
It is not quite clear how Indiegogo can help.
NuDock states that redevelopment of their docking station will cost them about $300,000. To complete production they are asking each backer to kick in another $59 to ship the final products – something they are ready to do within the next 7 to 10 days. For backers who do not contribute, they will not ship the NuDock nor provide any refunds. So you are basically SOL.
As you would expect, the patience of backers has dwindled;
This is ridiculous they got me once for extra money to ship it faster that never happened now they want more money to for fill something we already paid for rights right and wrong is wrong, this is wrong. we need our product or our money back
rage intensifying following every dispute and lawsuit channel possible. Get ready Shark Design, here we come! Either send our products immediately at the price we committed to or refund everyone now!!!
Disgusted by this – tried to dispute with credit card company but say the payment is too old to dispute. Money down the drain. Rage!!
I agree, ship as promised or refund my money, I am not going to pay more because of your poor business decisions!
There are plenty more comments. Most are negative.
NuDock states, “We are extremely disappointed by the chain of events in the last few months. We tried to resolve it on our own but we simply could not due to our financial situation. Any help would be greatly appreciated so that we can complete this. We apologize for not explaining this earlier but we wanted to try to resolve this issue on our own. ”
NuDock is not the first crowdfunded product to encounter manufacturing issues in highly funded projects. Managing production, shipping and delivery is a tall task – especially if you have limited experience in dealing with overseas manufacturing. NuDock’s extensive delay between crowdfunded presales and shipping makes it easy for copies to jump to the head of the queue. This is not the first time an agile Asian manufacturer has opportunistically copied a highly successfully crowdfunded product.
Word to the wise. If a product is not ready to ship soon after the campaign close, it may be better to wait until the creator sells it directly online. It may cost a bit more but is far better than receiving nothing at all.
UPDATE: Earlier today (about 2PM ET 3.2.16), the campaign creator posted an update stating everything, except the light, will be shipped before the end of the month. Let’s hope this is closure for most backers.
FOR NUKI AND NUSTAND BACKERS ONLY!
Thank you for your patience whilst we get through the manufacturing. We are now in a position to process your NuKi and NuStand Perks from the manufacturer. We are going to be sending them to our fulfillment centers in the USA and Europe by Monday 7th March latest and it will take a 5 to 7 days to arrive by air, then we will prepare the dispatching for each individual order and provide tracking numbers so we estimate deliveries between the 15th to the 21st March providing there is no hold up with customs clearances. We will provide another update on Monday with the tracking number for the shipment to our fulfillment centers.
Thank you for your patience and we apologize for the delays but we are getting there!
Thank you MiTagg
Have a crowdfunding offering you'd like to share? Submit an offering for consideration using our Submit a Tip form and we may share it on our site!