Furniture Repair 911

Victor is a expert at refinishing furniture. He did a fantastic job and was extremely interested in ensuring customer satisfaction by doing a professional completed job in a timely manner. My wife and I found Victor to be friendly, cordial and a pleasure to deal with. His work is not only first class in workmanship, but his rates are very reasonable. We were very delighted with Victor's workmanship.

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In my opinion: extremely poor customer service, careless and dishonest crew, and sub-par workmanship. 
Victor and another worker came to our house to fix the frame of a sofa bed; in the process of repairing this item, they damaged our brand new laminate floors in not one, but four distinct spots We are not talking scratches, but actual thumb-size chips. Not only Victor never acknowledged the incident, he was particularly angry at us when we brought up the issue and said that these chips were there before they started working on the sofa (despite us having photos documenting the opposite). Do yourself a favor and stay away from this company - we all make mistakes, but not admitting the mistake and yelling at your customers is not an acceptable attitude. Also, check out the negative reviews that were filtered by Yelp... it speaks for itself!
if you want more details, here's the long version:
Our sofa-bed frame got somehow damaged... two components of the frame were coming apart and we had to get this fixed in order to use this piece of furniture. We checked out yelp reviews as we usually do; Victor had few reviews but they were mostly positive (plus it's a local business and I'm all about supporting my community). We, however, did not check out the filtered reviews which were really poor...
Setting up the appointment was painless: Victor was responsive, came over quickly to check out the sofa and gave us a quote on the spot. He was - at the time - very personable; we even had a good conversation about our respective jobs. 
Victor and his crew came back a week later to fix the sofa; the frame was solidified on one side, though only in one place while Victor told us that he would solidify both sides. In addition some of the fabric that had to be detached from the frame was not put back in place, and all staples were hanging (which is rather dangerous should you need to lift the sofa!).
Repair was $250, as quoted previously.
It's only after they had left that I noticed four deep and large chips in a brand new laminate floor! The chips are spaced with the same exact length of the trampoline - it looks like they dropped it very heavily on the floor to make this kind of damage... There was also some red stains dissimulated under the sofa (blood?)... Needless to say, I was displeased and called and emailed pictures to Victor right away once we found out. Victor NEVER mentioned that these chips were there before (and how could he - they were not!)...He initially seemed willing to make amends, inquiring about the model and make of the floor. When he came over to inspect the damage, it appeared as though he changed his mind and lied in a very aggressive fashion; Victor dismissed our complaints, telling us that the damage was not caused by them but was old damage. We asked why they did not bring it up before, and he had no answer to this - he essentially accused us of taking advantage of him, while all we were looking for is an explanation. 
We have email threads and picture documenting the issue (it turns out that, luckily, we have a picture of the room taken the same day before these guys came over). We're now in the process of reporting him and seeking legal recourse as this laminate floor cannot be fixed that easily, and we're looking at a costly repair.
As I said earlier, we all make mistakes - but accusing your customers of damaging their own laminate floor is beyond anything I've ever experienced... Do not trust this company, especially for in-home repair... In our case, they demonstrated an absolute lack of respect for their customers and, as importantly, their property. 
Last but not least, there's some shady business going on: the California license board website indicates that, while Victor is licensed, he has no employee/workers compensation. Well, he does have employees working with him... this seems rather non compliant to me...

Victor is an excellent craftsman!   The repair is invisible, unless you literally look at it  with a magnifying glass.  He also repaired and replaced the damaged locking mechanism on the front of the desk.
His bill was about $100 higher than his intial estimate.  This seemed fair enough, since his inital estimate was done from my poor pictures.  He also took about 3 weeks longer to complete the project than he had first estimated - something mentioned by another Angie's List customer in a review.  His work  was well worth the wait - the desk came back in better condition than it was when I bought it!

Every time I go to see them the owner is never there. I really dislike that he is never there when I go to see him during the operating hours and that the front door is locked. I would not use him again in the future.

Overall, our experience was very good.

I was happy with their service, they did a good job. They were very prompt. They came the day after I asked them to do the work. They came out and picked up the chair and delivered it when it was finished, so that was nice. They did a good job properly. I believe the cost was fair.

fine.

***UPDATE***
Now, over a month since I paid for and picked up my completed chair, I've received a call back from Victor informing me that my chair is ready for pickup.  Ugh. 

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(Original Report)
This tiny disorganized shop made me hope that the proprietor was some sort of mad genius of wood-working.  The office was a mess, the shop area strewn with bits of wood and stain and power-tools.

I was wary going in, but with lots of Angie's list and yelp reviews extolling his virtues, I left my (inexpensive) family heirloom in Victor's hands.  He asked me where I how I heard of him, and when I told him Angie's went on to tell me how he was the king of the world in online reviews.

It wasn't cheap, but you're hiring a craftsman not just a guy who knows how to turn on a saw and slap on some stain, I thought.

I called him on the day the chair was promised.  No return call.  I called again.  And Again.  And Again.  I finally managed to get him on the phone (instead of having to leave voice mail).  He said - oh yeah it's ready.  I arranged to pick up the chair from the shop when someone would be present.  It was buried under boxes and saw-dust, behind other furniture.  I guess it's a good thing it's got 10 year old upholstery on it?  I don't know. If this kind of service gets you a super - all star - I'm the best in LA award from Angie's List, I'm in the wrong business.

The chair is home now, I'm $150 lighter and it rocks just fine.

I have an old end table I am very emotionally attached to that I was given after my grandmother passed away. When I was in Jr. High I decided to spray paint it blue, black and white to match my room. As an adult I decided I wanted it back to the way it was. I started stripping it myself when I realized it was too much for me to handle with my schedule. I looked up on Angie's list furniture refinishers and Victor at Furniture Medic was one of the results. I took him my table and when he saw it his reaction and excitement on the piece immediately made me comfortable and trust him. It was obvious he loves what he does and truly puts his heart and all into his work. I didn't want to spend $200 but everything inside me said to trust him and do it. He told me it would be about two weeks to do the table but 48 hours later he called me to come look at the stripping job because the wood wasn't exactly as expected. This was something I didn't expect and was very impressed that he wanted to work with you instead of deciding on his own what to do. Five days later I got the call that my table was ready. The finished product took my breath away. I cannot even begin to thank Victor for the wonderful and amazing job he did. I would use him again and highly recommend him to everyone. 

My piece was not expensive, and I wasn't sure it was worth repairing, but Victor took an interest and negotiated a price so I didn't just have to throw out the plaque. He took the teensy pieces and delivered it back to me earlier than promised--you can barely tell that it was ever damaged, he did a great job. I had previously used Furniture Medic for wood furniture, and that was beautifully done, too, but the plaster was harder and even more impressive. I recommend!

This is an interesting little shop...certainly not very impressive at first glance. Lots of furniture items strewn rather haphazardly all over.

Despite this, a real craftsman works within. Victor did a first class job on my dining room chair...it's now just as good as new, if not better. All of this at a very reasonable price.

I would recommend him highly.

I use Angie's List to choose services whenever possible. i look for good reviews, good prices and proximity to where i live.  I found two ro three right away.  Furniture Medic was not at all close to where i live, while the others were, but the reviews won me over, even though the others were good too.  I found the positive reports to be true in my experience too, Victor was easy to reach, always answered his phone on the occasion of a few phone calls over a period of several days, including weekend calls, and when i received my broken item, he finished it in one day and only charged me $10. It was an easy and positive experience which i appreciate. I will use Furniture Medic again when needed.  

He wasn't super fast -- but then I wasn'tin any big hurry either. The work is great and I'll definitely use him again.

Perfect and fast!

I found Victor on Angie's list. I dismissed the one bad review I found about him, contacted him via email with pictures, and brought my benches over for an estimate. Victor carefully examined the furniture before giving me the quote. The reconstructed chairs were ready as promised and look fantastic. You would never be able to tell that two benches were combined to make one single chair. The seams look flawless and I now have the complete dining room set I wanted. I can't say how impressed I was with the quality of the work (see before and after photos to validate my review). In short, Victor Youssefian is an excellent craftsman offering exceptional value for his work. He also happens to be a very nice guy!

Victor was very responsive and easily accessible.  I never had a problem reaching him by phone.  Because his shop is near where I work, I dropped the chairs off to him and picked them up in person.  He delivered exactly what he promised, when he promised, and for the price he promised.  I will definitely bring future projects to Victor and his team.

Unfortunately the repair lasted less than a week. Whether it's the fault of the reclining chair (Natuzzi Company) or not we'll never know.

Victor was able to quickly assess the damage and suggested repairs for the chairs. He perfectly restored them to their former glory without diminishing the patina and original craftsmanship. Victor is truly an artisan in the truest form of the word: technical craftsmanship, attention to detail, appreciation for the history of the repair and ensuring that the customer is satisfied. His prices were well within range of other quotes that I received and I felt that I got a real value with his services. Victor is a generous and welcoming man. His shop is wonderfully cluttered with current and future restorations. Be sure to take him up on his offer to tour the shop so that you can see the exquisite work he does for other clients. Highly recommended and enthusiastically satisfied.

My Dutallier Glider had not been working properly for months. Brought it to Victor. He was able to take it apart -- something I couldn't even do since it seemed like it was glued together -- and diagnosed the problem right away. It was a broken bolt with missing ball berrings. After some searching (parts for this glider are apparently very hard to find), he was actually able to locate the part at a local baby store. I picked up the piece for him he fixed the chair in no time. It now works as good as new.

Excellent experience. Very professional service provider. No problems.

I inherited a rickety chair that my husband?s mother used at her sewing table. It was in such a sad state that no other family member wanted it and I rescued it from the dumpster. Victor the Furniture Medic was able to take the chair apart and glue it back together so that now it?s surely sturdy enough to last another generation. The result exceeded expectations. Victor?s a friendly, knowledgeable craftsman who was trained by his grandfather, and his office/workshop is worth a visit. His skills are varied and he mentioned a slew of services that he can provide--furniture restorations, cabinetry, painting, caning, gold leaf, and a whole lot more. He was fixing a Tibetan hand-held wood drum when I was there, so I guess there?s no limit on what he can do.

I found Victor on Angie's list. I had been putting off repair of a dresser drawer which had come unglued, and it had been sitting in my garage in a cardboard box for some time. I called Victor. He said bring it in. His shop is convenient to me, it took about ten minutes to drive over from Hollywood. The shop is a little hard to spot, a small storefront tucked among bigger buildings on a busy section of Magnolia Boulevard, about four blocks west of Hollywood Way. I found the right block, parked, and found the shop on foot, helped by a collection of whimsical furniture and display fixtures on the sidewalk in front. I entered the tiny front portion of the shop. It was like stepping back in time, to the small craftsman's shops I liked so much in the Fifties and Sixties, which have almost disappeared today. A wonderful conglomeration of wooden knick-knacks and furniture filled the store windows, floors and walls, and Victor sat behind a little desk cluttered with order forms and whatnot. He jumped to his feet as I entered, congratulating me for bringing the pieces of the drawer in a box. He asked how I found him, and I told him Angie's List. "Oh, that's great. That's so good." he said, as he turned the pieces of the drawer in his hands and trial fitted the joints. "No problem. I should have it for you Saturday. I'll give you a good discount. Write a review if you like the work." We chatted for about fifteen minutes about woodworking, my collection of whirligigs, the interesting pieces in the shop, and the upcoming election. I left. I called on Saturday, and it wasn't ready, but he promised it would be done the following Tuesday, and so it was. I picked it up, it was perfect, and I dropped off a wounded vintage whirligig. Victor was agog. He gets whirligigs.

It was a straightforward and smooth experience. We dropped the chair off and a few days later Victor called us to say it was ready for pick-up.

Excellent. No problems. I brought in the drawer without an appointment. They repaired the drawer within 20 minutes.