Customers express ‘shock’ amid company’s uncertainty | Business
The Dillon Company has sold its showroom in Downtown St. Joseph, a city official confirmed, as more clients complained of not receiving materials or services they already paid for.
Pam Sten, one of the company’s clients, said she reported the business to the Missouri attorney general after reading News-Press NOW’s previous story about the company. After submitting a down payment for new doors on April 29, Sten said she never heard another word from the Dillon Company.
“I was really shocked,” Sten said. “With their long history of being in business and their solid reputation, I would not have thought this could happen.”
A St. Joseph city official told News-Press NOW the Dillon Company’s former showroom near City Hall is now owned by David Kruse and his company River Ridge Improvements. Kruse’s name became public after the business sought a license to operate inside the city on Monday.
Kruse didn’t respond with a number provided by the city official to a phone call from News-Press NOW. Sten said she has been in contact with River Ridge Improvements.
According to Sten, River Ridge Improvements didn’t purchase the Dillon Company, just its property Downtown. However, a salesperson who worked for both the Dillon Company and now River Ridge Improvements told Sten the company would honor her contract with the Dillon Company to install the doors she paid for, she said.
“(A salesperson) explained to me that River Ridge is interested in establishing a relationship with the St. Joseph community, and that they wanted to honor the contracts that the Dillon Company had with the community,” said Sten.
Chris Bennett took ownership of the Dillon Company in 2018 after a sale from the previous owner, Pat Dillon. Missouri Secretary of State records confirm the sale.
Bennett hasn’t responded to multiple requests for comment about the disaffected customers. A News-Press NOW reporter left a note on his home last week, and that note was gone the next morning. Several phone calls also were not returned, including a call on Tuesday. Sten told News-Press NOW she hadn’t heard from Bennett after her deposit in the spring.
According to Sten’s complaint filed with the Missouri attorney general and an interview, Sten believed the delay in installing her doors from April until August was due to supply chain issues. After she saw other customers were complaining about not receiving services already paid for, she complained.
Previously, News-Press NOW spoke with two other clients who paid for various remodels to their home. In one case, Charles Daniel paid the Dillon Company some $24,000 for a bathroom remodel. He never received any work and still must pay the loan he took out to fund the project.
In another case, Elaine Stoll last heard from the Dillon Company on Aug. 11. She told News-Press NOW that she paid $7,000, some of which was to be used for materials she never received.