Kuiu gear question

[Wolfdog2314]

Lookin to get some kuiu gear sometime soon after debating Sitka but the whole back ordered thing has me hesitant.

Has anyone ordered anything lately? What was the timeline on receiving your items?

I'm interested in Guide jacket, Attack Pant, Chugach pants/jacket.

I'm going to give customer service a call tomorrow, but would like to know anyone's recent experience. I'd like it all by September, I just don't want to run into getting an item and having to return to exchange for a new size and having to wait another X amount of months for it resulting in not having it when I want/need it.

Also, size. I've been reading a lot on their gear and sizing up seems to be common... Any thoughts on that?

Thanks!

[zwickeyman]

If its in stock you'll have at your door in 3 days. If its not in stock its really hard to say

Sizing is spot on, order what you would order in any other gear. I get large in everything and it all fits great and the quality is top notch

[7mag.]

I agree. Everything is athletic cut, so keep that in mind.

[jackelope]

Lookin to get some kuiu gear sometime soon after debating Sitka but the whole back ordered thing has me hesitant.

Has anyone ordered anything lately? What was the timeline on receiving your items?

I'm interested in Guide jacket, Attack Pant, Chugach pants/jacket.

I'm going to give customer service a call tomorrow, but would like to know anyone's recent experience. I'd like it all by September, I just don't want to run into getting an item and having to return to exchange for a new size and having to wait another X amount of months for it resulting in not having it when I want/need it.

Also, size. I've been reading a lot on their gear and sizing up seems to be common... Any thoughts on that?

Thanks!

I just looked on their website and found that everything you want is  on backorder. I used size Large so maybe that's not your size but I figure it was a pretty popular size. I don't like the idea of ordering something and waiting for months hoping what I ordered comes in time for my hunts or trips or whatever.
Not slamming Kuiu.... I own some of their stuff... but it seems they've got some stuff they need to figure out if you ask me.

[Slimdog350]

I would call their customer service and talk with them. They are very friendly and helpful. Usually the stuff on back order is being put together and is the latest style coming out. I've never had an issue ordering. I would call before you let some people talk you out of it. 855-367-5848.

[Odell]

Lookin to get some kuiu gear sometime soon after debating Sitka but the whole back ordered thing has me hesitant.

Has anyone ordered anything lately? What was the timeline on receiving your items?

I'm interested in Guide jacket, Attack Pant, Chugach pants/jacket.

I'm going to give customer service a call tomorrow, but would like to know anyone's recent experience. I'd like it all by September, I just don't want to run into getting an item and having to return to exchange for a new size and having to wait another X amount of months for it resulting in not having it when I want/need it.

Also, size. I've been reading a lot on their gear and sizing up seems to be common... Any thoughts on that?

Thanks!

I don't understand their business model, they are getting very popular and need to figure out how to keep items in stock. I ordered a jacket last summer and was told I would have it by the beginning of September for my elk hunt. That got progressively delayed, communication was poor, ended up getting it by the end of December. Not much help for a september deer hunt. The poor communication was the most frustrating part.

My experience on size is that pants run fairly true, shirts and jackets a size up from normal. But that's probably user specific.

[Wolfdog2314]

Thanks for all your info.

I just got off the phone with customer service. I ordered the tiburon pant which is IN stock and the Attack pant and Guide jacket which are back ordered. She mentioned that those, along with the Chugach stuff is their most popular items but the sooner you're on the pre order list, the better. She did make it sound like back ordered things would be in by September/earlier if ordered now.

I'm gonna test the fit on the Tiburon pants and update my order on the attack pants if need be. I'm 34 pants and Large jacket, and that's what I ordered. So we'll see.


I'll keep this thread updated on back ordered items and such.

If anyone else has any recent experience with Kuiu ordering id still love to hear.

Thanks!

[Troutdreamer]

I love Kuiu gear. 

I had my first real backcountry back back elk hunt last year (1 week) and I thought the gear was great and my friends were impressed with the performance compared to their gear.  When I look at Kuiu, I see a great niche company that is growing at such an incredible rate.  I am in manufacturing and I see how hard it would be to manage inventory with such a growth rate in this type of business.  I would assume most companies that sell retail would use advance purchase orders (give me 1000 of this and this and this and 2000 of this, etc) and previous sales history of similar items for new products from their customers to accurately finance and forecast production of their products.  With Kuiu growing so quickly and I am sure with the capital restrictions that any business has, they can only produce so many items until demand strips production or capacity.  Their target customer is the Mountain Hunter and a lot of their products are going to people that might never be a “Mountain Hunter” in real need of this type of technical gear.  However the gear is so good compared to other products and price is good compared to traditional retailers that people want it.  Great for Kuiu’s employee’s and owners!

Annual discount sales (Black Friday and Christmas) are great for shedding excess inventory but they seemed to cause lingering Customer Service delivery problems.  As long as they remain popular and sell direct to consumers, have long production and shipping lead times they will continue to be up against inventory shortages.

I say buy early knowing you will have to wait for a great product and will only get charged when the item ships.  I purchased a custom knife before and waited a year for the guy to produce the knife.  I could have purchased a nice one at Cabelas or some other retailer and walked away with it on day one but in the end I was happy I waited.

Good luck.

[dreamingbig]

They anticipate new shipments for most of the back order items the end of April.  The port strike was crushing to their on demand business strategy.


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[Wolfdog2314]

From all the great things people have had to say about Kuiu I figured I had to try it out. Tired of using cheap gear and getting wet, being uncomfortable, or it falling apart.

They did give free shipping on back ordered items too which is cool.

Can't wait to get some new gear!

[7mag.]

Kuiu clothing is great, I have quite a bit of it. I like it better than the Sitka and Kryptek clothing I have. I have started using First Lite, and like it as much as Kuiu. They have some similar stock issues also, but I like how they conduct business a lot more. It is very frustrating to spend that kind of money on hunting clothing, and have to deal with stock issues constantly.

[jackelope]

I really like the Kuiu stuff I have too. It fits me well, which is tough with 36" inseam. Firstlite is out. Not long enough. It's just me and the way I roll I guess, but I can't order clothing that I might hopefully have 6 months from now. It's a personal thing....some folks are ok with it.
Sitka has tall sizes and it's available so that's what I wear.

[Hunter Dug]

For what its worth I ordered guide pants, guide jacket, 145 merino top and bottoms, gaiters, a hat, in January 5th.  I still haven't received my guide jacket or gaiters.  I am about 5'9 200 pounds and wear a 34 waist pant.  I order 36 waist pant so I could layer and they are tight in the crotch and waist.  When they say athletic fit they mean for skinny people.  I can bet you now if you just ordered a popular item you will not get it by September.  But good luck.

[Odell]

For what its worth I ordered guide pants, guide jacket, 145 merino top and bottoms, gaiters, a hat, in January 5th.  I still haven't received my guide jacket or gaiters.  I am about 5'9 200 pounds and wear a 34 waist pant.  I order 36 waist pant so I could layer and they are tight in the crotch and waist.  When they say athletic fit they mean for skinny people.  I can bet you now if you just ordered a popular item you will not get it by September.  But good luck.

That's my guess too and personally I think that's insane. This is clothing made in china if I'm not mistaken, not a custom knife made by one person in a shop.

[Wolfdog2314]

I guess I have until October until I'll need the gear. I ordered the tiburon stuff so that will suit the September hunt. If not I'll use the good ole stand by gear.

I ordered a 34, I usually wear around a 33-34 so hopefully that works. In 5'9" 175ish athletic. So I'd assume fit should be okay.

The look and whole line of this gear just looks so good and I've heard so many good things about, I've gotta give it a try.

[Troutdreamer]

For what its worth I ordered guide pants, guide jacket, 145 merino top and bottoms, gaiters, a hat, in January 5th.  I still haven't received my guide jacket or gaiters.  I am about 5'9 200 pounds and wear a 34 waist pant.  I order 36 waist pant so I could layer and they are tight in the crotch and waist.  When they say athletic fit they mean for skinny people.  I can bet you now if you just ordered a popular item you will not get it by September.  But good luck.

That's my guess too and personally I think that's insane. This is clothing made in china if I'm not mistaken, not a custom knife made by one person in a shop.

A guy in a knife shop just like every business has a specific production capacity based on his time, his materials, his staff and I am sure is fine with the amount he sells to his customers.  Kuiu is everywhere, TV shows, industry magazines, DIY hunt magazines like Eastman's etc. and they are not getting less popular.  Endless time, endless money, endless employees, and there would be no problems.

Bob Loveless used to have a 5+ year waiting list for knives that you could buy similar most everywhere. A dollar store knife can cut something. Why wait 5 years for a knife that essentially does the same job that every other knife could do?  I guess it was worth the wait for those who wanted to wait...


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[Odell]

For what its worth I ordered guide pants, guide jacket, 145 merino top and bottoms, gaiters, a hat, in January 5th.  I still haven't received my guide jacket or gaiters.  I am about 5'9 200 pounds and wear a 34 waist pant.  I order 36 waist pant so I could layer and they are tight in the crotch and waist.  When they say athletic fit they mean for skinny people.  I can bet you now if you just ordered a popular item you will not get it by September.  But good luck.

That's my guess too and personally I think that's insane. This is clothing made in china if I'm not mistaken, not a custom knife made by one person in a shop.

A guy in a knife shop just like every business has a specific production capacity based on his time, his materials, his staff and I am sure is fine with the amount he sells to his customers.  Kuiu is everywhere, TV shows, industry magazines, DIY hunt magazines like Eastman's etc. and they are not getting less popular.  Endless time, endless money, endless employees, and there would be no problems.

Bob Loveless used to have a 5+ year waiting list for knives that you could buy similar most everywhere. A dollar store knife can cut something. Why wait 5 years for a knife that essentially does the same job that every other knife could do?  I guess it was worth the wait for those who wanted to wait...


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Clothing made in China is not really comparable to a Bob Loveless knife IMO.  You don't need to try on a knife or figure out if a knife will hold up to your hunting conditions. Imagine waiting 8 months for a pair of pants only to discover the sizing is weird and you should have ordered another size. Oh well, it's sold out. Wait another 6 months! 

If you want high performance clothing you aren't going to wait 5 years. I wouldn't wait for a hunting season. Some will. Like I said, I just don't get the business model. I also didn't appreciate being told "just two more weeks" for 4 months. I would have bought something else and I suspect they know that and so they tell you it's coming soon.

[Bmcox86]

I have about a dozen kuiu pieces and have never waited more than 3 days for anything to be shipped. I believe part of the issue right now is the longshoreman slowdown. First lite have been out of stock of a few things the past few months

[dreamingbig]

I have about a dozen kuiu pieces and have never waited more than 3 days for anything to be shipped. I believe part of the issue right now is the longshoreman slowdown. First lite have been out of stock of a few things the past few months

You would be waiting right now especially if you need a size large guide jacket.  The strike definitely has had an impact.


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[Bmcox86]

If you act fast a few pieces just went up on rokslide classifieds

[Wolfdog2314]

If you act fast a few pieces just went up on rokslide classifieds

Thanks for lookin out. Would snag those guide pants but a 38 would probably be quite a bit big on me. Good deals for someone for sure.

[Duckhunter14]

If you act fast a few pieces just went up on rokslide classifieds

Thanks for lookin out. Would snag those guide pants but a 38 would probably be quite a bit big on me. Good deals for someone for sure.

You'll love your Kuiu gear. Every time I put in an order Im like a kid at Christmas waiting for the package to show up. As long as nothing is on back order they are usually really quick to deliver. Let us know how long it takes for the back ordered items. I was thinking about ordering a few items that were on back order myself. Thanks

[Wolfdog2314]

Update from today. On kuiu forum.  Gear is on a big boat in the ocean. Says "they'll be flush with all orders with 30-60 days".

http://forum.kuiu.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=5930

[fisheral87]

10/19/14 I ordered,

Attack pants (Words can't describe how much I enjoy these pants.)
Quarter zip 145
Beanie

All came in time for the elk rifle opener.

I ordered in February,

Guide beanie (back ordered)
Kenai glove
Kenai jacket (No hood, can't stand hoods.)

Gloves and jacket arrived in a few days, beanie I received last Thursday, so not great but not terrible and free shipping on backorder.

I returned the gloves for a different size, the return method is a little goofy but went fine. Guy on the phone was cool and I got the new pair of gloves in a couple days.

Al

[zackmioli]

What camo pattern do you prefer in the kuiu gear, verde or vias?

[Wolfdog2314]

What camo pattern do you prefer in the kuiu gear, verde or vias?

I went with the verde, as I mainly hunt west side. But as my out of state hunting increases I could see some of the vias pattern in my future also. Either way I just thought the verde would be better all around.

[fisheral87]

What camo pattern do you prefer in the kuiu gear, verde or vias?

I went with the verde, as I mainly hunt west side. But as my out of state hunting increases I could see some of the vias pattern in my future also. Either way I just thought the verde would be better all around.

Vias, I like the larger pattern, it looks the coolest.

Al

[Odell]

10/19/14 I ordered,

Attack pants (Words can't describe how much I enjoy these pants.)
Quarter zip 145
Beanie

All came in time for the elk rifle opener.

I ordered in February,

Guide beanie (back ordered)
Kenai glove
Kenai jacket (No hood, can't stand hoods.)

Gloves and jacket arrived in a few days, beanie I received last Thursday, so not great but not terrible and free shipping on backorder.

I returned the gloves for a different size, the return method is a little goofy but went fine. Guy on the phone was cool and I got the new pair of gloves in a couple days.

Al

If the item is in stock they ship fast! i have also returned a pair of pants and the return process went well. It is just that they seem to be backordered on tons of things all the time...

[7mag.]

I just listened to an hour long interview with Jason Hariston, the founder of Kuiu, and he explains the stock issue. It makes sense to me now. You can listen to it on Jay Scott Outdoors podcast.

[Wolfdog2314]

Got my Tiburon stuff today. Fits awesome and feels great. Had to make a call in to order some more stuff!

[GurrCentral]

Most of the things I have ordered have came to my doorstep in 4-5 days. I just placed an order for a new hoodie, T, and the guide jacket. I have all vias camo on my upper body pieces, and major brown for all my pants and bino harness. Kuiu is great stuff!

[Wolfdog2314]

Most of the things I have ordered have came to my doorstep in 4-5 days. I just placed an order for a new hoodie, T, and the guide jacket. I have all vias camo on my upper body pieces, and major brown for all my pants and bino harness. Kuiu is great stuff!

Awsome, I'm stoked to get more. I ordered a bunch more, but it's all on backorder. Hoping it's here soon! As long as it's by September anyway...

I even just received a hand written thank you letter from Kuiu for my purchase! Pretty cool.

[Hunter Dug]

I checked on my order that I placed on January 6th for a guide jacket in Verde and gaiters and they said I should get them by the end of the month which they have been saying every month that I call.  Im not holding my breath.