HOLLAND, Mich. — A woman who thought she bought the perfect birthday gift for her mom now says a West Michigan business conned her.
“I felt like I got scammed,” said Gina Valente. “I felt like she literally just took me for my money, which left me heartbroken because I’ve never been scammed before or thought that could happen to me.”
In January 2021, Valente, who works as a flight attendant and lived in metro Detroit at the time, discovered Samantha and Company Decor through a Facebook ad.
According to its website, Samantha and Company Decor makes dogs and other creations from wood shavings.
Valente and her mom share a basset hound named Ivy, so she thought it would be a unique, sentimental gift to give to her mom for her upcoming birthday.
“I thought it would be an awesome gift for my mom’s birthday instead of a bouquet of flowers or cookies,” said Valente. “Something meaningful that she could keep for a very long time.”
Valente paid $65 for a custom order, which, according to the company’s website, could take up to six weeks to make. Valente said she waited, but when the mid-February deadline passed, she began to worry.
“Several weeks go by [and] no update, no word,” said Valente. “At that point it was when I started to send her emails asking for any updates on when she expected my creation to be done and sent out.”
Shortly after sending her second email requesting an update on her order, Valente got a generic email that said her item had…
