The Global Photographer

Before reading this blog entry, my recommendation is to refrain from doing any business with Focus Fine Art Photography Magazine. Read on.....

This past summer I saw a publication on the newsstand at my local book store. The publication is called Focus Fine Art Photography Magazine, and the contents and publication quality was ideal for what I was interested in. After devouring the issue that I had purchased, I decided that I would subscribe to the magazine and wait for my next issue to arrive. Focus claims to publish 6 times each year, so one would infer that an issue would show up once every two months. WRONG. Since my purchase in July, I have not seen a single issue. I purchased a 2-year subscription, plus a Collector's Edition.

I was reminded yesterday about the lack of any new issues by reading an email that came through my inbox from the owner and publisher, David Spivak. The email was a solicitation to purchase another product, which I scratched my head and thought about the situation for a moment. "hey, didn't I purchase a subscription from them a while back?". Yup. Sure did. And nothing has been received to date.

So I sent David an email, asking him why I had not seen any new issues or at least a 'Collector's Edition' publication, which I paid extra for. His response? The next publication won't be until next April. That is 9 months after my initial purchase if it even ships when he says it will ship. And that publication will be the Collector's Edition, not one of the 'normal' issues. Well, by my estimation a publication that claims to publish 6 issues a year isn't fulfilling the conditions of my purchase.

After pointing out the error, David Spivak proceeded to accuse me of arguing with him about this, and was extremely defensive, rude and quite short with his replies. If you have purchased a subscription to Focus Fine Art Photography Magazine, and haven't received an issue, I recommend that you contact PayPal (which is how they receive payments), file a complaint and see if they are in business in a few months. If you have not subscribed to the magazine, my recommendation is to not pay them a single dime, as you may never see the money or magazines. I did a quick search on the New York Better Business Bureau's web site, and here are the results. You can also do a simple search on the web and will come up with this, as paraphrased below:

"I paid for a 2 year subscription in July 2007 via PayPal. After receiving no issues by October 2007, I attempted to contact the company via phone fax, email, and postal mail and received no response. I then contacted the NY state attorney general's office to make a formal complaint. The attorney general's office investigated and eventually notified me that they also were unable to make contact with the company. Since July 2007 I have received a grand total of 2 issues of this magazine (it is now December 2008)."

As quoted from complaintsboard.com entry here.

My hunch is that they are having financial difficulties, and are using current subscription payments to fund issues that are grossly behind schedule. I don't anticipate ever seeing any issues on my doorstep, and wouldn't be surprised to see them out of business in the near future. A magazine publication is in the business to publish issues, and it appears that they don't have a very good track record of actually publishing issues in a timely manner, as well as responding to unhappy customers that have paid attention to what is going on.

***July 1, 2009 udpate***

Wow. Looks like we are now at July 1, 2009, and still no issues are being published. I am sure the Better Business Bureau will appreciate more calls from pissed off customers. I am now at 12 months since my initial purchase, and not a single issue has been shipped out. That is totally LAME, David. LAME. Just fold your company, refund your customers and move on to a business where you are going to be more successful. My recommendation is to not be involved in anything related to customer service, as you are obviously not very good at it.

Update on Tuesday, September 22, 2009 at 02:56PM by Andy Biggs

I received an issue in the mail in September 2009, a mere 15 months after my initial order for a subscription. Truly horrendous business practice. In the current issue, Spivak spends a significant amount of time explaining why the magazine has been delayed in publishing, and suffice to say it is primarily because of advertising revenue and subscriptions. Totally makes sense. The problem that I have is that the contract between he and his customers is not fulfilled, and at this rate Focus will be signing up customers faster than he can service them. Yes, the magazine is an excellent publication, however 1 per 15 months for a subscription that should be 6 issues per annum is not adequate.