Experience with the Owners Elka and Alla - Skinology - Richmond Hill, ON

Hi Kim:

I know Radiesse is not an altogether new product but it is not a Hylauronic Acid product. I have followed the pricing on H.A. products for some time and found them so expensive. When Elka of the Alla-Elka team went on her 'Sales Pitch' of 1.5 ml of Radiesse compared to 1.0 ml of Juvederm Ultra and the cost being so much less - I admit I bit - I wish I would have done more research - all the pricing research I had done certainly made this product seem fair - the promise of lasting up to 18 months ... blah ... blah ... blah ... and all of us lovely women over 45 deserving to maintain our gorgeous good looks ... Man these two gals could smell the money - However, having said that I have contacted the Better Business Bureau - as we all should in these circumstances - I also contacted Merz Pharmaceuticals - the company who makes the product - do they want these vagabonds disrespecting the representation of their product? I hope not - So, thank you so much for your interest and I will keep everyone posted - These gals get to enjoy Free Enterprise at its finest when they fail to show professional integrity

Thanks again

Joanne

I was motivated to contact Skinology from an Ad they posted on Kijiji. The Ad was originally advertising Juvederm Ultra. When I called I spoke to Elka at the 'Call Center' for Skinology, Richmond Hill, Ontario, Elka redirected me to a product called Radiesse. I attended, the injector was Alla. Alla tried to up sell with other products at the initial appointment. I refused. The product Radiesse, did not last. I attended a second time. The product again did not last. I attended a third time - this is over a 4 - 5 week span. Alla confirmed the product Radiesse 'deflated' as she put it. She gave me two options:
1. A full refund
2. Another appointment - another tube of Radiesse

She was defensive, rude and uncooperative in any attempt to correct the problem that day. She knew I had traveled to attend the appointment. She knew I was a Professional with a busy schedule.

After the first and second appointment, she had no hesitation in taking over an hour of time asking for nutrition advice for her Husband who was seeing a Naturopath at the time and asking for anti-inflammatory advice for him. She showed me personal pictures, talked about her personal life and her friend who just finished a paddling excursion. I was attentive and polite but was curious why she was so interpersonal and unprofessional. She and her business partner Alla took on quite a different persona when I called to report the extraordinary amount of money they had charged me was both disproportional to the efficacy of the product and the wholesale cost. I am a fan of profits but not $200.00 wholesale and $700.00 retail for an ineffective product.

Alla refused to give me a written assurance of a refund. She repeated no less than 4 more times that I would be getting a refund. She reported 'I had to take her word for it'. That last appointment was April 30th, 2014 @ 2:30 p.m. After leaving the Skinology office in Richmond Hill, I received a phone call from Elka. Elka reported the refund was a 'different department'. Odd - according to Alla, there were only two owners - herself and Elka. Skinology owners Alla and Elka now refused to honour the refund. I reported my full conversation with Alla to Elka, confirmed the promise of the refund, reported while Alla refused to write it down, she committed her word. I further said - 'That would be so dishonourable, who would be so dishonourable'. I have made several attempts to contact them to honour their commitment, including reporting them to the Better Business Bureau of Ontario, Merz Pharmaceuticals and now Reviews of my experience. They refuse to make any effort to resolve the matter, honouring the word of Alla.

Summary:

According to Product Consultants I have spoken to, Radiesse wholesales between 150.00 - 250.00 - the retail cost they charged me of $700.00 per tube is unconscionable. Juvederm Ultra retails at the price they charged me for a product that cost exponentially less and by my experience exponentially less effective.
On the first visit, Alla handed me the phone to 'speak' to a doctor. He asked me random questions, any allergies, etc. He did not ask me what I expected from the product, what I understood about the product or the efficacy of the product. As I now understand, industry standard at other Spas demands you be seen by a Doctor and they will not set up an appointment until you have spoken to a Doctor. It is their responsibility to do a full assessment and full disclosure on products for the trusting public. Relying on the random 'sales pitch' of a Call Center personal who claims expertise is just unacceptable.
I was promised a full refund of the initial visit of two tubes of Radiesse. I am now in the unenviable position of having to review my legal options to resolve this matter.