- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Alcatraz Shade & Blind Shop
Category: Home Services Shades & Blinds Shades & Blinds [Edit]
6400 Telegraph Ave(between 65th St & Alcatraz Ave)
Oakland, CA 94609
Neighborhoods: Rockridge, North Oakland
(510) 658-2734
- Hours:
Tue-Fri 10 am - 6 pm
Sat 10 am - 4 pm
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
Laura J. said: "Giving this review for my mom: Albion arrived on time. They did a thorough assessment of the situation and fixed the problem in a reasonable amount of time, cleaned up after themselves, and even installed my new toilet! I appreciate…" read more »
17 reviews for Alcatraz Shade & Blind Shop
17 reviews in English
-
Review from Richard C.
Oakland, CA
11/30/2011 1 Check-in Here
Day 1: Our bedroom roll-up shade went up at full speed, came off the mounts, and landed on my toes. I cried.
Day 2: The little metal mounting post on the shade broke off, having been weakened by Day 1's fall and impact. Our bedroom filled with sunlight at dawn. I cried.
Day 3: Walked it into Alcatraz Shade, where they repaired the roll-up in 5 minutes. Gratis. I'm all smiles, and am in mad love with our city and all the wonderful small businesses that it hosts. -
Review from N H.
Oakland, CA
5/23/2012
First project - installing curtains for bedroom. 2 errors, required 3 attempts to get it right. Final result was good. Then bought some little curtains/cafe rod for the window on the front door. $450 ($100 for installation). It looks okay but, OMG, what was I thinking!
-
Review from Mason C.
Oakland, CA
12/16/2011
I have been very disappointed with Alcatraz. I really wanted to support a local business for a custom shade. But:
- Their hours make it hard to get there for people who work regular jobs
- When we were getting pricing, the guy was arguing with me about my measurements instead of just quoting what I wanted
- It's a pain in the ass to compare prices
- We went in one Saturday to finally make our purchase and they place was full of epoxy fumes. My pregnant wife and I got instant headaches. That's not healthy at all!
So the one day a week we can shop there, we were gassed out of the place.
We bought our shades at Berkeley Shade Shop instead. -
Review from Playa C.
Lafayette, CA
6/4/2011
Our ancient and large blackout shade had a broken cord, but was in otherwise good condition. My husband wanted to can it, but I thought I'd see if it could be repaired.
For just $50, the friendly guys at Alcatraz Shade replaced all the cords (since it was likely that the others would blow out soon). A new shade would have cost hundreds of dollars. I must have caught them on a slow Saturday because they did the work in less than 2 hours!
I'd recommend this place in a heartbeat. Great service, perfect workmanship, reasonable prices. Thank you!!! -
Review from Ben G.
Oakland, CA
6/7/2008
I have shopped at Alcatraz Shade Shop for years - every couple of years i seem to find myself in there again. Whether I have need all new blinds for the family room or just some quirky part they have always had what I needed.
There is something pleasant about shopping in a small, local, well stocked business. They are clearly family run and it just feel nice in there.
A very different feeling from shopping at Big Box stores- it is very personable and offers a level of friendly service that is just not common in chain stores.
5 stars for an enduring, quaint, and wonderful local business.Listed in: Shopping Temescal!
-
Review from Michael S.
Oakland, CA
11/7/2010
So we had this old cordless blackout shade where the cords broke on the inside. I went for two months propping it up in the window with tomato stakes--classy. Finally decided to stop being ghetto and do something about it, enter Alcatraz Shade. Unlike many businesses on Yelp, i could see that this business was collecting good reviews from real people and not the owners' loser in-laws and other sycophants.
The guy I talked to, Bob, explained that we had a pretty rare brand of shade but that he would see what we could do. "Why don't they have cords on the outside?," I asked. "It's so kids don't strangle themselves."
"Oh, I guess that makes sense," I replied.
Bob came out, took it down and got it fixed in about a week. He came back out and installed it in five minutes, all while being nice to our dog.
The manufacturer had told us that it could not be repaired. Bob of Alcatraz got it all done for a very affordable cost with great service. -
Review from Alexander K.
Berkeley, CA
3/4/2010
I don't know when yelp really became mainstream far enough that incompetence and illiteracy began to seep through to reviews..but the reviews giving poor ratings to Alcatraz Shade & Blind are most definitely obtuse and irrelevant.
I am a newly hired resident manager to an apartment complex and so I've began to deal with many local businesses in regards to interior and exterior renovations and maintenance. One problem I ran into is that the installation of a particular set of blinds in a unit was done poorly. There is a 1.5" molding around the entrance that inhibited the blinds from fully opening so I needed longer brackets to replace the ones already installed.
What did I do? Call Home Depot, Ace Hardware, another Home Depot and finally the Berkeley Shade store. All 4 attempts and visits were unsuccessful. Not only were most of them lacking helpfulness, but a couple of them suggested that such a part was nonexistent and I would be better of buying a new set of vertical blinds to replace the perfectly functioning ones I already had.
Long story short, I was recommended Alcatraz Blinds by a very nice rep from the Home Depot (Emeryville) blinds/shades department and to my huge relief ..guess what? The part exists. All I had to do is bring in the existing bracket and it was quickly matched to a compatible, but usefully longer piece. PROBLEM SOLVED! I also got a few wing nuts out of bag of miscellaneous parts that were left over from a job that they recently completed--just as a complementary thing. I didn't have to worry about trying to drill in wooden shims to extend the wall or anything complicated. I wish I had come here first..
Shame on those who are dissatisfied with Alcatraz Shade&Blind as an excuse to voice their own habits of impatience! Shame, shame, shame is the name of your game! This quaint corner store is the epitome of a successful, honest, trusted small business. They've been at this location for 30+ yrs, and bad business just does not last that long, so bottom line, any other business I have with shades/blinds as far as my apt. complex goes--will go here. -
Review from Karryn N.
Berkeley, CA
2/27/2008
Its not possible to give a O star. We've tried to talk with them several times at my office (we are 3 blocks away!) and have met with flakiness, rudeness, or stupidity every time.
Please never buy from them.
We ended up going with 3 Day Blinds, but my next review is how bad that was as well.. -
Review from Alfonso E.
Oakland, CA
7/12/2007
I hired these guys to make and install large window shades for my home office based on the recommendation of several of my neighbors. At best, my experience with them was lukewarm, and has left me questioning whether I would have gotten a much better deal -- let alone better customer service -- at my local 3 Day Blinds shop. Pity, really -- I wanted to support a family business, paid the premium to do so, and didn't feel the love from them at all afterwards.
The selection of window treatments you can choose from at their shop is astounding. The shop staff were reasonably helpful in narrowing my selection for a roller screen shade. However, it took them nearly 3 and a half weeks to make the shades, and I have a feeling it would have been longer were it not for several follow-up calls I made to find out what was going on.
Which brings me to my biggest gripe about this business: they're TERRIBLE about return phone calls. After the installation was finally scheduled and completed, I called them twice more to get a replacement for a retraction cord that broke after just 1 month: they never called me back, and still haven't. After nearly 7 months, I'd just about given up and will probably bring the cord in to the shop when I actually have the time to do it... at which time they'll probably have long forgotten me and wonder who this loser is trying to get a free repair from them. Just a guess. -
Review from Amy J.
Alameda, CA
2/13/2006
I can't say that I've spent much time in many shades and blinds shoppes, but for sure the Alcatraz is the Real Deal ( aka: the fo'real deal ).
The guy fixed my sagging spring-loaded roll-up, educated me about spring-loaded roll-ups and sent me on my merry way before I could even ask his name. They stock every last little thing to make your shade dreams come true. -
Review from George P.
San Mateo, CA
8/16/2007
I came into their shop to get an estimate upon recommendation from several satisfied customers. They person who helped me was a bit rude. The gave me the estimate on the spot, but had a tough time understanding the requirements for my space.
I felt it would be good to get an in home consultation given that the space is very large with very high ceilings. It have been two weeks. They have never called. When I called them back to follow up. They have been very unresponsive.
This jobs would have brought them many thousands of dollars, but obviously they don't care. If it were a smaller jobs, I would bet that they would have even given less of a "F".
That is why they get a "F" in my book. -
Review from Tim W.
Oakland, CA
8/10/2010
After passing their shop at the corner of Alcatraz and Telegraph for many years, and after less than satisfying experiences with 3 Day Blinds, I decided to check out Alcatraz Shade & Blind Shop to install new blinds in our master bedroom.
I found the experience perfect. Great service when I went in with my measurements and spoke with the guy there (who's name I can't remember!). It's so great to go into a shop and speak to someone who actually knows what they're talking about and seems to genuinely care about you as a customer.
Two guys came out to my house to install the shades (they had been cut to my specs exactly) and did a great job, and friendly too!
We should all support our local merchants. Most often you'll find a higher level of service both before and after the sale.
I would give Alcatraz Shade & Blind Shop my highest recommendation. -
Review from Liquid Kitty O.
Oakland, CA
5/29/2008
I don't even know where to begin, so I won't... While I am happy with the products themselves, their customer service and installation has been so bad that I cannot recommend them to any one. It's as if the people who work there have no idea what products they're selling or installing, and are just interested in selling regardless of whether or not the product will work in any given room. They get two stars for product, nothing for customer service or installation.
-
Review from Ava R.
Oakland, CA
2/21/2009 13 photos
This is a great little shop with everything you can imagine to cover your windows. The sales staff were very helpful and they came to my house to measure and help me pick the best window coverings for my needs. The prices are higher than Home Depot but that is OK with me because the service was great. The installation was fast and you couldn't even tell they were here. I love my beautiful new shades!
-
Review from Laura C.
Napa, CA
12/16/2009
I work for a contracting company. Alcatraz Shade shop was helpful, knowledgable and efficient. I only delt with them over email and phone, then placed an order from the East Coast through them. The whole process was a pleasure and I felt very at ease and like I was in good hands.
Special thanks to manager Jennifer! -
Review from M C.
Oakland, CA
12/12/2009
I just returned from my last of many trips to this store. Finally my simple repair is complete, but only after enduring much rudeness. I can say I have not experience this level of poor customer service in a very very long time. I hope the nice owner of this store reads this review and gives her counter people some lessons in manners. This is costing her business. I will only go back here if I absolutely have to! Just basic manners - no finishing school required.
-
Review from A S.
Oakland, CA
8/17/2009
Wow, I'm VERY surprised at the low reviews-- ask for Jennifer!!! She has GREAT taste (a designer's eye)-- or at least knew what we would like, really knew her stuff (could talk us through a bunch of appealing options and gave us cost-saving tips), she was punctual, thorough, and her installers were as courteous and professional as she was. Alcatraz Shade Shop really got us out of a pickle after we had *paid* Smith and Noble to measure our windows (with a 100% perfect-fit guarantee) and then the shades they custom made for our windows could not be installed. We have a pair of bedroom windows that meet in a corner with a VERY shallow sill and wanted inside mounted, top-down/bottom-up, black-out, honeycomb shades. Jennifer was able to find shades to fit this very difficult to install corner and they even custom -cut/formed the cord locks for us in their shop so there would be greater light-blocking coverage. Superb follow-through all around. I would call Jennifer again without hesitation and recommend that others do so as well.
