I've had great luck with Sigma Sport.. They've been utterly brilliant as a rule. I usually travel to them from Hertfordshire as my first port of call for anything bike related simply because of the level of customer service I receive from them.
Do they make mistakes -- of course, but they always go out of their way to make it right in my experience.

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http://anotherdooratthe.endoftheinternet.org

Cycle related blog entries, including a few 5 minute reviews:
http://anotherdooratthe.endoftheinterne ... y/cycling/

This does seem a little over the top. I do understand the OP's frustration, as you normally buy something when you are planning to use it. I personally have had good service from Sigma, so I'd write this down as a one-off as they are not fly-by-night discount merchants. It might be appropriate to ask for a discount on something else though as a goodwill gesture - Just structure the deal so you both make money. Maybe ask for first dibs on their winter or summer gear at sale prices the week before it reaches the sale rail? That would be worth a lot more than a pair of wheels!

For every bad experience though, you have a few good ones. You can decide where to spend your money. Some recommendations:

When Dura Ace 7900 came out I pre-ordered with Chain Reaction cycles at a price which I thought was on the low side. The cranks in particular took ages to come, and by the time they arrived the JPY / GPB exchange rate had moved significantly and the RRP had increased by over GBP100. CR sold the cranks at the original price agreed.

My Parlee Z4 developed a crack or possibly a paint issue, and Bespoke didn't accuse me of riding into a wall or similar idiocy but immediately looked to source a replacement. This took a while so they upgraded me to a Z5SL. Gratis.

I got fed up with acting as an unpaid beta tester with the Edge 500, so after using it for about 16 months I sent it back to Wiggle. They gave me a full credit within hours.

Just to give a positive mark to someone in the uk, totalcycling.com as always been very honest about what they have and don't have once ordered and don't charge your card till they've figured all that out and have always been super quick in responding to me.

Exactly....

Further to Js's earlier input, and his suggestion to email his contact at Sigma Sports, a resolution has been made.

Within an hour of my email, which I also CCed to the director at SS, a reply was made by Nick Frendo acknowledging my email and stating he would look into it immediately. This was the first, and only email or correspondence I had received since the initial email asking if I would like to pay double for the wheel set which would be back in stock next week.

Nick Frendo then emailed again about an hour later, apologizing for any problems, and to resolve the issues, they were dispatching a set of C35s that day. Four hours later I received a dispatch email. No further explanation was offered for how the sequence of events had evolved.

I would like to state freely that this was amazing service from Nick, and I have thanked him for his prompt input and resolution of this matter. I also stated in the email that I was surprised to still receiving a wheel set, and I wouldve just been happy with a refund.

In response to the negativity towards me above...
To reiterate an earlier post, this saga could've been easily prevented by an appropriate email by James Lees in the initial instance. An email five days later stating that there was no stock left would've been tolerable, if there was a quick apology, and a brief explanation of how they had made a sale with no stock. Furthermore, an offer of an immediate refund rather than offering a weeks wait and paying MSRP (ie double the price offered) for the wheels wouldve been far more appropriate. This offer will only piss off the customer and the result is a harsh, forceful email in response. Until I emailed Nick Frendo, I have had no further communication from either James Lees, or their other "websales" email account i contacted, and no refund in sight.

Once again thanks to Js (Jared) for helping out in putting me in contact with Nick Frendo. A big thanks to Nick for sorting this out ASAP. The reiterate what I have said previously, I have dealt with SS before without issue, so I am sure this has just been an aberration. I wouldn't hesitate in ordering from them again given Nicks involvement and resolution.

Thanks all for your comments, thoughts and no doubt, further responses to this post....

glad to see it all worked out, and thank you for the update letting us all know how it went

you might wnat to change the title of the thread to sales at Sigmasport.co.uk ***UPDATE***

that way your not passively slandering them unintentionally...

Good point....

I'm utterly staggered how someone hiding behind a veil of anonymity feels justified in naming every person at Sigma who's been drawn into this and it irks me that they've capitulated.

Yes Sigma were at fault both for selling an item they didn't have in stock and for taking too long to refund the purchaser but I'm amazed at the indignant, unforgiving tone of some of the posters here screaming blue murder. drmutley I can only hope that when you put the inevitable & accidental foot wrong people are a little more forgiving to you rather than playing your indiscretions out on the world wide web. Where's the perspective? It's a wheelset...

Yes it's a shame Sigma allowed themselves to be 'internet blackmailed'. But I can totally understand why they did drop their pants and made the decision they did, I'm sure any sensible business would. It's annoying none the less.

If it happened to me, I would just think, ok, they're sold out, better luck next time.
Discrepancies between stock and advertised stock are possible, especially in a business which also has a actual shop.

Move on.

The tone of the OP is to tell people to stay away from the shop without going through due process to resolve it. oh yea i know.. 5 days, is unforgivable.. lol.

You're just selfish and venting on a forum, damaging a shop's reputation without thinking about the consequences nor give it enough time to get resolved before doing that.

These days 5 days is unacceptable, I would have expected to have received the wheels and ridden a couple of hundred k on them by then.

It's been said several times that Sigma were closed on a public holiday for 4 of those 5 days, as were almost all UK mail order companies. To say that that is no excuse is insane, it's totally illogical and stupid.

Other on-line retailers manage it, why are Sigma any different?

Did the order come with this caveat in it? There weren't even 4 public holidays in those 5 days anyhow which is an insane and illogical claim to make.

And to think Ive spent the last 2 or 3 years telling my toddlers "dont shout & scream & throw a tantrum when things dont go your way, its not what adults do". 5 days. Cmon...Wrong. Its a tellign indightment of the world weve decided to build for ourselves.

Order was placed on 2/6/12, which was a Saturday. 4th & 5th were public holidays due to the Diamond Jubilee. The email from Sigma advising of the lack of stock was sent at approximately 8am UK time. How is that, content aside, poor service?