Bear Paw Wilderness Designs WARNING

I’ve never reviewed a company before but I have to warn the MP community to STAY AWAY from Bear Paw Wilderness Designs and its owner John Stultz. In November 2022 Mr. Stultz stole my $269 North Face Soloist Bivy.

The nightmare started when I asked Mr. Stultz, by email, to quote replacing some of the nylon on my bivy. To quote the job, he first asked me to send photos, then asked me to ship him the bivy. He received my bivy on 10/17/22 by UPS.

By 11/3 I still had no quote from Mr. Stultz and emailed him to return my bivy using my UPS account number. He refused and said “I will just toss the bivy into the trash.”

I called the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office, which polices Wellington, Colorado, and reported the theft to a deputy.

Customers, take your business to Hyperlite or elsewhere. Vendors, if Mr. Stultz will steal from customers, he will steal from you too.

I'd cross post this to Backpacking Light if you have the time - think BearPaw is better known in that community.

Donno wrote:

I’ve never reviewed a company before but I have to warn the MP community to STAY AWAY from Bear Paw Wilderness Designs and its owner John Stultz. In November 2022 Mr. Stultz stole my $269 North Face Soloist Bivy.

The nightmare started when I asked Mr. Stultz, by email, to quote replacing some of the nylon on my bivy. To quote the job, he first asked me to send photos, then asked me to ship him the bivy. He received my bivy on 10/17/22 by UPS.

By 11/3 I still had no quote from Mr. Stultz and emailed him to return my bivy using my UPS account number. He refused and said “I will just toss the bivy into the trash.”

I called the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office, which polices Wellington, Colorado, and reported the theft to a deputy.

Customers, take your business to Hyperlite or elsewhere. Vendors, if Mr. Stultz will steal from customers, he will steal from you too.

Sounds like perhaps the bivy was unrepairable? Can you show the email in question?

Donno wrote: ….By 11/3 I still had no quote from Mr. Stultz and emailed him to return my bivy using my UPS account number. He refused and said “I will just toss the bivy into the trash.”….

Don, are you saying he refused to return the bivy even though you were going to pay for the return shipping with your UPS account?

Did he give a reason for why he was refusing to return it?

There has to be more to the exchange before he said he was going to throw it in the trash.