I happen to handle the Reconditioned merchandise area on our Outlet page and our listings on eBay. I thought I'd share with you what generally happens with a returned machine, to demystify the entire Reconditioned machine process, and hopefully shed some light on what would be a great opportunity to get a machine at a nice price break.

To start off, our return policy is one of the most customer-friendly in the business. If you buy one of our machines and for any reason decide not to keep it, we have a 30 day window from the date of delivery for you to give us a call and start the return process. Basically, all the return costs you is shipping in both directions - there is no restock fee as with most companies. Full details of this return process are on our policies page.

So, Bill in Kalamazoo buys a Gaggia Espresso Pure, and decides he wants a machine with a little more horsepower: a Gaggia Baby Twin. He gives us a call and sends the Espresso Pure off to us, then buys the Twin in a separate transaction. What happens with the Espresso Pure once he gives it to his shipper? Well, once UPS, FedEx or USPS gets it to us there are actually a number of people the machine goes by, and steps it goes through on the way to being resold.

First it gets checked in with the RMA number we give you. From there, it goes through a number of tests and checks to ensure that the machine is still up to factory specs and there isn't anything wrong with it. We do more than run a shot on it. It's tested for brewing temp, steam pressure and steam time, not to mention a complete cosmetic inspection and cleaning. At that point, tech signs off on the machine, Bill gets refunded, and the machine comes over to my area to be resold.

Then you see a Gaggia Espresso Pure pop up on the Outlet, or on an eBay auction at about a 25% discount, give or take. This is a significant savings for someone who knows what they want and is okay with a machine that has been not only factory tested, but factory authorized service center tested as well.

So, if you're in the market for an espresso machine and find yourself on the fence between new and next to new as we sometimes call it, reconditioned is a great way to get that machine at a great price. No one will know except you and your espresso machine specialists at Whole Latte Love.

Mike