Alcatraz Shade & Blind Shop

I highly recommend Alcatraz shade. Small shop local flavor plus loads of fabrics and knowledgeable staff. We were very impressed.

They did a beautiful job. There was a certain amount of delay owing, it seems, to Covid supply problems, but once they got the materials, the job was done absolutely beautifully. The installers were wonderful too, a perfect job. Very pleased. We don't think we'll need them again in this lifetime, but if we did, we's not hesitate to be sent to Alcatraz for shades.

I can hardly say enough BAD about the attitude of the woman who answered the phone. It was as if she didn't want to make an appointment at all. I will look elsewhere rather than even attempt to make an appointment with these disagreeable people: not interested in offering any kind of service at all. Also tried to get me to come into their store BY APPOINTMENT rather than tell me what their business hours are. Check out the other reviews on this page. Most of us seem to agree about the difficult non-service.

Snooty old hipsters trying to cling to their youth with no customer service skills. They told me to just shop online and so I will.

As others have stated "Horrible experience. Zero customer service. Condescending, rude, unprofessional and disorganized." Add "bait & switch" to this. When I came to the store, the manager Amy recommended a doorway treatment we needed, and told me I needed a $100 consultation to take measurements. When I told her we also needed other window treatments, she assured me the consultant could guide me on what types of shade were suitable for particular windows.

When the consultant arrived, she announced that the door treatment Amy had recommended was impossible and that she couldn't offer me any guidance on other possible window treatmentsl. This consultant turned out to be the OWNER of the business so it was surprising she does not have this expertise! I was charged $100 for this useless "service" call. And when I called to protest the owner was rude and disrespectful.

No service! A few years ago, I had them buy and install shades that cost $2500. I had a simple string break. They wanted more than $300 plus it would take six weeks to get service. Last night, I got a ladder and fixed it by myself. The repair was simple. This store simply wants to gouge its customers.

Covid times--go to the back door. Tracy was professional & efficient. Repairs and parts should be there for me in "a couple of days". So pleased with their service.for the past 30+ yrs.

If you are wealthy, patient, and lazy, this is the place for you! I had a great experience in the shop with Anne or Amy(?), however when Lindsey came to my home for measurements I got the distinct sense that I was inconveniencing her or maybe she was just having a bad day. I really wanted to support a local business and was willing to pay somewhat of a premium.

I ended up ordering online for well under half of their price because they were not only out of 2 of our selections, but the price was going to be over $2,000 average per window (for fabric French-pleated drapes). My best advice - plan on $2k per window for fabric drapes before you even walk into the store and plan on at least a 50% chance that they no longer make the fabric that you absolutely fell in love with because their multitude of catalogs are not updated. I was obviously not the target market and, sadly, online was the clear way to go at least for me.

I'm so excited about my newly motorized shades. The people at Alcatraz Shade Shop informed me that I did NOT have to replace all my expensive roll up shades, but instead I could purchase motorized rollers from them. No longer do I need to manually raise the 7 different room shades as I have been doing for years. Instead these inserts make the shades raise and lower at the touch of a remote control! AND I can use an app on my iPhone to control them from afar when I'm not home.

Very cool. I feel like I've been suddenly catapulted into the 21st century with this new upgrade. The installers from Alcatraz Shade Shop were great - extremely knowledgeable and helpful. For me this was an affordable option because I did NOT have to replace all the shades; I only had to buy these motors and have Alcatraz Shade Shop install them.

Two strings broke on our 12' Hunter-Douglas Easy Rise shade. I took a look and the spindle looked really complicated and nothing on U-Tube was similar. Took it to Alcatraz Shade Shop - they could not repair and would need to to send to H-D for repair. That would be a very expensive option. Went home and checked in on the H-D web site and did live chat - very helpful and they suggested Chases in Beninicia who are an authorized H-D service center. Took blind over - no problem and ready in two days. On time and on budget. Glad we got this expensive shade repaired. Highly recommend Chases for repairs.

I was looking for tiny curtain track slide replacements (1/4). The woman who answered the phone took the time to understand exactly what I was looking for. Although they didn't carry this product, which I later figured out is an obscure automotive specific item, her generous use of her time and advice saved me from having to drive there, and helped point me in the right direction to track these down. I look forward to doing business with her when I need curtains or shades for my house.

Great people, awesome records, deserves more attention. Leonard and Lindsay are very nice people that I became friends with thru instagram. They have some of my artwork, greeting cars and buttons there. Please support them, so they can keep Alcatrash going, it's a fun, kitschy vintage store that consistently has new items and rare things to collect.

Wow For a place in business so long I would have expected something not so snobby I called They said the shade couldn't be too dirty to repair I bring said shade It's dusty They refuse to take it

Good, prompt service. No qualms from me. We had already checked out some other shops for the window treatments, so we had some idea what we wanted, but Amy did a great job setting us up with the right books and fabrics samples to narrow down on exactly the right designs. The shades shipped exactly when they were predicted to, and the installers were great.

For the Roman shades we ordered (which had a longer lead time than anything else), not only did they ship exactly on time, but we were able to schedule next-day installation! Would I like it if the prices were 20% lower? Of course. But I understand the cost of doing business in the Bay Area and I very much appreciate being able to go see things in person and having someone down the street I can call if I have any problems later on. I'll go back to Alcatraz next time I need window treatments.

I'm super happy with the window coverings I got. They team that helps sell, measure, and install the window coverings are all really great. And I love supporting a local business that's been operating here for so long! They also did a great job setting expectations for the time required to have the custom window coverings manufactured, and it was easy to find a convenient time to have them installed once they arrived.

Excellent service. The folks at this shop are like a family team that cares about the customer and the quality of their product. They've bent over backwards to resolve a problem with an order we had. Highly recommend them.

Where to begin? First Lindsay came to my home and spent over an hour helping me choose window treatments for every room in my house. Then, when everything was ready (well in advance of what she had promised), Leo and Evan came and did the installation. I am beyond THRILLED with every aspect of the service. Everything looks amazing, and the installation was done with so much care. I highly recommend using this awesome local business for your shades, curtains, window seat and cushion needs!

I came in with a large order. They sent me home to remeasure the windows with more details. I spent a lot of time carefully remeasuring everything to specifications they requested and they said "we need to measure these for you, with an order this size it's free." When I asked why they had wasted my time with sending me back to measure myself if they needed do it themselves they told me to take my business elsewhere.

I never once raised my voice or said anything rude. If you look at their negative yelp reviews (there are plenty of them) they always comment how it is the customers fault and not theirs. I think it's telling that that is their attitude. If you have a problem with their bad service, it's your fault.

I've been wanting to go here for a long time, I love the funny things they put on their marquises. Sadly, their customer service was horrible. I showed up and told them my window sizes, they said I needed more measurements, so I went home and spent a long time carefully measuring everything they said, then I went back and gave them all the measurements they asked for and they said "we need to come measure them ourselves" it's going to cost $100, only your order is over $1,000 so it's free. Excuse me?

Why did you just waste my afternoon measuring things myself if you are going to measure them. When I complained about them wasting my time they told me to take my business elsewhere. I am not sure why they were like this, but I'm sad that they wasted so much of my time. edit: I think it's telling that they wasted my time and then called me rude for writing a bad review about them. I see why others have left them such bad reviews too.

Terrible customer service. My Hunter Douglas shade had a warranty defect and they refused to help. I then went to a competitor in Emeryville who happy helped me get a replacement. Don't count on them from service. In addition, the outside appearance of the store looks terrible. They put blinds in the window so the store looks like a blighted property. The inside is attractive.

I've done a lot of business with Alcatraz Shade Shop over the years--bought and had installed blinds and shades, plus repairs. I've had nothing but good experiences with them. So have friends who've used them at my recommendation. A first-rate local business that I'm more than happy to support.

Spent $200 on shades and when I picked them up I had to ask for the required wood screws to mount them. That was a little weird but what was worse was that I was only given half as many screws as were needed. When I returned and asked for the rest of the screws, I was told I was given as many as I needed! Let me tell you, you can't make adjustments with only half the screws. Since when have wood screws gotten rare and expensive? In the future I will look elsewhere when I need shades or blinds.

Good selection and great service. There was an issue with a few of the shades but they took care of it without hesitation. Shades look great. For the helpfulness alone, I won't go anywhere else. Plus, they are a locally owned family shop, which is a bonus in my book. Amy is awesome!

Horrible experience. Zero customer service. Condescending, rude, unprofessional and disorganized. The woman I spoke to, a snotty wannabe hipster who appeared to be in charge, was utterly toxic. Who would actually trust you with their windows, you can't even dress yourself. Lady, in case no one has told you, your clothing is making a statement and that statement is, "I have no taste."

On 12/27 I checked online to see if they were open. Online sites(2 of them) said yes. I called and got a recording which indicated they were open, but too busy to answer the phone. I drove there top buy merchandise and found it was closed for the holidays. As of 12/29 the phone message still indicates that are open, but busy. They obviously care little for customers.

It has been one year since the curtains we ordered from Alcatraz were finally installed. I've waited a year because I wanted to give the benefit of the doubt when the last words from Lindsay were along the lines of "you'll grow into them." Well, one year later and I dislike them as much as the day they were installed. The customer service along the way has been some of the worst I have ever experienced.

To say that I don't recommend them is an understatement. To back up, we ordered these curtains in April 2015. I was told they would arrive within 4-6 weeks. After no updates from Alcatraz, I called to get an update. Only upon calling did I learn that there was a delay in the shipment. Weeks passed and the same story was told. Finally, we decided to go with different curtain options.

As they were the experts, I deferred to their judgment in helping pick out the right type of material (we had them come to our house to see existing curtains that the new curtains were supposed to match; they also sized each of the windows so they had all the necessary information). While we made the final call, I will say that the option we chose should never have been a choice in the first place. It's an awful material given how many curtains we needed in the space.

When the curtains were finally installed, they got sizing wrong for two of the windows. This took several more weeks to fix (September 2015 was the final installation). All in all, the material is absolutely wrong for the space. On top of that, they sprayed the rods with sticky gunk that remained on the rods. They also stripped the screws for the rods such that the first time I tried to remove a curtain, I couldn't do it on one side.

As much as I tried to work with them, I ultimately left unsatisfied. Poor customer service, delays and only updates when I reached out. suffice to say, I won't be returning to this shop for future needs.

I had two 25 yr old custom pleated shades installed that were all screwed up. Both a very handy neighbor & a licensed contractor had failed to fix them. Very seldom used, the fabric was still in great shape & replacing that quality would be very expensive. On a fluke I took one to Alcatraz shade which said they'd fix it for $60. For an additional $75 they'd send a guy to my house to fix the other (the cords were all catiwampas inside the thingy) & "he'll reinstall the other one at the same time." A week later the cleanest, most darling, competent, bright you man "Devon" arrived. Had both my shades fixed & reinstalled in an hour. They'd been bugging me for YEARS. Best bargain at $135 & saved me at least another $1000. Highly recommend this shop. Alex