Hank Lee's Magic Factory

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1975. A great year. Leisure Suits. Saturday Night Live. Hank Lee's Magic Factory. For twenty-four years, Hank Lee's Magic Factory has been a landmark on the magical world map.

Hank Lee's Mail Order Division is located in Medford, MA. Just seven short miles from Boston. Don't look for showcases or demonstrators or even a sign on the door. The Medford building is dedicated to mail order only. The 6000 square feet of space is chock-full of magic, magic and more magic. All that magic, plus some computers, telephones, FAX machines, shipping equipment and dedicated elves makes Hank Lee's one of the largest and most efficient mail-order magic outlets in the world.

Reviews

April 5th, 2010 9:18am Rating:

Reviewed by Kaarlo von Freymann

Pros: Hank Lee has one of the most humorous web sites with excellent search facilities. Cons: Hank Lee will charge your credit card the moment your order is received irrespective of whether they can deliver or not and keep your items on back order for months. It seems they even deliberately advertise items that are no more available from them or anywhere else. Defective items sent for repair/exchange are not taken care of in a reasonable time span. So unfortunately I must revise my earlier 5 star rating to 2 stars, and this is not based only on my own experience but that several magician friends. Kaarlo von Freymann, Helsinki Finland

5 of 8 registered users have found this review helpful.

November 5th, 2011 10:31pm Rating:

Reviewed by Sandstar

I did business for several years with this company and all went okay. They were very slow at times, but their prices were good. Then one day I sent them an order for an expensive item - almost $200.00. The wait began. Finally, after about a month with no word, I called and talked to Hank. Not only was the product not available, he had no idea that it would ever be available. Worst of all he didn't want to refund my money. The guy was absolutely rude. Finally, I got the money back. But never will I do business with him again. This is the way he treated a customer who had already spent a lot of money with him. Buyer beware. If I could give negative stars I would George Luck

6 of 12 registered users have found this review helpful.

September 1st, 2007 4:50pm Rating:

Reviewed by MJP

Pro’s: Excellent selection and the site is pretty easy to navigate. In the past, I had excellent service and products from Hanklee. Quick to replace a defective item for me. Con’s: Don’t always have what you order and things are put on indefinite backorder. I’ve experienced either very delayed responses to e-mails or (more often) no response at all. I called, and the employee was not the nicest. I expected more, particularly having done thousands of dollars in business with them previously.

6 of 9 registered users have found this review helpful.

January 16th, 2009 9:46am Rating:

Reviewed by Baldini

For years I shopped at Hank Lee's with no problem. That changed the first time they got my order wrong. They sent the wrong trick. No prob. Just return it at your own expense and they will replace it or issue a credit. Pay extra for confirmation or Hank's will have no record of receiving it and you are out the cost of the trick and shipping both ways. That's when I dealt with the rude employee on the phone. Then came the eternal back order. I guess I could have canceled and taken a credit, but those are "purged" every two years as routine business. Once, I ordered on line and entered the code for a percentage discount on my purchase. The discount showed up on my order confirmation but not my card receipt. I have spent a lot of money with this dealer over the years, but I will not spend another dime.

9 of 11 registered users have found this review helpful.

July 6th, 2009 7:50am Rating:

Reviewed by whonow

First of all, always check the right panel of the website for a sale. They are usually having one. The reason for this is that they sell everything at the dealer's suggested price (vastly inflated) and then give you a generous "discount" so you feel special. Don't even bother ordering from these guys if your order is less than 100 bucks. Chances are, with the expensive shipping options, you could get your items cheaper elsewhere. Additionally, I hope nothing goes wrong with your order. Because if something does happen, you'll be given the run around for days. Emails to customer service often take days to respond or even never (not a rarity. It's happened to me at least a dozen times) Shop smart. If they're not having a sale where you get about 25% off the total you would normally pay, wait for another sale. Sometimes it's 25% off your order. Sometimes it's buy one, get the second half off. Recently, it was buy everything at retail price and get 15-30% off your next order... [Read More]

4 of 4 registered users have found this review helpful.

July 6th, 2009 7:50am Rating:

Reviewed by DonB!

Pros: As long as you continue purchasing from Hank, they love you. Cons: If you even THINK of standing near their booth at a convention, but don't purchase, suddenly Hank can be rude and obnoxious. He actually said, "Take your senseless talk somewhere else. I'm trying to do business here." I was standing at the very end of a 3-table display of his, and interfering in no way with his business. I have ordered from them, and received what I ordered promptly. I have also had trouble with an item I purchased from them, but they never responded back to my emails or phone calls. I was told I had to take it up with the manufacturer (who happened to be out of business). What I want are dealers that stand behind what they sell. Hank doesn't, unless it somehow means more $$$ in his pocket at the end of the day.

2 of 2 registered users have found this review helpful.

July 8th, 2009 9:43am Rating:

Reviewed by stefano

Many problems with Hank lee. I have read that if you have problems with out of stock problems nobody reply. But the worst thing that they take your money !!! I'm dealer also and I bought items at wholesale price, for an important customer I have asked to mr lee if a product was available after doing an order. he reply yes!!! Not true, i have done the order but everything arrives less this item. One product was broken and they take 900,00 usd more than due on credit card!!! In this days I'm in trouble with this dealer, no reply at all. I'm sending e-mails everyday. Pay attention with Hank Lee. Stefano, Milano Italy, July 2009.

4 of 4 registered users have found this review helpful.

September 28th, 2009 6:57am Rating:

Reviewed by David Lieberman

I'm not sure why this shop has so many negative reviews. I don't know if I'm just really lucky or what but I've never had a bad experience. I've been to the shop at least a dozen times and have ordered online probably a dozen more and have never had any problem whatsover. The only "criticism" I have is that I liked it much better when the store was located in Boston. It was much bigger and a lot of the stuff was visible.

0 of 3 registered users have found this review helpful.

May 16th, 2010 9:10am Rating:

Reviewed by benny blanko

rip off..not to deal with......... no service no friendship, i have done business with,they will brainwash you, after you get tomatos not what you paid for

3 of 3 registered users have found this review helpful.

June 9th, 2010 3:15pm Rating:

Reviewed by Thomas Sciacca

I've never had any problems with Hank Lee's Magic Factory-but then, I don't order too much from his site/company. Shipping rates seem a bit higher than elsewhere, prices sometimes the same (higher). Having been through their entire closeup section more than once, there are some really interesting items here, that I haven't seen elsewhere...these 'Hank Lee Exclusives'. One rare item, was 'stack of nickels and die' which was put out by J.B. Bobo himself, and re-routined by Al Cohen. Great prop (brass urn, stack-shell), and again, not something found too easily elsewhere. Now, here's WHY I'm taking myself OFF of Hank Lee's email list: He prefaces his online newsletters, with updates on his personal life, more specifically, his college aged sons, his pets, his wife, and things that I guess people who know him closely will actually care about. It reminds me of the relative in the family, who can't just send a Christmas card-no, the Christmas card has to come with a group family portrait,... [Read More]

September 13th, 2010 8:31am Rating:

Reviewed by Bruce Zeplin

Pay with PayPal when dealing with this seller!!! Hank Lee, as mentioned in other reviews, will list items on his Web site he does NOT have in stock. He will charge your card immediately, with no disclosure of the item being out of stock. When using PayPal, if there is a problem with the sale, PayPal will instantly debit the seller's account for the amount of the charge until the transaction is completed - meaning you get the item or you get a refund. This gives the seller GREAT MOTIVATION to deliver as promised - or else. Caveat Emptor!

November 13th, 2010 8:31am Rating:

Reviewed by jimmy read

Awesome service will always do business with Hank Lee. Lot of folks out there just jealous they don't have a magic shop. Grow up!

0 of 2 registered users have found this review helpful.

June 11th, 2011 6:07pm Rating:

Reviewed by Kolisar

Hank Lee's, sadly, is a mere shadow of its former self. When they were on 24 Lincoln Street in Boston (back in the 1970's), it was small, but a real magic shop. They grew and, at one point, had a very large showroom. The staff was knowledgeable and would gladly demo effects. When I was young (mid 70's to the early 80's) I would spend almost every Saturday afternoon there, watching the demos, and picking up the latest books. Today, their "showroom" is not much more than a hallway with a couple of display cabinets. The last time I went in there I asked if they sold a particular item and I was instructed to use a computer they had in the showroom with their website loaded in the browser window. The staff not only did not know what they sold, but to direct someone who made the effort to come to the physical store to use a web browser to determine if the shop sold a particular item is just wrong. The only impression that one can be left with after such an experience is that they do not... [Read More]

5 of 5 registered users have found this review helpful.

February 9th, 2012 3:32pm Rating:

Reviewed by Dave H

My advice is to always use Paypal if you feel you must deal with him. I ordered a trick and it came with the gimmicked deck without the DVD advertised.(You need the DVD to follow how the deck works. I have had very clever fellow magicians fail trying to work it out.) I emailed them and got told it does not come with a DVD. I emailed back and asked why was it advertised with a DVD. That was a mistake but we will not get a refund or a discount. I then told them you get 24 hours or I will tell Paypal to cancel the payment. I will also contact the maker and tell him as well. In 24 hours I got a complete refund. The deck is useless with out the DVD so Mr. Lee tried a quick one. I will never deal with him again and tell everyone I know not to. Unless he thinks he cannot get away with it he will try to rip you off. I have a friend who had never had a problem but I think it is luck. The product was in store and was correctly advertised and my friend likes the trick so no problem. Otherwise... [Read More]

1 of 1 registered users have found this review helpful.

April 19th, 2012 9:39am Rating:

Reviewed by martello

Hank Lee charges way too much for postage and "handling". A total rip off! Recently, I ordered something they had in stock. After 9 days of waiting I called and they said "it went out today". It went out parcel post!! They charged me almost $10 for postage. I asked the post office what it would cost to ship back the same way and they said $2.25. Hank Lee told me the rest of the charge was for handling and paperwork. This is for a tiny book in a tiny box. I will never order from this rip off organization again. Shop around folks. There are lots of better and more honest dealers out there.

1 of 1 registered users have found this review helpful.

April 27th, 2012 11:18am Rating:

Reviewed by Karen ivers

I'm still waiting for items ordered back in Feb. With the announcement of his criminal charges, I worry I won't ever receive them. Will never order from Hank Lee Magic again. Very sad.

1 of 1 registered users have found this review helpful.

November 12th, 2012 7:15pm Rating:

Reviewed by Gordon Meyer

If you haven't heard by now, Hank was busted for credit card fraud and is in prison. The Magic Factory is no more, but the website continues to exist. Before you do business with them, you should take all this under consideration.

April 6th, 2013 6:39pm Rating:

Reviewed by Santosh Prabhu

Some thirty years ago I sent money for a catalog but hank lee performed the amazing vanish trick. No catalog received and money gone. No reply, no acknowledgement! Not at all reliable; A cheat.