Panama Hats DirectReviews of panamahatsdirect.com

I hope that my experience is the exception that proves the rule. Panama Hats Direct provides some excellent quality hats and I respect what they do. But my experience with the company has been poor. To begin with, I began the design process and ordered a hat — a Plantation model that I really liked the look of online. I ordered it, inputted my size, and went on with it. A day or two later I got a message checking the details I had inputted. The hat was all good UNTIL we got to size — it was a hat that was far too small for me. Thankfully the team and I communicated, and after a decent wait time, this was resolved. When my hat arrived, I appreciated its quality and design, but was disappointed that it made me look a bit too much “Wild Wild West”. Credit due to the team, they were willing to take the hat back after some communication. But I didn’t want to do that, because I felt that I had made the mistake, and it wasn’t fair. So I ordered a second hat. This is where my mistake began. Having an account with them, I assumed that all would be good, and I inputted my measurements again. This time I was aiming for a Havana model. Because of the issue I had had previously with sizing, I was ESPECIALLY careful to make sure I inputted the correct size. You can imagine my surprise when I got a message again, checking the details for my hat, and again, it was the wrong size. I accept, it could’ve been a mistake or technical error on either side of us, but thankfully, it was resolved. Here’s where the professionalism begins to slide — after everything was arranged, I received my second hat, and found it was far too small. Immediately I reached out to them — on September 27, 2024, I said: “I believe that there has been a mistake. I just received the hat I ordered in August today, and it’s too small to fit my head.” The response came back the next day on September 28, 2024: “ I see the original order you asked for was sent to you in that size but their was also an email from you so i am trying to find out what happened but we will get this taken care of for you. tomorrow i will sort this out.” As of writing this review, there has been no further reply to me. On October 3 and 10, I reached out to them, asking for updates, and have heard nothing. So, while I loved my first hat, I’m left wishing I returned it and got my money back. Instead, I’ve got a hat that I have limited occasion to wear (it’s very nice still), and a hat that’s far too small, that I’ll have to either give away or try and sell at a loss. It’s a pity too, because I liked them, and I like what they stood for. If you choose to use them, do be careful. For the sake of balance, if I do hear back from them, I will be happy to update my review, but it saddens me that they haven’t had a chance to work with me yet.

I just received my in hat in a bag and not a box and it is destroyed!!!

The first hat was a cuenco; that experience was good enough that I decided to upgrade to a better panama. The first one came though with the box badly smashed. USPS would not allow me to inspect, so I refused shipment. PHD then said I should have accepted delivery. In any case, many weeks later, they shipped me a replacement. After several years and not excessive use, the crown of the good hat is cracking.

Larger hat size availability is an issue. My hat size is 63/64.

Measured my head, was sent the wrong sized hat. They said they would replace if I paid $30.00 to ship it back. I stuffed some foam in the brim and vowed never to buy anything from them again.