I’d put zero stars if possible. Slow as can be (blamed bank holiday over a week after bank holiday). Not all emails responded to and order eventually delivered with main item missing. Customer servi... Toon meer
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Emma at the Canterbury store was so helpful today. Gave great advice for supplies needed for a paint technique I'm trying to achieve. The sort of customer service that is never possible when buying on... Toon meer
The C&W store in Canterbury is a real gem. Browsing and shopping for art supplies is always one of life’s great unalloyed pleasures - but the staff here really make it special. Today Emma helped me pi... Toon meer
Bedrijf heeft geantwoord
St George's St, Canterbury branch is my go-to art shop because I always receive specific help in choosing the correct art equipment for me. There is no up-selling just to get a sale. Today I was serve... Toon meer
Bedrijf heeft geantwoord
Bedrijfsgegevens
Geschreven door het bedrijf
We've been supplying fine and graphic art materials since 1960. Our range includes art supplies from the world's leading brands, all at fantastic prices.
Contactgegevens
Unit 7a, CT3 Business Park, Cooting Road, CT3 3DW, Aylesham, Verenigd Koninkrijk
- 01303 290550
- admin@cowlings.com
- www.cowlingandwilcox.com
3,9
Goed
102 reviews
Heeft 85% van zijn negatieve reviews beantwoord
Reageert doorgaans binnen 24 uur
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Emma at the Canterbury store was so…
Emma at the Canterbury store was so helpful today. Gave great advice for supplies needed for a paint technique I'm trying to achieve. The sort of customer service that is never possible when buying online. Long live the High Street!
16 mei 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
I’d put zero stars if possible
I’d put zero stars if possible.
Slow as can be (blamed bank holiday over a week after bank holiday). Not all emails responded to and order eventually delivered with main item missing. Customer service says right thing but not backed up satisfactory action. More waiting and time taken chasing up than worth it. Wont order from them again
16 mei 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
C&W Canterbury: a real gem
The C&W store in Canterbury is a real gem. Browsing and shopping for art supplies is always one of life’s great unalloyed pleasures - but the staff here really make it special. Today Emma helped me pick out a set of pens, paper, and other related materials. Bursting with enthusiasm and great ideas, she worked out exactly what I needed and helped put together a perfect present for my son. The whole experience is down to earth, well informed and infused with a great sense of humour (and all without a hint of pretension). Before embarking on any art project this is the ideal place in which first to catch your hare. Thank you!
25 april 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you so much for this thoughtful review. We’re absolutely delighted to hear how much you enjoyed your visit to our Canterbury store.
Emma will be especially pleased to read your kind words, she truly loves helping customers find the right materials, and it’s great to know her enthusiasm and ideas made such a difference in creating the perfect gift for your son.
That’s exactly the experience we aim to provide. Your description of “catching your hare” here really made us smile!
We look forward to seeing you in Store again 😊
Kind regards
Cowling & Wilcox
Delightful store staff Michaela
What a delightful store staff Michaela, at Cowling and Wilcox Canterbury. An Art graduate she is knowledgeable and passionate. The most patient in explaining product features, price and quality differences. Thanks Michaela 🙂👍💯
11 april 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for taking the time to feedback!
We’re thrilled to hear about your positive experience with Michaela at our Canterbury store.
We’ll be sure to pass along your lovely comments to Michaela who will be delighted to hear them. We look forward to welcoming you back again soon! 🙂
Kind regards
Cowling & Wilcox
I recently bought a bumper pack of…
I recently bought a bumper pack of brushes, and a "go-to" watercolour brush from the Shoreditch branch,and am very pleased with what I got.
Would recommend shopping there, fabulous selection of art materials and friendly service. Satisfied customer.
29 maart 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for your kind comments!
We’re delighted to hear that you’re enjoying your bumper pack of brushes, it sounds like they’ve found a great home 😊
It’s nice to know you had a positive experience in our Shoreditch branch, I will pass your feedback along to the Store who I know will also be appreciative of you taking the time to feedback.
We hope to see you back again soon. Happy painting!
Canvas
I ordered a canvas online unfortunately it had a couple of things wrong with it, however Megan was absolutely brilliant, she checked on stock for another one and sadly there were none so did a refund straightaway, her emails were lovely and professional and it was all sorted within a few days, great customer service thank you :-)
10 maart 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you so much for your lovely review.
We're really sorry that the canvas arrived with issues, but we're happy to hear that Megan was able to help resolve things quickly for you.
We hope you do use us again in future, whether that be more canvas or any other art materials you need!
Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you, Michela - Canterbury store
Michela in the Canterbury store was friendly, easy to talk to and very helpful in advising me, as a beginner using pastels.
Thank you, Michela
27 februari 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for taking the time to feed back!
Your comments were passed along to Canterbury who were very pleased you enjoyed your visit and that Michela was able to assist with your pastels! We hope you have lots of fun exploring and creating with them. If you ever need more tips or supplies, we’d love to see you again in the Canterbury store.
Cowling & Wilcox
Cowling and Wilcox Canterbury
Visited the Canterbury Store as a new to art customer and Luke couldn’t have been more helpful and knowledgable would definitely recommend. He spent time explaining my various options and answered every question I had thanks so much
29 januari 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you so much for the lovely review! We’re really glad you had a great experience at our Canterbury store. Luke will be thrilled to hear your kind words as well.
Thanks again for the recommendation, and we hope to see you back soon 😊
Cowling & Wilcox
Easy to use website
Easy to use website. Great selection of products at reasonable prices. Ordered was delivered swiftly. Highly recommended
23 januari 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you so much for your kind feedback! 😊 We’re really happy to hear you found our website easy to use and found what you needed. Thanks for the recommendation, we truly appreciate your support and hope to see you again soon.
Kind regards
Cowling & Wilcox
Disappointing
Order made on Tuesday, told 2-5 working days
Rang Friday to check the status of delivery. Told it hadn’t been dispatched so expect it on Monday.
Rang Monday and was told it was out of stock and their system shouldn’t have even allowed me to order it! Very nice lady dealt with me, extremely apologetic, offering a full refund - but unfortunately no item!
I always try to use local or small companies as I don’t like using Amazon unless it’s urgent but unfortunately I had to on this occasion and received one the next day !
19 januari 2026
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for taking the time to feed back.
Unfortunately, we have been experiencing an issue with this particular product, which has affected a small number of orders, including your own. All impacted customers have now been contacted and informed of the situation.
It appears that our system incorrectly indicated that stock was available when it was not physically in our warehouse. Rather than allowing us to adjust the stock levels accordingly, this error caused certain orders to become stuck in a processing loop.
I sincerely apologise that you were advised your order would arrive on Monday. I am unsure why this information was provided, as the order was not out for delivery at that time. It is possible there was some confusion and it was assumed the order would be dispatched on Monday, which would have been a reasonable assumption, but this was clearly not communicated accurately.
We do not want any customer to be left with a negative experience, and we fully acknowledge that we let you down on this occasion. I can confirm that the stock issue has now been corrected, and if you were willing to give us another opportunity, we would do everything possible to ensure a much better experience.
If you did want to give us a second chance, we'd also be happy to offer a 10% disocunt on your purchase regardless of the order value.
I lost £14 and hours of my life with this seller
I bought some fixative spray from Cowling and Wilcox via Amazon. It was very late to arrive, and when it did, it was wrapped in shabby, ill-fitting packaging - which meant the nozzle was smashed. When I tried to return it, Cowling and Wilcox told me I had to fund the return. They sent me a 'hazardous' materials sticker to put on the package (which incidentally, they did not attach to their parcel which they sent me). When I took the parcel back to the Post Office I was told that I would have to pay for a specialist courier to send the fixative back. Now I am stuck with a broken can, and have lost hours of my time and £14. And they sent the wrong can! I would avoid this seller at all costs.
1 december 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for taking the time to feed this back to us.
We certainly do not want customers to experience issues with actioning a return whether that be through our own site or Amazon/eBay. I will speak to my team and look at the Amazon return policy to ensure this is the simplest procedure possible and investigate sending back hazardous items.
There can be hazard issues with fixatives as well as other spray cans as they are marked as flammable by couriers but there should still be a return process in place to assist with this.
We really want to help resolve this so if you can please contact us with your Amazon reference, we can provide a free return label that will work and issue a refund for the damaged item, or a replacement if you prefer?
Our contact is admin@cowlings.com
Kind regards
Cowling&Wilcox
Very very slow delivery despite best efforts of their customer service dept
5th NOV. 2nd EDIT. Oh dear, another fail. As a couple of items were out of stock, the ever helpful Megan agreed to send my order in 2 batches by 24hr Royal Mail, so I wouldn't have to wait for my whole order for the sake of the out of stock items. The first part of my order was despatched as promised, although it didnt quite make it within 24 hrs (not Cowling and Wilcox's fault). Then, yesterday I got notification that the 2nd part of my order was being delivered (we can only hope it is )by EVRI. I am beginning to wonder if I'll get it by Christmas at this rate!
Also of the four tubes of paint I have received, one tube was dented at the top and had leaked oil. Initially I thought this had occurred during transit, but on reflection I am not so sure, as the other tubes closely packed right alongside it are absolutely perfect)
So one star removed due to failures in the despatch dept.
Despite Megan's best efforts she is being let down by this organisation.
28/10 EDIT to update and add a star.
I emailed customer service who responded within less than 24hrs. They put a ticket and chase onto EVRI. Megan, C&W's excellent customer service advisor also asked me to advise her if the goods had not arrived by 30th . It didnt, and was still showing as in EVRI's depot since 23rd , so I replied to Megan to let her know. Megan has been terrific - she offered to send order again via next day Royal Mail or I could have a full refund. I opted for the order to be sent again, and within the hour Megan advised she had requested it be sent out today, and seconds later I had confirmation from their despatch dept.
Megan has been the most helpful customer services assistant I have come across in a long time -she has restored my trust in C&W - deserves a bonus or a raise, if her employers are reading this - Megan has saved you from losing a new customer. No mean feat when in my original review I had already decided to go elsewhere! Because of Megan alone, I have added a star to my rating - you can call it Megan's Star! If C&W use Royal Mail and ditch EVRI they would undoubtedly get a fourth star added.
This was my original 2 Star Review -
Ordered on 16th, not despatched until 21st (so much for the promise of aiming to despatch within 24 hrs, occasionally at most 1 - 2 days!) and has been sat in EVRI depot since - it is now midnight on 27th. So 11 days since order placed! It would have reached me quicker by pony and cart!
I regret placing a 2nd order with this company, so have chosen another supplier and have already placed more business with them.
28 oktober 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for taking the time to feed back.
Firstly, we do sincerely apologise for any delays caused on our side relating to your delivery. We do always aim to dispatch orders as promptly as possible but clearly we let you down on this occasion.
If you'd be able to provide me with a name or order reference, I'll be happy to investigate the delivery with Evri and assist with getting this to you as soon as possible.
Our email is admin@cowlings.com
Kind regards
Cowling & Wilcox Team
Made me pay an extra £5 for…
Made me pay an extra £5 for delivery???? And they let me know this days AFTER i purchased it
2 oktober 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback.
We’re sorry if the surcharge request came as a surprise. This charge is applied by our couriers when delivering orders of certain sizes or weights to specific postcodes, and unfortunately, it's not something we’re able to override.
As the surcharge depends on the final size, weight, and destination of the order, as well as the courier selected, we’re only able to calculate it once the order has been placed. This is why it’s not shown at checkout and is instead assessed manually by our team.
Your order was placed on the 29th and my colleague contacted you on the 30th to advise of the charge and how to proceed.
For full transparency, all details about potential surcharges are available on our Delivery Information page, which you can find linked at the bottom of our website.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to our customer service on admin@cowlings.com
Tardy delivery
I’m only leaving a poor review for Cowling & Wilcox as this is the second time I’ve experienced slow shipping. I had placed the order Tuesday lunchtime and despite saying most orders are despatched within 24 hours. My order wasn’t sent out until last thing Thursday. This means I am not due to receive the order until Monday, nearly a week after ordering. It was a small order of items all in stock and the shipping charge of £4.50 should have ensured a quicker turnaround in my view. Luckily I no longer require any more of their branded Marker wallets, so I can go back to using Art Discount, who sell their Promarkers at a lower price and send orders out more quickly - get your act together!
23 september 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for taking the time to review us and I'm so sorry you feel we let you down with our shipping. On regular orders which are not Next Day, we aim to ship within 1-3 days as we mention in our Delivery Info page. Normally, most orders are despatched within 24 hours. Unfortunately, on this occasion we took 2 days. So, not bad but not as quick as would like so sorry about that. I'm not sure you should have really mentioned one of our competitors in your review because we can't respond fairly to that as we don't have the full picture.
We're about to introduce a new Letterboxable service which will cost less than our standard £4.50 for smaller items such as marker pens. These will be expedited as they're easy to pack and so our shipping times should improve further.
Once again, thanks for your review. We always welcome all reviews to see when we can improve.
Dreadful company product I bought was substantially…
The product I bought was substantially substandard !!! And the Management at Cowling and Wilcox did not care at all …
I bought a large 90x70 cm canvas from their store in Canterbury.
They have signs in the shop saying these sizes may not be correct! Which in my case they were not as they were a couple of mm out !
That was not my problem!
My problem was the frame was twisted and it was only noticed when my framer put it in a try frame !!! It was 15mm out !!!
They were not in the least bothered and said what did I expect from their frames as they came from China and were geared towards student use !!!!!
Why should students work be undervalued?
As for myself I used this canvas in good faith and completed work that was to be framed and hung in a gallery!!
They did not care
I had to pay for the frame made to fit the sizes which was £150 and the salvage my work I had a further payment of £210 to make a special frame to accommodate the fault correctly !!
Either that or scrap my work.
I am furious with the “ sloppy shoulder “ attitude of the management!
These canvases should be checked for any unseen visible twists … it is unfair to sell any artist… substandard products whether they are a student or accomplished like myself !!!
I will never ever support this business again ever !!!!!!!!!!!!
31 juli 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
I have to totally disagree with you. We cared an awful lot. At one time, there were 7 of our team trying to help you out but you simply won't take "no" for an answer. We've offered to replace your canvas numerous times and help you choose another canvas. However, you seem to think it's fine to take no responsibility at all for your own actions. We take our business very seriously and do our best to check all products which we put out on display and send out online. However, we're only human as are our Suppliers and faulty products do sneak through the checks. This could have happened with any of our products, eg. brushes, paints, etc. and in this situation I'm afraid we rely on our customers to check if the product is fit for purpose and if not we will happily replace the product and apologise. However, you unfortunately went many steps further. You didn't check the canvas before not just starting but completing your painting for a gallery no less. You then took it to a framer who presumably finally noticed the issue with the canvas. All of this could have been avoided if you'd spent a little bit of time just making sure all of your tools were as expected especially considering how serious this piece of work was.
All of our canvases are of a very decent quality and we're very happy to put our name to them but their excellent price may give you a clue that they are mass-produced and so may need a little attention at times. If the work is very important like a commission we would always advise to invest in the best. This is true for all aspects of the job, eg. paints.
As I said, I can assure you we took your issue very seriously but I'm afraid I think you were being unfair expecting us to pay for the work needed to fix your project considering how far down the road you’d gone.
I, also, was pretty shocked that you wish us so much ill will and have been so rude to my staff suggesting you hope we go out of business and are replaced by a bubble tea shop.
Not very nice to have to listen to this as a family business who've been doing our best to keep our customers happy for over 60 years.
Ultimately, I have to protect my staff from your barrage of abuse.
I hope you can see our point of view and, of course, our offer to replace/refund your canvas is still very much available.
Kind regards
Guy Cowling
Great service
I’ve purchased more than one order from Cowling and Wilcox and can’t fault them. They’re one of the only places I’ve been able to find individual colour pencils of the type I wanted and have always delivered quickly and securely with the pencils packaged well rather than sent loose. I’ve also ordered soft pastels with an equally smooth delivery.
Will definitely place further orders in the future.
Thank you
21 juni 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for your feedback!
We're so pleased that to hear that you've had such positive experiences with us and that you've been able to find the specific pencils and soft pastels you were looking for.
It's great to know that our packaging has kept your orders safe as we always strive to ensure materials arrive in perfect condition.
We truly appreciate your loyalty and look forward to serving you again in the future. Happy creating!
Kind regards,
Cowling & Wilcox
I had great service from Luke in the…
I had great service from Luke in the Canterbury shop. He was so nice and helpful on the phone that I drove straight over (35mins) to buy very many canvases in the sale.. he was so enthusiastic and it matched my excitement of getting such a good sale. He also helped me get them in the car.
11 augustus 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for your lovely review!
We're happy to hear that Luke made such a positive impression — it’s wonderful that his enthusiasm and helpfulness made your visit worthwhile. We’ll be sure to pass on your kind words to him!
Hope to see you again soon, and happy creating with all those canvases! 🎨
Kind regards
Cowling & Wilcox
Brilliant service and advice from Lily…
Brilliant service and advice from Lily and Summer last weekend at the canterbury shop.
I love to go to this shop and travel from far to get there as they always have such great choice and always provide such nice service and advice.
Simply Love it!
Will be back again.
Thank you
9 augustus 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you so much for your review!
We’re thrilled to hear that Lily and Summer provided you with such brilliant service and advice during your visit to our Canterbury shop.
It means a lot to us that you travel from afar to shop with us and we can't wait to welcome you back again soon.
Thank you again for your continued support!
Cowling & Wilcox
Expert art advice/guidance from Jack
St George's St, Canterbury branch is my go-to art shop because I always receive specific help in choosing the correct art equipment for me. There is no up-selling just to get a sale. Today I was served by Jack who gave me such a clear explanation about how a 'master study' is a useful teaching strategy. You can't look that up yourself if you don't know the term. Excellent!
30 mei 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for your feedback.
We're happy to hear that the Canterbury continues to be your go-to art shop and that Jack was able to provide the support you needed. I will be sure to pass your comments along to Jack and the team!
We hope to see you again soon 😊
Cowling & Wilcox
Excellent service
First-class service from Michela, Jack & Janey. Many thanks.
27 februari 2025
Review zonder uitnodiging
Antwoord van Cowling & Wilcox
Thank you for your feedback.
We're so pleased you enjoyed your visit to Store and I know Janey and the team really value their customer service so will be equally as pleased when I share this with them! We look forward to seeing you again.
Kind regards
Cowling & Wilcox
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