Phone: 817-371-6030
Shipping Info:
Items are usually shipped via United Parcel Service (UPS) or Priority US Mail. Stage illusions are shipped FOB (meaning you pay the trucking company direct when your illusion arrives). We do not ship COD. $10.00 MINIMUM ORDER PLEASE SHIPPING IS CALCULATED AS FOLLOWS: $10.00 to $25.00, $4.00 shipping $25.01 to $50.00, $6.00 sipping $50.01 to $100, $8.00 shipping $100.01 and over, $1.00 per $10
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I can not give enough praise to Bruce Chadwick. You want to talk about friendly, knowledgeable, and generous? In a magic market full of con artist dealers, the way he does business is refreshing. Next time you're in the market for something to add to your collection, you will be well served putting him on your trusted list.
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I've waited awhile, before posting this review. I consider what good a critical review would do, and likewise, how many people actually read these reviews.
Ultimately, in the rare case of a negative experience with any business, I do think it may be helpful to other potential customers to NOT experience what I did, by sharing my experience. I've little interest in slander or sensationalism-just a simple 'heads up-proceed with caution', is enough for me. Such is the case with a recent dealing with Bronson Chadwick's Illusion Warehouse.
The site of I.W. shows many standard effects, at prices a bit higher than I know I could get elsewhere. What caught my eye, were the retro graphics depicting items, some of which are 'forgotten classics' now available again. As with other sites I order from, I kept my first order small. I see how the service is, before investing in anything pricier. In short, I dropped ten dollars on an order that took I.W. about 2 1/2 months to finally fullfill. My dealings with them were so tedious, complete with intelligence insulting lies about the status of my order, that I don't even want to list all of it here. I will say that I made 3 phone calls, then there were 2-3 emails; no reply. These were all spaced over weeks, as I don't care to pester anyone. Finally, I sat down and hand wrote Bronson Chadwick a letter, including words about a lame phone person who was clearly jerking me around. In this same letter, I touched upon the issue of mail fraud, and clearly stated that I would treat this as such a case, should I not receive word from them. No reply.
A fourth phone call. Bronson himself picked up, and I learned that HE was the lame person I complained about in the letter. He apologized for lying to me, (duuhh), and referred to a 'mess' he was having to deal with. It was after this revelation that I finally received my order.
Going back and researching the place, I realized that Illusion Warehouse was started by BRUCE CHADWICK, a veteran performer, who sold it to his son, BRONSON, several years ago. So, Bronson the younger was in college, when he took over the keys to the 4,000 square foot show room, in Fort Worth Texas. This began to make sense, as how my transaction was handled wreaked of adolescent lameness. Like a kid blowin' something off, lyin' about it, no sense of consequences...until the cops show up. I was actually embarrassed for this kid, but, not so much that I'm willing to keep the experience quiet. A salesman named 'Chris' related many complaints being registered by customers, for likewise, paying for merchandise they never received. I wondered if Chadwick the younger might be taking an elective on the life and times of Jeff Busby?!
Whatever the problem was there, it was clear that Bronson is still a kid-perhaps a 'wunderkind' who could NOT know what it's like to build a business up, and maintain it the way his father did. Word does get out when you provide bad to lame customer service, and while people might be understanding of delays, or out of stock issues...NO ONE has tolerance for being lied to, blown off, ignored, thus being moved to file complaints with mail/internet fraud agencies which DO include the F.B.I..
Final words: Visit the Illusion warehouse if you're in Fort Worth. It's probably a fine place to shop so long as you are PHYSICALLY there. Mail order? - Good luck with that.
Ultimately, in the rare case of a negative experience with any business, I do think it may be helpful to other potential customers to NOT experience what I did, by sharing my experience. I've little interest in slander or sensationalism-just a simple 'heads up-proceed with caution', is enough for me. Such is the case with a recent dealing with Bronson Chadwick's Illusion Warehouse.
The site of I.W. shows many standard effects, at prices a bit higher than I know I could get elsewhere. What caught my eye, were the retro graphics depicting items, some of which are 'forgotten classics' now available again. As with other sites I order from, I kept my first order small. I see how the service is, before investing in anything pricier. In short, I dropped ten dollars on an order that took I.W. about 2 1/2 months to finally fullfill. My dealings with them were so tedious, complete with intelligence insulting lies about the status of my order, that I don't even want to list all of it here. I will say that I made 3 phone calls, then there were 2-3 emails; no reply. These were all spaced over weeks, as I don't care to pester anyone. Finally, I sat down and hand wrote Bronson Chadwick a letter, including words about a lame phone person who was clearly jerking me around. In this same letter, I touched upon the issue of mail fraud, and clearly stated that I would treat this as such a case, should I not receive word from them. No reply.
A fourth phone call. Bronson himself picked up, and I learned that HE was the lame person I complained about in the letter. He apologized for lying to me, (duuhh), and referred to a 'mess' he was having to deal with. It was after this revelation that I finally received my order.
Going back and researching the place, I realized that Illusion Warehouse was started by BRUCE CHADWICK, a veteran performer, who sold it to his son, BRONSON, several years ago. So, Bronson the younger was in college, when he took over the keys to the 4,000 square foot show room, in Fort Worth Texas. This began to make sense, as how my transaction was handled wreaked of adolescent lameness. Like a kid blowin' something off, lyin' about it, no sense of consequences...until the cops show up. I was actually embarrassed for this kid, but, not so much that I'm willing to keep the experience quiet. A salesman named 'Chris' related many complaints being registered by customers, for likewise, paying for merchandise they never received. I wondered if Chadwick the younger might be taking an elective on the life and times of Jeff Busby?!
Whatever the problem was there, it was clear that Bronson is still a kid-perhaps a 'wunderkind' who could NOT know what it's like to build a business up, and maintain it the way his father did. Word does get out when you provide bad to lame customer service, and while people might be understanding of delays, or out of stock issues...NO ONE has tolerance for being lied to, blown off, ignored, thus being moved to file complaints with mail/internet fraud agencies which DO include the F.B.I..
Final words: Visit the Illusion warehouse if you're in Fort Worth. It's probably a fine place to shop so long as you are PHYSICALLY there. Mail order? - Good luck with that.
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A STORY ABOUT BRONSON CHADWICK’S ILLUSION WAREHOUSE
Well, here I am, back in the magic dealer business again. My name is Bruce Chadwick. Many of you know me as an illusion builder. I purchased a 4000 square foot stand alone commercial building in Fort Worth, Texas back in the late 1990’s, right before receiving a substantial illusion order from Warner Brothers, Germany.
For the first couple of years of operation, the building’s sole use was to warehouse our illusion show, provide workshop space, and give us much needed space to fabricate and display stage illusions. Before that I started the illusion fabrication business in a small workshop I built behind our home. After a couple of years in the new building, we remodeled the front of the building and started a small magic store. We couldn’t think of a better name and so we named it “Magic by Bruce Chadwick – Illusion Warehouse.”
The store had little magic stock in the beginning. I was not one to go out and buy a bunch of stuff with high credit card interest. So we started small, selling one item, and then with the profit buying two. That’s how inventory grows, you know. After almost three years of taking virtually no profit from the small store, we woke up one day and realized we had a very well stocked magic store with over 800 different magic items!
Shortly after that, we started the website www.illusionwarehouse.com. From the beginning my goal was to do everything right. As a kid, I remember the turmoil of having to save up my money and order magic by the US Mail. Usually I was very pleased with my purchases, but sometimes I was “taken” too. So my goal in running the store was to carry only items that I felt were good quality, and items that I would be proud to own myself. Also as a Christian person, I bind myself with the ethic to treat everyone with respect and dignity, be true to my word, and to do my very best with ever aspect of dealing with other people.
The store tooled along for over a decade. With the illusion fabrication business (see www.ChadwickIllusionFabrications.com) and my work as a pro magician (www.BruceChadwick.com) , it wasn’t necessary to take a lot of money out of the magic store. Eventually however, it began to pay a few of the bills.
My son Bronson was born in 1990. He grew up with magic and loves the art very much. He has since evolved into being a very good performer. Not quite as good as his old man you understand, but never-the-less proficient as an entertainerI never pushed him toward magic, but he gravitated that way anyway. And so the moment he graduated from high school in June of 2008, he wanted (begged) to run the magic store. I let him sort of manage it for a few months. After all he already had a lot of experience working behind the counter during the summer months while in high school.
I finally “gave in” to my son. I decided to call retail magic sales quits and just continue solely with the illusion fabrication business. Magic by Bruce Chadwick – Illusion Warehouse officially went out of business in December of 2008. I sold the existing inventory to my son for one dollar and on January first of 2009, Bronson Chadwick’s Illusion Warehouse went into business. It is important to understand that Bronson did not “take over” the Illusion Warehouse store. Rather I went out of the retail store business and he opened the next day as a brand new business.
I would like to say his new business went smoothly, but there is a lot to running a business, and especially with the challenges of the recession. Bronson acknowledged but I don’t think really understood that most magic is marked up only about 40%. So if an item is purchased wholesale for $15, you sell it for $25 retail. Bronson never seemed to be able to set aside the $15 to replace the item he sold however. Also I don’t think he ever understood the importance of taking the $10 “profit” and paying his other overhead such as insurance, the phone bill, electricity, bank and merchant account charges, and so forth. So out of the $10 “profit” came these expenses. When the day ended, it is sobering to realize that a magic dealer can only put into his wallet $3 to $4 out of a $25 sale! I am exaggerating a bit by saying that Bronson’s attitude was “Wow! $25! Let’s go out and eat and go to the movies!”
Throughout 2009, Bronson sold from the store and replaced very little of the stock. By the end of the year, the store stock on the shelves was becoming quite thin. He was beginning to realize the adage that you can’t sell out of an empty wagon! Also during this same year, my wife Cindy lost her job at Lockheed and found a job in Houston. So we (my wife and I) moved 300 miles south from the Fort Worth area to Houston. This left Bronson to run his business on his own. Bronson lasted through the end of December 2009, and then things really go rough. He began to falter on his bills and couldn’t meet his expenses. The magic wholesale companies began to shut off his credit due to delinquency. Utilities and phones were shut off periodically, and his business was on life support.
Long story short, in July of 2010, Bronson Chadwick’s Illusion Warehouse went bankrupt. He has since moved from Texas to North Carolina to pursue non-magic dealer avenues.
What is the status of www.IllusionWarehouse.com? Upon Bronson’s departure, I took back the website and now run it as a virtual magic store. The storefront in Fort Worth remains closed to retail store customers, but we own the building outright. The building still gives our company illusion fabrication studios, a place to store our magic shows, and a place to stock merchandise for our virtual magic store.
So www.IllusionWarehouse.com is alive and well. We now list close to 1200 items and that list grows daily. Know that when you deal with this “new” website, you will be dealing with “Chadwick Senior” who has over 44 years experience in magic, and about 30 of that as a magic dealer. We carry a lot of magic and it is priced competitively. So if you need a magic store that will deal with you properly, with fairness, and dignity, give us a shot. If you are not happy with any purchase, we will work with you until you are happy.
I love the art of magic and magicians are my friends. I have never had a “real job” all my life. Of course I have never gotten rich, but I am rich with magic friends. The Illusion Warehouse name will endure, just with a slightly different twist now under new (old) ownership. And yes, we are still thinking about opening a retail storefront here in Houston. Lord help us all.
Bruce Chadwick
Well, here I am, back in the magic dealer business again. My name is Bruce Chadwick. Many of you know me as an illusion builder. I purchased a 4000 square foot stand alone commercial building in Fort Worth, Texas back in the late 1990’s, right before receiving a substantial illusion order from Warner Brothers, Germany.
For the first couple of years of operation, the building’s sole use was to warehouse our illusion show, provide workshop space, and give us much needed space to fabricate and display stage illusions. Before that I started the illusion fabrication business in a small workshop I built behind our home. After a couple of years in the new building, we remodeled the front of the building and started a small magic store. We couldn’t think of a better name and so we named it “Magic by Bruce Chadwick – Illusion Warehouse.”
The store had little magic stock in the beginning. I was not one to go out and buy a bunch of stuff with high credit card interest. So we started small, selling one item, and then with the profit buying two. That’s how inventory grows, you know. After almost three years of taking virtually no profit from the small store, we woke up one day and realized we had a very well stocked magic store with over 800 different magic items!
Shortly after that, we started the website www.illusionwarehouse.com. From the beginning my goal was to do everything right. As a kid, I remember the turmoil of having to save up my money and order magic by the US Mail. Usually I was very pleased with my purchases, but sometimes I was “taken” too. So my goal in running the store was to carry only items that I felt were good quality, and items that I would be proud to own myself. Also as a Christian person, I bind myself with the ethic to treat everyone with respect and dignity, be true to my word, and to do my very best with ever aspect of dealing with other people.
The store tooled along for over a decade. With the illusion fabrication business (see www.ChadwickIllusionFabrications.com) and my work as a pro magician (www.BruceChadwick.com) , it wasn’t necessary to take a lot of money out of the magic store. Eventually however, it began to pay a few of the bills.
My son Bronson was born in 1990. He grew up with magic and loves the art very much. He has since evolved into being a very good performer. Not quite as good as his old man you understand, but never-the-less proficient as an entertainerI never pushed him toward magic, but he gravitated that way anyway. And so the moment he graduated from high school in June of 2008, he wanted (begged) to run the magic store. I let him sort of manage it for a few months. After all he already had a lot of experience working behind the counter during the summer months while in high school.
I finally “gave in” to my son. I decided to call retail magic sales quits and just continue solely with the illusion fabrication business. Magic by Bruce Chadwick – Illusion Warehouse officially went out of business in December of 2008. I sold the existing inventory to my son for one dollar and on January first of 2009, Bronson Chadwick’s Illusion Warehouse went into business. It is important to understand that Bronson did not “take over” the Illusion Warehouse store. Rather I went out of the retail store business and he opened the next day as a brand new business.
I would like to say his new business went smoothly, but there is a lot to running a business, and especially with the challenges of the recession. Bronson acknowledged but I don’t think really understood that most magic is marked up only about 40%. So if an item is purchased wholesale for $15, you sell it for $25 retail. Bronson never seemed to be able to set aside the $15 to replace the item he sold however. Also I don’t think he ever understood the importance of taking the $10 “profit” and paying his other overhead such as insurance, the phone bill, electricity, bank and merchant account charges, and so forth. So out of the $10 “profit” came these expenses. When the day ended, it is sobering to realize that a magic dealer can only put into his wallet $3 to $4 out of a $25 sale! I am exaggerating a bit by saying that Bronson’s attitude was “Wow! $25! Let’s go out and eat and go to the movies!”
Throughout 2009, Bronson sold from the store and replaced very little of the stock. By the end of the year, the store stock on the shelves was becoming quite thin. He was beginning to realize the adage that you can’t sell out of an empty wagon! Also during this same year, my wife Cindy lost her job at Lockheed and found a job in Houston. So we (my wife and I) moved 300 miles south from the Fort Worth area to Houston. This left Bronson to run his business on his own. Bronson lasted through the end of December 2009, and then things really go rough. He began to falter on his bills and couldn’t meet his expenses. The magic wholesale companies began to shut off his credit due to delinquency. Utilities and phones were shut off periodically, and his business was on life support.
Long story short, in July of 2010, Bronson Chadwick’s Illusion Warehouse went bankrupt. He has since moved from Texas to North Carolina to pursue non-magic dealer avenues.
What is the status of www.IllusionWarehouse.com? Upon Bronson’s departure, I took back the website and now run it as a virtual magic store. The storefront in Fort Worth remains closed to retail store customers, but we own the building outright. The building still gives our company illusion fabrication studios, a place to store our magic shows, and a place to stock merchandise for our virtual magic store.
So www.IllusionWarehouse.com is alive and well. We now list close to 1200 items and that list grows daily. Know that when you deal with this “new” website, you will be dealing with “Chadwick Senior” who has over 44 years experience in magic, and about 30 of that as a magic dealer. We carry a lot of magic and it is priced competitively. So if you need a magic store that will deal with you properly, with fairness, and dignity, give us a shot. If you are not happy with any purchase, we will work with you until you are happy.
I love the art of magic and magicians are my friends. I have never had a “real job” all my life. Of course I have never gotten rich, but I am rich with magic friends. The Illusion Warehouse name will endure, just with a slightly different twist now under new (old) ownership. And yes, we are still thinking about opening a retail storefront here in Houston. Lord help us all.
Bruce Chadwick