Here is irony for you

[Like The Woods!]

Many moons ago - well before da box stores, and business open on Sunday - I spent 5 years working in a real hardware store. Oiled floor and all. The owner felt that he had a responsibility to help people out. Didn't matter what hour or day it was. Small town. Only hardware store. People would call him up, usually for good reasons, eg. water pump on the fritz, and he would take care of them. This attitude did filter down to the employees. His was the only place for miles that you could buy that item, but he treated people like there was another hardware store next door.

I usually opened up at 7. Normally got there at 6;30, and it never did seem a burden to help the guy with an emergency that was there waiting for me. It would be the same at closing time.

I shall never forget....that blizzard. No one around town at all. Boss told us to go home around 2:00, while we could still get home. He said that he would stay open "in case someone needed something".

He used to tell me of the ole days, when his father ran the store. All the mills etc. used to pay on Saturdays. Then the people would go to town and make their purchases. His father had no set hour to close on Sat. He would stay till customers stopped. Then he and the "boys", would go upstairs and play cards at 9/10:00.

Wow, it brings a smile to my lips to think about this old fashioned store and attitudes.

 

[M.R.]

"Wow, it brings a smile to my lips to think about this old fashioned store and attitudes."

Something I miss is the lack of respect/value people have for money now days--

What you hardly ever see anymore, having made a purchase is the owner/teller counting your money back to you in a proper manner. :bang:

 

[Like The Woods!]

"What you hardly ever see anymore, having made a purchase is the owner/teller counting your money back to you in a proper manner."

Agree with you. They are never taught. It is pitiful to watch the "cashier" try to figure out what your change is, much less count it back to you. :bang: I have experienced this a couple of times when the cash register was broke down. Felt like slapping the cashier upside the head.

 

[AJLOGGER]

Well All I can say is it's not Stihl's fault. I have two Stihl dealerships in my area. One not so good the other is great. I called the good one the other day to get prices on parts. He called me right back and gave me the prices and said he could hang out untill I got there AFTER CLOSING TIME. It goes with all brands, human beings are running the shop.

 

[norma]

Whew! didn't mean to open a can o worms. Just to clear a few things up, I know more than a little about customer service, as an OEM rep for CNC machining equipment I can tell you, calls come in at strange times. Even the ones that call at 2 am get answered, I don't like it and ask the customer to not call at that time any more, but the call is answered. My job is also why I tend to show up at the last minuite, in the first instance I had been trying for over a month to go there but airline schedules would not allow it. My timing may be a PITA but you will not catch me trying to talk your price down ie I will pay for service.
Will I go back there? Probably, but it isn't my first choise for a dealership anymore. The dolmar dealer is defanitley more customer orientated, guess because they need to try still.
And for all you shop owners out there, congradulation on having a sucessfull buisness, they are a lot of hard work to run sucessfully.

 

[Ed in Maine]

It seems like nowadays, with the internet and forums like this, there is not need for window shopping. Put up a few posts, visits the manuf web sites, call the dealer and get a ballpark price and arrange a good time to check it out. Then stop by, if it feels good, firm up the price, and buy it!

Same method applies to everything: cars, saws, computers, cell phones, etc...
But then again, I am an engineer and may be a tad anal on the online research part.

Ed