Terrible attitude in your local model shop?

[wildoliver]

Just a quick question, what is your local model shop like?

I only ask because after a really long break from modelling, there were always good and bad of course, but pre internet there were lots of little aladdins cave type model shops, usually with an old man running it with boxes and boxes of what can only be described as useless C**p under the counter, as well as a selection of models etc.

Now all that seems to exist (round here at least) is clean fresh looking shops, filled mostly with toys, air rifles (I do shoot too but I don't want to go to a model shop to buy shooting equipment) plastic junk and a few models. Oh and rude staff.

Allow me to elaborate.

Trying to get back in to things cheaply I'm building a car up out of bits basically, intention of running it a few times, see if I want to get back in to the hobby or if it is a passing phase, if I want to get back in to it I'll buy a proper model probably a losi and go from there. So I have a collection of mardave/schumacher/losi parts and bolt them up and I have a car, only thing I'm lacking is a pair of fairly long turnbuckles for the steering, as the original ones from the front suspension are no longer long enough due to a chassis change.

1st stop Bridlington. Usual reception is only describable as apathy, but he's ok, no turnbuckles in stock for any car, so I buy some piano wire to make a pair of temp ones up.

Yesterday 2nd stop. "A small model shop in scarborough". Walk in greeted by a smile! Hi have you got any steering turnbuckles at all? What car is it for? It doesn't really matter said I, it's for a hybrid so anything really........here comes the beauty. "Oh that means I have to look through all the boxes though to find you some" at this point she became openly hostile and couldn't be bothered to do the most basic of jobs. I'm not asking a lot for goodness sake, I'm trying to buy something here, all I want is a bit of professionalism. Eventually her attitude becomes offensive and I realise she doesn't have the faintest idea what she's looking for so say don't worry I'll go to the other model shop.

Stop 3. Walk in better this time, much bigger shop although most of it is filled with toys and games, find almost what would do the job on display! They have rod in steel or brass and m3 slip on ends that I could solder/braize or weld on. Thinking if worse case happens I could buy some of that I'll go and ask if they have turnbuckles go to counter, young girl and older man, man serving so ask girl, she I must say was brilliant, friendly and helpful, says she doesn't know and to ask the chap, he becomes free and proceeds to deride me, comes out with comments like well I can't find them unless you know what car they are for. I tell him there is no car it is made of bits, he basically shrugs his shoulders and refuses to help????? I'm trying to buy something here ffs!

So what do I do now? The answer I go on to modelsports website or even better ebay, I look up turnbuckles on ebay and guess what there is dozens, from about 99p. I can see from the pictures ones about the right size (it isn't even delicate engineering this I can play with about half an inch adjustment.

So end result local model shop loses out this time on a small sale to the internet. When I come to buy another car they will lose out on that too, if any friends or family want anything similar they will be advised to keep away from these two shops, and eventually they will probably go bump citing the internet as the reason they can't survive.

Simple fact of life, people will pay inflated prices to buy from a person, provided that person is helpful, knowledgeable and friendly. They won't pay through the nose to be insulted, sneered at and generally receive rude unnaceptable treatment. My business wouldn't survive if I was rude, it infuriates me that people think they can get away with it. I hope the owners of said shops read this post actually. And for the record I wouldn't excuse it but could understand if I was a 15 year old spotty chav in a tracksuit, but I'm late twenties and was smartly dressed and polite.

[purpletimbo]

I would hazard a guess that the shop with the woman who was so helpful, maybe has a sister one in York as well?
If so I have dealt with her myself. Do you sell nitro fuel? It is for a .12 Kyosho engine. Bearing in mind, my last car was a Tamiya Cheetah, when they were current first time round, and I had just been donated an Alpha 3 new built but with no instructions.
The last nitro engine I dealt with, came with a propellor and spring start in 1977.
Answer = It's behind those boxes in the back, and I have no idea which you need.
Marvellous.
The only bright side to this is I do make the trek to modelsport in Otley sometimes, and can't really fault them. Handed them a clutch bell for my Zircon, new original they do stock, at nearly £40, off in the back he disappears, comes back with a matching Savage, £13, does the job perfectly, now that will make me go back, and I do order over the internet from them. A little customer service goes a long way.
Incidentally, where are you based, as I bet I have any length of turnbuckle you need in my shed:thumbsup:

[traffman]

This is an extremely interesting thread and currently one very close to my heart at the moment seeing as after 16 years im getting back into electric racing.
My local shop in Falkirk ive known for years is helpful up to a point , very polite but not really into holding every item i require.
I popped into Maplins in the retail park and they didnt have any decent solder with flux or suitable servo type sticky tape.
Now the interesting one a certain model shop in Edinburgh (not Marionville) were most unhelpful when i returned an item that wasnt suitable .
In fact i was moved soo much i wrote a letter stating my disapproval and 4 weeks later ive still had no reply .
I log onto the internet and find everything i require at my fingertips, people say you should support your local hobby shops but if they dont supply what you require no wonder online ordering is the way to go.
Please feel free to defend any of the above shops as this is merely a personal opinion . The Falkirk model shop was the best for customer service though .

[DCM]

Well, there is no harm in some decent customer service, but if you also go in fore armed with a little more knowledge also, like length etc, then that will go a long way. Just like if you went into a car auto-factors and asked for a spark plug, dunno which one I want, just want one for an engine, they will tell you to go away. So you got to be prepared to do a little work too, there are so many different ones out there these days, the guy could be rummaging through for hours.

But Still, there is nothing wrong with good customer service.

re: buying fuel, what would be better, the young woman either being honest and telling you that she don't actually know which one is best, or her selling you something that could possibly be wrong..... or there is a third option, she could of looked in her books or you looked on the web to see the recomendations.

[wildoliver]

Some good comments, re the comment about I should have known what dimensions I needed, I went in with a temporary turnbuckle made up out of a piece of piano wire, and a couple of examples of suitable ends etc. Even said to her if you have any m3 threaded rod that will fit my old ends. As the customer I bent over backwards but it still wasn't enough.

The model shop in question there does have a sister shop. But to be honest she was no worse than the other larger model shop owner.

I have always found modelsport brilliant, I won't say they are the cheapest, but again you don't mind paying a little more if they can sort you a problem out and do it nicely, bear in mind with running around to different shops fuel and parking these turnbuckles probably owe me £15 before even getting my hands on them!

Timbo the dimensions I need are: 2" 3/4 long point to point (taking plastic ends in to account) pretty much any diameter they are only steering swivels on an electric classic buggy, m3 would be perfect, the really thin stuff (m1.5??) from servo linkages is probably too thin likewise some nitro trucks have really thick ones which are a bit overkill.

But if you do have anything then I can pop over I'm only at Driffield, and would happily bung you a few quid.

Oliver

[ashleyb4]

My local model shop is ace. And one of the men who works in there looks like andy pipkic. :p But thre service is defently good.

A

[purpletimbo]

As to the fuel, I did take the engine in question in, and am since armed with vast knowledge from many great forums such as this, but seeing as that was the only member of staff, and the owner, and they sell the model of engine in question fitted to built models, surely someone going in there to pay £100s for the model would expect at least they might know what fuel it took.
After all we all started somewhere.
And if we can sort a suitable day out my stuff is near Selby, so not a long ride out, I am sure in the various bundles I have bought from retiring racers there will be something, I have 1/64 right through to 1/5 and all inbetween:thumbsup:
I reckon tmaxx ones would be about right 115mm or so.
http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l89/purpletimbo/rc%20cars/tmaxxbuckles.jpg

[reg]

Most Model shops are only ever realy good if they have a club that they run,and dont get mixed up with model and hobby shops,most small shops wont stock what you need as they cant afford or even know what the racer will need,
I know the owner of my shop and my mate does some repairs for him,if were not in a hurry we will get him to order stuff,but if we are in a hurry we will use the net,
mark

[rocketrob]

Not trying to hammer you - but I think the point that has been missing in all of this is that you were going into businesses that rely on actual regular customers that buy things on a regular basis to survive.

1-You didn't buy your car from them.
2-You hadn't bought any of your other cobbled together bits and pieces from them.
3-You were looking to spend an infantesimal amount of money.
4-They were likely never to see you again, as they'd never seen you before.
5-You were looking for something that you had very little idea exactly what it was or how long they were.
6-You were wanting them to spend their time locating an odd item in which you had no idea what a proper stock number for it would be.

And thus, you were wanting to send them on a wild goose chase to look for an item of very little value in which you were only willing to spend a small amount of funds to acquire that they in all likelyhood might not have had in the first place.
And you wanted them to jump through hoops just because you were snazzily dressed?

Sorry, but the business world - literally any business - doesn't operate and/or can't survive pandering to customers under those circumstances.

In the future it would be my advice to: purchase a proper kit from a shop and they'll in most likelyhood have your current and future interests in mind relative to helping you acquire pieces and parts (instead of having a hybrid in which they have no gain from its past or future), know EXACTLY what you're looking for including length and/or stock number of the part (and not some vague desription of some miscellaneous part on some mythical hybrid piece), realize that their time is worth money and is in most cases not worth the time if they spend it attempting to locate an obscure inexpensive bit or piece (because it's not the small bits that keep them in business, but the more expensive ones that have return business tied to them).

;)

[josh_smaxx]

Rocketrob, i disagree. The points about needing the regular customers spending big bucks to survive is true and all well and good but just because he is a new customer looking for a small part thats not exactly common doesnt mean the staff have to treat him like that, yes he may not be important to there business but it still gives them no right to treat him like that.

[Michael.]

and like he said, he not only won't be recommending the shop to his friends/relatives, he will be advising them 'to keep away' - which is fair in my opinion. That will surely lose the shop a few potential 'larger spenders'

Plus, I believe he was contemplating buying a kit after building his car anyway. I doubt he will purchase that from the shop in question

[wildoliver]

Rob I'm sorry mate but your attitude is exactly that of the shop. And it is wrong. No matter how small the amount of money (and I'm sorry but I was happy to pay up to a tenner, which for a part that will cost them a couple of quid at most isn't bad mark up) they should want to sell you equipment, if they had a business brain they would have tried to help, got chatting about the model, and then they could even have tried to sell me last seasons model, or a budget race car to save faffing with this one, it is just common decency and more importantly salesmanship. As for I hadn't bought the model from there thats rubbish, do you seriously think modelsport ask every customer if they ordered their model from them and if not refuse to serve them? Of course not, money is money. And if your a small business which is quiet 7 hours out of 8 then I would think most people would rather talk to a customer, try to help them, and try to make some money instead of standing there bored.

And I did have the measurement I actually had a temporary made up one with me even.

Anyway not arguing about it, I shan't be back which is a shame.

[Spoolio]

Not trying to hammer you - but I think the point that has been missing in all of this is that you were going into businesses that rely on actual regular customers that buy things on a regular basis to survive.

1-You didn't buy your car from them.
2-You hadn't bought any of your other cobbled together bits and pieces from them.
3-You were looking to spend an infantesimal amount of money.
4-They were likely never to see you again, as they'd never seen you before.
5-You were looking for something that you had very little idea exactly what it was or how long they were.
6-You were wanting them to spend their time locating an odd item in which you had no idea what a proper stock number for it would be.

And thus, you were wanting to send them on a wild goose chase to look for an item of very little value in which you were only willing to spend a small amount of funds to acquire that they in all likelyhood might not have had in the first place.
And you wanted them to jump through hoops just because you were snazzily dressed?

Sorry, but the business world - literally any business - doesn't operate and/or can't survive pandering to customers under those circumstances.

In the future it would be my advice to: purchase a proper kit from a shop and they'll in most likelyhood have your current and future interests in mind relative to helping you acquire pieces and parts (instead of having a hybrid in which they have no gain from its past or future), know EXACTLY what you're looking for including length and/or stock number of the part (and not some vague desription of some miscellaneous part on some mythical hybrid piece), realize that their time is worth money and is in most cases not worth the time if they spend it attempting to locate an obscure inexpensive bit or piece (because it's not the small bits that keep them in business, but the more expensive ones that have return business tied to them).

;)

Bloody hell mate, do you live in Royston Vasey by any chance? If so and I'm passing and want to buy some Polo's from the newsagents (who will have never seen me before, will never see me again and are selling me something of small value), are they likely to say "this is a local shop for local people, we'll have none of your kind here".

I think you are totally missing the point. Business' exist to make a profit out of customers yes BUT, if this chap was the only person at the counter - and didn't have a queue of people behind him waving £20's in the air wanting stuff "off the shelf" - what is so hard about having a rummage for a bit of non-standard stuff. In that situation ANY money they can take is better than none, its not a waste of time if they are just sat on their arses looking out of the window anyway is it?

[rocketrob]

Let me start by saying the intent of what I wrote was not an attempt to hurt anyone's feelings or start up such a big rowe.
I only said what I did sort of "playing devils' advocate and hopefully explain why oliver didn't get quite the reception he though he'd get.

Rocketrob, i disagree. The points about needing the regular customers spending big bucks to survive is true and all well and good but just because he is a new customer looking for a small part thats not exactly common doesnt mean the staff have to treat him like that, yes he may not be important to there business but it still gives them no right to treat him like that.

I hear what you're saying, but at the same time I've heard these sorts of rants on discussion boards before. And thus I have a feeling that his sentiments were overblown, possibly or not, but I was just weighing in own 2-cents worth.

and like he said, he not only won't be recommending the shop to his friends/relatives, he will be advising them 'to keep away' - which is fair in my opinion. That will surely lose the shop a few potential 'larger spenders'
Plus, I believe he was contemplating buying a kit after building his car anyway. I doubt he will purchase that from the shop in question

Well, honestly, since he'd already been involved in the hobby previously and was now supposedly "re-testing the waters to gauge his own potential continued interest - and thus should have had some semblance of understand whether he would or he woulnd't it's my feelings that he chose this route to get off on the cheap.
Not that there's anything wrong with that, yet at the same time I doubt there's any expectation that he'll be plunging back in anytime soon.

Bloody hell mate, do you live in Royston Vasey by any chance? If so and I'm passing and want to buy some Polo's from the newsagents (who will have never seen me before, will never see me again and are selling me something of small value), are they likely to say "this is a local shop for local people, we'll have none of your kind here".
I think you are totally missing the point. Business' exist to make a profit out of customers yes BUT, if this chap was the only person at the counter - and didn't have a queue of people behind him waving £20's in the air wanting stuff "off the shelf" - what is so hard about having a rummage for a bit of non-standard stuff. In that situation ANY money they can take is better than none, its not a waste of time if they are just sat on their arses looking out of the window anyway is it?

As I alluded to before, it wrote this not intending on offending anyone, no I don't live in Royston Vasey, and I wasn't trying to pick a fight or have one picked with me.

My only point was and is that hobby shops, as a general rule, struggle to get by - and if they aren't selling items of consequence, with a greater margin of profit, they oftentimes end up closing their doors since the profit margin on little bits is just that (little scraps that don't pay the rent let alone pay the wages of someone to man the counter).

I guess it takes me back to the day long ago when I first forayed into this hobby and attempted to do something similar to Oliver and I remember the rather cool reception I received at the local hobby shop on my initial visit. Those cool feelings changed little by little over time as I kept returning, but never really changed until I watzed in and laid my money on the counter for a new kit months later. Suddenly I was the hobby shop guy's pal.
So I asked him one day what changed, and he said, "before you were nickel and dimeing me to death. Now you're a customer of mine. Before you were a customer of someone else because you didn't buy your car here, and all you were looking for was to get my time and expertise for little or nothing." Going on to explain that it's sort of like buying a real car at a dealership or a used car lot. If you go for service; driving up in your car you got somewhere else you get one level of service, whereas if you bought the car at that dealership you get the royal treatment.

That's all I'm saying. I'm not justifying rude behavior or anything, but jsut trying to say that there's two ways of looking at things. ;)

[rocketrob]

Rob I'm sorry mate but your attitude is exactly that of the shop. And it is wrong. No matter how small the amount of money (and I'm sorry but I was happy to pay up to a tenner, which for a part that will cost them a couple of quid at most isn't bad mark up) they should want to sell you equipment, if they had a business brain they would have tried to help, got chatting about the model, and then they could even have tried to sell me last seasons model, or a budget race car to save faffing with this one, it is just common decency and more importantly salesmanship. As for I hadn't bought the model from there thats rubbish, do you seriously think modelsport ask every customer if they ordered their model from them and if not refuse to serve them? Of course not, money is money. And if your a small business which is quiet 7 hours out of 8 then I would think most people would rather talk to a customer, try to help them, and try to make some money instead of standing there bored.
And I did have the measurement I actually had a temporary made up one with me even.
Anyway not arguing about it, I shan't be back which is a shame.

Oliver, it's not so much my own attitude as it is that of the business world - if you're not paying me, you're of little use so move on.
And I'm trying to say I understand it to a degree, yet at the same time trying to give you some rationale so you understand it as well.
The problem with your theory on "salesmanship" is sort of messed up as well. People that are actually buying really need no sales help, they've made up their mind and are buying so it's just a matter of what to buy - whereas people that are shopping are the biggest time-wasters for salesment there are because those people really aren't buying and no amount of salesmanship can make a sale. So they spend an inoridinate amount of time, in 90% of cases, for nothing.
Sorry, but that's just what sales statistics reveal.

And honestly, though modelsport may not remember every customer that walks in the door - they damn sure remember every one of them that have bought a kit recently. And, as I alluded to earlier, they know the ones that are going to nickel and dime them to death - wanting great service, advice, etc., yet spending little money. And money is what keeps the doors open.

I hear what you're saying, but it just does't make much sense - at least not in the greater scheme of things. And I'm not justifying rude treatment, if that's actually what happened - and considering that you suggested that you received similar treatment in three different stores it makes me think that either you're exaggerating what actually happened, or maybe you were rude or demanded special treatment. I'm not sure.

Not trying to start an argument either. All I was trying to do was offer up another way of seeing things.

[wildoliver]

Hmm I know what you mean, and don't worry didn't take any offence (it's an internet forum at the end of the day).

However I think your a bit forgiving of bad service, you can't turn away nickel and dime business for the very reason you have proven, small business often turns in to big business, I restore classic cars for a living, about 1% of my enquiries are "big business" I.E. Someone wanting to buy a car or a resto, I give a lot of free advice away, and quite often persuade customers not to spend money with me that wouldn't get them the result they want, don't get me wrong if someone insists on not taking my advice and blowing money with me I'm very happy to take it, but I would sooner help someone get a good deal, and recommend me to colleagues etc. Than try to have their pants down once and once only.

Likewise I sell lots of parts, some of them are in terms of profit a total waste of time, it costs me more in time and effort to take a phone call, wait for a cheque, bank it, and post out a 50p part. But I do because a month down the road that chap might want to spend a few thousand with me, yes chances are he won't, but he might, and I don't have a crystal ball to tell which will and which won't, so I treat everyone the same. That's the nature of sales.

I am trying to do this on the cheap, make no bones about that, but with the best will in the world if I find myself having fun off my so far about £60 outlay a lot of which will transfer to a new model anyway then I will be buying a nice shiny new car, that's 20-30 quid profit on the kit plus any extras that can be sold. Also no matter what these guys say there is more profit on small parts than large parts, mainly due to internet competition.

Anyway thats me done!

[purpletimbo]

I have never bought a kit from modelsport, but have bought quite a few spares, they remember who I am have my details stored, post next day, if I don't go in person, I generally deal over the telephone rather than internet, and when I needed a one way bearing and got the wrong one sent, i went back over, the salesman drove up to Mtroniks, sorted out the difference, and as they didnt have the right one, Mtroniks fixed me up free of charge with a used one to tide me by, till the other one came in stock. Now that is the sort of service that means when I am going t splash out on an E-Revo, £25 difference won't tempt me to a shop i ahve never dealt with before.
so small sales and a happy customer often lead to bigger things.One thing for sure, everyone I know who has used my LHS even for £100s gets the same treatment, if you don't want to sit in a shop full of models because you hev no interest, sell it and buy a shop that sells something else.
At least the Modelsport guys have a genuine interest in the hobby, and in fact, they often state they like dealing with people who build their own and regard that as part of the hobby, rather than off the shelf ready to run, then bring it back for every smallest job. They know that means money coming in, but still they love to see my odd ball models when I go over, reminds them of glory days in the past.

[bert digler]

Oliver, it's not so much my own attitude as it is that of the business world - if you're not paying me, you're of little use so move on.
And I'm trying to say I understand it to a degree, yet at the same time trying to give you some rationale so you understand it as well.
The problem with your theory on "salesmanship" is sort of messed up as well. People that are actually buying really need no sales help, they've made up their mind and are buying so it's just a matter of what to buy - whereas people that are shopping are the biggest time-wasters for salesment there are because those people really aren't buying and no amount of salesmanship can make a sale. So they spend an inoridinate amount of time, in 90% of cases, for nothing.
Sorry, but that's just what sales statistics reveal.

And honestly, though modelsport may not remember every customer that walks in the door - they damn sure remember every one of them that have bought a kit recently. And, as I alluded to earlier, they know the ones that are going to nickel and dime them to death - wanting great service, advice, etc., yet spending little money. And money is what keeps the doors open.

I hear what you're saying, but it just does't make much sense - at least not in the greater scheme of things. And I'm not justifying rude treatment, if that's actually what happened - and considering that you suggested that you received similar treatment in three different stores it makes me think that either you're exaggerating what actually happened, or maybe you were rude or demanded special treatment. I'm not sure.

Not trying to start an argument either. All I was trying to do was offer up another way of seeing things.

you sound like one off them of the apprentiece lol:thumbsup:

[glypo]

I am very sympathetic towards this. And I think you have every right to complain, regardless of what you are after, or whether you are a regular, shops should be courteous and as helpful as possible. If they aren't, they don't deserve any custom. As said above, if a customer comes in for something small and gets great service, chances are next time they want something big they will go back. If they get crap service, I personally would never return. The business world simply doesn't operate by shooting down small customers.

I've had one shop trying to sell me airplane fuel for a car once, and another recommending crap just to clear their stock. In another shop I was just ignored, and told to wait for 10 minutes whilst the guy chatted to his friend, just small talk as well. Fortunately that shop has gone bankrupt, not a nice thing to say when it's someones livelihood I know, but you can't run businesses like that. Another of the modelshops closed, but was later re-opened under different ownership and it better now.

All I can say is I'm damn glad MK Racing exists for car stuff. I would pay a premium if he demanded one, but funnily enough he's the cheapest around also. If only I could find a RC aircraft shop locally as well with same good service/advice....

[bert digler]

I am very sympathetic towards this. And I think you have every right to complain, regardless of what you are after, or whether you are a regular, shops should be courteous and as helpful as possible. If they aren't, they don't deserve any custom. As said above, if a customer comes in for something small and gets great service, chances are next time they want something big they will go back. If they get crap service, I personally would never return. The business world simply doesn't operate by shooting down small customers.

I've had one shop trying to sell me airplane fuel for a car once, and another recommending crap just to clear their stock. In another shop I was just ignored, and told to wait for 10 minutes whilst the guy chatted to his friend, just small talk as well. Fortunately that shop has gone bankrupt, not a nice thing to say when it's someones livelihood I know, but you can't run businesses like that. Another of the modelshops closed, but was later re-opened under different ownership and it better now.

All I can say is I'm damn glad MK Racing exists for car stuff. I would pay a premium if he demanded one, but funnily enough he's the cheapest around also. If only I could find a RC aircraft shop locally as well with same good service/advice....

mk racing is the best service in the uk:thumbsup:fast efficent and helpfull if you buy a bag of screws or a new kit same great service:thumbsup:

[ashleyb4]

Have to disagree Microtech is the best service in the uk :p

DMS and MK are both also very very good.

A

[Scouser]

You see, here's what I think. If that shop had been helpful and courteous to the customer, not only would he have bought the small item from them that day, he would have returned in the future and bought more from them. He would also have recommended them to his mates who, in turn, would come in and spend their money at the store.
A few years ago I worked in a moderately busy photographic store. Every customer through that door was treated exactly the same whether they wanted a roll of film or a complete Hasselblad kit. The staff were all keen photographers and understanding to those in need of help or advise. That shop went from a so-so performing turnover to one of the busiest stores in the country and it was purely down to quality of service.
And DMS are the best by the way.:thumbsup:

[Zedman]

I must put in a plug for MB Models in leeds

http://www.rccarshop.co.uk/catalog/index.php?cPath=32_337

I went in to buy a B44 kit but I also did what our original thread starter did "do you have and pillers/spacers with an internal 3mm thread about 22mm long"

Looking back I should have browsed the net and and asked on the forums to find a part number for a likley part, BUT.. Even on a busy Saturday morning the guy serving me started rumaging thro boxs and asking the other staff members for ideas, finaly he comes up with one and I reply do you have 2 of those please, he laughed and went and found me 2 more.

Then to cap it all off they were out of stock of 0.05" allen drivers so he says borrow mine and drop it back when you have finished the kit off.

Now thats what I call service, I apperciate I was spending a couple of hundred quid but I would recomend them to anyone.

[MarkWesterfield]

At our shop I was giving away unneeded titanium tie-rods from my personal pit box for free to my customers to make sure they could finish their race program. We also have rental cars to use so people can try rc car racing before they commit to spending a bunch of money on a full setup. Not all hobby shops are bad!

[mole2k]

my local shop is great. They stock a fair bit and will order anything in that you want and go out of their way to source items for people no matter what the value. He even stocks a near complete set of tamiya 501x spares for the club.

I think it helps that they are themselves heavily interested in various types of models. One is heavily involved in my local club and the other runs a model train club from his house.

[Jez]

what annoys me is when people ask how much is it to me when buying trackside items,tyres etc.i will do all i can to help people at meetings and discount where possible,but surely someone who spends over a grand on a set up from another shop cant expect discount on a set of tyres at 16 quid,can they?i dont expect total loyalty just a bit of fair play.if the internet is so great why did josh smaxx get his grp tyres from me last weekend?delivered by me personally[200 mile round trip].see you northern boys soon.ta jeremy.

[ashleyb4]

Most small shops are really good my local model shop is really good I ordered a few losi parts from them they dont stock off road parts on tc parts they where on the phone straight away to horrizon and ordered them for me i also ordered a sensor lead that was out of stock at horrizon. I was expsecting it to be a week or so i wasnt in a rush for the parts just keep stock of spares. Two days later i got a phone call hi your items are now in stock ready to pick up :o:o:o shocked but they said the sensor wire wasnt in stock then the following week the sesor lead turned up. All i can say is awsome service. Also bought a transmitter from there and one of the pots came loose a few months after i bought it i took it in and they tightened it up super job top service proberly one fo the best model shops in the uk they have some relaly nice planes haging on there roof to top job hobby corner (wrexham)

A

[AmiSMB]

I have found a lot of the same issues with model shops over the years. I find that even if I have the correct manufacturer and part number the worst shops still do not understand. I remember going to one particular shop which mainly does flying models but do sell some boats and cars asking for a motor coupling for a MFA Spear boat with a 10cc Irvine marine engine and the response was that that engine was very big for a boat!!! They have not seen my others then as one has a 15cc glow engine and the other runs a 23cc petrol engine. It really does make a difference if the person behind the counter is a modeller and is enthusiastic about it and not one of the latest ready to run bregade. As soon as I get the comment "what is it for" I know that I may not get anywhere. I like going into different shops asking for items that they would never even think of using for models and the look that they give is so funny. The last one I remember was when I purchased some Shoe Goo! I have to say that I have had fantastic service from MK, DMS, Microtech, DC Racing and Modelsport.

[B44&501xRacerEX]

Me 2. Sometimes you meet people there who know nothing about R/C.
At my other shop it's alot different because some of the best drivers in my
hometown work there.

Like "WHAT IS A BRUSHLESS SYSTEM, I HAVE NO CLUE."
oR "What is a 501x, is it a T4?"

Just plain dumb things like that.

[b4rs]

tell me about it mate, been there done that but for a plane, a full working transmitter, recievers, servos etc, and the assistant Couldnt be A**ed either and was also rude.

looks like too many grumpy people have taken over these small rc businesses. and to go to a previous point. Every customer, is a valuable customer, none should be treated liek that.

[bigred5765]

At my other shop it's alot different because some of the best drivers in my
hometown work there.

.

how many shops do you own

[Tim Ward]

I think it depends which side of the counter you are on!

I have stood both sides - and neither is perfect!

RocketRob makes some good points - I lost count of the number of times a car arrived, from eBay (other auction sites are available!) or somewhere, and a customer needed a bit. A hour or so later it was sourced and often fitted FOC in an effort to win a long standing customer. Rarely worked! More often than not, as Rob puts it, I was 'nickle and dimed' to death by said customers.

Worse than that - when busy the people who kept the shop open by buying all their gear from me had to wait for service. Not good - they would have a case to complain as well, perhaps they may have thought we should have more staff as we were snowed under. However those hour long 'dimes' made no real profit to pay for more staff!

Adding to this is the incredibly low margins for shops. Competition is good for consumers - drives down prices. Bad for shops - drives down proft!

I advise you support a local shop wherever you can - buy everything you can from them and build a relationship. Even if you move away they will remember you and still go out of their way for you.

Take pity on the shopkeeper - he/she works hard for little profit. Trust me, although you spend lots on a kit, he/she takes little from it except to hope that they have a long standing customer.

A friend of mine, a successful business man, says 'In this country profit is a dirty word' - he is right. People begrudge a shop keeper when they focus on profit. But they have to eat! Without a focus on profit, they close - and we all start to loose our local shops.

From a customers' point of view - you have the right to be met with politeness and helpfulness everytime you visit. We always tried to do this. People enjoyed coming to our shop - it was a social meeting place for racers and hobbyists alike.

Just remember - support your favoured shop with all your purchases - it is a lot easier to smile as a shopkeeper when you are making a living rather than working for free!

[Benh]

I have two past times, both of them I am very enthusiastic over. One RC and the second golf. This service from shops you mention is not limited to RC shops. If your a noob or a new customer you are treated with what appears to be contempt, in many cases.

However - there are some absolute gems. Unfortunately our local gem closed just after xmas 2007. A shop owner that would talk you out of a bad purchase, save you money on compatible but better priced items, would discount and match prices - from wherever. (Although I never asked for a price match because of the friendly and helpful service).

It's a general British trait for shop keepers to be funny old bunch. I too am in business and if I treated my customer base like many shopkeepers do, I would have gone bust a long time ago.

A shop cannot hold all of the stock to suit all of the people all of the time. Our local gem was the same but we knew when his orders were placed, the lead times and when the deliveries were coming. I am sure if these shops, as above, make the effort to keep you informed, let you know the lead times and is friendly in their approach, you will order from them.

It takes a pretty thick skin to continually walk into a store ask for advice without purchase and really, how many do?

Treat every customer like they're your best client. If they need advice and your shops busy, they will wait - they are after free advice! If your friendly no one will mind while you run a couple of things through the till for another who knows what they want and are waving those 20's.

And finally, car kits will help turnover, but they are tiny margins. If someone brings a car to you they bought off flea bay - Be grateful. It's used, worn and most likely going to need all sorts of higher margin spares.

Recent stores I have dealt with and have nothing but praise for.
Microtech
DMS
Selections-Web

[josh_smaxx]

DMS are great :thumbsup: rang them today to order an X6, very nice on the phone, order went through perfectly and very efficiently :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup: from me.

[PaulC2K]

I happen to agree with Rob, before he was required to defend his comments.
Theres always 2 sides to everything, and you have to consider their side as much as your own, im sure if you told them what you wanted and they knew where to find them you'd be in and out in a flash, and a happy customer. But when you consider how they operate, its not ideal for what you were asking.

Shops tend to put all Losi bits in a Losi bin, Associated bits in an associated bin, and so on, and they've got tons of collections of bits, usually grouped together for a specific kit.
So if you go onto a website, pop to the turnbuckles section or whatever, and up comes a list usually with pictures or basic details so you can pick what you want. You want part ABC-12345 they'll go straight off and get you that part from the ABC bin and stick it in the post for you.
But if you walked into the exact same shop and described the exact same thing, a turnbuckle of Xmm they'd have to go through dozens of boxes of spare parts, they dont have a turnbuckle box, they have an AE, Losi, Schumacher etc box though, so when a customer comes in asking for a specific part, they can find it easy enough.

Its just the situation you were in, and the organisation of it not being set up with clueless (i dont mean that in a mean way) customers in mind, so they can bring out a box of similar items and have dig, they do it by kit, so when a customer with a B4 goes in asking for X, Y & Z they go to 1 box and pull them all out, rather than go from arms, to C-hubs to 'others' etc. Tell them what you want, and they'll get it, but if your not sure what your looking for with something that vague i guess its not too suprising thats how they responded. Not saying its right, but not much of a suprise.


In saying that, there is a local shop to me who are great if you get the right lads, but get the owner and sometimes he's particularly grumpy and you feel like he'd rather have an empty shop than one full of people asking for something.

[purpletimbo]

Just wanted to add a thank you, got a rare TC from Kyosho the other day, needed a spur gear, only place that listed the kit was Alan's models in Whitley Bay.
Rang the shop, explained what I wanted, he emailed me an exploded view, and found the right gear in a bag on the rack, posted straight out.
Can't fault the service or friendliness, I always check his site first for bits I need now.
:thumbsup:

[smokes]

bad customer service: with racers buying from ebay or the internet for less. these shop must sell as much stock as they can to bashers rather than racers that is where they make there money. They don't have time for racers as they always need the latest and greatest which cause them to lose money.

for the racer the internet is your friend

[Dreadstar]

I have to agree with you there,the internet is very useful.I race 1/8th nitro buggy,and with it being a Kyosho,very few shops have a stock of the parts that you usually require.However there is a great ebay shop that does carry quite a few parts that have helped me out more times than I care to remember,Greetwell Models.Their turnround is terrific,usually within 2 days,and their prices are extremely competative,a lot less than if you had to buy from Kyosho themselves.Highly recommended.:thumbsup:

[toooldskool]

I went in to my Local shop for some shock oil- I would have taken 45, 50 , 55 or possibly 60.BUT they did not have 1 bottle of any grade "There's been a bit of a run on it lately" I was told. Another (possibly the Last) wasted trip into town!

[charles08]

Hello,this post is cool.I came back to rc car after stoped for 15 years.
In my memories back in the days every thing was much more expensive, at this time i quited 'cause i had broke the tranny on my rc10, the price at this time was 750 francs what would be more than 100€ so 80 pounds...
So when i got back into rc cars i was at first astonished how the prices got down.I bought on Ebay a B4 and every thing i needed else, then i discover there's a shop nearby where i live.After a few days i raced my car i've broke a part due to my very poor driver skills.

So i go to the shop, enter, the guy is on the phone and stay on it for like...a long time...but i'm a nice guy so i say nothing he barrelly says hello and ask what i need.Of course he doesn't have the part so he order it...
It was 3 months ago.During this time i ordered tons of stuff in the Us, Uk and China most of the time i got my things in 10 days with super online services and when i call the shops they're always friendly and give good advices.

I go back to that shop sometimes to buy tires or whatever he has in stock that i need.But i have to admit that i'm not mother theresa so why would i buy a new servo 90 pounds when i can buy it online for 48 pounds...
So my point here is to say that if the shops want to survive they really should rise a lot their customer services like help tuning the car, give kick ass advices and at least try to be friendly etc...It's there and only there that they have a chance that some customers find it is worth the price.Sad but true to me.
Cheers.

[welsh man]

Not trying to hammer you - but I think the point that has been missing in all of this is that you were going into businesses that rely on actual regular customers that buy things on a regular basis to survive.

1-You didn't buy your car from them.
2-You hadn't bought any of your other cobbled together bits and pieces from them.
3-You were looking to spend an infantesimal amount of money.
4-They were likely never to see you again, as they'd never seen you before.
5-You were looking for something that you had very little idea exactly what it was or how long they were.
6-You were wanting them to spend their time locating an odd item in which you had no idea what a proper stock number for it would be.

And thus, you were wanting to send them on a wild goose chase to look for an item of very little value in which you were only willing to spend a small amount of funds to acquire that they in all likelyhood might not have had in the first place.
And you wanted them to jump through hoops just because you were snazzily dressed?

Sorry, but the business world - literally any business - doesn't operate and/or can't survive pandering to customers under those circumstances.

In the future it would be my advice to: purchase a proper kit from a shop and they'll in most likelyhood have your current and future interests in mind relative to helping you acquire pieces and parts (instead of having a hybrid in which they have no gain from its past or future), know EXACTLY what you're looking for including length and/or stock number of the part (and not some vague desription of some miscellaneous part on some mythical hybrid piece), realize that their time is worth money and is in most cases not worth the time if they spend it attempting to locate an obscure inexpensive bit or piece (because it's not the small bits that keep them in business, but the more expensive ones that have return business tied to them).

;)
i completely agree with you there well said:)

[Big G]

I went into one shop that will remain nameless and asked if they had any B44 wheels in stock and the assistant didn't even know what a B44 was... I told him it was a 4wd buggy. he then asked if that was off road. Needless to say they didn't have any B44 wheels.

[Cosworth]

My local model shop Penn Models is the most retarded shop around, i'm not going to give any examples of why because my brain cells die a little more everytime I recall a story from inside their wretched place.

It's Penn Models fault I only shop online at Demon Power Products anymore, best online shop for me by miles.

[Col]

1 year bump...

[stox217]

I Must be a few to have great model shops around me!

Kits & Bits coventry (Great guy whos beein in the game for years!)
FTD models (Again great service runs bedworth and also races!)
Concept Racing (Great service run by a guy who races! and could get what you want in stock in 3 days!)

[Si Coe]

I find all this amusing because the nearest shop to me (North West Model Supplies) is practically useless to me, but it doesn't mean they are a bad shop. They are mostly flyers, but do drive too, just bashing really. They have some high end stuff in store (B4, B44 and a Cat SX) but no spares, in fact they barely carry car spares at all even for the Ansmanns and Rascals they sell in quantity.
I go there occasionally for odds and ends, stuff I figure any model shop should have, but they never have it all. However they are polite, search for items they suspect they don't even have and offer to order stuff in, though I tend to decline as JE Spares is only a half hour away.

I don't consider them a bad shop - I just figure they deal with a very different world of RC to the one I'm in.

[sldmodels]

Firstly, yeah, you really should have done a bit of homework on sizes, for example, what type of car is it, touring car or buggy, what scale is it? Then, it makes it easier to get the relevant parts for your car, as you probably wouldn't just have to replace the turnbuckles, but the ball cups, and the ball cup studs, and from my own experience of trying to bodge a Tamiya F201 with FTX Blaze parts, the steering arms screw holes need to be the right size too.

The staff should have still been friendly and curteous, and should treat every customer as a priority, but I have a model shop myself, and there's no other way of putting it, but you do get some twats walking through the door. When I ask people what car they have, the most common answer I get is "it's a subaru", not a tamiya subarau, not a thunder tiger subaru, but a subaru. The number of times I feel like telling them that I don't supply subarau items, and that they should try the main dealer round the corner.

I've had some bad experiences too. Not mentioning names, but it's local to me, but not in the town I live. I went in for a spectrum receiver I needed for another car, it was just easier to buy from them than order from Horizon. The bloke was on the phone ordering stuff, chatting away, and just left me waiting, then barely said two wods. Well stocked, but shitty service.

But the thing is, as a model shop, you will never have everything for everyone. I always say that I can order the items if they want, but they want it now, not in a few days time.

That's one of the reasons I'm not really bothering anymore, and getting into other things for the shop, I've really had enough with the whole thing.

Next big project for me, 4 lane train track for the shop.

[spud31]

I read this with some intrest as this sounds like a normal saturday for us.
Very very few people who use non specialist model shops are racers so normally its people trying to but a part for an item they dont know any info for. ill take you through a normal convo,

C: I need a pullstart for my petrol car
ME : Do u know any info make model etc?
C: its a blue subaru
ME: Ok is it tamiya,thunder tiger do they ring a bell?
C: Dunno just want a pullstart
ME: IS it possible to bring car in so we can sell you correct part?
C: Your useless ( followed by barrage of abuse)

This happens every weekend an gets fustrating as we are here to help, so whilst i agree the customer experence people here have had is not good enough, most shops do try but 4 or 5 hours of the above can take its toll :)

Also on the discounting by online shops on items, this will kill local model shops eventually as some do absolutly silly prices, not just car stuff but model aircraft and heli mostly so they cannot be making any money on the product. This devalues the product and TBH they normally do not give the back up if theres is a problem which leads to the good old LHS to do it for the importer. We cannot survive as an industry without your custom no matter how big or small.

This is a really big problem with Trains and Scalextric especially since the Xmas rush after the James May programs.
A lady who had bought her son a Scalextric set from Amazon couldnt understand why that when it didnt work that we wouldnt repair or replace it. Its not our responsibility.
We are a Hornby service dealer but we cannot xchange items not sold by us when in reality she only saved 5 to 10 pounds.

Just remember if you have to take something back because its blown up or youve broken it be honest if you think its your fault, were not silly an will normall respect an honest person and help them a lot more.:)

Serman over lol

[Rebelrc]

Nice serman Rich ( i said serman)
or should i say reverend rc:thumbsup:

[Si Coe]

The staff should have still been friendly and curteous, and should treat every customer as a priority, but I have a model shop myself, and there's no other way of putting it, but you do get some twats walking through the door. When I ask people what car they have, the most common answer I get is "it's a subaru", not a tamiya subarau, not a thunder tiger subaru, but a subaru. The number of times I feel like telling them that I don't supply subarau items, and that they should try the main dealer round the corner.


This I have seen alot myself, and once witnessed the normally calm and polite staff at Bolton Model Mart get quite upset with a customer on the phone about this (to their credit whilst it was obvious they were annoyed at our end, the guy on the phone held his voice well and the customer probably had no idea!), but as I pointed out that problem is more the manufacturers fault than anything else. After all, the box proclaims 'Subaru Impreza' in huge letters all over it, and TT-01 in tiny letters underneath. OK, so the manual says what chassis it is, but if it was RTR they have probably never read the manual!
Thats what happens when you sell RTR's to non-technically minded people. Now I accept that many of them were sold elsewhere, but I bet Spud and SLD have both sold cars to incompetent baboons before as well, so you have to view that as a problem of your own making. Dealing with those idiots is a natural part of the business......

[Team No Idea]

I read this with some intrest as this sounds like a normal saturday for us.
Very very few people who use non specialist model shops are racers so normally its people trying to but a part for an item they dont know any info for. ill take you through a normal convo,

C: I need a pullstart for my petrol car
ME : Do u know any info make model etc?
C: its a blue subaru
ME: Ok is it tamiya,thunder tiger do they ring a bell?
C: Dunno just want a pullstart
ME: IS it possible to bring car in so we can sell you correct part?
C: Your useless ( followed by barrage of abuse)

This happens every weekend an gets fustrating as we are here to help, so whilst i agree the customer experence people here have had is not good enough, most shops do try but 4 or 5 hours of the above can take its toll :)

Also on the discounting by online shops on items, this will kill local model shops eventually as some do absolutly silly prices, not just car stuff but model aircraft and heli mostly so they cannot be making any money on the product. This devalues the product and TBH they normally do not give the back up if theres is a problem which leads to the good old LHS to do it for the importer. We cannot survive as an industry without your custom no matter how big or small.

This is a really big problem with Trains and Scalextric especially since the Xmas rush after the James May programs.
A lady who had bought her son a Scalextric set from Amazon couldnt understand why that when it didnt work that we wouldnt repair or replace it. Its not our responsibility.
We are a Hornby service dealer but we cannot xchange items not sold by us when in reality she only saved 5 to 10 pounds.

Just remember if you have to take something back because its blown up or youve broken it be honest if you think its your fault, were not silly an will normall respect an honest person and help them a lot more.:)

Serman over lol


Just to throw in my 2 pence worth, that sounds like a day in our shop too!:thumbsup:
Firstly we have massive problems with discounted motorcycles on the net. We are only a small Kawasaki dealer but we have been here for 30 years and i'd say a good 80% of our customers are loyal, repeat customers . We have to do our best to offer a spot on after sales service at all times to everyone especially as some bigger dealers sell the bikes cheaper (at a loss sometimes depending on how desperate they are) than we can buy them in from Kawasaki! We get the same customers buying bikes elsewhere and then whinging at us if it develops a fault and we can't squeeze it through the workshop instantly, at the end of the day, our customers come first! That said we do our best to get anyones bike sorted asap. Trying to get new customers through the door is very hard especially as we cannot match the prices and in the currect financial climate.

We also get the same thing of people asking for things like spark plugs for their "red bike", not knowing what make or model they have. Again we do our best to sort it out, we cant afford to turn custom away, but here is a limit to how far we would/can go!

I think what im trying to say here is there needs to be a balance The dealer definately needs a certain amout of information to get the correct part for the job however in this case all the chap wanted was turn buckles, it shouldn't be that hard really, if they couldn't help him they could have at least pointed him in the direction of a shop that could in a polite and friendly way.:)

[spud31]

TBH you cant turn people away if they want to spend money can you?
The worst kind are 1/5th scale buyers normally as they always seem to be the same kind of person an are attracted to it because it runs on petrol mate lolol:)
The latest thing is also to buy scalextric sets with the flat xover track against our advice and experence then bring the cars back 2 days later smashed to bits due to being driven head on into each other by there kids.:mad:

In the global scheme of things if we could somehow stop buying from HK etc, prices would come down as more units would be sold, shops turnover higher so discounts would be more forthcoming.

Intresting story time, in Germeny big car parts like filters brake pads etc, can only be bought by TUV approved people not joe blogs etc down at Halfrauds. TUV certification is hard to get too.
This has ment that more people take cars to approved dealerships and repair centres for work to be done thus labour and parts prices are reasonable.
This is also the country where you can only by tyres in pairs an they must be same make and tread pattern across the axle whilst this is expensive if you get a puncture its stops people running round on poo tyres that are unsafe.
Everyone benefits and to me this seems sensible.

rev rc lol:thumbsup:

[sldmodels]

Funny you say that about buying from HK. After the bloke who was executed this week for drug smuggling who was said to have mental health issues, I was considering setting up facebook page to hit China where it hurts, in their wallets, by not buying anything from them till they do something to rectify the situation, but that would only backfire on us. Maybe trying to get the F1 race there for this year moved somewhere else would be just as good. From what I hear of the Chinese government, they don't like to lose face.

[DCM]

In the global scheme of things if we could somehow stop buying from HK etc, prices would come down as more units would be sold, shops turnover higher so discounts would be more forthcoming.

You are having a Giraffe, aren't you?? The amount purchased in the UK, compared to importing from Asia, Asia is insignificant. If you are talking about RC alone, that may be different, but a lot of it, got to be squarely put on the distributor and not the customer.

Why, when I can buy a kit, from HK, with upgrades, and still ship it, and it be cheaper than trade price in the UK? Why the hell would I buy here. I would love to shop in the UK, but the prices the LHS are forced to charge, by the over inflated prices created by an overly complex system, is just daft. And please, don't insult us with the 'well they got to stock spares' argument, as the cost of spares is where they make their money, distributors and some shops.

If larger distributors took a 'Global Pricing Policy' then it would, to an extent, make buying globaly, as a private buyer, pointless. But the cheaper markets would complain that the prices have gone up, or the more expensive companies would complain that their stock values have been reduced.

The extortionate prices we pay, in the UK, have put paid to many a LHS, as we all strive to get as much as we can for our £££, so sorry, if my heart doesn't bleed.

Instead of moaning about how cheap it is overseas, how about moaning how 'expensive' it is here!!

[DaveG28]

Spot on DCM, I get so wound up by people whinging about how cheap iris to buy from abroad, it is ridiculously expensive in the UK.

I tend to buy from abroad, generally I can buy, have it shipped and pay import duty and it still costs less than here, plus if I order on a Sunday night it's nearly always here in time for the next weekends racing! The saddest part is, I am even getting better customer service from shops who have English as a second language often! The only risk (I accept though don't like) is it can be impossible to make warranty claims.

As an example of prices Speed passion V3 motors are @$75 in the US, aren't they more than that in £'s over here?? I'm not blaming the shops as I get the impression they don't make a huge margin, but someone is screwing us here in the UK!

The best/only way of UK shops competing is customer service and/or being at tracks, that's why places like PBM and DMS still get my business when I can!

As an example of good cs though, I asked Stella Models if they could get me the new Tamiya ESC when Tamya first announced it. It's not really a core product for them but they agreed to ask and also then to let me know when it was released. Despite me not chasing them they came back to me this week with a date/price, they had remembered me asking for the product! It's amazing how many UK shops I've never heard back from in similar situations!

Again with Stella, they shopped round various places to try and find a cheap trf801x for me this summer, and remained helpful and polite even after they realised they couldn't get it sorted in time and therefore wouldn't get the order. It's being treated well even when you go elsewhere that makes me then go back to them next time! To be balanced, PBM are very good at this too, totally understanding when you end up going elsewhere!

[ClydeBuilt]

Local LHS and its specifically an RC model shop with cars, planes, boats and helis, so this guy comes in with a query about rc cars and chargers

Told him to fetch it in and we would have a look, shop owner takes one look at this white POS and says he doesnt do stuff like that, he does nitro etc and that the guy would be better of elsewhere, in a pretty offhand manner. :bored:

I says to the guy 'let me have a look'....its a Tamiya of some sort but with now way to fit usual 7.v nicad, but plenty of room to fit a decent 7.4 inside that would far outrun the previous battery, albeit in a captive mode. :confused:

A quick explanation of what was required and the guy buys two decent amperage nihms and a quality charger, hands over best part of £75.
Door closes and proprietor says...'wanker' never know what they want! :mad:

Funny thing was, before the guy came in, we were discussing how bad his turnover was that year and that everyone was buying from Ebay, blah, blah, blah! :mad:

A little work and thought might things go a bit easier I thought. :confused:

[Catch 22]

Local LHS and its specifically an RC model shop with cars, planes, boats and helis, so this guy comes in with a query about rc cars and chargers

Told him to fetch it in and we would have a look, shop owner takes one look at this white POS and says he doesnt do stuff like that, he does nitro etc and that the guy would be better of elsewhere, in a pretty offhand manner. :bored:

I says to the guy 'let me have a look'....its a Tamiya of some sort but with now way to fit usual 7.v nicad, but plenty of room to fit a decent 7.4 inside that would far outrun the previous battery, albeit in a captive mode. :confused:

A quick explanation of what was required and the guy buys two decent amperage nihms and a quality charger, hands over best part of £75.
Door closes and proprietor says...'wanker' never know what they want! :mad:

Funny thing was, before the guy came in, we were discussing how bad his turnover was that year and that everyone was buying from Ebay, blah, blah, blah! :mad:

A little work and thought might things go a bit easier I thought. :confused:


Ive got a good idea which shop this was mate . :)

[franki]

and like he said, he not only won't be recommending the shop to his friends/relatives, he will be advising them 'to keep away' - which is fair in my opinion. That will surely lose the shop a few potential 'larger spenders'

Plus, I believe he was contemplating buying a kit after building his car anyway. I doubt he will purchase that from the shop in question


fully agree, he may have decided yes I want to get back in to the hobby big time and then spend a fortune!!! but not at those shops!! you have to look at the big picture in business and some times you have 'lost leaders'

[oldschool]

well ive got 3 model shops near me and in one of them i got a load of abuse and was told to go as they were about to shut for dinner? i only poped in to buy some paint.
the other 2 are great one has got loads of plane spares and quite alot of cars and the other dont do alot of car spare's because they only seem to sell cars to the beginners of the hobby but they guys in there really know there stuff and will get you anything you need,the chap even lent me his power supply and charger when mine went bang.
so i really support my local shop because they look after me.

[Welshy40]

If the shops give you gipp just spend your hard earned cash in another. Their loss is anothers gain.

My favourite shop was Craig Harris's mothers, and they not only knew their stuff but were the most professional and customer orientated. Its a shame they had to close.

Anyway nowadays I mainly deal with Apex as they are genuinely top blokes and also have a fantastic reputation which has been going strong for as long as i can remember (early 90's). DMS who as we all know are also just as fantastic only get my business when Apex cannot supply me due to them not being a distributer of that product.

Costs are expensive but thats the sign of the times and the huge debt the labour government has put this country into. Taxes and interest rates can only and will go up no matter who comes to power in the elections, but we would be better off in the long run not voting for labour.

[Si Coe]

I find it funny that model shops and bike shops are so different. Both have the same 'cheap low quality mass market' vs 'High end, pricy and very specialist' thing going on, but the difference between walking in to the 'wrong' bike shop and the 'wrong' model shop is amazing.

I've seen plenty of high end bike stores with £3k bikes on display and nothing under £500 replacing inner tubes for ladies on £30 shoppers and never make them feel patronised. And lower end stores actively courted my custom for the few things they could sell me (mostly tubes and little bits - those same nickel and dimes!) because having experienced cyclists hanging around was good for business. The store near me (which had just opened) serviced my Klein for free just so potential customers could gawp at it!

But go to the 'wrong' model shop and you'll soon know you aren't really want they cater for.

The reason is fairly simple though - bike shops are run by people passionate about bikes. And that passion is the same if its a £30 shopper or a £2k Klein. But model shops are run by flyers, or bashers or racers or trainspotters or modellers. And whilst a flyer shop might sell the odd car, or plastic kit, they don't really care about them.

[barry]

I can't fault fusion hobbies. My online orders were always followed up with phones call from them so I got the best of both worlds - ease of internet ordering with friendly personal service!

Demon have also been great.

Barry

[grimidol]

I went into a show down in south east london area ( hehe) and was talking about what tyres i wanted when a woman and son came in with a indoor helicopter. The person behind the counter stopped talking to me and asked her if he could help.
She explained that she got the helicopter for xmas for her son but it doesnt work.
He open the box saw the inbstructions still in there bag not open and then asked her is she had read them .... well no but still you are the face of the company and want to make sure every one who comes in cmoe back so what did he do next ...
He was sarcastic to her about why bring it back if you dont know if it is working or not ... then said all it needs is a charge ....... tried to charge it himself then went and asked some one else how to do it in the shop ....
Cmae back and told her to go away for 20 minutes and he would have it working when she got back.
As she walked away he said i will put all the stuff back in the box other then the instructions seeing as u dont think you need them .....
Now i have only been back into RC racing for a few months but i see this attitute in every shop what is going on ??
She looks embarressed as she walked out of the show what a way to treat a custermor ....