On Jan 15, 12:32*pm, TheOldFellow wrote:
On Thu, 14 Jan 2010 05:52:26 -0800 (PST)

"G.Mo" wrote:
Hey everybody,
I'm working with a big DIY retailer to create a better home
improvement store, kind of like a B&Q of the future. The question is
what's the best/worst thing about DIY stores today?? Expert advice and
guidance seems the first thing for the public DIY-ers but what about
people that work in the industry?

You are going to get a wide range of views because there are a wide
range of people here.

Me, I will never buy anything that I can make/repair myself in a
reasonable time/cost - this isn't a matter of money or convenience,
it's almost a religion. I am not a tradesman, but I respect some of them
greatly, in fact I'm a retired IT company director. I spent over 10k
last year on materials.

I live in the wilds of Cumbria, so I will probably not be visiting a
store for most things, Internet ordering with speedy delivery is the
key to getting my business. *I am extremely disloyal, so a single bad
experience will damn you for a long time - that having been said, I do
have some favourite on-line suppliers, specialists like BES for
plumbing, and TLC for electrics, and generalists like Toolstation,
Amazon and Screwfix - these are all companies who have either got me
stuff fast regularly, or when things have gone wrong, gone out of their
way to put it right. *There are things I don't like about on-line
buying, often the dimensions/size and weights are not clear, and there
are insufficient photographs - Toolstation, who I like otherwise, come
to mind here. *I also like to be able to read the installation
instruction BEFORE ordering - mostly Screwfix allows this - it builds
confidence and reduces returns under DSR.

B&Q gets visited IFF I'm in the area anyway (my nearest is 25 miles
away), but I never make a journey just for that. *At the moment my pet
hate at B&Q is the checkout automation, it works but ever so slowly,
and the creepy hovering staff waiting to jump in and offer inane advice
does not help. The other so called DIY outlets aren't, so I don't.

Oh, yes, and I don't watch Dork-it-Yourself programs on TV, nor TV
adverts (record and filter). *I don't like telephones so you communicate
with me by real email or not at all (a webpage email service isn't
one, unless it sends me a copy of everything, and the follow-up is all
by real email)

My firm advice is to get your on-line store working well, then add
physical outlets. *This model gets you revenue early-in-cycle, and you
can tune your physical outlets to where your customers are. *There is a
space for an on-line supplier where everything is well priced, easy to
find, and all under one roof, with well managed and cost effective
delivery.

R.


The reason I shied away from suggesting that is that you cant have it
all. If customer treatment is good, that costs something. If delivery
is good, that costs something. If stock range is wide, that costs
something. If you have all that you get high prices, and no-one buys

You can however do a lot better by picking at least one member of
staff that has a clue in each area.


NT