Not sure if anyone else has posted this (searched google groups) but
Screwfix are opening a trade counter in Reading next w/e.

On Sun, 16 Apr 2006 08:11:41 +0100, Grumps wrote:

Not sure if anyone else has posted this (searched google groups) but
Screwfix are opening a trade counter in Reading next w/e.

Noticed that too. Wonder if they'll have the full range of stock?

If they do coffee maybe we could have our next uk.d-i-y social down there? ;-)

Not sure if anyone else has posted this (searched google groups) but
Screwfix are opening a trade counter in Reading next w/e.

Fantastic! Do you know where?

Christian.

Christian McArdle wrote:
Not sure if anyone else has posted this (searched google groups) but
Screwfix are opening a trade counter in Reading next w/e.

Fantastic! Do you know where?

8A Stadium Ind Est
RG30 6ER
Jct of Oxford Rd and Portman Rd.

John Stumbles wrote:
On Sun, 16 Apr 2006 08:11:41 +0100, Grumps wrote:

Not sure if anyone else has posted this (searched google groups) but
Screwfix are opening a trade counter in Reading next w/e.

Noticed that too. Wonder if they'll have the full range of stock?

"Everything for the trade"
"13,000+ products in stock". So I guess that's many thousands of screws and
a few bits that you don't need.
They have a call and collect service.

If they do coffee maybe we could have our next uk.d-i-y social down
there? ;-)

Opening w/e they're offering "snacks".

On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 11:18:20 +0100, Christian McArdle wrote:

Not sure if anyone else has posted this (searched google groups) but
Screwfix are opening a trade counter in Reading next w/e.

Fantastic! Do you know where?

Stadium industrial estate, off Oxford Rd/Portman Rd

Stadium industrial estate, off Oxford Rd/Portman Rd

Bugger. That's nearer my mum's house. I was hoping for somewhere off the
Basingstoke Rd. There's no pleasing some people!

Christian.

John Stumbles wrote:

Stadium industrial estate, off Oxford Rd/Portman Rd

I know they're calling it a 'trade counter' but is it really for
trade only, or is it open to the public?

Regards

Mark
--
NewsGuy.Com 30Gb $9.95 Carry Forward and On Demand Bandwidth

Mark Annetts wrote:
John Stumbles wrote:

Stadium industrial estate, off Oxford Rd/Portman Rd

I know they're calling it a 'trade counter' but is it really for
trade only, or is it open to the public?

Their flyer says "trade & public welcome".

Grumps wrote:

Their flyer says "trade & public welcome".

Cheers. That's good, it's not too far from my GF's in that case.

Regards

Mark
--
NewsGuy.Com 30Gb $9.95 Carry Forward and On Demand Bandwidth

On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 09:10:15 GMT, John Stumbles
wrote:

On Sun, 16 Apr 2006 08:11:41 +0100, Grumps wrote:

Not sure if anyone else has posted this (searched google groups) but
Screwfix are opening a trade counter in Reading next w/e.

Noticed that too. Wonder if they'll have the full range of stock?

If they do coffee maybe we could have our next uk.d-i-y social down there? ;-)



You do realise where it is, don't you...


--

..andy

On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 13:22:15 +0100, "Christian McArdle"
wrote:

Stadium industrial estate, off Oxford Rd/Portman Rd

Bugger. That's nearer my mum's house. I was hoping for somewhere off the
Basingstoke Rd. There's no pleasing some people!

Christian.



In fact quicker and cheaper to order on line and no need to barricade
the car.



--

..andy

On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 14:44:32 +0100, Mark Annetts
wrote:

John Stumbles wrote:

Stadium industrial estate, off Oxford Rd/Portman Rd

I know they're calling it a 'trade counter' but is it really for
trade only, or is it open to the public?

Regards

Mark


Trade counters are a form of marketing. There are very few who won't
take your money quite happily as long as you don't mind the slow
service, sharp intake of breath and friendly demeanour of the
assistants


--

..andy

Bugger. That's nearer my mum's house. I was hoping for somewhere
off the Basingstoke Rd. There's no pleasing some people!

In fact quicker and cheaper to order on line and no need to barricade
the car.

It's not that bad down there. It's not like it is off Waylen St.

Christian.

On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 15:45:50 +0100, "Christian McArdle"
wrote:

Bugger. That's nearer my mum's house. I was hoping for somewhere
off the Basingstoke Rd. There's no pleasing some people!

In fact quicker and cheaper to order on line and no need to barricade
the car.

It's not that bad down there. It's not like it is off Waylen St.

Christian.


True, and I suppose one can avoid going through Whitley.


--

..andy

On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 14:44:32 +0100, Mark Annetts wrote:

John Stumbles wrote:

Stadium industrial estate, off Oxford Rd/Portman Rd

I know they're calling it a 'trade counter' but is it really for
trade only, or is it open to the public?

I don't think they are calling it a trade counter: anyway there's a
fscking great poster at LiDL (down the road from it) aimed at non-trade
customers

On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 12:18:03 +0100, Grumps wrote:

Opening w/e they're offering "snacks".

"As part of our opening celebrations, we’re offering 10% off your first
order and a FREE t-shirt if you spend over £40! Plus, there’ll be FREE
hot snacks, and a prize draw to win Screwfix Vouchers to the value of
£100!"

10% off .... hmmm, shopping list time :-)

Does anybody know if there is going to be a nationwide rollout of Screwfix
trade counters. I have asked on the freephone number but the operator
didn't know. I am just wondering if any SF employees lurk on this site and
could let us in on any trade (counter) secrets. I live in Leeds and would
love there to be a local one to patronise. How many times have we made up
an order to get the free delivery and no sooner have you pressed the 'Submit
Order' button you remember something that cost a £1 or so and have to put it
on your list for next time ;-)

Cheers

John

John Stumbles wrote:
On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 12:18:03 +0100, Grumps wrote:

Opening w/e they're offering "snacks".

"As part of our opening celebrations, we’re offering 10% off your
first order and a FREE t-shirt if you spend over £40! Plus, there’ll
be FREE hot snacks, and a prize draw to win Screwfix Vouchers to the
value of £100!"

10% off .... hmmm, shopping list time :-)

Let me know what it's like.
TBH, I couldn't be bothered driving over there, then waiting to be served,
just for a free snack and 10% off (might even get a T-shirt). Call me a lazy
f**ker if you want!

In article ,
John Stumbles writes:
On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 12:18:03 +0100, Grumps wrote:

Opening w/e they're offering "snacks".

"As part of our opening celebrations, we’re offering 10% off your first
order and a FREE t-shirt if you spend over £40! Plus, there’ll be FREE
hot snacks, and a prize draw to win Screwfix Vouchers to the value of
£100!"

10% off .... hmmm, shopping list time :-)

This is the same as the Luton one when it opened. Don't get
excited about the snacks -- it was a token for a burger van
parked outside, but the T-shirts were good quality thick
cotton, with Screwfix logo embroidered on.

--
Andrew Gabriel

On Wed, 19 Apr 2006 12:59:50 +0000, John Stumbles wrote:

On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 12:18:03 +0100, Grumps wrote:

Opening w/e they're offering "snacks".

"As part of our opening celebrations, we’re offering 10% off your first
order and a FREE t-shirt if you spend over £40! Plus, there’ll be FREE
hot snacks, and a prize draw to win Screwfix Vouchers to the value of
£100!"

10% off .... hmmm, shopping list time :-)

Well you certainly can't miss it: they've got a barrage ballon hovering
over the place (perhaps they're expecting an air raid by Toolstation? :-))
http://i3.tinypic.com/w1v9zm.jpg

Service smooth enough, but it wasn't too busy when I went and I daresay
they'd laid on reinforcements for their opening weekend. Wonder what
it'll be like when it settles down. It would be nice to be able to place
an order via their website and pick it up the I picked my shopping list
from their wibble, had great difficulty converting it to soemthing
printable, and then they had to re-key it all in again at the desk. If
one could just submit online, maybe the night before, and go round next
morning and have it waiting for collection that would be brilliant.

As retail therapy it's perhaps a little sad* but the discount off the
stuff I bought almost paid for refuelling the van ;-)

Not particularly taken by the Tshirts, mind, and I declined the baseball
cap which was too cheap and naff even for me :-).





* but then I think retail therapy _is_ sad.

Andy Hall wrote:
John Stumbles wrote:
Grumps wrote:

Screwfix are opening a trade counter in Reading next w/e.

If they do coffee maybe we could have our next uk.d-i-y social down there? ;-)

You do realise where it is, don't you...

I'm guessing industrial estate. I think a pub would be preferable

P.

On 21 Apr 2006 19:53:50 -0700, wrote:


Andy Hall wrote:
John Stumbles wrote:
Grumps wrote:

Screwfix are opening a trade counter in Reading next w/e.

If they do coffee maybe we could have our next uk.d-i-y social down there? ;-)

You do realise where it is, don't you...

I'm guessing industrial estate. I think a pub would be preferable

P.


Worse than that. All routes to it require the use of an armoured
personnel carrier.


--

..andy

Worse than that. All routes to it require the use of an armoured
personnel carrier.

It's not that bad round there. It's almost next to Waitrose! You have to go
much further into town to get the real Oxford Road effect.

Christian.

On Mon, 24 Apr 2006 10:09:43 +0100, Christian McArdle wrote:

Worse than that. All routes to it require the use of an armoured
personnel carrier.

It's not that bad round there. It's almost next to Waitrose! You have to go
much further into town to get the real Oxford Road effect.

After visting Screwfix on Friday I was in the car park of another shop
when a Gentleman of the Streets approach me asking if I could 'help him
out'. I gathered that he meant financially, though the bottle of cider in
his hand led me to infer that money was a means to a specific end. (For
the record I declined to assist.)

And the mean streets I was on?

Tesco's.

John wrote:
Does anybody know if there is going to be a nationwide rollout of Screwfix
trade counters.

Good Q. FWIW, I've no inside info, but observing inside B&Q stores &
noting the odd footnote or two in one of the rags I read, for several
years it's been only too obvious that stocking/rebranding changes are
afoot at B&Q (owner of screwfix). It used to be that you could buy a
specialised tool (or bits & pieces) at B&Q to tackle a serious job,
plus all the add-on gubbins needed to deal with the non-standard
application. More & more it only stocks the basic tool or component.

B&Q was marked by it being obvious that stocking decisions were made by
people who knew what was required to do a job. In contrast it was &
still is only too obvuous that staff in Homebase et al haven't a clue
with that regard. By way of example, I recall seeing a bundle of 6ft
angle plaster bead knocked down for next to nothing in H-B. Anyone who
has ever used angle bead knows that almost everytime you need lengths
well over 2m long. Of course H-B never stocked usable lengths.

B&Q is beginning to remind me of my model train days: I'd be given a
spanking new model with manufacturer's instructions which mentioned a
nice extra you could obtain from your model shop. Hopes raised I'd
dash downtown, only to find no-one stocked the extra & worse no-one
wanted to order it.

It rather looks as if we are witnessing B&Q building a new trade supply
chain. There's 12 screwfix trade counters open (13 with Derrby):viz:
Aintree; Birmingham; Bristol; Enfield; Gloucester; Harlow; Kettering;
London; Luton; Reading; Stockport; Yeovil. They appear to being opened
@ around 1/month.

Interesting branch distribution.. Quite a lot of potential customers
north of Thames & in Midlands must be within an hour or so drive of one
of these outlets. Are these the areas where Screwfix get the most
business? Or where it finds it hardest to make delivery? or where it
has most problems obtaining space for B&Q stores?

Maybe B&Q have found trade customers don't particularly like mixing
with their clientele?

Maybe B&Q are aiming to increase the no of women customers. The stores
certainly seem to be giving more attention to Homebase type stuff
rather than basic hardware. For instance one branch I use now has a
large display of bathroom suites set out as for real. In days past
it stacked it all up in racks. .Apparently another aspect of DIY-type
shopping is that men tend to to go in for a specific item & leave with
it (or with nothing if its out of stock) whilst women tend to go in &
are likely to impulse buy..

Maybe if B&Q can oust the basic stuff it can find more room for
ladylike displays?

On Mon, 24 Apr 2006 10:09:43 +0100, "Christian McArdle"
wrote:

Worse than that. All routes to it require the use of an armoured
personnel carrier.

It's not that bad round there. It's almost next to Waitrose! You have to go
much further into town to get the real Oxford Road effect.

Christian.



Yes, but then you have to go all round the houses to avoid it.....


--

..andy

jim_in_sussex wrote:

Interesting branch distribution.. Quite a lot of potential customers
north of Thames & in Midlands must be within an hour or so drive of one
of these outlets. Are these the areas where Screwfix get the most
business? Or where it finds it hardest to make delivery? or where it
has most problems obtaining space for B&Q stores?

simply the location that puts it withina suitable distance o the largest
portion of the population. ie the same reason that if you were setting
up a national distribution centre it would probably be in MK or thereabouts,



--
David Clark
http://www.publishing.ucl.ac.uk
$replyto = 'an.rnser.is.reqird'

It's not that bad round there. It's almost next to Waitrose! You have
to go much further into town to get the real Oxford Road effect.

Yes, but then you have to go all round the houses to avoid it.....

The Oxford Road is also very slow and congested, it is almost always better
to use the Portman Road or Tilehurst Road to bypass it.

Christian.

On Mon, 24 Apr 2006 20:27:39 +0000, John Stumbles wrote:

After visting Screwfix on Friday I was in the car park of another shop
when a Gentleman of the Streets approach me asking if I could 'help him
out'. I gathered that he meant financially, though the bottle of cider in
his hand led me to infer that money was a means to a specific end. (For
the record I declined to assist.)

And the mean streets I was on?

Tesco's.

And (apropos nothing much, but at least getting back geographically closer
to the new Screwfix) in Wickes today there was a guy wandering round the
shop in his vest[1]. Not that Wickes has a dress code, exactly, but even
by the sartorial standards of their usual clientele he did rather stand
out. I was surprised to later see him getting into a rather distinctive
vehicle[2] I'd noticed in the car park.
http://i3.tinypic.com/whk4sj.jpg
Note the reading matter on the passenger seat
http://i3.tinypic.com/whk7wx.jpg






[1] and other clothes. But the vest was all he wore above the waist

[2] no, not the red one