Stuart Noble wrote:

Severed limbs everywhere
where? (looks round madly)..not in my immediate vicinity..

The Natural Philosopher
wibbled on Friday 15 January 2010 18:49

Tim W wrote:
TheOldFellow
wibbled on Friday 15 January 2010 16:16


You may have a point. Maybe I should say: start with one good store
somewhere with big catchment, do it really well, train your staff, and
then put on-line on top before going country-wide.

I don't know how Screwfix started, but I didn't think they had stores
until later in their business development cycle. (then they got bought
by (forgot), and subtle alterations ruin things, but there you go,
way of the world - accountantitis and cost-plus-syndrome probably)

R.

Seen too many companies that were doing well (from nothing a few years
back) being sold for profit, then the new company ruins them.

standard business practice, work like buggery, build a brand, flog the
customer list and trusted brand to a bunch of *******, and watch it
collapse into the mire.

Then go and do something very similar again, once you're clear of the
contractual limitations!

--
Tim Watts

Icicles - nature's way of pinpointing all the leaks in your guttering...

Tim W wrote:
The Natural Philosopher
wibbled on Friday 15 January 2010 18:49

Tim W wrote:
TheOldFellow
wibbled on Friday 15 January 2010 16:16


You may have a point. Maybe I should say: start with one good store
somewhere with big catchment, do it really well, train your staff, and
then put on-line on top before going country-wide.

I don't know how Screwfix started, but I didn't think they had stores
until later in their business development cycle. (then they got bought
by (forgot), and subtle alterations ruin things, but there you go,
way of the world - accountantitis and cost-plus-syndrome probably)

R.
Seen too many companies that were doing well (from nothing a few years
back) being sold for profit, then the new company ruins them.

standard business practice, work like buggery, build a brand, flog the
customer list and trusted brand to a bunch of *******, and watch it
collapse into the mire.

Then go and do something very similar again, once you're clear of the
contractual limitations!

Or in my case, sit back and take a hard earned rest ;-)

On Fri, 15 Jan 2010 18:25:28 +0000, Stuart Noble wrote:
Liability aside, wouldn't it be great to be able to rent a proper
joinery or cabinetry workshop for an hour or two?

Owain

Severed limbs everywhere

I missed the obvious "good idea, but it'll cost you and arm and a leg"
line, didn't I?

On 14 Jan, 20:33, Tim W wrote:

"If IKEA did DIY"

I wonder...

But would you buy a power tool called a "Yørgalwånk"...

Ikea in Bristol probably sell them.

Fairly often now, there have been outbreaks of creatively reproduced,
and beautifully printed, product labels appearing throughout the
store. Some have been genuine barcodes for the thing in question (but
you'll think forever afterwards that you really did buy a "Knøbjøckey"
lampshade), others have been for a generic plastic bogbrush, a giant
sofa or something very obviously wrong.

No-one knows if it's punters or staff doing it. But it's a very
Bristol sort of thing.

Andy Dingley
wibbled on Friday 15 January 2010 19:22

On 14 Jan, 20:33, Tim W wrote:

"If IKEA did DIY"

I wonder...

But would you buy a power tool called a "Yørgalwånk"...

Ikea in Bristol probably sell them.

Fairly often now, there have been outbreaks of creatively reproduced,
and beautifully printed, product labels appearing throughout the
store. Some have been genuine barcodes for the thing in question (but
you'll think forever afterwards that you really did buy a "Knøbjøckey"
lampshade), others have been for a generic plastic bogbrush, a giant
sofa or something very obviously wrong.

No-one knows if it's punters or staff doing it. But it's a very
Bristol sort of thing.

Very good :-)

--
Tim Watts

Icicles - nature's way of pinpointing all the leaks in your guttering...

Jules wrote:
I think that'll change. At the moment I think the skills aren't there in
the younger generation because they expect to be able to simply buy their
way out of any problems - but society seems to be moving slowly back
toward being a bit more frugal with the pennies, and folk are going to
want to do more and more stuff themselves as they can't afford to
pay for someone else to do it for them.

Possibly for DIY, but mass production has made it difficult for anything
portable. Why build yourself a magazine rack (the sort of thing that used
to be a school woodwork project) when you can buy one at Ikea for 4.99? You
can't even buy the wood for that. It only becomes worthwhile when it's
something bespoke (to fit a particular space, say), or is designed around
something you can't buy (eg a bit of driftwood found on the beach).

I tend to treat this as an anti-science: how you can take some cheap
mass-produced product and turn it into something else. (He says, typing this
over a wifi connection using a GBP1.20 Wilko kitchen sieve as reflector)

There may be some mileage in finding out if there is any demand
from 20-30 year olds to learn what their parents/schools didn't teach
them, and to become DIY enthusiasts. Years ago, I recall some DIY
stores doing classes in using various power tools. That sort of thing
no longer goes on as far as I know.

That would be good... otherwise it gets left to the local college, who
probably don't have the facilities.

B&Q et al do offer DVDs of 'how to tile' and that sort of thing, so they do
get involved to some minimal extent.

(On a similar line I'd be up for a course on something like 'advanced car
maintenance' - how to change the head gasket, rather than how to check the
oil which is what most colleges seem to offer)

Theo

Tim W wrote:
Owain
wibbled on Thursday 14 January 2010 19:48


Silly prices. If Ikea can produce a roomful of furniture for ?20 don't
expect me to pay that for one shelf made out of beech-coloured
cardboard with a ding in it.

"If IKEA did DIY"

Funny you should mention that, since (a quick Google tells me) the OP used
to be a Consumer PR Manager at IKEA :-)

Theo

Tim W wrote:
Andy Dingley
wibbled on Thursday 14 January 2010 16:22


A "home improvement store" is Focus. They sell lampshades. If they
sell nails, they're in packs of 10, for a fiver a pack.

This is one of my complaints with B&Q - small packs of sundry hardware cost
a fortune. And yet, I can also buy 3m packs of coving for less than the
builder's merchant next door, ditto plaster (OK, I just get fatigued by
endless haggling so I go where the marked price is cheaper if I can).

Trouble is, if you sell 3 nails at 3p each, you don't even cover costs for
the time to count them.

One way to do it might be clever use of price breaks. How about:
(for some item where the packet price might be 99p for 10)

1-5: 12p
6-20: 8p
21-50: 5p
51-100: 3p
101+: 1p
(numbers completely made up and untested)

That encourages people to buy more in bulk, but only if they need to.

Then use supermarket-style weighing scales and recognition chart at the
checkout to price them. Then you don't have to have anyone manning the
pick'n'mix desk (apart, I suppose, from worrying about people slipping them
in their pockets).

Self scan would be good if it worked like Tescos (ie worked). It is
potentially a winner if I don't have to stand in a queue just to buy 2
things. Alternatively, poach ALDI's till staff - they are at least 3 times
faster than B&Q's.

ALDI's staff work by simply throwing the items at you off the end of the
checkout. A bit hazardous if it's a length of metal pipe or a tin of paint.

Theo

Theo Markettos wrote:
Why build yourself a magazine rack (the sort of thing that used
to be a school woodwork project) when you can buy one at Ikea for 4.99?

because you can build a far far better one?

On 15 Jan 2010 21:10:41 +0000 (GMT), Theo Markettos
wrote:

Tim W wrote:
Owain
wibbled on Thursday 14 January 2010 19:48


Silly prices. If Ikea can produce a roomful of furniture for ?20 don't
expect me to pay that for one shelf made out of beech-coloured
cardboard with a ding in it.

"If IKEA did DIY"

Funny you should mention that, since (a quick Google tells me) the OP used
to be a Consumer PR Manager at IKEA :-)


A strong candidate for "meaningless job titles of the 21st century".

On Jan 14, 9:59 pm, JimK wrote:
On Jan 14, 9:49 pm, Tim W wrote:



John Rumm
wibbled on Thursday 14 January 2010 20:45

Tim W wrote:
Owain
wibbled on Thursday 14 January 2010 19:48

Silly prices. If Ikea can produce a roomful of furniture for £20 don't
expect me to pay that for one shelf made out of beech-coloured
cardboard with a ding in it.

"If IKEA did DIY"

I wonder...

But would you buy a power tool called a "Yørgalwånk"...

LoL! - but you might stay to watch the in-store demo!

If she's as Swedish as the books on their shelves, maybe ;-

I'm sure those product names don't mean anything. They just get some 6 month
old to mumble stuff and and pepper a few å and ø's around to make it look
authentic.

--
Tim Watts

Icicles - nature's way of pinpointing all the leaks in your guttering....

heard about the Ikea range exclusively for lesbians?

it's all tongue and groove :))

(if anyone was wondering, sniffle....)

JimK

"The Natural Philosopher" wrote in message
...
Theo Markettos wrote:
Why build yourself a magazine rack (the sort of thing that used
to be a school woodwork project) when you can buy one at Ikea for 4.99?

because you can build a far far better one?









and out of any wood you choose .

mark

G.Mo wrote:
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??

Biggest deal for me is probably range of stock. It seems to be more and
more common that I go to B&Q or Wickes and come home empty handed or at
least not with everything I went to get. That might be them getting
worse or me getting more adventurous or more likely both.

Don't waste space on scatter cushions, carpets and fitted kitchen
displays like B&Q is currently doing. I want to buy ironmongery,
plumbing fittings, electrical parts, timber, building materials and so
on. When I want furnishings (and it's not that long since I had a whole
empty house to furnish) I don't go to a "DIY" shop.

Have a decent website which displays all your products. There's no need
for an online sales facility (for me, anyway), I just want to see what
you have (and at what prices) before I go, so that I can plan the
project. Decent pictures, dimensions, etc, not just a one-liner cribbed
from the supplier's catalogue. Live stock figures for my local branch
(it's 2010, don't tell me your stock-control system can't talk to your
Web servers) so I know I won't have a wasted journey. A search facility
that doesn't suck (get a Google appliance in if you can't do it yourself).

A few kiosks around the shop where I can (probably on a lightly-modified
version of that same decent website with good search) search the
catalogue to find out whether an item is stocked and where it is (ie
shelf number). I seem to spend a fair bit of time wandering around
looking for things, before I can find a member of staff to tell me where
it is (or that they don't stock it; see above).

Reasonable opening hours. B&Q's are ok; if you close at six you won't
get much custom from me, since I tend to drop in on the way home from
work during the week, acquiring the materials to do the job at the
weekend. Decent opening hours all weekend would be good, so lobby the
government to stop restricting everyone's activities based on some
people's religion :-)

I don't really need advice from staff - I get that here :-) True experts
could be handy I guess, but that's hard to achieve and any less is not
really useful. I don't go to a shop to find out how to do something
anyway, I go to buy the materials (and occasionally tools) that I need.

It would be nice to be able to buy more in the way of timber, eg a nice
length of beech or oak as well as carcassing softwood and MDF, but to be
fair that might be a bit specialised for a general "DIY" store.

I do occasionally find automatic checkouts handy as an "express lane"
when I've just nipped in for a packet of screws or whatever, but for any
more than that they're a waste of time and highly annoying. Keep the
staffed checkouts and limit the auto kiosks to perhaps two, with nowhere
to put piles of stuff plus suitable signage, so that they just get used
by people with a couple of small items in hand.

....and just to cap it all off it would be good to match TLC et al in
prices. If you did everything else I've suggested but weren't the
cheapest I would still use it for "everything in one place, right now"
convenience, but you'd miss out on my big orders like bathroom refits,
workshop wiring, etc.

Pete

In article ,
Theo Markettos writes:
Trouble is, if you sell 3 nails at 3p each, you don't even cover costs for
the time to count them.

One way to do it might be clever use of price breaks. How about:
(for some item where the packet price might be 99p for 10)

1-5: 12p
6-20: 8p
21-50: 5p
51-100: 3p
101+: 1p
(numbers completely made up and untested)

That encourages people to buy more in bulk, but only if they need to.

Then use supermarket-style weighing scales and recognition chart at the
checkout to price them. Then you don't have to have anyone manning the
pick'n'mix desk (apart, I suppose, from worrying about people slipping them
in their pockets).

B&Q used to - I still have some of the bags of loose nails in
the garage. That, and drums of cable you cut the length you require,
drums of hose you cut the length you require, etc enabled them to
keep a much larger range than they do today, which is why they no
longer meet my requirements. For example, they used to keep a drum
of 6 core mains flex to cut off what you want. It probably wasn't a
fast moving item, but they only needed a couple of drums in the store.
There won't be enough sales of it to justify shelf space for pre-cut
bundles, so it's gone.

Conversely, many electrical wholsalers will now cut you a length of
the more exotic things like this, and have taken trade from B&Q.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

On 16 Jan, 09:21, (Andrew Gabriel) wrote:
B&Q used to - I still have some of the bags of loose nails in
the garage. That, and drums of cable you cut the length you require,
drums of hose you cut the length you require, etc enabled them to
keep a much larger range than they do today, which is why they no
longer meet my requirements. For example, they used to keep a drum
of 6 core mains flex to cut off what you want. It probably wasn't a
fast moving item, but they only needed a couple of drums in the store.
There won't be enough sales of it to justify shelf space for pre-cut
bundles, so it's gone.

I was in France recently and buying cable was by the metre, but you
had to find an assistant to cut the required lengths and write you a
ticket to take to the till, so more labour intensive.

Pete

John Rumm wrote:

I found that as my confidence and skills grew, what I wanted from a
DIY shop changed rapidly anyway. There is a place for plumbing
fittings in a plastic pack hanging from a hook, with fitting
instructions on the card - but you move through that fairly quickly
to wanting a bulk bag at less silly prices.

Exactly my experiance.

It looks like convenience is more relevant to experts though, ie make
it as quick and efficient as possible.

Yup, and a good range of materials etc

Anyway, I'll definitely follow your advice to follow the group to get
a better sense of the issues a pro can have, which is how I found the
site in the first place!:-)

While there are a few trades represented in the regular contributors
here, most of us are not professional DIYers (if such a thing is
actually possible).

I suppose I might be called a professional DIYer in that I carry out
relatively minor DIY tasks 5 - 6 days a week.

Just had a quick crunch of the numbers on my acounts spreadsheet to reveal
the following.

Jan 09 - Dec 09.
92 visits to B&Q, spend £1200. Average spend per visit £13.
79 visits to Wickes, spend £2000. Average spend per visit £25.

So, I'm in B&Q more often, but spend less than I do in Wickes.

Geographically, the Medway Towns is 'landscape' rather than 'portrait' on a
map, I live on the left hand edge with a small B&Q very close, Wickes is
slap bang in the middle, on the right hand edge is a huge B&Q almost next
door to a Screwfix Depot. So my local B&Q is the most convenient.

Reasons for the greater spend in Wickes? First of all, as John said, is the
product range. I want a good range of materials, not scatter cushions &
table lamps, Wicks is a much better store for the trade user, B&Q seems to
be going down the Homebase route. I don't buy from Homebase anyway, waaay
too expensive.

Secondly its because Wickes publish a complete price list/catalouge and have
a web site reasonably easy to use - though nowhere as good as 'the daddy' -
Screwfix. Most of my quotes are done in the evenings or whilst sitting in
the van at lunchtime. I can easily price stuff up from Wickes & when I get
the job its easier to buy from Wickes.

B&Q on the other hand send out a few 'offer' leaflets, but not a complete
list. The B&Q website is simply dire. Virtually unuseable.

Things I don't buy from either place;

Timber. Wouldn't touch B&Q timber with a barge pole - assuming B&Q had a
piece of timber straight enough to use as a barge pole. Timber in Wickes is
OK, bigger range & cheaper but a proper timber merchant gets nearly all of
my spend on decking timber, fence panels etc - over £3K in 09.

Fixings, screws, grab adhesive, plumbing fittings, hardware, consumables.
Screwfix & Toolststion get all of this spend simply down to price. I
wouldn't mind paying a little more instore, but I'm not going to be ripped
off.

Examples;

8 x 100 hammer fixing; B&Q pack of 16 for £7.18, Wickes pack of 20 for
£8.46. Toolstation £7.50 per 100. 45p each, 42p each or 7.5p each? Do the
math.

Flexible tap connectors (300mm); This is a good example of how crap the B&Q
site is. A seach for '300mm flexible tap connector' generates 90 items of
plumbing fittings, only 4 items are correct - and they are packs of 4, not
singles - which I know B&Q sell.

Apparently "Your search for 300mm flexible tap connectors returned no exact
results, below are possible matches".

Anywho, they are around £4 each wheras Toolstation sell them for 95p.

Silicone & Grab Adhesive; £5 - £6 a tube in B&Q, £1.50/£2 from Screwfix.

The list could go on & on.

TBH I'm spending a little more in B&Q than I used to because of the trade
card. Every 2 or 3 months I get a cheque for £50 odd which is nice. Wickes
reponded with their 'MyCard' but it isn't as good as the B&Q one and is paid
in vouchers - can't spend them on beer or curry.


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

The Medway Handyman wrote:

The B&Q website is simply dire. Virtually unuseable.

I agree, and I have to say the SF search function isn't that good
either. If I search for "pipe 22 mm", I expect it to throw up "copper
tube 22mm". After all, the thing you bend the "tube" with is a "pipe
bender". It would seem a simple matter to add a few commonly used terms
as keywords

Stuart Noble wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:

The B&Q website is simply dire. Virtually unuseable.

I agree, and I have to say the SF search function isn't that good
either. If I search for "pipe 22 mm", I expect it to throw up "copper
tube 22mm". After all, the thing you bend the "tube" with is a "pipe
bender". It would seem a simple matter to add a few commonly used
terms as keywords

Searched the B&Q site for 3" plant pots once - it came up with a newell post
cap :-)


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

The Medway Handyman wrote:
Stuart Noble wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:

The B&Q website is simply dire. Virtually unuseable.
I agree, and I have to say the SF search function isn't that good
either. If I search for "pipe 22 mm", I expect it to throw up "copper
tube 22mm". After all, the thing you bend the "tube" with is a "pipe
bender". It would seem a simple matter to add a few commonly used
terms as keywords

Searched the B&Q site for 3" plant pots once - it came up with a newell post
cap :-)



Close enough :-)

On 14/01/10 20:48, Bruce wrote:
On Thu, 14 Jan 2010 20:30:15 +0000, John Rumm
wrote:

Excuse the resident charm donors!


I have no wish to be excused by you or anyone else.

Well here's another one that wants to apologise for you.

The original question was pitched at about the right level, a very
open-ended question looking for a broad range of responses to be
followed up in-depth. Some people at least seem to want to improve DIY
stores. If you can't be helpful at least be silent.



--
Bernard Peek

On 14/01/10 13:52, 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?


I think it's clear from the responses that there is no single DIY
market, you need to decide which part of the market is likely to be most
profitable. If your client is big enough perhaps consider brand-splitting.

You probably need to consider three markets although the three are
actually points on a spectrum. First the professional builder/engineer.
They need reasonable quality tools and materials, always in stock and at
a reasonable price. They may need some help using something new but are
more likely to value continuity of supply than the latest high-tech gismos.

Second there's the experienced DIYer. They probably want better quality
materials because they are working on their own properties and have to
live with the results. They will need some help with new materials and
techniques. They want reliable light-usage tools.

Lastly there's the occasional DIYer who is probably restricted to simple
repairs and construction kits. They need lots of hand-holding. They will
probably also want smaller packs of materials. They aren't going to buy
professional grade (or price) tools.

There's perhaps a fourth category, the people who need help in putting
together an Ikea flat-pack.


--
Bernard Peek

On Sat, 16 Jan 2010 13:58:28 +0000, The Medway Handyman wrote:
Searched the B&Q site for 3" plant pots once

Leave drivel's manhood out of it...

On Fri, 15 Jan 2010 21:23:07 +0000, Theo Markettos wrote:

Tim W wrote:
Andy Dingley
wibbled on Thursday 14 January 2010 16:22


A "home improvement store" is Focus. They sell lampshades. If they
sell nails, they're in packs of 10, for a fiver a pack.

This is one of my complaints with B&Q - small packs of sundry hardware cost
a fortune. And yet, I can also buy 3m packs of coving for less than the
builder's merchant next door, ditto plaster (OK, I just get fatigued by
endless haggling so I go where the marked price is cheaper if I can).

Trouble is, if you sell 3 nails at 3p each, you don't even cover costs for
the time to count them.

That's why it's all done by weight at my local farm supply place - I just
grab the quantity I need from the big bins and put it in a bag, weigh it
with the supplied scales, write down the code and weight on the bag, and
take it to the till. Sometimes they'll weigh it there too, just to check
I'm not trying to pull a fast one, and sometimes they won't.

I get exactly the amount I need, far cheaper than the sheds with the
blister packs, and with a minimum of wasteful packaging.

They still offer boxes of nails and screws, too, for those who want it (I
usually keep a stash of 'generic' things on the shelves at home, so once
in a while I'll just grab a box of 200 or 500 of something so they're
there for random little projects when I need them)

Then you don't have to have anyone manning the
pick'n'mix desk (apart, I suppose, from worrying about people slipping
them in their pockets).

They just don't seem worried about it here. Maybe some loss from theft is
factored into things, or maybe they just trust people more, or maybe they
rely on the place being busy enough that someone wouldn't try taking
things.

cheers

Jules

In message , The Medway
Handyman writes
Stuart Noble wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:

The B&Q website is simply dire. Virtually unuseable.

I agree, and I have to say the SF search function isn't that good
either. If I search for "pipe 22 mm", I expect it to throw up "copper
tube 22mm". After all, the thing you bend the "tube" with is a "pipe
bender". It would seem a simple matter to add a few commonly used
terms as keywords

Searched the B&Q site for 3" plant pots once - it came up with a newell post
cap :-)


That's your fault for being a perfectionist

--
geoff

geoff wrote:
In message , The
Medway Handyman writes
Stuart Noble wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:

The B&Q website is simply dire. Virtually unuseable.

I agree, and I have to say the SF search function isn't that good
either. If I search for "pipe 22 mm", I expect it to throw up
"copper tube 22mm". After all, the thing you bend the "tube" with
is a "pipe bender". It would seem a simple matter to add a few
commonly used terms as keywords

Searched the B&Q site for 3" plant pots once - it came up with a
newell post cap :-)


That's your fault for being a perfectionist

I'm not complaining, the plant pots look rather nice as you go up the
stairs....


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

Stuart Noble wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:
Stuart Noble wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:

The B&Q website is simply dire. Virtually unuseable.
I agree, and I have to say the SF search function isn't that good
either. If I search for "pipe 22 mm", I expect it to throw up "copper
tube 22mm". After all, the thing you bend the "tube" with is a "pipe
bender". It would seem a simple matter to add a few commonly used
terms as keywords

Searched the B&Q site for 3" plant pots once - it came up with a
newell post cap :-)



Close enough :-)

Fundamentally, this is because, along with Maplin (which is now IMHO
truly ****e), their search results give results containing *any* of your
keywords, not *all* of them as Google notionally does.

There was, no doubt, at the time, a '3" newel post cap' in the catalogue.

Further, search engines index roots of words and strip out punctuation,
so, for example if you search for 'brush' or 'brushes' you would get the
same results. Unfortunately, this sometimes means that if you search for
'pipewrench' you get every result containing the word 'pipe' or 'pipes'.

It is also worth noting that in many cases, B&Q's website gives results
for in-store, but if you click to buy on line, you are offered Screwfix
product.

An example is solvent weld waste fittings. They are Marley in store and
Floplast in B&Q's Next Day online store, just like Screwfix, but more
expensive. Same order codes too.

E.g. 52916 pack of 5 32mm solvent straight coupling £4.94 in B&Q online,
£3.95 in Screwfix. Delivery charges are the same, so it seems that B&Q
Next Day is fulfilled by Screwfix for 25% more of your hard-earned dosh.

Bernard Peek wrote:


There's perhaps a fourth category, the people who need help in putting
together an Ikea flat-pack.


TMH has that one covered. No job too small; Have Makita, will travel;
etc. ;-)

Dave Osborne wrote:
Bernard Peek wrote:


There's perhaps a fourth category, the people who need help in
putting together an Ikea flat-pack.


TMH has that one covered. No job too small; Have Makita, will travel;
etc. ;-)

Too right matey! Good little earner that. I have actually spent entire
days assembling mountains of flat pack.


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

On Sat, 16 Jan 2010 02:25:32 -0800 (PST), peteshew wrote:

On 16 Jan, 09:21, (Andrew Gabriel) wrote:
B&Q used to - I still have some of the bags of loose nails in
the garage. That, and drums of cable you cut the length you require,
drums of hose you cut the length you require, etc enabled them to
keep a much larger range than they do today, which is why they no
longer meet my requirements. For example, they used to keep a drum
of 6 core mains flex to cut off what you want. It probably wasn't a
fast moving item, but they only needed a couple of drums in the store.
There won't be enough sales of it to justify shelf space for pre-cut
bundles, so it's gone.

I was in France recently and buying cable was by the metre, but you
had to find an assistant to cut the required lengths and write you a
ticket to take to the till, so more labour intensive.

Pete

Ah yes, I made the mistake of cutting my own and threw the whole system
into disarray and upset several people (until they realised that I was
English!).
--
Peter.
2x4 - thick plank; 4x4 - two of 'em.

On Sat, 16 Jan 2010 17:07:22 GMT, "The Medway Handyman"
wrote:

geoff wrote:
In message , The
Medway Handyman writes
Stuart Noble wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:

The B&Q website is simply dire. Virtually unuseable.

I agree, and I have to say the SF search function isn't that good
either. If I search for "pipe 22 mm", I expect it to throw up
"copper tube 22mm". After all, the thing you bend the "tube" with
is a "pipe bender". It would seem a simple matter to add a few
commonly used terms as keywords

Searched the B&Q site for 3" plant pots once - it came up with a
newell post cap :-)


That's your fault for being a perfectionist

I'm not complaining, the plant pots look rather nice as you go up the
stairs....


Drivel

You're a stupid newel post!

/Drivel


Doesn't have quite the same ring to it. :-(

In message , The Medway
Handyman writes
Dave Osborne wrote:
Bernard Peek wrote:


There's perhaps a fourth category, the people who need help in
putting together an Ikea flat-pack.


TMH has that one covered. No job too small; Have Makita, will travel;
etc. ;-)

Too right matey! Good little earner that. I have actually spent entire
days assembling mountains of flat pack.


I look forward to going skiing in the Rochester alps next year then

--
geoff

Bruce wrote:
On Sat, 16 Jan 2010 17:07:22 GMT, "The Medway Handyman"
wrote:

geoff wrote:
In message , The
Medway Handyman writes
Stuart Noble wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:

The B&Q website is simply dire. Virtually unuseable.

I agree, and I have to say the SF search function isn't that good
either. If I search for "pipe 22 mm", I expect it to throw up
"copper tube 22mm". After all, the thing you bend the "tube" with
is a "pipe bender". It would seem a simple matter to add a few
commonly used terms as keywords

Searched the B&Q site for 3" plant pots once - it came up with a
newell post cap :-)


That's your fault for being a perfectionist

I'm not complaining, the plant pots look rather nice as you go up the
stairs....


Drivel

You're a stupid newel post!

/Drivel


Doesn't have quite the same ring to it. :-(

Shouldn't that be " Eff off you are a newell post"?

Still doesn't have quite the same ring either....


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

geoff wrote:
In message , The
Medway Handyman writes
Dave Osborne wrote:
Bernard Peek wrote:


There's perhaps a fourth category, the people who need help in
putting together an Ikea flat-pack.


TMH has that one covered. No job too small; Have Makita, will
travel; etc. ;-)

Too right matey! Good little earner that. I have actually spent
entire days assembling mountains of flat pack.


I look forward to going skiing in the Rochester alps next year then

We already have a dry ski slope so ner.
http://www.medway.gov.uk/tourism/44632/46577/50614.htm

Bet Wotfud hasn't got one of those :-)


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

On 16/01/2010 17:48, The Medway Handyman wrote:
geoff wrote:
In a.com, The
Medway writes
Dave Osborne wrote:
Bernard Peek wrote:


There's perhaps a fourth category, the people who need help in
putting together an Ikea flat-pack.


TMH has that one covered. No job too small; Have Makita, will
travel; etc. ;-)

Too right matey! Good little earner that. I have actually spent
entire days assembling mountains of flat pack.


I look forward to going skiing in the Rochester alps next year then

We already have a dry ski slope so ner.
http://www.medway.gov.uk/tourism/44632/46577/50614.htm

Bet Wotfud hasn't got one of those :-)


High Wycombe has one. Err, had one. Till it burned down.

And will have one again, err, maybe, sometime. With a dome. :-)

http://www.wycombesummit.co.uk/

--
Rod

The lack of consensus is interesting. Different folks seem to want
different things from DIY outlets.

I would always do a compare between B&Q, Screwfix (or B&Q Lite, in
fact) & Toolstation for branded items where I know what I want and
only price/availability matters.
For timber, I'm sure that good specialised suppliers are better. In
my experience their wood is stored better and since they only sell
wood, it has to be of good quality.

The places I avoid, unless very desperate, are the local outlets of
the national builders merchants - silly prices with the good prices
reserved for trade accounts that allow "tradesmen" to bill the full
price to their customers while pocketing the difference. People slag
off the B&Q staff but I think these other outlets recruit the people
too dim for the big sheds.
Example: went into TP for an item that I'd seen for £12 in the
Toolstation catalogue; £18 was the price at their till. When I asked
if that was correct the price dropped to £13! The £1 excess was about
right for the petrol saved in not driving to TS. I suppose that's how
TP stays in business, it can't be service or the with of its staff!

Worse still are local builders merchants with such as "the 20% re-
stocking" charge when you have over-purchased and need to return
bits. Nobody has mentioned how flexible the much maligned B&Q is
when you need to take something back.

There's no one answer, you've got to work at it to get it right.
Naffer

In message , The Medway
Handyman writes
geoff wrote:
In message , The
Medway Handyman writes
Dave Osborne wrote:
Bernard Peek wrote:


There's perhaps a fourth category, the people who need help in
putting together an Ikea flat-pack.


TMH has that one covered. No job too small; Have Makita, will
travel; etc. ;-)

Too right matey! Good little earner that. I have actually spent
entire days assembling mountains of flat pack.


I look forward to going skiing in the Rochester alps next year then

We already have a dry ski slope so ner.
http://www.medway.gov.uk/tourism/44632/46577/50614.htm

Bet Wotfud hasn't got one of those :-)



We let one of our neighbouring boroughs down the road build and pay for
one instead ...



--
geoff

On Sun, 17 Jan 2010 00:31:42 +0000, John Rumm
wibbled:

Its odd really - Wickes probably most closely matches what I would
describe as my ideal DIY shop - and yet I don't actually use it that
much. Its hard to put my finger on why either. For sheet materials,
plaster, cement etc, its my place of choice. For electrical I would go
there only if nothing better were open! Plumbing is not bad, tools
mediocre. Decorating ok but limited. Kitchens etc are probably not bad
in that you can now but off the shelf.

I don't like Wickes' attempt to be clever by ownbranding everything. Some
stuff is obvious as to who it is made by (most waste pipes because it's
stamped all over them) and Speedfit is obviously JG, but I *do* like to
know what I am buying.

I fail to see the benefit of them doing it.



--
Tim Watts

Managers, politicians and environmentalists: Nature's carbon buffer.

Andrew Gabriel wrote:

B&Q used to - I still have some of the bags of loose nails in
the garage. That, and drums of cable you cut the length you require,
drums of hose you cut the length you require, etc enabled them to
keep a much larger range than they do today, which is why they no
longer meet my requirements. For example, they used to keep a drum
of 6 core mains flex to cut off what you want. It probably wasn't a
fast moving item, but they only needed a couple of drums in the store.
There won't be enough sales of it to justify shelf space for pre-cut
bundles, so it's gone.

Yet they now have a section of various ropes and chains which you
can cut yourself, and some of these don't really look as though
they would be fast movers.

Chris
--
Chris J Dixon Nottingham UK


Have dancing shoes, will ceilidh.

On Sun, 17 Jan 2010 00:38:39 +0000 (UTC) Tim Watts wrote :
I fail to see the benefit of them doing it.

Shoplifting? Refunds?

--
Tony Bryer, Greentram: 'Software to build on' Melbourne, Australia
www.superbeam.co.uk www.superbeam.com www.greentram.com