The Things Customers Do

[ktang 34]

You have a dog in the store!?

At my old shop Kevin was the manager. He had his golden retreiver in the shop all the time. The dog's name was Molson. This was a long, long time ago.

About the dog, I think I get it - "Molson Golden" (the beer).

Some things that I do that probably annoys the LHS staff / owners:

- I ask some questions that are probably dumb;

- I talk too much to the staff / owners;

- I never remember what length laces I need for my skates;

- I ask for a really shallow cut on my blades. I try to go when it's a lax time for the store, but sometimes people just show up;

- My son can't figure out why certain shin guards / shoulder pads feel better than others; and

- I can't see the stick blade lie / curve that I want, even though I walk past it 5 or 6 times, because I don't know the pro's name for that brand, so I end up comparing one of each.

Sorry!

[Chadd 916]

Door is locked, main lights are out, sign says closed, posted hours show that we should be closed. Customer sees me cleaning and bangs on the door until I open it then asks, "are you open?" Then either wants to kill time or get his skates sharpened and pay with a credit card. If you're headed to a shop and might get there a few minutes late, call and see if they will stay open a couple minutes for you. If you show up 30 minutes late, suck it up and admit it was your fault.

[hockeyherb 1]

As for stick flexing, anecdotally it seems evident from all the posts talking about how a 75 in this Easton stick is different than a 75 in that Easton stick, that a 75 is not always a 75.  And what do you do if you are used to an 85 in your Easton but are now looking at another manufacturer that doesn't use the Easton scale ?  A lot of stores I've seen actually put down mats for customers to flex their sticks on, and I've seen the sales guys flexing sticks while showing them to the customer, so why get mad at a customer for doing it ? If you don't want people to flex sticks, put up big signs saying not to do so.  Maybe some stores do, but I have never seen them.

Thanks for posting what I was also thinking. I guess stores that don't like people flexing sticks should lock up all of their sticks behind glass - that will stop those pesky customers!

What would you expect customers to do when they're about to lay out $150 on an OPS, or any other stick for that matter? When you're going to lay down that kind of dough there are only so many ways you can touch and interact with a stick as you're thinking about the feel of it in your hands, the weight, etc. Flexing doesn't sound all that stupid to me.

I bought a new stick a couple weeks ago and flexed all kinds of sticks before I knew which one felt good for me. I'm sure my LHS wasn't too sad when I walked out with a $100 stick and I just came in to get some numbers ironed onto my jersey.

Now if a guy was taking practice windups or shooting rolls of tape around the store - ok, that's stupid! B) (Unless you have a demo stick area where they're supposed to shoot things, then that's ok too.)

Maybe the LHS workers can tell us how they'd try out a new stick they've never touched before to decide if they'd buy it.

Id be annoyed if you bought a stick or not. Flexing the sticks proves nothing. It just makes you look like a retard. And also puts unneccasary stress on ALL THE OTHER sticks that you DIDNT buy. And wow, you bought a $100 stick. Way to go. Thats a way to make a store's day!

If someone who works at an LHS ever wonders why people prefer to shop online, or go to competing stores - this is the exact attitude that drives it. If you treat my $100 likes it no biggie, then I won't bother to shop at your store and I'll go somewhere where they're happy to sell me anything because they know it leads to a happy customer and more future purchases.

I know exactly the type that you sound like. you're busy talking on the phone or staring at the computer, I ask for some help or something, you're pissed off because I broke some 'golden rule' like don't flex the sticks, so you slowly get your lazy ass off a chair and probably let out a little sigh too, and then serve me with a frown. Next time I come in, I flex all the sticks I want until I decide, then walk out and then go buy online from someone who won't give me attitude cuz 'it's only $100'.

This is where the phrase 'good help is so hard to find' comes from.

[A_Steeves12 0]

i do not work in a hockey shop but the things that get me as a customer are: go in see the new ST grip ask one of the guys "hey when did you guys get the new st grip?" he says " we dont have one" with a clueless look on his face

[hyprlte 0]

hahah the worst is when the customers start to tell you about the product as if you have no idea what you are talking about.

[David13 0]

The only decent hockey store around me is like an hour away so whenever i go i like to spend a little time there and look at some things try some things on and what not. As long as I'm not bothering any one with dumb questions and I'm putting things back where they belong does this bother you guys at all or do really not mind?

[KYHockey3 0]

if they sell a 100 dollar stick store only makes like at the most 30 bucks off of it. they arent given to the store for free.

[Eazy_b97 1]

I never had that many problem's except there was one male figure skater who came in wearing short-shorts (we're talking 10% ass showing), a belly top, and a Marilyn Monroe pursue. Kind've put me in an awkward position as he stretched out on the bench while I was prepping his skates for him and he was getting fitted.

[roadrunner 12]

I've run into that type of attitude a number of times most recently at Original Styx in Toronto. I thought it was going to be my go to LHS especially after they gave me a 10% discount on a Z_Bubble. Several months later I went in looking for Flyweights as I'd seen them there before along with M1's on a great big Mission advertising stick rack. None were left in the shop so he took my name and number cause he said he'd(the owner) would be dropping by the warehouse that afternoon. So I gave him the specs I wanted and said I'll take two at the 159.00Cad price tag, never asked for a discount or intended on getting one.

Weeks go by and no call from this guy, so I call him every week after that. Either he's not there or w/someone but never calls me back. So finally I got him, and asked him politely...Were you able to get those Flyweights, he's like what do you want?...we're not a Mission dealer? Try National Sports......click he hung up.

So yes you better believe if I want to see how some gloves will fit or flex some OPS's before buying of ebay or this site I sure will of this guys expense cause I'm sure as hell I won't be giving Original Styx another penny.

Sometimes money is hard to spend.

Edited March 6, 2006 by roadrunner

[Chadd 916]

if they sell a 100 dollar stick store only makes like at the most 30 bucks off of it. they arent given to the store for free.

I'd rather make the $30 than not make it.

[hockeyherb 1]

if they sell a 100 dollar stick store only makes like at the most 30 bucks off of it. they arent given to the store for free.

Grocery stores make mere pennies on most of their products, so what's your point? Customer service only counts when someone is going to net the store over $50 or something?

[warrior37 0]

i'll make a little list of things that bothered me when i worked retail: 1. kids who bought pro stock sticks (theres a huge sign thats reads no warranty on pro stock sticks and they get a reminder at the register) and come back in bitching that it broke in two weeks, 2. i had this hockey dad who had booze on his breathe with a 6-7 year old kid and this man was getting very arrogant explaining the "science" of the synthesis system to me(like i didnt know it was OPS technology), 3. the parents who wanted skates too big, 4. most of everyone elses' list, 5. people just being dicks in general because we didnt have what they wanted or they were having a bad day, like it was our fault

[dix0r 0]

Funny ones

• the aforementioned "you have time to put a quick edge on these bad boys?" - i get that a lot too. its a bit disconcerting...i'm always stunned, like "uhh...yes...?"
  
• JR's "do you sharpen skates" thing - sometimes while I'm actually sharpening skates.
  
• someone else mentioned the "are you any good" thing...
  
• talking excessively about cups, especially for your kid. just an odd topic all around.
  
• the video game/vending machine/change/pucks/nets thing
  
• similar to that, everyone always seems to dial the pro shop and then ask about figure skating classes or open ice times...
  
• people who are weary of leaving their skates to be sharpened...i promise i don't sell them as soon as you leave...
  

ANGRY peeves:

• people who ask questions while i'm on the phone. i could understand if i'm on the phone for a while (although usually i'm not), but people who just storm in and immediately rudely ask where the figure tights are for their "little angel." uhh...I'M BUSY! wait the 2 seconds and i'd be glad to show you.
  
• kid's tearing pants off the wall and hiding under them, or whatever else they do.
  
• kids shooting smart balls at stuff
  
• knocking all the sticks/blades over and not at least apologizing (cleaning up is better though)
  
• the fact we're pretty much entirely out of tape and sharpening wheels (although that makes my job easier i guess)
  
• asking what time we close, then coming in right before then. doing something quick is no problem, but it's usually some elaborate, time consuming request, like putting new steel on an old bauer skate and profiling it to match the other skate, then sharpening them both. keep me there for 45 minutes and the store made like $15 or something...oh, but you need them done tonight.... then why'd you bring em in so late?!
  
• when guys ask me to bring the skates to their locker room. i'll volunteer this if i've got a lot of pairs to do and it'll end up being right before there game...but don't just be like "yeah, i'm in locker room 2, and bring change for a 20"...sure thing, dick.
  

and the best part about working in a rink pro shop is seeing douchebag customers staggering off the ice after getting teeth knocked out...YAY FOR KARMA!

i'm sure there's more, but that's all i can think of right now, hah...

[sogaduch 0]

this isnt at work but more out of work. i was at a local watering hole with some friends sitting enjoying some drinks and chatting having a merry old time when this guy just leans in and starts yelling at me pretty much about how his kids gloves werent repalmed when im not the guy doing the repair. i really wanted to tell him off but couldnt cause then he probably wouldnt come to our store. i hate the fact that you have to be nice to customers even when your not working.

as for the comment about cutting sticks bought elsewhere i try and charge people a couple bucks to cut there sticks down if there not bought at our shop.I also kinda find it funny when people come in with skates 10+yrs old and there skates are coming apart and there upset cause there skate isnt made anymore

[DarkStar50 679]

if they sell a 100 dollar stick store only makes like at the most 30 bucks off of it. they arent given to the store for free.

Grocery stores make mere pennies on most of their products, so what's your point? Customer service only counts when someone is going to net the store over $50 or something?

Think how many items are for sale in a grocery store against how many items are for sale in the LHS. Probably about 1000 to 1. Now do the math for those pennies the grocery store makes as markup and profit against the LHS and I'm sorry, but your point is a bit silly. In my shop we help customers whether its a roll of tape or Vapor XXX skates. However, when you are in a rink pro shop and you see the same guys all the time flexing sticks you know they don't even have $100 in their pocket to spend anyway on a OPS. Those are the guys we ask to not flex the sticks.

Other nutty customers: the guy who brings in his 5 year old helmet full of rust on the mask and wants me to take it off and put on a new one. "Sorry but we don't touch your helmet for insurance liability issues."

Of course, the rookie hockey moms with half the screws missing on the helmet you sold them 2 weeks ago is also a classic:"This helmet is falling apart." "The helmet is like the oil in your car's engine. You have to maintain it or it won't work." That always gets a weird look. Hey, its your kids noggin and the brain surgeon and Emergency Room visit is way more expensive then a screw driver.

and this one will never stop happening:"That OPS you sold me broke." "OK, welcome to the club. Do you have the receipt?" "No, don't you have a record of my sale on file?" "Not exactly, that is what the receipt is for and we told you that the OPS has a 30 day warranty so don't lose the receipt." "But for $200 it should last longer than 2 weeks." "We never said how long it would last."

Before OPS, the wood stick that broke on the "first shot" was also a repeat offender. Of course, the red paint on the shaft from where Dumbo smashed the woodie on the crossbar would usually seal the deal that Dumbo was full of it.

Treat the shop guys nicely and you will get it paid back double. Act like an idiot and then be prepared to be treated like one.

[Ti-girl 0]

Well here in town I got to a hockey store and I usually get what I want and the people here are great, but then again, I don't ask them stupid questions.

A few weeks ago I went to Calgary and I was looking for a new pair of hockey pants so I say "Okay Im looking for new pants, I need a spine protector so don't bother bringing out any others."

Then the guy looks at me and goes "Why would you need a spine protector, you play girls hockey right?"

"Yeah, but I still need it, it's no checking not no contact."

"Well, its girls hockey, what does it matter?"

"It matters."

"Okay fine."

"You know what, don't worry about it."

"We have these..." *shows me the cheap $30 pants*

"Don't worry about it."

So I went back to my old store and bought the new Nike pants. Jerks. Just because I'm a girl don't think that I don't know what I'm talking about.

[technophile 0]

if they sell a 100 dollar stick store only makes like at the most 30 bucks off of it. they arent given to the store for free.

Is that better, or worse, than not selling the stick (and any other purchases that customer makes later on) because you were an ass to a customer "only" spending $100?

[Ti-girl 0]

Again, just an add on, I hate it when people assume I know NOTHING because I'm a girl.

If I remember correctly, the women won gold at the Olympics.

[Eazy_b97 1]

...I'm pretty sure a mens team won gold too, just not the Canadians.

Aside, your right, people shouldn't judge you on gender.

[Ti-girl 0]

Yeah well around here, in Stupid Alberta Canada, it's only guys hockey that matters.

My latest "experience" was getting told that I should be using a Right handed stick instead of a Left handed stick.

I was ready to scream. I've shot lefthanded my whole life, know how to do it and physically can't shoot right. And if a guy came in, would they do to a guy?

Probably not.

[jimmy 194]

As for stick flexing, anecdotally it seems evident from all the posts talking about how a 75 in this Easton stick is different than a 75 in that Easton stick, that a 75 is not always a 75.  And what do you do if you are used to an 85 in your Easton but are now looking at another manufacturer that doesn't use the Easton scale ?  A lot of stores I've seen actually put down mats for customers to flex their sticks on, and I've seen the sales guys flexing sticks while showing them to the customer, so why get mad at a customer for doing it ? If you don't want people to flex sticks, put up big signs saying not to do so.  Maybe some stores do, but I have never seen them.

Thanks for posting what I was also thinking. I guess stores that don't like people flexing sticks should lock up all of their sticks behind glass - that will stop those pesky customers!

What would you expect customers to do when they're about to lay out $150 on an OPS, or any other stick for that matter? When you're going to lay down that kind of dough there are only so many ways you can touch and interact with a stick as you're thinking about the feel of it in your hands, the weight, etc. Flexing doesn't sound all that stupid to me.

I bought a new stick a couple weeks ago and flexed all kinds of sticks before I knew which one felt good for me. I'm sure my LHS wasn't too sad when I walked out with a $100 stick and I just came in to get some numbers ironed onto my jersey.

Now if a guy was taking practice windups or shooting rolls of tape around the store - ok, that's stupid! B) (Unless you have a demo stick area where they're supposed to shoot things, then that's ok too.)

Maybe the LHS workers can tell us how they'd try out a new stick they've never touched before to decide if they'd buy it.

Id be annoyed if you bought a stick or not. Flexing the sticks proves nothing. It just makes you look like a retard. And also puts unneccasary stress on ALL THE OTHER sticks that you DIDNT buy. And wow, you bought a $100 stick. Way to go. Thats a way to make a store's day!

If someone who works at an LHS ever wonders why people prefer to shop online, or go to competing stores - this is the exact attitude that drives it. If you treat my $100 likes it no biggie, then I won't bother to shop at your store and I'll go somewhere where they're happy to sell me anything because they know it leads to a happy customer and more future purchases.

I know exactly the type that you sound like. you're busy talking on the phone or staring at the computer, I ask for some help or something, you're pissed off because I broke some 'golden rule' like don't flex the sticks, so you slowly get your lazy ass off a chair and probably let out a little sigh too, and then serve me with a frown. Next time I come in, I flex all the sticks I want until I decide, then walk out and then go buy online from someone who won't give me attitude cuz 'it's only $100'.

This is where the phrase 'good help is so hard to find' comes from.

It's exactly this attitude of customers that makes stores want to charge "flexing" fees. What, you can't flex that litttle JPEG on your dot com site, ... well we'll let you flex our sticks for a fee. The casual idiot doesn't realize that flexing sticks damages them, especially the way they are flexed in the store, a move or position NEVER done in an actual hockey game. So, when idiot A flexes a stick beyond normal use in the store, it is unsuspecting customer B who buys it who ends up breaking the stick on the first shot.

Flexing in the store proves nothing, a 85 flex is a 85 flex regardless of what stick it is on. Any other "feel" you may think you have is your imagination, nothing else. 85 lbs of force causes a stick to flex period, regardless of stick, wood or otherwise. What really gets me is the dads who flex little JR's 50 lb stick in the store. After finding several sticks broken on the rack, I can only assume some idiot overflexed them. These same idiots don't understand that these sticks are not under warranty for the store owner, and the store owner has to eat that loss. End result.... higher stick prices.

P.S. I now have full time video surveillance in my stick room.

[forsberg91 0]

Mine would be little kids grabbing $150 sticks and having a fit because they want it really badly. Also when people just go lean on sticks and stuff like that.

[asdfa 0]

It's one thing to see what it takes to start loading a stick, it's another to see how far you can make it bend or to hold it for a minute. Sticks were not designed to handle either of those things.

so is it harmful to just take a stick and flex it lightly (like 40-60%) to see how it feels? i'd be far too worried about a stick breaking or damaging it to see how far i could flex it.

[hunter4oz 0]

Jus ;) t remember, "The customer is always right."

[Eazy_b97 1]

Flexing in the store proves nothing, a 85 flex is a 85 flex regardless of what stick it is on. Any other "feel" you may think you have is your imagination, nothing else. 85 lbs of force causes a stick to flex period, regardless of stick, wood or otherwise. What really gets me is the dads who flex little JR's 50 lb stick in the store. After finding several sticks broken on the rack, I can only assume some idiot overflexed them. These same idiots don't understand that these sticks are not under warranty for the store owner, and the store owner has to eat that loss. End result.... higher stick prices.

Just to clarify, because I'm fairly confident a few people don't understand, the flexing you'll be doing off-ice is more stressful to the stick than the flexing you do on it since there is no follow through and you are directly exerting your weight for the sole purpose of flexing the stick. Buying on-line doesn't solve this problem (of early breakage due to flexing) since alot of them have idiots in the warehouse who do the same thing. A good LHS should be able to tell you why they don't want you flexing the stick, so if your curious, ask. If you see an employee flexing the sticks, I'd be a little worried.

That said, I have a bad habit of flexing my own sticks after taping them. And its cost me a few :(