The Things Customers Do

[Law Goalie 147]

I thought he was at 1" as well, but the skate chart that someone took a pic of recently had him down for 3/4".

That 16th of an inch would have driven me crazy, and I'm not getting called up anywhere except to the bar.

[stick9 890]

If he was willing to pay for it, then the manager of shop B probably has a problem. But I really, really doubt that he walked in and was willing to actually pay full price for the service.

I'm also not sure he realizes that a lot of dealerships do do that with oil changes- you pay $30 for any change, but if you buy the car at a specific dealership they may give you free changes for however many years.

You should never assume. He was more than willing to pay for the service. He wasn't looking for a discount or some kind of special deal. He just want to have his skis tuned up before heading out for the weekend.

Look, I'm all for supporting the local shops. However, the day a shop refuses service or decides to charge me more than the going rate will be the last time I do business with that shop.

That's all there is to it.

[raganblink 82]

So you aren't willing to pay 20-40 bucks for bake & sharpening on new non-store bought skates?

[goaliekilr 0]

Mike Mckenzie that played for Tampa last year had his done at a quarter when he was in college.

One of them is the goalie for the team I work for. I've gone lower but he prefers 1/4".

[LkptTiger 1]

Loving the people who come in for general skate and throw-down extra bread to get the FBV on their Vapor X:15s or One05s. Also, the assholes who come in after playing pond hockey and have somehow managed to cover their steel and holders in mud, but can't be bothered to even make it look as though they made an attempt to wipe any of it off.

Guy came-in on Sunday, obviously from out of town (rocking his kid's squirt team's travel gear) walked around a bit, grabbed one of our remaining Montreal 9000 goal sticks and approached my buddy and I at the counter......and then told us he was willing to buy it - but only if we gave him 20% off.

Me: "Sorry - can't do it, bud. Those Montreals on the rack over there are probably the last we're going to be able to get into the store. People have been coming in and buying 3, 4, 5 and 6 at a time. They're awesome sticks. The ones we have over there aren't going to last much longer; we've got no problems moving them at full price."

Guy got at attitude at this point, started huffing and puffing a bit and told us "I can get this stick so much cheaper in (insert hometown here)".....then got REALLY pissed when I just shrugged my shoulders and said "I don't know what to tell you, man. Maybe you should buy the stick in (insert his hometown here)".

I'll never understand why some people feel as though they should be entitled to a discount. I've never asked for one and don't think I ever really could without feeling unbelievably uncomfortable.

"Ummmm, excuse me, Ms. Gas Station Attendant? Hi. Look, I want to fill my car over there with gasoline and I know the sign outside SAYS $2.92/gallon, but you should know that I'm not willing to pay a penny more than $2.15. Can we make some sort of deal, here?"

[Chadd 916]

Unless the guy had been in there previously and used my shop as a fitting room and been a complete dishonest jerk about it, then I don't see a reason to refuse to service the items.

The only time I ever refused a customer is when some jackass wanted 1/4" hollow on his skates. There was no way I was going to take the blame when he broke his ankles.

I've done skates at 1/4". If it was a walk-in I showed them what that entailed. Wrote a disclaimer on the receipt.

I know a few guys who skate regularly on 1/4".....Don't ask me how, but they swear by it.

This was a kid that about to go out and skate in a public skating session. He went to the shop around the corner and came back out on the ice. Ten minutes after that his girlfriend came in the shop and asked me to fix them. The "old school" guys that wanted 1/4" got 3/8" and loved it.

[shooter27 116]

If you buy them at the same store, baking and sharpening are free. If you don't, expect to pay money for those services.

How is that hard to grasp?

Quick story. A buddy of mine bought some skis from shop A. He brought them to shop B to have the bindings adjusted and the edges done (shop B close to home and trusted we their techs). The owner of shop B wouldn't do it and told him to bring the stuff back to shop A. Neither me or my buddy purchased anything from shop B again. Shop B lost thousands of dollars in business over $50 in tech work.

So it's not that I don't understand it, it's I don't think it makes very much business sense. I didn't buy the skates there, so what. I'm in your shop now looking to do business. If you're gonna turn me away or charge me triple, I'll probably never shop there again. So not only did you lose out on the skate purchase, you're gonna lose out on the stick purchase, the glove purchase, monthly sharpens, ect.. ect..

Imagine if auto dealers did this with repairs and service, you'd be looking at a $100 oil change. Hey if you bought the car from them it would have been free.

When it comes to baking I understand the charge. It's time consuming and it's part of the fitting process.

So the shop should donate services to you, somebody who bought elsewhere due to marginally lower prices already even if they knew any service they got would be crappy, just in the hope that you MIGHT return and spend money at their shop in the future. Which you wouldn't. You demonstrated that when you bought elsewhere for a buck or two less on a thousand dollar piece of equipment. Why in hell would they cater to you?

I dont see it as them wanting the shop to cater for them. Its more the fact that the shop owner wouldnt even do the work. It could have been a brand that shop didnt carry and couldnt get, it could be a variety of reasons why he went to another shop to get his product. In the end I cant blame the guy for not going back and spending money at shop B for the simple fact they refused to do the work, even though it seems this guy had no problem paying for it. To me thats the equivalent of me going into my LHS and them refusing to sharpen my skates because I didnt buy them there.

I completely disagree with the concept of refusing to do the work, but they are performing a service and should charge an appropriate fee. If the guy had said he would do it, but he was going to have to charge you $50 (or whatever was reasonable for that kind of work) would you still never have shopped there again?

Edited January 13, 2010 by shooter27

[stick9 890]

So you aren't willing to pay 20-40 bucks for bake & sharpening on new non-store bought skates?

More than willing to pay for a bake job, no problem there at all.

No way in hell I pay 15 bucks for a sharpening.

I completely disagree with the concept of refusing to do the work, but they are performing a service and should charge an appropriate fee. If the guy had said he would do it, but he was going to have to charge you $50 (or whatever was reasonable for that kind of work) would you still never have shopped there again?

It wasn't about the fee (I can't be anymore clear on that). It was the flat out refusal to do the work is what cost shop B our business. This is a well known ski shop that does tuning all day long. This wasn't a first time set up, this was strictly a tune up (hot wax, edge grind and tweak the bindings as they were popping off a little too easy).

[VakarLajos 5]

I find that a little humorous considering there's more work done in a first sharpening than baking.

[chippa13 1844]

Loving the people who come in for general skate and throw-down extra bread to get the FBV on their Vapor X:15s or One05s.

So FBV can only be for folks who spend a lot on skates and play hockey?

[raganblink 82]

No. But it is just weird to see people who spent the least amount possible on skates go ahead and pay extra for sharpenings. Not weird how they take care of their skates well, because it is a big investment to them, however if they are spending twice as much as they could for sharpenings, its weird.

Does any other sharpener have this pet peeve: Skates that come in with the laces tied, and they do not bother untying the laces of the skates. Annoys the shit out of me. And its always with the bad "stainless" steel that is rusted to hell, and they make that annoying sound when they hit the wheel.

[DarkStar50 679]

I just never bother to untie them. It is not difficult to sharpen skates tied together.

[chippa13 1844]

No. But it is just weird to see people who spent the least amount possible on skates go ahead and pay extra for sharpenings. Not weird how they take care of their skates well, because it is a big investment to them, however if they are spending twice as much as they could for sharpenings, its weird.

Not so sure about twice as much, here I pay $1 more for FBV than a traditional sharpening and the FBV is purported to last longer than a traditional sharpening so why wouldn't a guy who tried to save some cash on skates also try the same with maintenance?

[LkptTiger 1]

$4 more in our shop (keep in mind I don't set the pricing, so.....). Kind of a waste of money to get a premium cut done on that kind of steel when the person is going to be battling just to stay upright, anyways.

[coldshoulder 0]

The customer is always right...even when they're wrong.

Edited January 13, 2010 by coldshoulder

[VakarLajos 5]

www.notalwaysright.com

the customer isn't always right. you may choose to think they're right, but that's not the case.

[JR Boucicaut 3797]

The customer is always right...even when they're wrong.

Absolutely not.

[Brian Harte 1]

I'm glad I work somewhere where I can tell the customer that they are wrong.

Love it.

[coldshoulder 0]

was just kiddin

[Moose 1]

Customer is always right? I've never been anything but a customer to an LHS (never worked one, ran one, etc) but I don't necessarily think that I should always be right...

[NYRSinceBirth 0]

No. But it is just weird to see people who spent the least amount possible on skates go ahead and pay extra for sharpenings. Not weird how they take care of their skates well, because it is a big investment to them, however if they are spending twice as much as they could for sharpenings, its weird.

Does any other sharpener have this pet peeve: Skates that come in with the laces tied, and they do not bother untying the laces of the skates. Annoys the shit out of me. And its always with the bad "stainless" steel that is rusted to hell, and they make that annoying sound when they hit the wheel.

Haha that used to annoy me. Now I just sharpen them together. One thing that bothers me if I'm all ready annoyed is skates with a lot of snow on them. It's nothing to me to just wipe them off, but I see it as a courtesy to not hand skates over dripping wet.

My favorite when sharpening before a game: "Can you sharpen mine next? I have a game." So do the four people in front of you. Or if there's a bunch of pairs to get done in 10 minutes before a game and a customer walks in, "What do you mean you might not get to them, you have 10 minutes?"

One time we were short one employee, so with 2 guys in the shop one does sharpens/repairs the other watches the register/helps customers out front. My co-worker is fixing goalie pads and a guy comes in 10, maybe 15 minutes before a game and asks for a sharpen. I tell him he might not get them in time for the game since the goalie pads are being worked on. Dude flips. The only comment he had that wasn't berating or cursing me was, "Half the time you guys are closed, half the time you can't do it, and half the time you do shitty work." That's three halves idiot. My responce, "Not my problem have a good game." What would you rather, goalie pads fixed and actually be able to play a game, or you with a fresh cut and the game a wash because the goalie can't play? The funny thing is, if I'm remembering correctly, the skates weren't that bad, at all. Easily could have been skated on. If they were totally shot I would have at least stoned or left the shop empty for a minute or so to sharpen them.

EDIT: Removed profanity.

Edited January 15, 2010 by NYRSinceBirth

[EvilPepe 24]

Haha that used to annoy me. Now I just sharpen them together. One thing that bothers me if I'm all ready annoyed is skates with a lot of snow on them. It's nothing to me to just wipe them off, but I see it as a courtesy to not hand skates over dripping wet.

That pisses me off. At my store we have a decent amount of counter space, so usually I have catalogs and whatnot at our "paper work" station. Sometimes I will be flipping through a catalog or filling out an order and have a customer walk in the door, look right at me when I say "hello", and drop their soaking wet skates onto the papers I am clearly reading or writing on. Most of the time these are the same people who don't respond when I ask what they need/what cut they would like, and instead gesture and grunt at the skates.

[Drewhunz 3]

I'm easy. I won't sharpen wet skates period. You just finished your game and want a sharpening? See you next week.

[dsjunior1388 81]

I'm easy. I won't sharpen wet skates period. You just finished your game and want a sharpening? See you next week.

I used to get my skates sharpened right after I skated when the edge was bad. Within a year, they wouldn't hold an edge, so when I went to a different store, the told me that sharpening the steel when it was cold from the ice had weakened it. I'm still pissed the LHS at the rink never mentioned that (or knew it) and it ruined the blades. Obviously it's my fault fro not making sure I knew what I was doing, but that seems like an important piece of information.

[raganblink 82]

So a lady came in the shop today and was complaining and cussing me out and very pissed that a bag (ST14)'s handle broke. The metal handle. I don't understand how the hell you can break the metal handle unless you are trying to break it... anyways, she said she had bought it 14 months ago. Her son didn't start using it until September. And its somehow are fault we can't replace or fix the handle right now, and shes pissed it might not go thru under warranty, and that shell have to spend another 120-130 (the bag was like 90) every 4 months because OUR bags keep fucking breaking. So she says 3 or 4 times there is no point to shop locally I'll just shop somewhere else or online.

Can someone give me a rational explanation as to why someone would behave so unrationally? A) not our fault you abuse a bag. B) not our fault you wait 10 months to use it. C) after we offer to do everything but give you a brand new bag for free (free repair service, etc), you still think we are unfair? And how could shopping not here or internet give you better customer service? It cant! Closest decent shop is 3 hours away, and internet wont help you. She was also pissed because the shop owner wasn't here 2 hours before we were open when she stopped by, and 20 minutes after we opened.

Sorry just need to vented...but seriously, i really hate people who blame us for something we have no control over, and then get pissed at us because of that, and then don't come here again or threaten not to come back because of that. wtf. Its not like we pissed on the handle months before you bought it just so the metal will deteriate so it will snap on you later. And seriously, how can you break a metal handle? Besides the fact you should be a man and carry the bag (kid is 13)... its a metal handle. To me unless you intentially fuck with it, it wont break.