The Things Customers Do

[hyprlte 0]

Talk about missing out on a chance to create a great relationship with a customer. At 8 you lock the door, flip the sign to "closed" and continue helping a guy get fitted. Don't say anything or make a big deal about it and the guy will notice and remember how you helped him out. Been there and done that more than a couple times.

I have had that backfire me back more often than not. I've had a few good customers who would say thank you and become repeat customers, but I've also had a lot who have a sense of entitlement. I would stay open late and they would complain because we didn't have the exact product they wanted, the wrong color, "we're just looking"... or they would spend an hour trying to decide which pair of $45 (new) skates they wanted to buy. "What are the benefits of the Impact 50 skates over the 92 tacks?, my bantam is on the ice everyday and I want them to last him." Heaven forbid you try to talk them into an appropriate skate though... "You are just trying to get more money out of me! These bottom end skates will be fine, give me two sizes up from what you put him in so he has room to grow." Sorry for the rant, I just found retail extremely frustrating. You try your hardest to put people into the product that is best for them (ex. not putting your 14 yr old bantam in rec. hockey skates) and they bite your head off. They always would come back two weeks later yelling again because we sold them an inappropriate skate and now jr has a broken foot from taking a puck. I could go on and on.

There are great customers out there. You build a rapport with them and it's awesome. I had a lot of customers who would call ahead to make sure I was there so I could sharpen their skates, but on the other hand I had the jackasses who in front of their daughters would ask a male associate to sharpen their skates because "girls don't know how to sharpen".

Respectfulness is a two-way street, you treat the customers with respect and hope they will give you the same. If they don't, you just have to nod and smile and hope that karma comes back to bite them.

I've never had anyone complain when I've said told them it was time to go. Usually something like, "sorry, but I'd like to see my wife before she falls asleep" or " I have a game tonight at another rink and I can't stick around tonight."

The ones who treat you like shit should still get polite, friendly service but there's no reason to go the extra mile for them. You don't owe them and they don't owe you. That said, you make the effort as often as possible with new customers, they may surprise you from time to time.

I used to get these young Amish guys coming in after spending all day in the field and stinking to high heaven. I was always friendly and polite and the sharpenings turned into sticks and the sticks turned into skates and before you know it these guys are dropping hundreds of dollars a week in the shop, all cash. We all judge people when we see them, the key is not to let those initial impressions impact how you treat customers.

i agree with you 100%. we usually stay open at least 30 min after closing time every day. On some days we have made more money in those extra 30 min than we have all day.

[JR Boucicaut 3795]

When they call and ask what time we close, I'll tell them 30 min before we actually do close. Then they show up late and it's all good.

[DarkStar50 679]

The move that goes hand-in-hand with that is when the phone rings right at closing time: Answer it and you will get "Oh, I'm in my car and I'm already on my way." No, you're not. Let that phone ring, Its Miller Time.

[pisani34 10]

heres one of the more interesting signs i saw up at my local play it again...

[Rustpot 1]

Wow.

Looks like you've got a lot of sticks for a PIAS though, mine has a row of sticks, maybe 20 total. Oddly they have the S17 though.

[pisani34 10]

they had basically all the top end sticks, but not many various flexes/curves etc etc....but also at top tier canadian pricing as well.

[MR.Bobby.Orr 0]

Hey Darkstar50, wheres your shop located. I'm in Brooklyn, so i'd drive out to Jersey to find a good hockey shop. If you can send me a personal message with address and name. thanks.

PS: I don't own a hockey shop, but you guys don't seem understanding what so ever. I understand kids could be annoying, but we were all stupid kids at some point, I know when I was a kid i'd screw around, and it's because kids are stupid, but you can't blame them. It's not like a stupid adult, a kids brain is not fully developed. blame their parents.

As far as trying stuff on and then buying online, you should totally allow your loyal customers to do that.

The shop where I play is pretty good, but ridicussly expensive. It's NYC what do you expect. This guy knows me and before I used to buy tape like every week and laces and socks and small things.(I get tape and laces free now) Everytime I played i bought something. I even bought NBH xxx gloves there once. Payed almost $200. Then I was on the market for shin guards and I had no clue what to get so I wanted to try on fit. So I didn't want to give the owner false hope, so I told him, I'm kinda broke so I think I just might buy it online this time, but if you have free time let me try on a few pairs. He flipped out at me. I'm like I always give you money, and I told him if he lowered his prices a bit I would never buy anything online.

At the end of the day I bought One90 shins for $75 +shipping. He wanted $110+tax.

I didn't step into his shop since the incident, two weeks ago he appoligized for yelling and gave me a Dolomite Nipgrip for $175 instead of the marked up $195. Yeah NYC is EXPENSIVE.

[start_today 770]

So, your basic complaint is that this guy goes out of his way to give you free tape and laces and personal help in choosing equipment, but then charges more than some giant warehouse in california?

[Oberon 0]

As far as trying stuff on and then buying online, you should totally allow your loyal customers to do that.

I don't think "loyal customers" means what you think it does.

[DarkStar50 679]

I'll leave it up to the loyal MSHers: Is this the kind of customer I want in my shop?

This is earth. It's f'n expensive.

[MR.Bobby.Orr 0]

The hockey shop owner does not give me anything for free,Ever,not that i ever expect it. I get tape and laces and screws and other small stuff from my team now, but when I needed to buy it, I always got it from him. I forgot to mention that I also bought Bauer supreme 8000 and my XXXs skates from this guy cause I don't buy skates online.

But you hockey shop owners don't realize that people have lives and problems. At that time, my shins were falling apart and a HUGE crack on one of them, I lost my job and am paying tution for school. At that time, I didn't have the money to support my local buisness and saving $30 was a huge deal to me. The guy knew me and I thought he'd be cool with it and understanding. By now we are cool again and he appoligized for over reacting.

That's why I was mad, not because he said no, but because he yelled at me. My parents have a private buisness and you never yell at customers.

[Rustyhole 1]

lots of people check the flex by seeing the amount of flex 'in total' and not how stiff it is to begin flexing or where the flex point is (which IMO is all you need to know in the store)

just told a guy off at my LHS (don't work there) as he had the stick (Vapor XXV) at almost a 45deg. angle. looked at me unimpressed and didn't buy anything but I got $25 off from the employee who saw me give him shit! gave me his discount, yay!! :D

[VakarLajos 5]

As far as trying stuff on and then buying online, you should totally allow your loyal customers to do that.

So I didn't want to give the owner false hope, so I told him, I'm kinda broke so I think I just might buy it online this time, but if you have free time let me try on a few pairs. He flipped out at me. I'm like I always give you money, and I told him if he lowered his prices a bit I would never buy anything online.

The reason many LHS are struggling is because of on-line shops. LHS charge more BECAUSE you can try things on and compare products right there with the help of people who (hopefully) know what they are talking about.

It's easier for a company to charge well below the list price when you rent a hangar in the middle of nowhere for $4k a month as opposed to a 700 sq. foot loft in Manhattan for $35k/month (I'm not exaggerating).

Next time see if he will work out a payment plan with you.

Moving on. Here are my favorite phone conversations

1.

Me: Thank you for calling, Dan speaking

Customer: Are you open?

2.

Me: Thank you for calling, Dan speaking.

Customer: Do you have my size?

3.

Me: Thank you for calling, Dan speaking.

Customer: I have a question for you. I am going to ask you the question then maybe you can answer it if you have the answer. I am 32 years old, medium build, my hair is dirty blonde, short. I like musical comedies and the works of Keats. In tenth grade my mother ran off with my tennis instructor. Once I witnessed a bank robbery from a cafe across Madison Avenue, the robber was the son of a local politician who-

Me: Ma'am, is there a specific item I can help you with?

Customer: When is there open skating?

Me: This is the pro-shop, here is the number for the main office.

Edited February 11, 2008 by VakarLajos

[Buzz_LightBeer 969]

Cheap Guy Do you Have XX gloves?

MEYes let me help you with a size

(fitting intermission)

Cheap Guy ill take them, but the internet has them $30 dollars cheaper, so youll match that

MEwell if i knew i was going to give you internet pricing, i would have provided internet service

(dumbfounded look)

MElets try this, ill show you a picture of gloves, not let you try them on, say nothing, and get your credit card number, charge you $4.95 handling, and $12.95 shipping, and you can pick these up in a week.

Cheap Guywell i need them today

MEOVERNIGHT SHIPPING! add $24.95 to that!

[mack 44]

I hope Buzz parks in the back of the store.

[Buzz_LightBeer 969]

I hope Buzz parks in the back of the store.

on a throne as well

[Hede 2]

So thats why its not cheap at your LHS ;-)

[LkptTiger 1]

Fucking cocksucking 17+ year olds who find entertainment in leaning on the 30 flex youth sticks. I usually have to throw them a hint with a line like "Looking for a stick for your little brother?" but, if there is no one else in the shop, I've been known to hit them with "What the fuck is wrong with you, dude?".

[mack 44]

You guys just need spray bottles of water there so you can just squirt kids.

[jeffw 1]

Cheap Guy Do you Have XX gloves?

MEYes let me help you with a size

(fitting intermission)

Cheap Guy ill take them, but the internet has them $30 dollars cheaper, so youll match that

MEwell if i knew i was going to give you internet pricing, i would have provided internet service

(dumbfounded look)

MElets try this, ill show you a picture of gloves, not let you try them on, say nothing, and get your credit card number, charge you $4.95 handling, and $12.95 shipping, and you can pick these up in a week.

Cheap Guywell i need them today

MEOVERNIGHT SHIPPING! add $24.95 to that!

That's fucking classic. :lol:

[DarkStar50 679]

mack, I think all of the LHS guys here would love to have you work in our shops on a busy Saturday in January when you could lend us your hockey knowledge, hockey experience, overwhelming charm and wit with the customers and then just the right amount of "mack sarcasm" to seal the deal with the "kids." We could turn this into a reality show on Bravo. mack, this is no put-down on you. Bring cyber mack into the LHS. As Keith Jackson would say, "Whoa, Nellie!"

I like the rug flex sign posted last week. I usually walk up to the kid and ask him if he can read. When he says yes I show him the Don't flex the sticks sign from about 6" to his face. This is NYC, we do this kind of thing.

"Do you have skating shoes?"

The latest thing we do is when the customer wants his new OPS cut in the shop is hand him the Sharpie to mark it himself. We cut it where you marked it. No problems then if you say the stick is now too short. You marked it.

Phone call: "If I bring my skates in now, how long will it be to get them sharpened?" "Well, it takes about 10 minutes but if there's a line you have to wait." "Oh." "Yes, it's like Dunkin Donuts. You have to wait on line." "But if I bring them now." "That's great but we have teams roll into the rink all day long." "Oh."

[english15x 3]

haha nice post.

at the LHS i work at we have many of dumb people. I had a man try to bring back a RBK 5k snakegrip and tell me it was defective and he demanded a refund. All because of a small piece of fiber that was chipped on the toe from regular play. He showed me on the stick that it said "30 DAY WARRANTY". I replied back with a smile "from the company sir"

I had for the first time ever last weekend during a college game that a college team from NY knocked over a whole stick rack. It was like Mighty Ducks.

I also can't stand when people who check my sharpenings like they know what there looking at or feeling on the steel.

[vitaminZ 0]

I also can't stand when people who check my sharpenings like they know what there looking at or feeling on the steel.

Thats just human instinct man, if Im paying for something I wanna give it once over even if I have no idea how to judge it. I'd try not to take offense to that if I were you.

[english15x 3]

thats true. i just have people that tell me how to do my job sometimes that don't know what there talking about.

[vitaminZ 0]

thats true. i just have people that tell me how to do my job sometimes that don't know what there talking about.

Yeah that would piss me off too then