I can't get over what a pleasure it is to speak to the Lee Valley customer service reps.
You can understand them They want to help you They actually sound friendly (yes, you can *hear* when someone is smiling)
In short, they get the job done.
Well done.
jc
Along those lines I saw last night on the news where a lot of companies will be offering support in a pay basis to speak to "Sombody in North America". They said they are losing too many customers with outsourced support.
-Jim
Visit one of their stores, and spend a few bucks. They are just as friendly in real life. ;-)
*That* would be a little bit of a hike from TN.
And after the bucks I spent at their booth at the Atlanta woodworking show, I'm sure I don't have enough left to get anything else :-) They had a great deal, 10% off of everything, no sales tax (another nearly
10%) and free shipping. I took advantage.They had one of the few booths worth visiting. Others were the Woodworker's Guild of Georgia for seeing great work and Peachtree for stocking up on consumables.
Only stationary tools exhibitors were Rigid and Steel City. I was hoping for some offerings from Powermatic, but no luck there. Apollo was there, but the Apollo rep wasn't on the day I attended, just a guy selling water based finishes, so I didn't get that question answered either. L-N was demonstrating, but not selling, which really mystified me. Oh yeah, the DeWalt also had a spot, but they were tucked away in a corner and I never got over there.
Other than that, both it and the Chicago WW shows are mere shadows of their former selves. Too bad, really.
jc
Leave the American Express at home. Master Card and Visa are okay, as they usually have caps on them...enter at you own risk.
I recall being in the London Ontario store and ordering a tool. When he showed up from the warehouse section with a box, he said: "Did you want to take a look at it?" He then carefully took out a little knife, and cut the tape, and opened the box. First taking out the paperwork, manual, etc and handing them to me for my perusal. Then handing me the tool after a close inspection. Very patient, cordial and friendly. And it's always like that.
"Robatoy" wrote
I recall being in the London Ontario store and ordering a tool. When he showed up from the warehouse section with a box, he said: "Did you want to take a look at it?" He then carefully took out a little knife, and cut the tape, and opened the box. First taking out the paperwork, manual, etc and handing them to me for my perusal. Then handing me the tool after a close inspection. Very patient, cordial and friendly. And it's always like that. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Who is going to say no to that?
It would be very hard to not buy the tool.
I once sent a tool back to them that my wife bought for me and I had rarely used because it had little quirks that made it a hassle to use. Just could never get it to work correctly. It had been so long since she bought it that I did not expect any refund or return etc. I sent it back to them with a letter explaining I didn't expect anything, and I was not complaining about it, I just wanted them to examine it and maybe determine what was wrong with it for quality review or whatever.
A week or so later, a very polite lady CALLED, and wanted to confirm my shipping address as they were sending me a replacement, no problem. I told her I didn't really want them to do that since it had been so long (more than a year perhaps), but they did anyway. The new item arrived in perfect working order.
I spent much of my GWB stimulus check with them right after Christmas this year. Thanks LV! Cheers
A Lee Vally rep. once gave me the phone number of a competitor. They did not stock a band saw blade the size I wanted and although they could have brought one in, said it would cost too much to do a special order.
That's class.
LdB
I usually go to the Toronto West store, only 10 minutes away, they are like that with everything, they will happily slit open a clear plastic bag so you can fondle the product before purchase.
I wonder if Robin messes with the coffee machine....
Reminds me of "Miracle on 34th Street." Perhaps they've seen that movie, too . . .
Bill Ranck Blacksburg, Va.
When I worked for Sears I used to do that all the time when a customer wanted something that we didn't carry. Sometimes even when we did but didn't have in stock.
Dave
When I wore a younger man's clothes I worked for a mailorder company for awhile. One day a customer wanted to order an accessory and I told him that although I would be happy to take his money I knew that the mfg. was just about to release an improved version so he might want to wait. There was a long pause and then he said, "This is why I shop with you guys." Then he ordered some other stuff he hadn't planned to buy at that time simply because he felt good about doing business with us. I've said it a thousand times, treat your customers the way you want to be treated when you're shopping and most of them will respond positively.
I'll second (or third, or fourth) the praise for LV customer service. I recently had a problem with a lost CC number. They went fishing thru the stack of hand written sales orders from the recent WW show, and CALLED me at home. I wasn't home for the first call, so they left a message. Then they CALLED AGAIN later that day. It's too bad we have to be so shocked when we get excellent service. They earned a loyal customer.
Amen
"Joe" wrote in news:mTFgl.1022$ snipped-for-privacy@newsreading01.news.tds.net:
Lee Valley are awesome. My wife finally listened and went through my wish list I put on the LV web site for my Christmas shopping list and bought most of it - just mostly small stuff. A very Merry Christmas.
Oh, yeah.
I emailed recently asking if a part to a $20 item was available for purchase, as the plastic clips had broken. The sent the part to me at no charge.
And that ain't the first time.
Their customer service is second to none, which is part of why their customer satisfaction is second to none.
Did I understand correctly that they called YOU to tell you your CC number? I presume CC means "credit card"? That seems a little *too* helpful if you ask me. Although I'll agree with the rest of your sentiments.
I mentioned this to my wife just now, and she hates mail order, but hates crowded stores more. She just said "When Christmas time comes, I look forward to talking to them."
I've had that kind of response when they were out of stock as well.Yes, it's class, but I was dumbfounded. I've never had service like that anywhere else.
Tanus
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