Has anyone actually gone into Lowes...
- Thread starter stang
- Start date
Yes, its a voice calling message "att. Lowes assoc. special assit. is needed in so so dept." and it says it twice each time the button is pushed.
The stores are cleaner then H.D. and its A/C in the summer time but that voice calling bit stinks, its so loud and my store I go to it goes off every 2 mins.
The stores are cleaner then H.D. and its A/C in the summer time but that voice calling bit stinks, its so loud and my store I go to it goes off every 2 mins.
The announcements are just like at Canadian Tire, aren't they? I visited one the other day, I felt a little disloyal, since I love Home Depot. Really, they are so similar, I found that the main aisle was narrower, I had a cart with some 12 foot lumber on it, so it was a little tight.
Glad someone loves home depot because frankly I hate that mofo store. I mean, half the stores don't carry a full assortment of items, the other half carries the assortment but are out of stock, home owner wingnuts pick up bolts/nuts/screws out of one bin then put them back in another etc.C Dick said:
I went into the Lowe's on Castlefield and ahhhh heaven, I'm in...heaven. I know about Lowe's because when I was travelling in the US I went into them and IMO they are twice the store Homo Depot is. I went into the tools section of Lowe's and comparing directly to Homo Depot on 1 item (4 1/2" tile cutting blade). 1) Homo Depot didn't carry 4 1/2" because their tile saw was 4". 2) They had one type: continuous rim 3) They had one manufacturer 4) The blades they did carry were about double the price of what I normally pay. So I went to Lowe's and they had at LEAST 3 types from 3 Manufacturers in various price points. For eg: they not only had every size from 3 1/2" up to 10" but they had segmented and continuous rim and had 3 makers Bosch Soma and Hitachi and they were competitive with what I normally spend on a 4 1/2" continuous rim ($9.00 not $16.00 at HD).
Another example: drill bit sharpeners, HD carries drill doctor, one model. Lowe's not only carried 3 models but also had a sharpener for chisels and it wasn't $200.00 (it was $40.00). This assortment carried through to just about every area I looked at too.
The SECOND Lowe's opens up within a 15 minute drive from my shop HD will never see my face again (and they are 1 minute away!).
Contractors are just as guilty of that as "home owner wingnuts".tboy said:
I think it will be interesting to see if Lowes can sustain their current structure. I remember Home Depot (which I also despise) was hammering a lot of the same virtues that Lowes is currently advertising. Remember the "we have licenced electricians and plumbers" on staff commercials HD had? Until they realized how expensive that was.tboy said:
As for price, I find Lowes to be generally more expensive then even my local Home Hardware. They do the typical wow the customer with the end caps then bend them over and pump them in the aisle pricing structure.
I will give you the fact that contractors are guilty of the misplaced items as well, but to a lessor degree. Remember: when they get 3 1/2" UNC nuts and 1 7/16", it costs them money. When a homeowner does it, it's just a pain.
As for higher pricing: I haven't purchased a large order yet but on tools anyway, they are the same and or cheaper (see my continuous rim blade example).
Now it remains to be seen if they can keep up the assortment/stock levels but I will tell you this: I'd pay 10 - 20% more to be able to go, buy EVERYTHING I need, in one trip, than have to run around to 3 or 4 places before I can get everything I need to do a job. You see, that costs me time and money when that happens......(and frankly Rona and CTC are the WORST for that, I have yet to buy everything, ahem, HALF of everything I need when I go there hence why I don't go to Rona anymore).
As for higher pricing: I haven't purchased a large order yet but on tools anyway, they are the same and or cheaper (see my continuous rim blade example).
Now it remains to be seen if they can keep up the assortment/stock levels but I will tell you this: I'd pay 10 - 20% more to be able to go, buy EVERYTHING I need, in one trip, than have to run around to 3 or 4 places before I can get everything I need to do a job. You see, that costs me time and money when that happens......(and frankly Rona and CTC are the WORST for that, I have yet to buy everything, ahem, HALF of everything I need when I go there hence why I don't go to Rona anymore).
The Home Depots and Lowes have one disadvantage for me. They are both US companies.
Yes, like you guys I like the selection etc.
But I'd prefer go to Rona first, and then to the others if Rona doesn't have what I need.
Not trying to make a political rant at all. The older I get the more I realize the importance of supporting Canadian owned and operated companies. I like it when the money stays in Canada. Yes, I'm proudly a Homer!
M2
Yes, like you guys I like the selection etc.
But I'd prefer go to Rona first, and then to the others if Rona doesn't have what I need.
Not trying to make a political rant at all. The older I get the more I realize the importance of supporting Canadian owned and operated companies. I like it when the money stays in Canada. Yes, I'm proudly a Homer!
M2
Mark: I agree, and I also like to shop Canadian, but whenever I've gone to Rona, they either don't have anything I want, or less than half, and are usually more $$ than Homo...
In addition, I went there to buy a 1/2" flush cutting router bit. They actually happened to have one on display. I finally get hold of a tools clerk and tell him I want to measure the display one to make sure it'll work. He does, I measure it, it's fine. So he pulls a package from behind the bit and re-locks the display.....I start to walk to the cash and think, hmm this case seems a little light, look at it, it's fricken EMPTY.....I go back, call the guy over and say: you people in the habit of selling empty packages? Oh, that must be the one for the display item, sorry...SORRY? If I hadn't checked I would have paid 80 fucking dollars for a cheap plastic case.....I know I know you'll say: they would have given me one or exchanged it after I left the store....Ummm probably NOT because what would stop me from buying one, going to the truck, taking the bit out of the case, then going in and saying the same thing?
Sorry, but that was the icing on the cake for me.....
In addition, I went there to buy a 1/2" flush cutting router bit. They actually happened to have one on display. I finally get hold of a tools clerk and tell him I want to measure the display one to make sure it'll work. He does, I measure it, it's fine. So he pulls a package from behind the bit and re-locks the display.....I start to walk to the cash and think, hmm this case seems a little light, look at it, it's fricken EMPTY.....I go back, call the guy over and say: you people in the habit of selling empty packages? Oh, that must be the one for the display item, sorry...SORRY? If I hadn't checked I would have paid 80 fucking dollars for a cheap plastic case.....I know I know you'll say: they would have given me one or exchanged it after I left the store....Ummm probably NOT because what would stop me from buying one, going to the truck, taking the bit out of the case, then going in and saying the same thing?
Sorry, but that was the icing on the cake for me.....
I also have proble,s with HD, several years ago I was doing some fence installations for some customers and ordered everything from home depot. The lifts of fence boards arrived and I opened them to discover about 25% of the boards were not usable, warped twisted bark on boards etc. I sorted through them took back the non usable ones and reordered to complete the job. Got the boards back and had the same problem, no I am P.O.ed . I wrote my name on one of the unusable boards with a sharpie, sorted returned and re-ordered because I had paid for the items. Next day a new lift showes up and after opening I find my board with my name on it. That was the end og HD
Just to finish my thought I have been into the Keele and Maj Mac store very bright very nicely laid out , much larger selection than H.D. or Rona ie 8,10,12,14 foot long drywall on the floor. Items on wall displays like lights have a key code to lead you to where ever the item is in the store. Much nicer that doing the where the hell is it dance.
How long that lasts is up in the air it will depend on the way sales go. The are an American company doing business in Canada and a lot of American companies don't realize that it is a different country up here.
How long that lasts is up in the air it will depend on the way sales go. The are an American company doing business in Canada and a lot of American companies don't realize that it is a different country up here.
Great point Mark. Shop Canadian ans shop local small stores.MarkII said:
The more internet shopping we do the less stores there will be when you need one.
In theory, I agree but one also has to weigh the pros and cons of each.STASH said:
1) Small local shops tend to be higher priced than the big box stores. As a customer (of mine) would you be willing to pay 20 - 40% more for your renovation work if I say I'm going to only purchase items from small local stores? (the cost could be much higher due to the costs in time and fuel etc to drive all over the city trying to purchase all the items needed).
2) Having 40 +/- "small local" stores is far less efficient than having one large store in the sense that no small store will have all the items needed for renovation work due to their space limitations. For eg: I'm building a custom bathroom vanity. I need maple veneer, which means a specialty sheet goods shop, I need rough-in plumbing parts, which means a plumbing supply store, I need clearcoat and stain which means a finishing store (NOT a paint store), I need a surface mount bowl sink and designer type faucet, which means a designer bath store like taps or ??. Plus I need fasteners, hinges and other hardware which means a place like Lee Valley, Dayvan or Richelieu. Ok, so now I've driven to 4 or more stores instead of just one burning all that fuel and pumping more toxins into the air.
3) Online shopping: I can order everything I need without burning one ounce of fuel, building a storefront, shipping of the items from a warehouse TO the storefront, and then all the energy used to light and supply water etc to each individual store. Or, I can order the items directly from a central warehouse, have them shipped to me here. Yes, the shipping does consume fuel, but with the amount of courier shipments that occur, one or more extra packages in the van that is already driving past my address doesn't add that much to the fuel cost to move that vehicle. Kind of like why couriers make a ton of money by combining shipments and since a vehicle is coming here anyways..........
Yes, small mom and pop shops are quaint, employ people, and keep communities diverse but they are far from efficient.
Those big box stores have OK prices but they can rip you off on a few small things. Need a small screw, nut or washer ? At Lowes you can't buy 1, you have to buy a pack sometimes if they don't have the size in the bins. Then you have to buy like 3 for 99 cents, where at most hardware stores they have every size and 1 would cost you 20 cents.
Theres no great buys at Lowes, just OK prices.
Theres no great buys at Lowes, just OK prices.
