Has anyone actually gone into Lowes...

[tboy]

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.

Which emphasizes my point: you might be able to find what you need at a local hardware store, where you are sure to find it at lowe's. Now, and this may be unique to me, but if I have to drive or take the TTC somewhere to buy 2 screws, I would HATE to spend $10.00 or 2 hrs to go there, then find they don't have it, then HAVE to go somewhere else.

For eg: I need an M4 set screw. I know Big Box Store A carries it. Do I waste my time trying the 2 local stores or do I just go to where I know I can get it? (even at a slightly inflated price). I go to the one location I know I can get what I need and while I'm there, get the 2 or 3 other things I need.

 

[C Dick]

I think my love of Home Depot is pretty simple minded, I am not exactly a contractor, I just like the different selection of things for my projects. So are Lowe's stores bigger then, to have more selection? What I do not like it the Home Depot mini-stores, like the one in Milton. It has a narrower selection than the regular ones, so you go there expecting to buy something, but they do not carry it. Now I avoid the mini ones.

 

[WinterHawk]

Lowes carries a higher quality (price point) selection than Home Depot. As a company they are about half the size and have expanded more slowly because they've been studying Home Depot to make sure they do what Home Depot does right and to do the other things right that Home Depot does wrong. They were a initally a small chain like Home Hardware that just got things right.

Home Depot has sunk to almost Beaver Lumber status in my mind.

 

[tboy]

I think they've sunk to below beaver lumber status...maybe Timb r mart.....

Lowe's isn't necessarily higher priced. Least not on the items I compared.

 

[WinterHawk]

I think they've sunk to below beaver lumber status...maybe Timb r mart.....

Lowe's isn't necessarily higher priced. Least not on the items I compared.

I remember when they did an interview with the people from Lowes about a month or so ago and they pointed out that some of their products like BBQ's included the type that Home Depot would sell plus BBQ's sets that are of a higher quality and price than those sold at Home Depot.

Lowes is selling a range and level of products that typically we Canadians only see on TV or in a magazine and are not availabe here. Usually what you would find in a US store at a price comperable to what American's would pay.

 

[biog]

In theory, I agree but one also has to weigh the pros and cons of each.

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).

Pricing is not higher at the smaller stores. Once again, you have to look at the full picture. People get suckered by the great deals on the end caps and then get hosed walking down the aisle. And there are more small stores in the city be they Rona or Home Hardware or Indy's than there are HD's and now Lowes. So for the most part, it would take less time and fuel even if you had to hit two stores to accomplish what you needed. Heck, I'm in and out of my local hardware shop with what I need in the time it takes me to park my car at the local box store.

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.

With the exception of the veneer I can walk into my local store and get every one of those items you've listed. And if I don't like the styles, I can have them special ordered within 48hrs.

Yes, small mom and pop shops are quaint, employ people, and keep communities diverse but they are far from efficient.

I think we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

 

[tboy]

Sorry Blog, I will have to disagree with you on the pricing point as well. I was doing a job down near New Canadian Home Hardware and went there quite often due to it being 2 blocks away.

I can state unequivocally that their prices were MUCH higher than the big box stores and their selection was far less. Just think about it for a second: a mom and pop hardware store is typically 800 sq ft. The hardware section of homo depot is usually 3000 sq ft. How can they carry the same assortment? As for your 48 hrs rule: I cannot afford to wait 48 hrs for something I need to get the job done NOW.

Now I am NOT talking specialty items such as designer faucets etc but common everyday stuff that one needs while renovating.

For eg: painter's caulk. It was about $0.75 per tube more. Sandpaper: About 50% more (drywall sandpaper). Plumbing fittings: about 25% more. Don't even get me started about parking around these types of stores. Most are located on relatively major streets (queen, parliment, dupont, Pape) and there is usually no parking nearby and if there are, don't even think about going to these stores at rush hour because you'll get a 30 dollar ticket.

You see, I'm not in these stores once or twice a month. I'm typically in these stores 10 times a week so I know from which I'm talking about.

 

[MarkII]

I opened a can of worms on the shop local/Canadian without meaning to.

A lot of you guys are in the HD's and Rona all the time and really know the pricing, I'm not. On a large job as a contractor I can see why your profit can be much higher etc, and I most likely would make the same choice.

I will choose to shop in a Canadian owned and operated first even if it does mean paying a bit more. Depending on the product the store sells, the local expert advice come with a price, and I'm willing to pay it. However I often find the stores to be very competitive on the pricing so it ends up being not that much more.

I've also found some great local stores. There's a little hardware store on Queen E near me, hole in the wall store with more stuff than you can imagine. Little old chinese guy runs and it the prices are dirt cheap!

He may close as he can't compete with a HD and Crappy Tire within blocks of his location. During the first snow storm this winter, HD and CT sold out of shovels, he still had them, priced lower than the other stores.

Some folks have the impression a BigBox retailer offers more selection and just head there first. The little Chinese guy probably will be closing soon.

So ya, I'm a homer, and if I can find Homer Hardware I'll shop there too!

Obvious benefits to both sides of the equation, but I've come to realize that if we don't support Canadian retailers, who will?

 

[tboy]

Good points Mark and I've probably shopped there lol. Dont' forget: Canadian Tire IS Canadian owned and operated AND each store IS owned by a single person (dealer). You see, they are franchises and the guys that own them are Canadian Businessmen (no different than your little chinese guy).

To give you a direct comparison and I did bring this to the attention of the dept manager at Canadian Tire.

I was doing a plumbing job and needed a bunch of 1/2" copper Tees. I normally buy them at Homo Depot for $0.79 each. I happened to be at Canadian Tire looking for something else so I decided to pick up the copper tees at the same time. So I go to the plumbing aisle, finally find them.....HOLY FUCK ME ALL TO HELL. They were priced at $1.99 each. A DOLLAR 20 MORE!!! Now I may have picked them up if they were like 20 cents more, but I needed 10 so that's TWELVE FUCKING DOLLARS. Well worth my time to drive the 3 blocks to homo depot.

So I ask for the dept manager and say to her: Listen, I know there's gold in copper which gives it the golden colour, but are these SOLID gold? She said "why"? I said because these exact same items are 79 cents at Homo Depot. If you want to increase your trades business this is NOT the way to do it. Then I explained to her how she should get her store manager to report to home office this vast price difference and get the plumbing buyer to work a little harder at their jobs.....(btw: I worked for CTC home office for 16 yrs so I know how they work).