One of the problems in the economy is the rise of the big box stores whose deep discount prices are hard to match so they tend to glom up a lot of business. But what gets lost in the shuffle is reuse and service. Now what do I mean by reuse ? Big Box stores do not want you to get repairs, they want you to buy new. So service and warranty on my less than one year old computer meant instead of repairs I got bucks back in the form of a gift card intended for a rebuy of a new computer. Ditto for my 7 month old printer. Ditto again for the less than 2 year old toaster.
So when the battery ran out on my Timex watch, I did not want to buy a new watch just replace the battery. But not the people at the Mall Store or the Bigbox Mart. The people at the Mall Store were courteous enough but they just did not have the expertise or the battery to do the repair. And Bigbox Mart people were totally into replacement – “if you have had it for 4-5 years, its time to replace it”.
So when I entered Hepburn Jewellers in Port Hope I was none too hopeful that I would get what I wanted – a battery replacement for the Timex so it could keep on tickin for 5 more years. Silly me. The lady immediately took the watch and within 3 minutes I had a tickin Timex. The gals even got the Timex set to the right time – I have to keep the instructions on setting the watch in a safe drawer at home so I can change the time at “the Daylight One Hour Delight In Resetting the Watch” each Fall and Spring. So the gals at Hepburn jewellers managed to easily please a customers with their fast care and service. To double the delight, the new battery saved me a bundle on getting a new watch.
So rethink the Big Box bargain. At the Main Street store often the prices are close; but if you are thinking repair, reuse and courteous service – well stores like Hepburn Jewellers are hard to beat.