Praise the Halfords

[Cold Snail]

I work part time for them and in the case of web orders that are not in store, sometimes other people use five finger discount and the first we know about it, is when we go and look for it.
If the items cannot be found, we have a look and see if another store close by has said item and in some cases will drive to the other store to collect the item.

 

[mjr]

I've had some clueless service in independent bike shops, as I'm sure have many others. But as they aren't part of a chain of stores each individual incident can't be held against all LBSs. One incident at Halfords can lead to the assumption that they are all as bad.

Well, that's the tradeoff, isn't it? Half-odds should have the advantages of economies of scale, national advertising and brand loyalty, but they need to put quality control systems in place so that their offering is consistently good across all branches and not just guess whether the branch manager and workers who happen to be employed there at that time know what they're doing. Otherwise, I think it's quite alright for people to post that you can't trust them and you have to evaluate each store every time.

I work part time for them and in the case of web orders that are not in store, sometimes other people use five finger discount and the first we know about it, is when we go and look for it.

So in other words, they don't give you enough time to check shelf stock often enough and the security isn't up to the job, plus the web order system isn't waiting for you to confirm the order's been picked and packed before notifying the customer it's ready. Not your fault but the systems sound awful.

 

[Cold Snail]

So in other words, they don't give you enough time to check shelf stock often enough and the security isn't up to the job, plus the web order system isn't waiting for you to confirm the order's been picked and packed before notifying the customer it's ready. Not your fault but the systems sound awful.

Too few staff being dragged from one part of the store to another (including a parcel company collection point) and never really getting much done overall.
When I go in later, I know that I will be the only person on Bikehut from 4-8pm (only one guy on during the day as well) and will probably have to catch up on the bike builds from today (maybe 2-3 or so new builds) and I know of one service on a folding bike that needs doing before 5pm.

Then I get asked about wiper blades....

 

[nickyboy]

I believe so, especially Stockport.

Me, I couldn't tell you if the mechanics were good at Decathlon, Halfords or indeed my LBS - I do it myself.

Don't get me started.....it was Decathlon Stockport that said I had knackered my wheel due to pothole impact, only for the Campagnolo dealer to agree with me that I hadn't

Anyway....the big upside of Halfords and Decathlon is that they're open 7 days a week and quite a few evenings as well. My LBS in Glossop is closed Sundays (to be expected), Tuesdays I think and is never open past 1730 nor before 1000

 

[jefmcg]

I've had the opposite experience with Halfords ordering: when I order something that's not in stock, I get an email and text saying "we'll let you know when it's available" but no further message. The items have been waiting for me if I happen to go into check on several occasions.

 

[Milzy]

Don't get me started.....it was Decathlon Stockport that said I had knackered my wheel due to pothole impact, only for the Campagnolo dealer to agree with me that I hadn't

Anyway....the big upside of Halfords and Decathlon is that they're open 7 days a week and quite a few evenings as well. My LBS in Glossop is closed Sundays (to be expected), Tuesdays I think and is never open past 1730 nor before 1000

Loads of our lbs's don't do Mondays and thursdays and close early. If you know a half-odds store you can trust then it's a winner.

 

[biking_fox]

Loads of our lbs's don't do Mondays and thursdays and close early. If you know a half-odds store you can trust then it's a winner.

I've had LBS staff stay open well late for me, accepting the bike at 7pm and fixing it that evening! but also being closed when I needed them another time. I just expect halfrauds to be more reliable and consistent.