|
-----------threadjack-------------
Its nothing personal, I do like a few big box employees. You are probably pretty decent at your job. The paint girl at Rona is quick and accurate at her job and is friendly and knowledgeable. So is the door/window guy. Some are reasonably knowledgeable, and helpful. And you agree, on average the good ones are outnumbered.
But in my experience a randomly selected employee, more often than not, will be completely inept (can't locate stock, doesn't know how to find out, has virtually no knowledge about their area) or dangerously/expensively "knowledgeable" - in that they give poor advice and think they know or pretend to know what they are talking about in order to save face. I've flipped properties, 1 or 2 a year, for the last 3.5 years. I've comfortably spent over 100k on various renovations at various retailers. I will go out of my way to avoid a couple of them.
-----------sub threadjack-------------
I know lumber prices fluctuate and I know margins aren't huge. But when I was getting quotes on a large deck project I had this summer, there was a strong relation: Larger the store/chain, larger the price, lower the quality. For example, a smaller local chain called Totem Building supplies, provides amazingly knowledgeable employees and great service, and top notch premium lumber for 15%ish less than Home Depot or Rona (large Canadian chain). I don't mind paying more for lumber, but I have consistently found better wood for equal or less money than at 'big boxes'. I've also been given "unsellable" boards at supply houses to use as shorts, which would be sold to unwitting customers at larger retailers.
-----------sub threadjack-------------
-----------threadjack-------------
|