Halfords: Good/Bad. Where and Why?

submityournentries

basically, this is a simple thing. just name the store (thats the key bit, so we can work out which ones are good and which ones are less so), say whether it was good or bad, and most importantly why

oh and dont say staff names, cause itll only end in tears, lets just keep it to stores.

ill start

Good: Nowich Superstore on a weekday. the staff are knowledgable, and when not running around doing 40 jobs, are happy to help. weekends in the store are more hit and miss.

Bad: Uxbridge; told 3 different things about a brake service. now ive got my bike back, the back brake is exactly the same, and the front brake is much worse (has much more air in it than before). the staff themselves were fine, but the actual work wasnt great.

dynamis_dk

I find with Halfords it depend on who you get.... am example:

Went in this past weekend, asked the guy fiddling with a bike on a workstand to presumed he's be the mechanic. Asked 'do you stock Hope Pro 2 20mm conversion kits??' - his reply is that a brake part??!/

Went in a few days later to blag a empty bike box and got caught up talking to the chap who sorted a box for me about what bike we had and what i was buying, forks i was getting etc - obviously the guy knew more than just what he needed to for halford stock.

As far as i'm conserned as a customer those are day and night difference as far as customer experience goes - same store just a few days apart. I find this also applies to the rest of the store too not just the bike section. I asked someone in the car section if they stock locktite threadlock - person i talked to didnt have a clue... if they didn't have a halfords t-shirt on i would have sworn they we're just a member of the public in there.

weeksy59

I think with Halfords you have to understand how much they're paying staff and what sort of 'career' they're offering.

You can't expect an 18 year old kid on a break from 6th form to be an expert in the same way a seasoned mechanic of 20 years in your LBS.

cooldad

Congratulations - the 1,000,000th Halfords service thread.

broken weeble

There is a young lad who works in Halfords near me (or he did a few months ago) and he is a star.
Really knows his stuff, has told me NOT to buy certain things from Halfords as for the price i can get better at another place, has shorted brake hoses and bled for free (this always gets him enough for a few beers) and gave me a discount on my last set of tyres cos they were a "bit dirty".
He is a college student doing Motor Mechanics and used to work for a big LBS until they got arsey with him wanting to go to college and work part time so he left and went to Halfords just for the hours he could work.

El Capitano

Good: Barry Branch.

To be fair, I only use them to purchase consumables, like lube, cables and last minute bits & bobs on a Sunday afternoon. I normally know what I want to buy before going in and just buy that, not really needing any sort of advice or service. That said, I have also bought a few things that were in the sales - tyres & tubes mostly.

5xcr

broken weeble, he used to work for a lbs they got arsey so he left.

Or did he get the sack for being too nice to people like you i.e. costing them trade and money?

5xcr :?

omegas

A pointless thread as you can go in any Halfords store, be served by any employee on any different day and get a different level of knowledge or customer service.

dizzington

I have found the Oldham and Rochdale stores to be ok. Bought a few bits from the Rochdale one a few weeks ago and the service seemed good, telling me that a slightly cheaper version of what i was buying was just as good etc.

Bought a tyre and tube from the Oldham one yesterday and got the tyre half price since it was dirty and the tube for free because the box was ripped/open

broken weeble

5xcr wrote:

broken weeble, he used to work for a lbs they got arsey so he left.

Or did he get the sack for being too nice to people like you i.e. costing them trade and money?

5xcr :?

Its what he said, why should i think him to not be telling the truth?

And for the sake of a few quid discount from him i went and spent a grand there on my new bike, and tbh i will continue using that store because unlike my LBS he has 5 mins to explain stuff, what i need, where i can save money etc
Last week needed 2 new tubes and a pump, so i travelled there and got them, rather than use my LBS that only pay you any attention when you are spending big.

And 5xcr???

Bar Shaker

omegas wrote:

A pointless thread as you can go in any Halfords store, be served by any employee on any different day and get a different level of knowledge or customer service.

This includes any chain of shops, let alone any Halfords.

PC World, Boots, Currys, Starbucks.

If you want good service, build a relationship up with the department manager. Once you cease to be just another customer, the staff in the store will work harder to make sure you are pleased with their work.