Did not realize this site had been around so long.
It's been fun reading up on complaints, some more worthy than others.
It has been a mixed bag for me. Some of the stores have very nice people but most are understaffed and probably suffer from high turnover - hence many lack decent knowledge of what they carry.
One universal experience is the auto service department. From Kingston to Ottawa to Victoria to Halifax, I've had mostly bad experiences that taught me to find a good mechanic somewhere and stick with him. Much more economical in the long run and I've been able to keep older cats on the road much longer than the average person.
Some of the warranty stories are hilarious. I do know that the receipt theme is common so am very careful about keeping the receipt with the owners manual for anything of higher value. Generally won't put in much time or effort with low value items. One thing was learned from reading the extended warranty info from the CT WE booklet is that one also has to keep the statement on which the charge was made. That's a new one and one that probably trips up any would-be claimant.
CT does some things rather well. In effect, they are the principal reason Sears failed in Canada. Could see this over the years as CT out-priced and out marketed my local Sears store while CT still had experienced and knowledgeable staff. Would regularly check both for outdoor and hardware needs and Sears could not compete. As CT broadened their offerings, could see Sears dropping more and more categories until they were left with clothing, housewares and a few furnishings and finally disappeared altogether.
A big turnoff CT was the change in direction where they reorganized things into "living", "playing" and similarly named sections that meant nothing other than more searching. Parts became harder to find and the blister pack became dominant. This ended up in a push to Home Hardware which is better organised along more logical lines and where a broader range of hardware goods are available. Most stores focused on junk from China and CT is no exception. Regular CT pricing kept rising to the point that only "sale" items became reasonably priced.
CT may be a marketing success, but not sure where it goes from here. Haven't been loyal to it in a decade or two now and am indifferent as to whether it goes from here.
Still, it is good to share stories and see where this goes.
It's been fun reading up on complaints, some more worthy than others.
It has been a mixed bag for me. Some of the stores have very nice people but most are understaffed and probably suffer from high turnover - hence many lack decent knowledge of what they carry.
One universal experience is the auto service department. From Kingston to Ottawa to Victoria to Halifax, I've had mostly bad experiences that taught me to find a good mechanic somewhere and stick with him. Much more economical in the long run and I've been able to keep older cats on the road much longer than the average person.
Some of the warranty stories are hilarious. I do know that the receipt theme is common so am very careful about keeping the receipt with the owners manual for anything of higher value. Generally won't put in much time or effort with low value items. One thing was learned from reading the extended warranty info from the CT WE booklet is that one also has to keep the statement on which the charge was made. That's a new one and one that probably trips up any would-be claimant.
CT does some things rather well. In effect, they are the principal reason Sears failed in Canada. Could see this over the years as CT out-priced and out marketed my local Sears store while CT still had experienced and knowledgeable staff. Would regularly check both for outdoor and hardware needs and Sears could not compete. As CT broadened their offerings, could see Sears dropping more and more categories until they were left with clothing, housewares and a few furnishings and finally disappeared altogether.
A big turnoff CT was the change in direction where they reorganized things into "living", "playing" and similarly named sections that meant nothing other than more searching. Parts became harder to find and the blister pack became dominant. This ended up in a push to Home Hardware which is better organised along more logical lines and where a broader range of hardware goods are available. Most stores focused on junk from China and CT is no exception. Regular CT pricing kept rising to the point that only "sale" items became reasonably priced.
CT may be a marketing success, but not sure where it goes from here. Haven't been loyal to it in a decade or two now and am indifferent as to whether it goes from here.
Still, it is good to share stories and see where this goes.