Thread: What's the Deal with the Owners/Dealers?

actually on this subject id like to ask a question for mr owner(as if he will ever answer it properly anyway).what do you think of the policies your store gives i.e. the repair only policy?do you think thats a fair policy for customers?and if you were a customer yourself how would you feel if you bought something in theory brand new and it didnt work and it had to go for repair?would you be completely happily doodly about it?

The data is simple. If our sales grow year over year over year which they do (facts & math again) then one of two things are happening, or both. MOre customers are shopping at Canadian Tire or customers are spending more money at Canadian Tire.
Or both are happening. It's that simple. It can't be disputed.
If we were as bad at everything as you attempt to make us seem, neither of those could possibly be true. Not last year, the year before or the year before. or the decade before. There's truth in numbers.

Originally Posted by 1wildhorse

actually on this subject id like to ask a question for mr owner(as if he will ever answer it properly anyway).what do you think of the policies your store gives i.e. the repair only policy?do you think thats a fair policy for customers?and if you were a customer yourself how would you feel if you bought something in theory brand new and it didnt work and it had to go for repair?would you be completely happily doodly about it?

lol properly answer the question? by this you likely mean answer it in a way that suits your beliefs? Well that won't happen but i'll answer anyways.

Part 1. Brand new items should never be sent for repair at the customers penalty. Depending on the item there is usually a 7-30 day over the counter exchange. If it's DOA they will get a new one over the counter during that period, and we deal with the repair. Please do not try to entertain some rant that it never happens and blah blah blah. Has it happened, probably. Does it happen every time, absolutely not.

Part 2. Once a customer has gone beyond the initial period, I see no issue with a repair only policy. Gas powered equipment is the most commonly misunderstood and poorly maintained item among general household users. It's usually only active for 6 months a year, and then has to be seasonally maintained and stored correctly. A large percentage of gas powered equipment sent for warranty repair, is diagnosed as poorly maintained. Spark plugs not changed, fuel left in machines for the off season, air filters not changed, fuel filters not changed.
The second part of that is that most of the gas powered machines have fairly long warranties. So after 2 years use, customer comes back wants a new item, not happening. They go for repair. I can speak to my town and my town only but most of my repairs are back in customers hands same week. Hardly an inconvenience. As I've explained a million times, it's no different then a warranty on an automobile. Something breaks, you drop it off at the stealership, they fix it under warranty. You're without a car for the day, or two or three until the part comes in to fix it, then you get your car back.
It's WAY bigger of an inconvenience to be without your ride, then your lawn mower. lol

In the case of multiple repairs on the same item as is the case with your generator story, If a unit goes back for the same problem three times, another solution should be found. It should also be mentioned that despite your personal beliefs, retailers of gas powered equipment all have the same repair policy. A ton of proof has been offered to this point, which seems to piss you guys off more but oh well. I also know this is the case because the owner of the local repair depot and I communicate on a regular basis and I've been there many times. There are always warranty items from other retailers right along side ours in his shop.

Now go ahead, pick it apart.

Originally Posted by Owner 1

The data is simple.

This post is mostly about CT's financial state, and not Dealers.

So, I think I'll respond to it over here:

https://www.canadiantiresucks.net/ge...ial-state.html

But regarding Dealer/Moaners and their strange claims, I'd like to point out:

- Terms like "data", "math" and "numbers" are being tossed out, but guess what's missing from the post? Any data, mather or numbers!
- The Moaner/owner doesn't seem to know much about retail (i.e., demographics, immigation, marketplace, revenue vs profit, etc.)

Originally Posted by Owner 1

In the case of multiple repairs on the same item as is the case with your generator story, If a unit goes back for the same problem three times, another solution should be found.

Now go ahead, pick it apart.

yes another solution was found.your store refused to even repair it any more,which is what led to the court case....

what my belief that as a customer i should be treated properly?unfortunately im no longer allowed to discuss the specific details of the court case as i have now settled the matter,but if you cannot put yourself in the shoes of genuinely disgruntled customers then in all seriousness you are the one with the problem not me.

- How come they are so aggressive with shop-lifters?
- Do they own the inventory in their stores, or does CTC own it?

Theses are related. They do own the stock and it's purchased from CTC. So any losses comes right from their pocket. On average, for every item that's stolen, they have to sell 20 products just to break even.

- Why do they not stock items that are advertised in the flyer?

Because flyers are produced in the East and distributed nation wide. Unfortunately, sometimes product doesn't arrive or the warehouses on the west coast have run out/have items on standing order/have already discontinued them. Stores should offer rainchecks unless they're discontinued or a promo product (codes start usually with 199 or 99)

- How come they have such a short-term view of customer service?

The stores that I work for haven't, but I can see why people may think that.

- Are any of them actually rich? How many? How long does it take? Can it be done honesty?

Yes

- Are there really any that aren’t so bad?

Some are better than others for sure, but you're going to find that anywhere. There are positives and negatives to every job no matter what field. Retail is especially hard for a number of reasons. I've worked at two different stores, totaling 5+ years and the one I'm at now is pretty good.

Originally Posted by Owner 1

Brand new items should never be sent for repair at the customers penalty.

The usual cryptic statement.

If might sound at first like they never force the Repair Only policy on a customer for an out-of-the-box defect.

But if you look closely, they wrote "repair at the customers penalty".

Strange word: "penalty".

You and I would think, "The customer is being penalized (a penalty) for having to get the DOA item repaired".

But what the Moaner/CT-Me/Lawguy really means (based on past experience) is the don't think the customer should have to "pay" for that repair.

Sneaky, huh?