I just came back from Berlin Auto Parts, a small local company that sells, well, auto parts, of course. On the drive home, I started thinking about what a pleasant experience it was. The guys there are so much more friendly and personable than the folks at the major chains. I’d been to Auto Zone a couple of days before and when I didn’t know what a part was called the guy there acted as if I were the biggest moron he’d ever met. At Berlin, the guys actually went out and looked at my truck to make sure I was ordering the right parts, and then when I came back today to pick them up, they actually even carried them out for me. It almost makes me wish I needed auto parts more often.
Anyways, that got me thinking about places that I actually enjoy giving my hard earned money to. In addition to this place, I like Game Stop, Another Story, and Tatnuck Books. All of these places have AWESOME customer service. They leave you alone and let you look, but are there for you if you have any questions and I always leave feeling happy.
So how about you folks out there? Any stores or companies you really like doing business with?
My favorite company to do business with is A Different Drum Records. They are super-friendly, knowledgeable about the music they sell, honest over whether it’s any good or not, and will regularly send me promo cd compilations with my orders. The guy that runs this label, Todd Durrant, is a class act all the way. I’m more than happy to give them my business.
There was a local auto shop near my other house that was amazing. My roommate and I would talk about how impressed they were.
He went there with a clutch problem, and a guy walked out, said, “Oh yeah, I think this” (tug), and tightened the cable right there. No charge, have a nice day.
We wouldn’t go in there for 9 months or more, and they would remember the models and colors of our cars and mention them before we could remind them. They sometimes even remembered the last problem. We loved them.
Nintendo has the best customer service I’ve ever seen. Every time I’ve had a slight problem with anything (even years after buying the product), they’d replace it for free. I had a friend who called up Nintendo to order some new replacement GBA screens (the glass portion) and Nintendo sent them to him for free.
The Ace Hardware a few blocks away has great service. Hubby checks there first because they are much more helpful than Home Depot or Lowe’s.
Powell’s Books. Best in person, but their online service rocks too.
Wondermagnets (a.k.a. Forcefield Magnets). You have no idea how many uses you will find for their incredibly powerful magnets, and they have the smartest, nicest staff I’ve ever come across.
The Groovy Mechanics at Express Automotive in Austin. They will tell you if your car problem is nothing to worry about, and sometimes even throw in the labor they did to find that out for free. And no funny business with talking down to their women customers.
MGM Foods in Austin – a great South Asian grocery run by a family. The mom is also a professional nurse and always treats you like a friend, helps you pick out good Bollywood DVDs, etc. The dad is always nice but also always grumbling about how he’s barely squeaking by…
The Home Depot near where I work (not the other ones in town). The folks who work there actually know where everything is. And they’re actually walking around looking for people to help!
The cafeteria in the building where I work. Yes, they’re owned by an evil giant corporation, but the chef on the premises busts his ass to make tasty healthy interesting food for us at under $6 a lunch, with the friendliest service in the area. One of the most satisfying things I’ve ever done was send an email saying so to their bosses.
Word up: if a company (or someone who works for one) makes you happy, tell 'em so. Not only will they get a gold star for the day, someone important might take notice and affect policy. Yay!
Harrisonburg Nissan in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Granted, this wasn’t my experience, but Mr. tlw’s. He was in Harrisonburg for a conference a couple of weeks ago, and he drove down because it’s apparently a big pain in the posterior to fly into that area from NY. On the way down, he heard some unusual noises when he was braking, and the day before he was set to come home, he noticed that the sound was now loud enough to cause concern. He went to the Nissan dealership, they took a ride, replicated the problem and determined that the car needed a brake part, not new pads or shoes or whatever, but something obscure and expensive, a caliper adjustment pin or something odd like that.
Unfortunately, they didn’t have a new part in stock, and none of the dealerships that were in the general area could help. There was one at a dealership in DC, but the car couldn’t be safely driven that distance. So the folks in Harrisonburg installed the display version of this particular part, the one that they keep on the pegboard in their service center, free of charge. They wouldn’t even accept payment for labor. The part was fine, completely serviceable, just not brand new. They said that it would be good enough to get Mr. tlw to the dealership in DC where they could install a factory fresh part for him, or even back home to NY if he preferred, and it was. He got home, went to our dealership and they said “Why do you want us to replace this one? It’s fine!”
We’ve sent the appropriate letters of appreciation and thanks, and sent the service manager a $50 Pizza Hut gift certificate to buy pizza for the service crew. Hopefully he won’t just keep it for himself, but given his generosity to my husband, a total stranger, it doesn’t seem likely.
Both Mr. tlw and I have driven Nissans for years, and have never had such a great experience at the dealerships we’ve patronized before. There’s a strong possibility that we’ll be moving to that area in a year or so, and if we do, we know where we’re going to be going for all of our automotive needs!
Wow, what a great experience for MR. TLW. I’d like to find a auto repair place like this, or the ones mentioned by Emily and Cardinal. It’s nice to know that there are places out there that really do care about their customers, ya know? Also, great idea about letting the people know, Emily. Think I’ll have to write a letter or two tomorrow.