PC World

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I buy a lot of stuff from Currys, can't fault them really if you shop with the offers and decide what you want before you go in.

There's always plenty of staff on hand to help, and usually older folk rather than school kids / students. Sure they try and sell you warranties etc but it's not difficult to say "No".

Sounds like you had excellent service OP with the staff going above and beyond to match your price expectations. What exactly is your problem??
 
My dad wanted to buy a Humax PVR from them last summer. He waited a good few minutes before someone came over only to be told he was Carphone Warehouse staff (combined Currys/PC World/CPW store) but would get someone else to help. He went over to a guy sat a way off but returned shaking his head in disbelief. The CPW guy told my dad that the man he'd asked was the manager, but refused to help out because....he was having a break :eek:. Dad walked out and bought it from Argos for the same price and has vowed never to shop in PCW/Currys again.
 
[Currys/PC World customer service story - Feel free to ignore]

I was helping a "clueless about IT" work friend return his Laptop to the PC world section (Nerd Herd or whatever its called) of the Chatham branch of Currys and there was a very elderly 80+ Gentleman in front of us was asking for some help because his Laptop was running quite slowly so could they have a look and, over the space of 5-ish minutes, I watched two relatively IT clueless members of staff effectively bully this old guy into getting a "Repair and Support" package for £150-ish and a 24/7 "Phone Support so it'll always work" at £70, plus all kinds of extra stuff he didn't even need, such as asking "Do you use Word etc?" and when he said "no" the two of them browbeat the guy into getting a Office 365 subscription so that he could "well you need to get that so that you can E-Mail the grandkids" and then they added an additional "Protection Package" to make sure his unwanted Office package had full 24/7 support etc. The poor guy went in with a laptop which needed a <£50 spring clean and came away at least £220+ down.

While that may be bad what was worse was that, after he left the two staff quietly laughed to themselves about how much they'd stitched him up (my words not theirs) and did so infront of 2 customers without a worry in the world.

I decided at that point that, regardless of what I needed in future I was never buying from them, and all because of two **** members of staff.

The staff were both 30-40yo women and it surprised me that they'd treat an OAP like that, it's the sort of thing I'd expect from young lads - I didn't want to add that into the text above as it's not pertinent to the story really
 
Delta3D said:
Sounds like a good deal :p

Always amazes me how many staff they have in Currys PC World, can't look at a single aisle without being asked "Can I help you with anything?".
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Had this in my local store about 10 years ago. I said "no thanks, i'm just browsing" then he stood there behind me silently, just watching me... It was the most awkward few minutes of my life as I perused the overpriced graphics cards wondering why he was still there. I ended up just leaving the store and haven't been in one since. Not sure what that was about, unless he thought I was going to steal an empty gfx card box or a chained down stereo.
 
I went into a local-ish store when I was having new tyres fitted to my car so I decided to go for a walk and see what offers they had. I went over to the TVs and the guy immediately started trying to sell me Sky Q. I told him repeatedly that I already had it and it was only after about five times of him being told I already had it did it finally get through. I then said I was looking at the OLED prices, I already had a 55" LG OLED and he started on about the benefits of OLED and he just wouldn't shut up. I continued to walk around the TV section, if I stopped to look at any TV he would come over and ask if I wanted to buy it and telling me the price that was already clearly on the front of it. I'd already made it clear to him that I was researching for my parents who were looking to change and that I wouldn't be buying that day. Whilst some of their prices on larger items were decent, and they do price match I was completely put off by the pushy sales technique.

I can only imagine their customers are those that don't know about technology and are bullied into making a purchase.
 
Had fun and games in PCWhat last night - been toying with the idea of replacing my Tab Pro 12.2 with a newer tablet, for some time, and decided to bite the bullet and get a Tab S2 8" - checked online and my local store had 6 in stock; so I decided to chance it and pop in after work to see it physically before buying.

Get in there about half six in the evening, myself and another couple were looking at the tablets - not a single member of staff came to help, instead, they were in isles elsewhere chatting to each other. Being British I didn't say anything, just kept on mooching around, and looking around/in their direction; same as the couple with me. We exchanged comments on the lack of assistance, and how you usually get jumped on straight away - then I hatched my master plan; set off an alarm!

After trying numerous tablets, none would trip the alarm :( Until I actually managed to pull the alarm tether completely off of one unit (stuck on sticky stuff) - hey presto! Service!

To be fair to the lad, he came over and apologies about how sensitive they were - to which I pointed out that I'd set it off to get service, I then referred him to the couple who were before me - thankfully they were still looking, so I got to request my shiny new bit of tech, asking "in black please", and answering "no thank you" to the offer of anti virus for 20 quid. I duly paid and left, with a nagging thought that I ought to check the colour of the device - but a quick glance over the box told me nothing.

Got it home only to find I'd been given a gold one! I check online again, prior to leaving to return it, and they still had 6 in stock - I zipped back out, got back to the store, and then had to wait a further 30 minutes to get someone to change it - only to then find out their system was showing 1 in stock.... and they couldn't find it! I opted for a refund and told them I'd source it else where :(

What struck me the most about all that last night, was the store manager and [I presume] deputy manager, were part of a gaggle having a laugh and chat in the isles - and there were plenty of people in the store at the time; it just struck me as unprofessional and not once did I get a sorry for waiting, or being given the wrong device.

Hey ho - someone else can have my money instead.
 
Currys has been fine since they've realised they need to compete with Amazon, in spite of their bricks and mortor overheads. As long as the item is in stock on Amazon, they will price match.

You just have to avoid their staff like the plague if you need any advice.
 
ianh said:
[Currys/PC World customer service story - Feel free to ignore]

I was helping a "clueless about IT" work friend return his Laptop to the PC world section (Nerd Herd or whatever its called) of the Chatham branch of Currys and there was a very elderly 80+ Gentleman in front of us was asking for some help because his Laptop was running quite slowly so could they have a look and, over the space of 5-ish minutes, I watched two relatively IT clueless members of staff effectively bully this old guy into getting a "Repair and Support" package for £150-ish and a 24/7 "Phone Support so it'll always work" at £70, plus all kinds of extra stuff he didn't even need, such as asking "Do you use Word etc?" and when he said "no" the two of them browbeat the guy into getting a Office 365 subscription so that he could "well you need to get that so that you can E-Mail the grandkids" and then they added an additional "Protection Package" to make sure his unwanted Office package had full 24/7 support etc. The poor guy went in with a laptop which needed a <£50 spring clean and came away at least £220+ down.

While that may be bad what was worse was that, after he left the two staff quietly laughed to themselves about how much they'd stitched him up (my words not theirs) and did so infront of 2 customers without a worry in the world.

I decided at that point that, regardless of what I needed in future I was never buying from them, and all because of two **** members of staff.

The staff were both 30-40yo women and it surprised me that they'd treat an OAP like that, it's the sort of thing I'd expect from young lads - I didn't want to add that into the text above as it's not pertinent to the story really
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so you were willing to help a clueless mate but happy to let a stranger get totally ripped off?
 
@wolfie138 How do you think that conversation would go, when a OAP goes into a massive company with tech experts stood right infront of him to get help and a random person off the street starts telling him not to believe them? Even if he does believe me and not think I'm some kind of weirdo who is just starting to confuse him, what do I tell him to do? I don't know any PC shops in the local area and I'm not doing the work he wants myself so I imagine this is how the conversation would go -

ME - "Hi OAP, they're ripping you off in here, don't use them. I mean I don't know anywhere else you can use but just don't use these guys"
PC WORLD - " Hi Sir, here at PC world we're the UK's biggest PC company full of PC experts, please don't listen to that Gentleman behind you -SECURITY, SITUATION AT THE TILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
OAP - "Now I'm all confused by whats happening, who are you random person? I just want my Laptop fixed!"

There are some situations where there isn't a simple black/white response.
 
ianh said:
[Currys/PC World customer service story - Feel free to ignore]
The staff were both 30-40yo women and it surprised me that they'd treat an OAP like that, it's the sort of thing I'd expect from young lads - I didn't want to add that into the text above as it's not pertinent to the story really
Click to expand...

How do you know they were women?
 
I've used PC World is when I'm desperate to get something in a hurry i.e. its xmas and there is literally nowhere else open. The margin on peripherals like cables etc is ridiculous and that goes for Maplin too but again if you're in a tight spot you're usually glad they're open.

Wizzfizz said:
That's sales for you though, you just blag it half the time; you don't need to know it, but just be good at thinking the customer thinks you know it. I guess it's very similar at PC World. It's all about conversion against that all important footfall and like for like sale targets.
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I remember once asking the staff a technical question about something and being met with silence and a blank face you can almost see them thinking "help! the customer knows stuff!"

Delta3D said:
Always amazes me how many staff they have in Currys PC World, can't look at a single aisle without being asked "Can I help you with anything?".
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You're lucky they must be desperate for customers whenever I go into Curries its literally impossible to get anyones attention. Its usually busy on a saturday afternoon.
 
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There is a sense to shopping in brick and mortar establishments sometimes though. Especially if you are Joe Bloggs with no knowledge (So long as the company does advice properly!)

If you buy exclusively on the internet you are doing so without ever touching or trying the item yourself. This works sometimes, but not always.

If places like PC World are competitive on pricing there is almost zero advantage to buying from the internet (Unless you are intent on never leaving your house!)

RicherSounds is one place that does the brick and mortar shop right in my opinion, and it's often cheaper than the best internet prices. If PCW followed this example, it would perform much better no doubt.
 
Alex_6n2 said:
RicherSounds is one place that does the brick and mortar shop right in my opinion, and it's often cheaper than the best internet prices. If PCW followed this example, it would perform much better no doubt.
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They're good online as well. I bought a TV from them online that was already cheap, plus it had their 5 year extended warranty free. Then a few days later they had an instore only discount on the TV, so I thought i'd be cheeky and ask if they could refund the difference and they just did it straight away with no quibbles. They could have just pointed out the price was in store only and told me to do one.
 
As above richersounds is one of my goto places for home cinema and tv stuff along with John Lewis, I don’t really goto pc world for anything these days
 
TheOracle said:
They are still in business, so plenty of people must be buying from them
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Plenty are and always will be, as I believe a lot of "the older generation" or people "not in the know" see them as the trustworthy shining beacon, for PCs/Laptops/Tablets, maybe even all the other bumbph they now flog as part of Currys. I guess its the same mindset most of us have, who are not mechanically minded, and will trust a garage/main stealer - you keep on going back, as you don't know if there is anyone better...

I do actually feel quite sad when I see elderly people queueing for 'The Tech Guys' in PCW, as part of me expects them to just go with whatever they're told - "unfortunately sir/ma'am you had malware, so we reinstalled Windows. That's £150 please". Half the time I want to look up and ask them what's up/offer help - but they'd probably think I'm a nutter, or that I can't be trusted (which I can, honest guv!), they might also have purchased an upsold care pack - so the 'work' done is FOC...
 
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