How the hell do Currys stay in business?

PiKe · 10 Jan 2019 at 15:19

It's like a game of pacman when you go into PC world, with the staff being the ghosts obviously.

FishLicker · 10 Jan 2019 at 19:24

Last experience of Curry’s: Bought a soundbar, needed a longer optical cable than one I had in the house/box. Had a look on the website. 2m one for £5 or something like that - I could get one cheaper, but I want it now. Rang up, nobody answers the phone, clearly. No bother, its not far, I’ll drive down. Got there, looked around, couldn’t see it. Asked in the shop if they had it in stock. Nope, online only. Next cheapest one - £30. Walked straight out and got one at Argos instead.

Though to be fair I did get my X34A on a Black Friday deal in 2017 for £800 which was reasonable I thought.

Diddums · 10 Jan 2019 at 20:22

SexyGreyFox said:
I'll never understand people like these who can't walk away.
On these forums we also have people who are kept on the phone by sales people, I just put the phone down, or sales people/Jehova's at the door, I just shut it and say 'not interested'.

Exactly. It's got a lot to do with age and upbringing. I was raised to be respectful so in my younger days I'd listen and give them time, but as I get older I have less and less time for people who waste my time. If I want something I appreciate some service or assistance or whatever but don't cold call me, don't knock on my door, don't approach me in a shop (although I do remain polite, they're just doing their job after all).

I notice that a lot of younger kids these days are rude little pricks who need a good slap.

ubersonic · 10 Jan 2019 at 23:01

They are generally good for older customers or people who don't want to shop online, plus if you're buying something expensive you can normally haggly a good deal.

Also good if you need a tube of TIM or something right now and don't have time for next day delivery.

Distracted · 10 Jan 2019 at 23:05

PiKe said:
It's like a game of pacman when you go into PC world, with the staff being the ghosts obviously.

So much this

Energize · 14 Jan 2019 at 17:37

I have found them selling photography equipment cheaper than Amazon in the past and with longer warranty periods too, so have used them for that.

jontwhale · 14 Jan 2019 at 21:55

Got a keyboard there the other day. Used their price match so hot it as cheap as I could anywhere.

Dave85 · 14 Jan 2019 at 22:49

Bought an actifry with the no quibble replacement extended warranty for think it was about £20 quid on a first gen Tefal actifry. Made my money on that warranty with getting a brand new machine about 3 times. So much so I just bought a newer version from them with a warranty and it was the same price as amazon.

413x · 14 Jan 2019 at 23:06

PiKe said:
It's like a game of pacman when you go into PC world, with the staff being the ghosts obviously.

Yes yes yes!

Diddums · 15 Jan 2019 at 11:33

Aaaaand Curry's strikes again. Whilst this could be seen as a competitor, I think this serves more as a warning to anyone considering giving them any business to stay the hell away from that utter ****stain of a company/

What's wrong with these images:

This was bought as a deal by someone in Yorkshire for our friend's PC, hence Currys and not Overclockers. I just can't believe they managed to **** something like this up once again. Utterly unbelievable, I'm livid.

Maccy · 15 Jan 2019 at 11:47

Well I suppose if you took the casing off it might look similar inside

GGizmo · 15 Jan 2019 at 11:56

I think they are just their for convenience and to actually see products in your hands before buying. (though looking at the previous pictures, even handling the product isn't a guarantee you'll get that product!)

They will probably end up closing down in a few years because they aren't specialist enough, and nearly all the fellow competitors have already closed down. Currys/PC World are just the last one.

AndyCr15 · 15 Jan 2019 at 13:36

Is that not a Samsung balls up rather than Currys?

mattyprice4004 · 15 Jan 2019 at 13:49

As above, that doesn't really look like it was Currys fault.

I used to work there - and can safely say management there ruins it for everyone. We were told to sell sell sell, not actually give customers the best product for their needs.
Who cares - just sell them Whatever Happens and get them out the door.

I was sacked after 4 weeks because I actually took the time to find the customer a product suitable for them, rather than hard sell - says it all.

200sols · 15 Jan 2019 at 13:54

mattyprice4004 said:
As above, that doesn't really look like it was Currys fault.

I used to work there - and can safely say management there ruins it for everyone. We were told to sell sell sell, not actually give customers the best product for their needs.
Who cares - just sell them Whatever Happens and get them out the door.

I was sacked after 4 weeks because I actually took the time to find the customer a product suitable for them, rather than hard sell - says it all.

Its a shame, because these outdated practices ruin what could be a good shopping experience.

Blackjack Davy · 15 Jan 2019 at 14:09

Rossi~ said:
Indeed.

I would go by reviews and user experience over seeing them in the shop. Unless of course I had concerns on the physical traits of the TV, like size/shape and port access etc, then I might want to see it in person first.

Most people don't though. Theres no substitute for actually seeing how the thing looks i.e. picture quality, dimensions etc "will it fit into the space in the corner?" Sure people buy PC monitors online but you only have to look at the threads for the various models to see how many get returned/aren't happy "look at the BLB/glow! Its disgusting!"

No-one would goes in there for components unless they're desperate or in a tremendous hurry. Maplin specialised in components and look what happened to them.

LeeUK said:
OK if living in an upstairs flat but I'd never pay to have white goods taken away. Put them at the end of your drive and the ****** will have it away in a day or two.

Meanwhile in the real world how are you going to get it out without wheels and someone to help you manage it? And last time I did that it sat outside the bins area for a week until the council came and collected it, for which I had to pay for.

Karl · 15 Jan 2019 at 15:55

I bought some homeplugs from currys recently, because they were selling the model at the cheapest price by far.

I also got a washing machine from there which broke and was replaced above and beyond the duties they were responsible for, so I'm pretty pleased with them as a company from my experiences.

Siliconslave · 15 Jan 2019 at 16:08

with places like Currys you have to remember that:
- We aren't their target audience, there are far fewer techies/geeks around than people that don't really care as long as it works/looks good.
- They trade on a location, scale and convenience basis. You want a new tv/laptop/phone/washing machine its easier (for most people) to go and check it out in person in your local town/retail estate & buy it right there.

The way they'll continue to grow/survive is to keep customers happy with their experience, give them decent post sales support (as per Karl) and do so while being competitive against their hight street (not online) competition.

V F · 15 Jan 2019 at 16:43

Siliconslave said:
with places like Currys you have to remember that:
- We aren't their target audience, there are far fewer techies/geeks around than people that don't really care as long as it works/looks good.
- They trade on a location, scale and convenience basis. You want a new tv/laptop/phone/washing machine its easier (for most people) to go and check it out in person in your local town/retail estate & buy it right there.

The way they'll continue to grow/survive is to keep customers happy with their experience, give them decent post sales support (as per Karl) and do so while being competitive against their hight street (not online) competition.

The RGB market. While some RGB stuff can be handy like keyboard profile binds, everything else is waaay over the top.