Can someone explain the love for small businesses to me? The big box retailer has better selection, prices, and employs more people.
So thats going to vary by business and not every small business is a good one but in this case:
Better customer service. They were proactive about an order issue with a vendor, kept me informed throughout the process and had already come up with an alternative if I didn't want to wait for the vendor. Compare that to Lowes where I had to call them when my most recent online order never shipped. You would think there was a warehouse report or something when an order is pulled but then just sits there waiting to be shipped but nope - thats on me the customer to notice and then sit on hold for an hour while they figure out what happened
Better flexibility. The owner is right there if something out of the ordinary comes up so you can work out an issue. With lowes you need to work your way up through the supervisor to the asst manager to the store manager, if they're there or if they remember to call you back, and then maybe even corporate. The broad and sometimes draconian policies get in the way that they may not be able to bend or slavishly adhere to
Better selection. Not necessarily at the store level but they could order a
huge array of stuff I can't get from the big box. Stacks and stacks of catalogs from vendors (many not open to the public) I could order from which leads to the next benefit
Knowledge. We talk to them about what we are looking for and, if they don't have it there, they know exactly what catalogs to pull to give us options and can give me information about the manufacturer. Way better than the questionable to useless online filters or the big box staff that received no product training (if you can find one who works in that area).
I mean I can go to my local lumber yard and get straight 2x4s.
Ugh - the 2x4s at Lowes and HD around here are
terrible. But there is no lumber yard within a reasonable distance so I get to pick through all the warped and twisted ones to find an occasional straight one.
Typically it's great to see nice people running these small businesses, but to the avg consumer, they're looking for the most affordable (doesn't always mean worst quality) product rather than the friendly faces. Some place like a hardware store will usually carry the same products, but at higher prices since they have to operate on larger margins. Even the internet is killing them, not just big-box stores.
The only reason I go to a local hardware store instead of Home Depot or Amazon is because I want it the same day and it's only a 2 minute drive. In some cases, I'll pay an extra few bucks for that. I also have a new favorite local jeweler because of their service, but they've made what - $31 off me in 2 months. Not exactly sustaining their business with my patronage. The best I can do for them is word of mouth. It's much easier for chains to survive since they have that built-in.
Yeah I get those two points. It's the same reason Walmart has done so well and Spirit has grown so quickly. My wife and I did talk about how, while we always go buy stuff from them, it probably only paid for a week's worth of rent over the last 2.5 years (let alone power, wages etc)
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