# Home Depot Vs Lowes....



## Snobnd (Jul 1, 2008)

First off I shopped at home depot for many years, without a lot of problems.

In the last 2 years I have lost customers because of the Pro desk & special orders ( venders) - I ordered a custom door and Paid $400 got my slip that had a delivery date 8 weeks from purchase. Then the date changed to 10 weeks then 12 weeks then 14 weeks- I would go into the store and ask when the door is coming in? each time I had to wait for the Pro to call the vender and check ( each time 1hr lost time) if I asked the Pro to call, and I would check back later in the day, It would not get done! I had to be there.

When the door did finally arrive it came in wrong, and I had to redo the special order and wait ( whenever they felt like sending the door) I called the customer and let them know what happened, She hung up on my and said it was all my fault, and she will not do business with me EVER! I have lost time and money over this dam door. The Mgr said he would make it right and get me something.

I ask several times over a course of 3 weeks what is going on? Finally I get a gift card of $500 - this all took from Sept 9 to Dec 23.:furious:

I was pissed and did not feel like I should spend my money at HD - so I stopped by Lowes for an 8" slider and 5'x 3' Pella window.
I was told 14 DAYS (not weeks) The door & window come in within 10 days. :clap:

The question is what Kind of crap have you guys had to put up with from HD. (I do have other suppliers but HD it close by)


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## mics_54 (Oct 28, 2008)

Welcome to my world. Home Depot is extremely effective and consistant. They have screwed up every order I ever made with them. Installations, store transfer, special orders, deliveries. They are equally incapable in all the various functions. They even sell product that you buy before you can get it delivered. I also attempted to purchase items elsewhere in the USA and have it delivered to their store here and they told me they don't ship to this state. Two months ago Lowes opened a store next door to Home Depot.


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## dlcj (Oct 1, 2007)

glad you got something out of them an i would make sure to use the gift card on something in stock (preferably something for you own personal use) then forget them. 
I know all contractors like to beat on blowes and home cheapo ( i do too) but $h!!t happens and no reason to quit cold turkey on a supplier unless you have problems very often. 
I have been waiting for some windows sense thanksgiving that i ordered from my hometown supplier who i have been doing buisness with for 10 years and friends with the owners and managers. Wanted to get the job done on the taxes for this year but havent even started yet. Have windows now and will start fresh next monday for first job of 09.


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## dlcj (Oct 1, 2007)

mics_54 said:


> Two months ago Lowes opened a store next door to Home Depot.


I have never seen a lowes and home depot that were'nt next door or across the street from each other.:laughing:


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## English Roofer (Dec 22, 2008)

Hi, although we dont have 'Home depot' in this country yours is not an unusual situation, i use a large suppler here called B & Q which will normally have most stuff in stock but i have now used smaller outfits which tend to be much keener in price and effort to help, with this resession apon us its time to shop around, i have saved between 10-20 % on materials this year by doing just that, hit them where it hurts in the tills!
Cheers
Dave
P.S. 'Familiarity breeds contempt'


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## Double-A (Jul 3, 2006)

I'm lost here. Why would you even do a special order business with them? They have zero incentive to support you or your needs on special orders. 

We deal with the local yards and suppliers. You know, the ones that need our business to stay in business. They have every incentive to be sure our order is correct and on time, and to call us back when they say they will. 

I'm really lost as to why anyone would put the meat and potatoes of their company in the hands of large company whose primary business model focuses on sales and not service. 

Think about it, if you were in the steak business, would you go to Sam's Club or Costco to have you meat cut? Do you go to Auto Zone to get your oil changed? 

The OP just gave an excellent example of how to lose a sale by using a lower priced supplier. Well, that example translates into our end of the deal too. If you rely on Home Depot's and Lowe's prices to keep your bottom line competitive, then you're short changing your clients. You might look good for the estimate, but you're gonna look like a fool when it comes time to collect the last payment.

Your reputation will survive only so many hits to it. Do business with people that have just as much to lose by losing your business as you have of losing your client's business. Do business with real businesses, not with large scale investment strategies, which, when you think about it, is all a publicly owned business is or will ever be. Its a return on investment tool and its managed as such. 

If they don't sell service, then they don't have what you and your business really need.


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## Bodger (Oct 23, 2008)

I never use Home Depot for anything other than a quick tool puchase or some small amount of materials that I need if they happen to be closer than my regular suppliers. In the stores in my area, the level of service in HD is a joke. 
The employees don't know anything about what they sell, they don't care if you get what you need or not, and they seem to be posessed of a mind set that the store is only for DIY types and they don't seem much interested in providing service to them either. They couldn't care less if their incompetence impedes a contractor's profit stream.
Lowe's I'm not that familiar with. 

Maybe it's better in other regions, but in So Cal, the HD's are run in such a way as they do not deserve to get business from contractors. They should stop presenting themselves as a viable outlet for tradesmen, they just do not deliver.


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## mics_54 (Oct 28, 2008)

> I'm lost here. Why would you even do a special order business with them?


Under certain circumstances I have no other choice but to do business with them.


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## BKFranks (Feb 19, 2008)

Home Cheapo or bLowes? No thanks. The only thing I buy there is maybe a small tool or one piece of something, but that's it. I've been nice enough to pickup some special orders there and it's either delayed or wrong. Then when you go to pick it up it takes them an hour just to find it. 

I'll stick to material suppliers who cater to contractors and know how to treat them. Most of the time it's people I've talked to so many times that I can just call on the phone and give them an idea what I want, they know what it is and place the order. Then when I get a call that it's there, I pick it up and spend maybe 15 minutes. 10 minutes of that is shooting the breeze.


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## odellconstruct (Mar 27, 2008)

dlcj said:


> I have never seen a lowes and home depot that were'nt next door or across the street from each other.:laughing:


 its that way here i can easly throw a baseball in the others parking lot .. well really close


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## A W Smith (Oct 14, 2007)

if its not in stock i walk out, I have never ordered anything from the box stores, The lumberyard i do business with can have most anything the next day. At worst 6 days tops, and if you are jammed up on a job you flip open your cell phone and can have common building materials there in an hour. Try even getting through the phone menu at a box store just to check stock. are you getting paid to push an orange or blue cart through the aisles?
The only advantage is after hours shopping at night for the next day.


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## Snobnd (Jul 1, 2008)

Double-A said:


> I'm lost here. Why would you even do a special order business with them? They have zero incentive to support you or your needs on special orders.
> 
> We deal with the local yards and suppliers. You know, the ones that need our business to stay in business. They have every incentive to be sure our order is correct and on time, and to call us back when they say they will.
> 
> ...


 
You bring up a good point, but on the other hand I have to bid against other guys so I'm closer to there price..... 
Now I have to find a way of doing booth to survive.

I should bid the job using the Lowes prices but let the customer know time frame will change or I can use a supplier that is a little higher priced and get it on time, your choice.


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## A W Smith (Oct 14, 2007)

Snobnd said:


> You bring up a good point, but on the other hand I have to bid against other guys so I'm closer to there price.....
> Now I have to find a way of doing booth to survive.
> 
> I should bid the job using the Lowes prices but let the customer know time frame will change or I can use a supplier that is a little higher priced and get it on time, your choice.


if its a special order from a box store, its just about the same price as a lumberyard, Ive checked.


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## Double-A (Jul 3, 2006)

Honestly Sno, we don't bid. If asked to, we politely tell them that unless they are comfortable with prices at the upper end of the scale, there is no sense in us entering a bidding war. Its a waste of time and effort.

We provide a list of our local suppliers to our clients. We also list how many years we've done business with them. This shows that we have a relationship in the business community, not just a presence in the residential market. We also show our advertising to the client, to let them see where we spend our advertising budget. They can see that we dont' take a "spray and pray" approach to advertising and that we support the same types of things they support. Churchs, schools, charities. local community efforts. 

People like to buy from folks just like themselves. They like to know that when they spend a dollar, part of it is going to be used for something other than paying for a door at the local lumber yard. 

Rethink what you sell. The remodeling business is not that competitive if you don't sell on price. Its actually a pretty damned easy product to sell. The trick is, getting the right message to your prospective client.

Home Depot and Lowes don't send the right message to our clients. They are a business based soley on the DIY market. That is their bread and butter, anything else is just jam for their stock holders. So, they pay lip service to the contractor community, mainly because they feel it raises the 'goodwill' portion of their portfolio in the DIY communities mind. 

Who doesn't want to shop where the pros shop and buy the same quality? The problem is, the real pros don't want to shop at the box stores for the same reason their clients don't. Its not very convienent and the service sucks.

They know this, and they don't have to change, because they still have their core business goals being met. 

The trick in this business of ours, is to meet our core business goals without relying on the likes of the box stores. 

If you expect a crack addict to make a bank deposit for you, or to go cash a check without running off with it, you have unrealistic expectations. The box stores are addicted to poor service and high volume. Expecting anything more from them is as unrealistic as expecting a crack addict to guard your checkbook for you.


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## Bodger (Oct 23, 2008)

Snobnd said:


> You bring up a good point, but on the other hand I have to bid against other guys so I'm closer to there price.....
> Now I have to find a way of doing booth to survive.
> 
> I should bid the job using the Lowes prices but let the customer know time frame will change or I can use a supplier that is a little higher priced and get it on time, your choice.


 I make it clear to my customers that none of my bid prices are based on trying to save money by letting HD or any other unprofessional entity befoul my business. I've had people ask me if to "put the sub-trades out to bid", meaning get prices from three or four different electricians and plumbers, etc. 
I tell them I have professional, licensed, bonded and insured subs that I have long standing relationships with and who give me fair market quotes. I won't experiment with cheaper priced subs that I don't know, and then be held responsible for their work just so the H/O can feel like they got the best price. Same goes for suppliers.

Home Depot does not deserve to do business with professional contractors, period. They do not live up to their mission statement or their advertising.
CHEAP IS EXPENSIVE I always say.


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## duckdown (Dec 16, 2008)

The funny thing is that I have had great service from Home Depot and poor service from Lowes. I guess it depends on where you live.


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## Mellison (Aug 3, 2008)

A W Smith said:


> if its a special order from a box store, its just about the same price as a lumberyard, Ive checked.


Sometimes less expensive.

No special orders or trim/moulding from Lowes or Home Depot.
Material? absolutely.
They open at 5:00 am around here. That is a one hour jump on the nearest lumber yard.
Plus the difference in pricing when compared to NYC lumber yards can be huge.


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

Lowes Blowes, but HD Really Sucks these days!


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## Kent Whitten (Mar 24, 2006)

"Home Depot vs. Lowes"

If you had to eat ****, which would you prefer? Cat **** or dog ****?

Actually I go to HD quite alot since Lowes just got here and they weren't the early bird.


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

framerman said:


> "Home Depot vs. Lowes"
> 
> If you had to eat ****, which would you prefer? Cat **** or dog ****?


I particularly enjoy Bird over Dog or Cat. The PERFECT Acidity! Is it on the Menu????


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## Bodger (Oct 23, 2008)

duckdown said:


> Many things in our field are unreliable and those are the things that I choose to allow the customers to deal with. I make more money by having an impeccable reputation for ontime, quality delivery and won't taint it by attempting to apply markups to things I special order as it is almost guaranteed that it will be screwed up by Home Depot and/or Lowes.


Great way to look out for your customers. Let them be on their own to deal with anything complicated and unreliable to protect your reputation and make more money?

I avoid Home Depot and Lowe's because I have found them to be less reliable than other sources I have a relationship and accounts with. 
I don't generally make a practice of playing CYA and letting the client order ANYTHING on their own. And it isn't because of mark-ups, it's because I believe my clients have the right to reasonable expectation that I'm responsible for fulfilling what's needed for the project, and that includes knowing of, and having a relationship with reliable sources.


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## Mike Finley (Apr 28, 2004)

Edited, cause it's a waste of typing.


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## Bodger (Oct 23, 2008)

duckdown said:


> I will chime in with a very unpopular opinion....


And why do you think that opinion is unpopular?
Because operating that way will put your ass out of business pretty quick and any smart contractor knows that.


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## woodbutchr (Jul 31, 2007)

Any of y'all remember "Home Quarters"
It was around in the late 80's early 90's.


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## WarnerConstInc. (Jan 30, 2008)

Builders Square??


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## Tiger (Nov 21, 2007)

Handy Andy?


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## deckspec (Oct 27, 2008)

i remember the pre home depot and lowes days and altough it is convineant to do all your shopping at one place it sure has taken all the customer satifaction from the sales place. Actaully when the first home depot's opened up they employeed a lot of local professionals to make the trasnsition. Now not so much, i rarely find any one in these stores to help and their help is usally useless anyway. To the point of the post i find both stores have their stenghts and more weeknesses, and when i have to go to one or the other it is just a matter of what i am looking for and which one has the better selection of that item


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## BSmart (Sep 1, 2008)

I use them both for "Oh Crap I forgot _____ " only. I tried a special order item once from HD because I didn't have the time to research where to get the item, needless to say after 5 weeks of waiting I made time to find another way to get it. Lesson learned!!!

Use them for what they are, not what they think they are


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## Snobnd (Jul 1, 2008)

Thanks to all that read & replied, I did learn my lesson, I have made 2009 as my turning point to reach out to all the other suppliers around my town, lets see how it works out.

Thanks guys


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## Bodger (Oct 23, 2008)

Good thread, I think. There's a lot of valuable survey type info posted here if Home Depot or Lowe's would like to know what a group of pro contractor's think of their service.


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## A W Smith (Oct 14, 2007)

*What you dont use, you lose.*

we used to have many competing lumber yards within a 10 mile radius of me. All but a few gone. 
in new Brunswick there was
Rosenthal Lumber
There was another yard right down the street from Rosenthal lumber on Remsen ave next to Gambinos restaurant that i cant remember the name. 
Rolfe Lumber was on jersey ave, 


In Somerset 
Lattanzio which now services the drywall industry. 
there was another one in a white and orange steel building of franklin boulevard, long gone.
Franks Building supply which is a lumberyard and a giant cluttered hardware store. still in business. I think its Ace Hardware now.

In east Brunswick, all on the same 4 mile stretch of highway
18 lumber ,, still in business today
East Brunswick Lumber
Raritan Lumber,

Jamesburg NJ 
Perrine and Buckelew which closed and remained abandoned for what seemed like a decade before re-opening as Northeastern lumber.


Old Bridge
There was a lumberyard on the same site a new Home depot is on southbound of route nine. I want to say maybe the name was 'National Lumber" but I could be way off. They became Blackstone Lumber which then became Builders First Source. Just this past fall Builders first Source pulled all their operations out of the state, But some time ago they decided to only cater to volume home builders, Snubbing the remodelers bit them in the ***. I still have half a box of their carpenters pencils from before they snubbed me.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0VCW/is_15_34/ai_n31013256

defunct home centers near me were

Channel Lumber
Rickel home centers
Mr Good Buys, ( first generation box store from early eighties)
Grossmans ( first box store to incorporate the color Orange in its theme)
Villager Hardware which was a hardware store under home depot, They had a store where the former rickel home center was, they gave up the hardware only line and became a small home depot which didn't have ****. They closed just this past fall. The store sits vacant now just as it did for 15 years when Rickels folded.


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## greg24k (May 19, 2007)

*Re Lumberyards*



A W Smith said:


> we used to have many competing lumber yards within a 10 mile radius of me. All but a few gone.
> in new Brunswick there was
> Rosenthal Lumber
> There was another yard right down the street from Rosenthal lumber on Remsen ave next to Gambinos restaurant that i cant remember the name.
> Rolfe Lumber was on jersey ave,


Al, I remember Rosenthal lumber, that going back to early 80s. I know they had the main building with the lot next to it and there was a lot across the street, also owned by them. I was doing office remodeling in Princeton and the guy who ran Rosenthal lumber, I think he was one of the owners, now he owns a coffee shop there. He said he got tired chasing contractors for money, so he opened a coffee shop.









There is a big lumberyard just closed down Builders First Source, they brought out Blackstone Lumber a few years ago, new company killed the business and closed all of the east coast branches, what a shame it was a one-stop source for everything.


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## A W Smith (Oct 14, 2007)

greg24k said:


> Al, I remember Rosenthal lumber, that going back to early 80s. I know they had the main building with the lot next to it and there was a lot across the street, also owned by them. I was doing office remodeling in Princeton and the guy who ran Rosenthal lumber, I think he was one of the owners, now he owns a coffee shop there. He said he got tired chasing contractors for money, so he opened a coffee shop.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Do you remember Gambinos? the itialian resturant down the street (on remsen) from rosenthals? what was the name of the lumberyard just west of that?
and yes Rosenthal had two buildings , The one across the street with the giant roll up door was the drywall building. 

Did you go to Rolfe building materials during the late seventies very early eighties? my boss sent two of us there one morning back then , We got there at 8 the gates were closed. Aparently just before opening one of the managers or owners there went into the pine shed and hung himself. Nick from Mller Bergen and Welsh in South Amboy (also now defunct) then took over. That creeped me out anytime I had to go into the pine shed for mouldings or pine.


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## greg24k (May 19, 2007)

A W Smith said:


> Do you remember Gambinos? the itialian resturant down the street (on remsen) from rosenthals? what was the name of the lumberyard just west of that?
> and yes Rosenthal had two buildings , The one across the street with the giant roll up door was the drywall building.


I remeber Gambinos, I use to go there for dinner all the time, it was close to my house, I lived in North Brunswick then. I heard the story about that incident, when he hung himself and I also remember another lumber yard being there, but I can't remember the name. I will talk to some old timers and I let you know the name of it.


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## Terrorron (Nov 7, 2008)

*I'm sure I'm not the only one doing this...*

And now back to our topic...

Blowes has only started their "plan of conquest" in Canada; SFA going on out here in the west...I believe they're up and running in the "Center of the Universe" (GTA). Homerville is what it is...a good place to stop for one of these, two of those, and a bag of whatever; (i.e. if you're needing insignificant things that cover different trades specialties).

This is all I ever buy from them.

Here in a decent sized metropolitan center, I buy from many of the _same wholesalers_ that sell to Homer & Co. While I won't get "Homer's" wholesale prices, the prices I'm getting are _considerably below_ Homer's retail prices and I sell S & I at retail (or better) and pocket this...it's applied directly against my overhead. I laugh at the tools buying a half a lift of 4 x 8 1/2" standard drywall and packing it themselves...
My wholesaler sells it by the 1000 for a _cheaper price_ delivered...and I can also get 9's, 11's, 13's and 14's...Lumber? same thing. Tile...send the client to the showroom...they pick it (at the retail price), I buy it at the wholesale (~60% retail)...Plumbing and Electrical Fixtures; Cabinets...same deal...and...

(_drumroll..._)

...they _even give me_ 30 days to pay for it all...

...expand your mind...think outside the big "Orange" box.

Cheers , Ron


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## mikezap (Aug 10, 2007)

What is the deal with the Pro Contractors desk? I went to sign up thinking it would get me through the line of dumbasses faster, but all I got was a rant about me getting competitive bidding on bids over $2500. It still took them over an hour to get someone to forklift an item out of reach for me.


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

A W Smith said:


> Channel Lumber
> *Rickel home centers*
> 
> 
> ...



"Rickel helps you do it better, do it better with Rickel"









http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/8f/Rickel.jpg


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## A W Smith (Oct 14, 2007)

MALCO.New.York said:


> "Rickel helps you do it better, do it better with Rickel"
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
Whith the pauses in the jingle, its more like..

"Rickel,,,
helps,,
you do it''
better,''
do it..
better with Rickel"


Then a nerdy guy exclaims.,.
"come in for this weeks sale circular!!!'


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

A W Smith said:


> Whith the pauses in the jingle, its more like..
> 
> "Rickel,,,
> helps,,
> ...


Absolutely Perfect!


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## RenaissanceR (May 16, 2006)

*RE: Pro Desk & Discounts*

[deleted]


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## RenaissanceR (May 16, 2006)

*RE: National Lumber*

[deleted]


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## olyteddy (Oct 27, 2006)

Just to throw in a monkey wrench, any of you guys use HD Supply: http://hdsupplysolutions.com/webapp...nG=Search&alias=http://hdsupplysolutions.com/
or Wilmar: http://www.wilmar.com/ ? These two sources are great for bulk purchases of stuff like light fixtures, toilet wax rings, cabinet and door hardware, etc. I use HD supply all the time, but I order disposers by the dozen...


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## D.Foster (Sep 13, 2008)

I 've done a number of kitchens from both, and they both sucked. Fillers, toe kick,something was always missing. But i can't turn em down, can't turn anything down right now!!:sad:


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## Childress Homes (Dec 6, 2008)

My local lumber yard that has been in business for 75 years beats or is real close to lowes and HD on prices and my guys service is great ( the same sales guy has worked there for over 30 years) theirs hardly a question he cant answer, us novice types ask alot of questions :blink: I will continue to support the little guys as much as possible who sell more than a product, SERVICE! Thats my 2cents, now I got to run to lowes:w00t:


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## Mellison (Aug 3, 2008)

I miss Pergaments.


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

Mellison said:


> I miss Pergaments.


I was thinking about them as I was typing Rickel the other day.


This is the one I shopped as a Teen:

Yonkers, New York - Gateway Central Avenue Shopping Center, now Best Buy. And the one in White Plains, New York

While we are at it Mike, Caldors. (Not H/I but they were right down the street)

I am sure 2ndGen will relate!!



For your viewing Dis Pleasure!





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GiD-toue-I0

Oh! The days of Parachute Pants and Chams Shirts and Members Only Jackets, all bought at Chess King!


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## Mellison (Aug 3, 2008)

And of course there was also Channel.
Chess king and Merry go Round for clothes.


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## A W Smith (Oct 14, 2007)

Be Con Fi Dent
Shop Per Ga Ment


they were mostly Paint and wallpaper though like Sipersteins


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

A W Smith said:


> Be Con Fi Dent
> Shop Per Ga Ment
> 
> 
> they were mostly Paint and wallpaper though like Sipersteins



:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

Every time I go to PA I see the Sipersteins Water Tower along 78 leading to the NJTP! Never been in a Sipersteins.


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## Tom Struble (Mar 2, 2007)

my Dad loved Rickels i remember goin there as a kid with him:thumbup:


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## A W Smith (Oct 14, 2007)

tomstruble said:


> my Dad loved Rickels i remember goin there as a kid with him:thumbup:


All our dads went to Rickels, It was a dad kinda place, i still find Rickel price tags on the back of moldings and on the outside of electrical boxes when doing demo.. remember price tags? Remember Ricky Rickel?


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

A W Smith said:


> All pur dads went to Rickels, It was a dad kinda place, i still fimd Rickel price tags on the back of mouldings and on the outside of electrical boxes when doing demo.. remember price tags? Remember Ricky Rickel?


You been sippin' the Scotch there A.W.??????


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## A W Smith (Oct 14, 2007)

MALCO.New.York said:


> You been sippin' the Scotch there A.W.??????


 
no but i did notice all the typos, damn floaters.. ill hafta get a 21 inch monitor if my vision gets any worse, also the letters are worn off some of my keys.


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## Coastwide (Jan 11, 2009)

I ordered a set of french doors from HD and paid with them with my credit card, when they finally arrived (3 weeks late). The first one went in, the second one however had an issue, the customer changed her mind and said just put a slider in instead. When I took the door back, HD refunded me with cash (odd I thought since I used a credit card) and then a week later my credit card was credited for the return as well. When I called to explain, customer service on the other end was not smart enough to figure it out and I had to just keep the $800. I still feel a bit guilty for it, but........I tried.


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## Bodger (Oct 23, 2008)

Coastwide said:


> I ordered a set of french doors from HD and paid with them with my credit card, when they finally arrived (3 weeks late). The first one went in, the second one however had an issue, the customer changed her mind and said just put a slider in instead. When I took the door back, HD refunded me with cash (odd I thought since I used a credit card) and then a week later my credit card was credited for the return as well. When I called to explain, customer service on the other end was not smart enough to figure it out and I had to just keep the $800. I still feel a bit guilty for it, but........I tried.


 Poor, poor Home Depot. I certainly hope you spent the money frivolously on something you would not have bought otherwise. Thanks Homer! :laughing:


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## Snobnd (Jul 1, 2008)

Going back a few years it was Dimond Lumber for me ....now it's Marjam ( I hate it) I do remember MaryGoRound the girls had no problem helping you get dressed! lol


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## Bodger (Oct 23, 2008)

So I'm in Home Depot on Sunday morning, the one on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood. I could barely get my car into the parking lot because of all the illegals standing around soliciting work. And my car is a Ford Crown Vic Police Interceptor, unmarked version, still has the spotlights. 
Those guys either don't know that the ICE agents drive the same thing or they don't give a damn. Or more likely, they've never seen an ICE agent anyway.
I asked the guy in the fastener aisle where the sheet metal screws were. He grunted and pointed in a general direction. I'm standing there looking and up comes the mexican with his business card.
Plumbing, electrical, stucco, painting, he does it all, it says so right there on the business card. 
I asked if he had a license. he didn't understand English worth a sh*t, and I kind of lost my temper a bit and got a little loud.
I had just seen Gran Torino the night before and I think some of the Eastwood character rubbed off on me. 
I went to the tool crib to buy a new Makita impact driver, and they were out of stock.
What the fu*k has happened to this country?


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## neolitic (Apr 20, 2006)

Part of it has to do with 
people in orange boxes.....:whistling


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

neolitic said:


> Part of it has to do with
> people in orange boxes.....:whistling


Little Boxes on the Hillside, Little Boxes Made of Ticky Tacky............


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## neolitic (Apr 20, 2006)

MALCO.New.York said:


> Little Boxes on the Hillside, Little Boxes Made of Ticky Tacky............


More to the point, 
orange boxes,
*filled* with ticky tack.


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

It is an inside thing............Most would not understand!!!!


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## bwalley (Jan 7, 2009)

Snobnd said:


> First off I shopped at home depot for many years, without a lot of problems.
> 
> In the last 2 years I have lost customers because of the Pro desk & special orders ( venders) - I ordered a custom door and Paid $400 got my slip that had a delivery date 8 weeks from purchase.


Buying materials such as doors, windows, cabinets or plumbing fixtures from Home Depot or Lowes is a mistake, they are good for parts like maintenance items or small quantities of lumber or drywall, but other than that you should be dealing distributors or supply houses that cater to the trade.

Many supply house will only deal with licensed contractors, although some unlicensed guys will slip through on occasion.

The windows, cabinets and plumbing fixtures Home Depot and Lowes sells are not the same quality as at the supply house.

I sell Kraftmaid Cabinets and also Simonton windows, so does HD, but they are a lower grade being sold by HD, because most people that go there only look at price points, that being said I can most of the time install better quality windows, doors or cabinets than HD does for the same or less money.

Home Depot and Lowes is doing installs and they are our competition, why should contractors buy from their competition?


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## Snobnd (Jul 1, 2008)

Thanks Bwalley, I do use other suppliers 

But that is why I posted this thread to show the problems with the big box stores "They could give a sh!t about us contractors " this posting and it's replies  will show others why we should not fall into the trap. ( Like I did)

I have been doing Construction for over 30 yrs ,mostly Commercial, and doing remolding as fill in time. I had to get screwed to wake up - It's better to loose a bid, then to loose a customer! ..............Buyer Beware!

Thanks to all that have posted and the info provided. I had no clue this post would grow to be this big. Keep em coming!


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## A W Smith (Oct 14, 2007)

MALCO.New.York said:


> It is an inside thing............Most would not understand!!!!


 
not again? I just got that song out of my head from last week.


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## neolitic (Apr 20, 2006)

MALCO.New.York said:


> It is an inside thing............Most would not understand!!!!


Malvina Reynolds
Pete Seeger
Chad Mitchell Trio


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

neolitic said:


> Malvina Reynolds
> Pete Seeger
> Chad Mitchell Trio


Neo! You are one of the "Inside" I was speaking of. 

It is the many others, bar A W, that have no clue.


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## deckspec (Oct 27, 2008)

i think both stores are struggling lately with all accepts of business


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## Bodger (Oct 23, 2008)

deckspec said:


> i think both stores are struggling lately with all accepts of business


My accepts of business are so bad right now it will be a while before I accepts any.
:laughing:


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## Mike772 (May 16, 2005)

I'm jealous. I don't have a Lowe's or HD around my area. I live too close to Eau Claire, the headquarters of Menards.

Menards is a big box store like those other two, but worse, much worse. Menards has their corporate office, manufacturing and distribution center in Eau Claire as well as two stores. Home Depot has wanted to get into western Wisconsin for quite a while but Menards threatens to pack up everything and leave town. So the city caters to him and prevents the others from coming, even in neighboring counties.

Why is Menards worse, you might ask. They don't have any tools worth a hoot. Masterforce??? Tool Shop??? You want absolutely junk, buy something, anything with those names on it. I don't care if it is hand tools, blades, bits or power tools it is all junk with a capitol J. Menards has their own way of buying things that are manufactured just for them at super low prices. Example: they had Mansfield toilets on sale, $49.95 for everything. I asked my contractor rep about it, she said Menards purchased 200,000 toilets from Mansfield but Menards got to spec it. I had heard that they don't even flush. She said they were complete junk.

They also buy defective products by the train car and sell them cheap, killing the local lumberyards. From lumber to sheathing to insulation to trim, something is usually wrong with the products. It is common to get osb that is out of square. 3/4" oak plywood, out of square or the center plys missing. Millwork that wasn't milled with the same. From carpet and pad to tile. Taping compound to windows to light fixtures. I've had cellulose insulation that was defective and fiberglass batt insulation that was defective too. A while ago, Glidden pulled their product from Menards. Seems that people were complaining to Glidden about the paint. Menards was somehow cheapening it up by leaving stuff out of the paint. Makita used to be sold there, used to be is the key. They too pulled their products when Menards were demanding them to produce power tools for less by cheapening them up. Menards also were fixing returned Makita tools themselves, repackaging them and selling them as new. Makita didn't go for that. Don't even get me started on their doors. And do not buy their shingles, reguardless of the national brands they sell, run from them.

Almost every homeowner in my area thinks that Menards is where it is at. They are dirt cheap and the HO's are too ignorant to know why. I will bid using Menards material, but the labor goes way up. Especially trim labor. 

I could go on and on and on, but that would require pages, chapters an index, a table of contents and it could be available in soft or hard cover. And I would put most of you to sleep, if you aren't already.

Maybe someday, a HD or Lowe's will come to town....

P.S. I would like a Lowe's, huge fan of the 48!!! Go Jimmie!!


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## neolitic (Apr 20, 2006)

Lots of misinformation in there. :laughing:
Tell you what, be careful what you wish for!
Menards is the best of the three, 
except for tools, and that has more to do
with pressure on the manufacturers by 
the bigger two. (You would be surprised
how that *really* works)
We have all three here, and I won't even 
walk into a Despot.


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## Bodger (Oct 23, 2008)

neolitic said:


> Lots of misinformation in there. :laughing:
> Tell you what, be careful what you wish for!
> Menards is the best of the three,
> except for tools, and that has more to do
> ...


 Is English the primary language spoken in the Despots in the heartland?
Or must one endure those folks from "other lands" who have yet to master our primary language, as it is in the PRK.


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## duckdown (Dec 16, 2008)

bwalley said:


> Buying materials such as doors, windows, cabinets or plumbing fixtures from Home Depot or Lowes is a mistake...
> 
> I sell Kraftmaid Cabinets and also Simonton windows, so does HD, but they are a lower grade being sold by HD, because most people that go there only look at price points...


My focus is on home theaters and HD supplies for things like drywall work out a lot better than the local supply house. I am planning on redoing my kitchen though sometime over the Summer and would love to know how to spot the difference in cabinets sold by HD vs others.


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## neolitic (Apr 20, 2006)

Bodger said:


> Is English the primary language spoken in the Despots in the heartland?
> Or must one endure those folks from "other lands" who have yet to master our primary language, as it is in the PRK.


They might all speak in russian
and price in drachmas.
I don't know.
I don't go in there, 
I don't like the showering
with bleach afterwards. :no:


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## newfy (Dec 12, 2008)

This is why I do all my shopping aat my local lumber yard, they are more knowledgeable & I can always get the same salesman, better quality products, the larger discount stores buy in bulk & dictate to the manufacturers where to cut costs in the products.


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## D.Foster (Sep 13, 2008)

I cant stand pushing a cart of lumber through those places. Its as if they never expect it!! There are pallets upon pallets of crap sittin in the middle of all the isles all the GD time!!! Monday morns are the worst:furious:


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