I've only patronized them twice over the past few years, but I'm happy with the service and the whole process, generally speaking.
A confession-- the prospect of doing certain things that more normally constituted people my age do routinely paralyzes me. Buying new appliances is one of those distressing things. I had replaced hot water heaters, but nothing else. Always lived in places where the need to replace appliances other than hot water heaters was never something I had to think about. But I've lived in my current residence for a few decades now, and the appliances that were there when I moved in then are growing old now.
The washing machine went first, a few years ago. After the PSE&G guy said he wasn't going to fix it, I panicked. How long could I exist without washing my clothes, before people started avoiding me on the streets and at work? The thought of having to measure the old machine in order to figure out the size of the new machine (did I even have a tape measure? turns out I did), the process of pricing and buying a new one, the money I would have to spend, and then the thought of them having to dismantle my old machine in the very limited space of my laundry room, which is at the end of a narrow hallway (I also have to confess that my place is one step away from being an episode of "Hoarders"), and of having to install the new machine...it left me a stupefied, whimpering (old)manchild. Then I finally screwed up my resolve, remembered Don Corleone's admonition to "Start acting like a man!" and headed unsteadily over to the nearest Lowe's, which was in Flanders.
Someone had suggested I go to P.C. Richards, but Lowe's was the first place that came to mind. A friend of mine used to buy her gardening supplies from Lowe's exclusively; she shopped there so often that I joked they were going to rename the store after her (even as a joke, that wasn't really a practical possibility, as her last name is "Grant," and there used to be a department store chain...long since defunct...named "Grants").
One of the aspects I find annoying about the shopping experience anywhere is salespeople coming up to me and asking, "Can I help you?" I mean, they're doing what they have to do, it's their job, but I always say, "Just looking, thanks." I can find what I want by myself, and when I find it, I'll buy it. And if they stand there looking at me like I'm planning to stuff a pair of socks or a DVD under my shirt, I'll find another store to patronize.
This was an occasion where I would have liked someone to come up to me and ask, "Can I help you?" Because I needed the help.
That didn't happen at Lowe's. And it should have. If there was a negative aspect to the Lowe's experience, this was it. I needed a salesperson to come up to me and ask, "Can I help you?" They didn't.
I went in the late afternoon, and it was crowded. I looked over the washing machines, waiting to talk to someone, but it looked like I was on my own. Finally, I walked up to a sales associate who appeared as if she wasn't doing anything in particular, explained my dilemma (my "cute" line in a situation like this is, "I'm not an idiot savant when it comes to washing machines; I'm just an idiot..." Ha. Ha.), and at that point, she was helpful. I picked out the brand, paid for it, and arranged delivery.
The day of installation, 2 young men came in a truck. They dismantled my old machine, hauled it out, brought the new one up in a dolley, and installed it. I don't think the whole process took more than 40 minutes. The washing machine wasn't a name brand...it was a Lowe's "house brand"...but from then until now its been working fine (knock on wood).
A few weeks ago, my stove/range/oven bit the dust. Again, PSE&G told me it wasn't fixable. Again, I went to Lowe's. Again, no sales associate came out to see if I needed help. But when I finally prevailed on one for their assistance, she was friendly and helpful. I thought the experience this time might end badly. The initial item I picked (which was in the right price range) was sold out. The next item (a bit more expensive), the sales associate spent 20 minutes in the back looking to see if they had it in stock before telling me that it too was sold out. My back teeth were grinding together in mounting frustration by this point, and I was cursing once again that unlucky star I had been born under, but the 3rd item was a winner. A bit more expensive (although not excessively so), and it was in stock.
Again, on the day of installment, 2 (different) guys came in a truck, dismantled my old item, and installed the new one in approximately a half hour. Lowe's had proven to me that the normal exigencies of life that have intimidated me for so long really aren't so paralyzing as I had expected or imagined. Overall, Lowe's has made the process easy.
If my up-to-now reliable ol' refrigerator bites the dust, I'll know where to go. But hopefully that won't happen for a long, long time. read more