<a href="//secondmedia-d.openx.net/w/1.0/rc?cs=524f239099920&cb=INSERT_RANDOM_NUMBER_HERE" ><img src="//secondmedia-d.openx.net/w/1.0/ai?auid=103216&cs=524f239099920&cb=INSERT_RANDOM_NUMBER_HERE" border="0" alt=""></a> Support BladeForums! Paid memberships don't see ads! I had quite the bummer of a visit to my local Tandy store today. And by local I mean I drove an hour to get to it by hauling ass. I'm stoked to be doing some new things- I want to start doing at least a partial lining to cover up a new to me style of sheath, I have a bunch of ideas for improving stamping, beveling, design, etc. I was super excited to start thinning out Barge to see how the cement turned out. I wanted to try out the crazy-legs and crescent shell designs Paul outlined in his 3rd video. Instead, I think I somehow stumbled into the "I hate all new leatherworkers" zone. I look at Yelp! to see if a restaurant is going to give me food poisoning or not, that's about it. I thought about it all day and I finally said to hell with it and posted a review to Yelp! about the store. I've been there before and they've been decent but this was just ridiculous. Review below. I've spent thousands of dollars at the Omaha Tandy store and was sorely disappointed with my visit today. They were only going to be open for 20 minutes when I showed up this Saturday July 8th but I felt like an intruder when I was shopping, not a guest or a paying customer. I busted my ass to cut an hour and twenty minute drive to an hour to get there and I had a set list so I wouldn't take too long. I needed Barge, Barge thinner, and a glue pot. They didn't have Barge thinner so after wasting a bunch of time tracking down a clerk I asked if the other thinner would work with Tolulene and the rep said 'Yeah sure' with no idea what Tolulene was when I asked. I asked for ideas on tools to improve my quilt pattern and I got told "Whatever works for you". If I knew what worked, I wouldn't be asking or buying. I asked for a standard Sam Brown stud and got waved in the direction of a rack of different sized studs and the rep walked off. I bought a bunch of different sizes because the sales rep couldn't be bothered. 5 minutes before closing I asked about liner material and holy crap, you'd think I'd asked for someone's firstborn child. No help, no guidance, no nothing, just "This is as thin as we make it" and tossed a $80 roll of leather on the bench. When it was all said and done and I bought a gold membership I was in the hole for $364 to this guy and to top it all off it must have been his first time checking a customer out because it took longer to check out than it did to shop. To make it even better, apparently after close of business the drawers close so the only way they could do the sale was to write down my debit card number, expiration date, and CC code. They'll run it on Monday they said. And I just get to hope that after getting dicked around like this that they won't make free with having my entire debit card information. Generally I think it's important to support brick and mortar stores, craft things like leatherwork especially need hands on conversations. However, this was a clarion call for why they should never survive. I can find plenty of rude, useless sales people on the interwebs, I don't need to waste my time driving to get treated like this.
So sorry to hear you had such a bad experience at your store. I've had wonderful experiences at the Charlotte, NC store. Everyone there is always extremely nice and eager to help--no matter how busy they may be, etc. The workers in NC seem to live and breathe all things leather; maybe the same can't be said for the clerks at the Omaha store and there-in lies the difference. I would say better luck next time, but doesn't sound like you'll be going back.
They used to be really good at that location. I'm assuming that the old guard is gone, and it's now just staffed with people who work a retail job because it's just a retail job. I would contact corporate and rip them a new one given the way that they treated you.
<a href="//secondmedia-d.openx.net/w/1.0/rc?cs=524f239099920&cb=INSERT_RANDOM_NUMBER_HERE" ><img src="//secondmedia-d.openx.net/w/1.0/ai?auid=103216&cs=524f239099920&cb=INSERT_RANDOM_NUMBER_HERE" border="0" alt=""></a> Support BladeForums! Paid memberships don't see ads! I've met some really good people there, on my last couple of visits there were still some of the guys from the old store location. I think(hope) I just ended up there on the wrong day. None of the old hands I'm used to were there, none of them were exactly spring bucks so I wouldn't be surprised if some had retired.
