Dos & Don’ts To Become A Beloved Customer (Part 2-The Don’ts)

July 15, 2019 /

Last week I blogged about the things consumers need to do to be a beloved quilt shop customer. This week I am going to discuss the things you DON’T want to do if you want to remain a beloved customer. Before I do that though, I want to mention that there are lots of good reasons to shop local and support small businesses like quilt shops as compared to big box stores. Here are a few:

  • Shop owners donate to and help local guilds. Shop owners even let guilds use their shops for meetings and other purposes.
  • Small businesses pay various types of taxes which are cycled back into the community in which you live.
  • Local quilt shop employees also cycle their money back into the community in which you live.
  • Many a quilt shop owner is considered a friend. They are the sort of people that attend your relative’s funerals or visit you in the hospital when you are sick. They send birthday and other celebratory cards. You are not just any old customer or just a number, you are a lot more….you are a valued customer and every customer counts for the little guys.

The Don’ts In No Particular Order As They Are All Equally Important

  • Don’t photocopy or photograph fabric project instructions. This isn’t very nice to do to the shop owner who intends to sell the project, but also this could be a copyright violation. Even though it seems minor, this is stealing.
  • If you visit a shop to get help with a project for which you purchased the fabric elsewhere, don’t leave without making a purchase at that shop. Don’t forget that shops need to make money to survive so if you want them to be around another day, you need to buy stuff.
  • If you attend a class, please make an additional purchase on top of attending the class. The class fee mainly goes to the teacher so shops don’t make much on this. Throw them a bone for bringing in such a great teacher, offering the class and offering their space and tools for you to utilize.
  • Don’t only post negative reviews on social platforms. Please post positive experiences too. Also, just because you didn’t have a good experience one day, it doesn’t mean you should bash a shop online because those reviews stay forever. This is a little harsh and damages reputations. Choose not to buy from a shop rather than tarnishing their reputation online forever. Imagine how you would feel if it were your business. Moreover, let the shop owner know about the bad experience so she can try to make it right for you so it doesn’t happen again in the future.
  • Quilt shops are not rest stops. Rest stops are rest stops. I hear a lot about people stopping into a shop on a road trip to a bigger shop or event. The people come in and say that they are on their way to another spot and have no intent to spend money at the present shop. Who says that? They are just stopping to stretch their legs and use the restrooms. Seriously? That’s so not nice. Go use a proper rest stop and stop being rude and using up all the toilet paper.
  • In general, don’t act rude, demanding or entitled. A little kindness goes a long way and you will for sure get it back in return 100 times over. Quilt shops are calm, creative and nurturing environments. It isn’t a rowdy bar or something like.
  • Don’t be at a quilt shop looking for lower pricing on your smart phone for the same items the shop is showing. Local shops are not show rooms. Again, if you want to see your local shop around for the long term, this type of behavior is not constructive.
I found this great sign online and it is perfect for this blog post.
  • Don’t test a machine or tool at a shop, find it online for a cheaper price and then call the same shop and ask them to price match. Just buy the item at the shop in the first place. Shop owners have feelings too and this behavior hurts those feelings and also the spirit and will of the shop owner to stay in business for you and others like you.
  • Don’t consume a lot of the staff’s time without making a purchase. It is a give and take.
  • Don’t announce to fellow customers or class attendees that you know where they can buy a certain item said shop is selling for a lower price somewhere else. If you want the service, it does come at a slight premium and you need to embrace that reality.
  • Don’t take photos of things that are for sale at a shop just to go home and buy them on the internet or elsewhere at a lower price.
  • Don’t insist that a shop owner take a certain course of action just because another shopping is doing it. Know that each shop is unique with a different business model and different goals. If all shops were the same, life would be very boring.

Those are some of the don’ts that I compiled from the retailer Facebook group. I am sure there are more don’ts so feel free to share in the comment section any that I may have missed. The bottom line here is that if you care about the future of your local shop, you need to buy from them, speak of them positively, engage with them and visit often.

Have a great week.

Creating Super Star Customers Scott

P.S. Get ready for the 2019 Jaftex Facebook Live Shop Tour Challenge coming to my @jaftexpresident Facebook page in the month of August.

P.S.S. Encourage your local shop to participate in the challenge. Details to follow on my blog at the end of the month.

P.S.S.S. Encourage your quilting friends to follow me @jaftexpresident so they can see all the awesome videos of quilt shops around the world and share in all the fun.

24 Comments

  • Theresa cooper

    August 7, 2019 at 8:22 am

    I’m heading to my favorite quilt shop to hear your presentation and SHOP, never leave without spending money, love the staff and owners of the old creamery in Ellisburg,

  • Laurie Johnson

    July 22, 2019 at 4:40 pm

    I would love to see the flip side of this … “dos and don’ts of how to keep your quilt shop consumers”.

    • Scott Fortunoff

      July 22, 2019 at 5:07 pm

      Hi Laurie,
      That is a work in progress and you can expect it in the a month or so. I have a bunch of other things lined up before I get around to that.
      Scott

  • Barbara Esposito, TheQuiltedB

    July 20, 2019 at 9:49 am

    Hey Scott – Very interesting points you make. You know there was a time when I volunteered in a quilt shop and it killed me when people would ask me to make copies of a pattern that someone else purchased at the shop. If you can’t afford the ten bucks for the pattern how you gonna afford the fabric to make it? Am I right? Thanks for all of this insight!

    • Scott Fortunoff

      July 21, 2019 at 5:17 pm

      Hi Barb,
      Welcome back! I agree. It’s really like stealing and people don’t think so b/c the cost is so small.
      Take care,
      Scott

  • Nancy

    July 18, 2019 at 9:03 pm

    Hi Scott,
    The same rules also apply to shop owners and staff. Some shop owners and staff are rude and act entitled themselves! There is an example in my local community, and as a result, I and numerous other quilters will drive many miles to shop at other quilt stores to avoid the one location.

    Customers are just that….customers. We usually come to see what’s new but we will also buy when treated as a valued customer and guest.

    Thanks for sharing

    • Scott Fortunoff

      July 21, 2019 at 5:19 pm

      I hear you Nancy. If you got to my @jaftexpresident Facebook page, I am asking consumers for suggestions to share with shops. Feel free to add your input. With that being said, there are almost 300 comments and your subject has been covered.
      Scott

  • Carmen

    July 18, 2019 at 2:54 pm

    We have a gal in guild that goes on all the time about how she got this or that online. It makes me cringe, because someday, there won’t be any local shops. I missed the first article, how do I find it? Thanks

  • cindy proehl

    July 17, 2019 at 6:01 pm

    I have actually seen many of these “don’ts” in action at the quilt shop I go to… taking photos and talking about how such and such an online shop has the same things a dollar or 2 less… it’s a pet peeve!

  • Frank McCarron

    July 16, 2019 at 8:02 pm

    A don’t for quilt shops is to have nice stuff on the wall and everything says “I’m a class”. That is good, but I have two problems:

    1) I work in retail and so don’t get regular days off to take classes in shops
    2) I have come a distance to visit your shop so the odds of me driving 1-4 hours each way to a class are zero.

    I appreciate that you want to sign up students, but not all of your customers are locals.

  • Pat Roaldsen

    July 16, 2019 at 7:34 pm

    Scott your so right about what each quilter owes to their local shop! Our guild has a newsletter can we publishb some of your great thoughts? We will give you credit as the author of course!

  • knitbunnie

    July 15, 2019 at 7:16 pm

    I used to work at a yarn shop, and I agree with every single thing you said. I’ve occasionally walked into my Local Quilt Shop with fabrics from elsewhere, but only to match up and make a purchase. I’ve brought along charm packs and jelly rolls that people (my kids!) have asked me to use for quilts, and I always need fabrics to match. And batting. And rulers. And pins. And rotary cutter blades. And magazines. And patterns. And, and, and… I cannot imagine walking into a quilt shop and walking out empty handed.

  • Jamie

    July 15, 2019 at 6:16 pm

    -I’d like to add that shop owners/employees are not usually psycho therapists… we understand that everyone has bad days and occasionally you may need to vent for whatever reason,but please don’t demand 3 hours of 1 on 1 time to unload your life story when the Shop is packed with paying customers, the phone is ringing, I have 87 kits to cut, online orders to fill and it’s nearly closing time. We love you… we do… but there’s such a thing as TMI.
    -please don’t arrive 5 minutes before close, hang out for an hour and not buy anything, or 1 item for $3… it costs us more to stay open for you than that $3 purchase…. plus, we have families too!
    -price haggling…. every. Single. Item. You. Touch….. just don’t.
    -don’t expect us to have exactly what you saw on Pinterest. We can find really great stuff that will be totally comparable… for example, a basic blender fabric doesn’t have to be the exact brand name Listed on the pattern. Every shop carries their own favorite blenders and I bet they have the right color! (This goes for a lot of notions, rulers, interfacing, battings and more… if the Shop trusts the brand it may be worth a try!)

    • Scott Fortunoff

      July 16, 2019 at 9:25 am

      Hi Jamie,
      These are definitely some good additions. Where were you when I was asking for suggestions? LOL.
      Thanks.
      Have a great week.
      Scott

  • Nina

    July 15, 2019 at 2:48 pm

    Thanks for the Don’t list. I work for a small business and we have some wonderful customers and there some that come in and are absolutely rude, especially if there is an item that isn’t carried in our shop and we aren’t even a dealer for that item. Got a really bashing post on FB. She must have been having a bad day.

  • Patricia Brunes

    July 15, 2019 at 1:46 pm

    You don’t know how much you will miss your local quilt shop until it closes! ☹️

    • Scott Fortunoff

      July 16, 2019 at 8:42 am

      Amen to that Patricia. It’s like that song says, “Don’t know what you got until it’s gone.”