Working for Tandy

[Hilly]

I wasn't allowed to vote either, so I'll just put my thoughts here.... I've never worked for Tandy, but it might be fun to work there. Any conclusions about Tandy I've expressed in the past have been because of some people that work there, not Tandy itself.

On the other hand, I've been greatly helped by another Tandy employee at another store, and he went above and beyond to help me, to help maintain a positive image of the company.

If I worked there, my main goal would be to provide good customer service. I feel it would keep repeat customers. Just like when you go to a restaraunt with bad service.... you probably will never go back, just for that reason. And maybe I'd get an employee discount.

I actually find Tandy a good resource. Just not the one nearest me.

[cjbleather]

This is not a thread for Tandy bashing. Like it or hate it, Tandy is THE retailer for most people who like to work with leather as a hobby. Tandy has had an enormous influence on the leatherworking psyche, as well as the materials and tools we frequently see.

I liked working for Tandy, but I learned quickly to keep my mouth shut at IFoLG shows about it. When people found out I worked for Tandy, they kinda rolled their eyes. A couple of people here have almost apologized for working there. ("Don't hold it against me!") Right or wrong, that's silly. Working for Tandy is an honest living, even if otherwise professional people want to throw rotten tomatoes at you.

I thought it would be interesting to address the elephant in the room- have you ever thought about working for Tandy?

Johanna

Johanna, Wanted to vote but it wouldn't let me. So, here are my choices 1, No, never will, 2, Customer Service, 3, No other reason (Manager had no interest in working with our guild [O-MI-O]. So, I have not interest in him), 4, Doesn't apply. Carlb

[Russ]

Johanna;

The poll also wouldn't let me vote....so I played around with it a little and noticed that it would only let me vote if I voted on ALL the questions. The last one, if I left it blank (since I've never worked there) would cause the error. Just for your info. Oh yeah. The poll is screwed up now because I lied on the last question! Kinda like people lie about which presidential candidate they're gonna vote for!

[Johanna]

Good catch, Russ! I fixed the poll to have a "does not apply to me" as a choice. Maybe the folks who couldn't vote will try again?

In retail, we say the customer who complains does us a favor by giving us the opportunity to correct the original problem and keep the customer. Hilly made a good point:

Any conclusions about Tandy I've expressed in the past have been because of some people that work there, not Tandy itself.

If you are not happy with the person representing Tandy, or whatever retailer, you have to let someone know or service will never change, and you won't be satisfied. If you follow the chain and keep complaining upwards, responsible managers will probably try to make things right. If you don't let them know directly what is wrong, you can bet you won't be the only unhappy customer.

Johanna

[bcurrier]

I thought a bit about the Wal Mart comparison, above. I think a better comparison is McDonalds - limited menu, relatively low but predictable quality, usually good service but can apparently differ from site to site. My personal experience with Tandy customer service has been very good at several stores, so I'm surprised to hear some of the negative stories.

I was at my local Tandy today. I needed thread today and they had the only 277 locally I could find (A&E bonded poly, which was WAY too expensive, by the way). I also picked up some glue and deglazer. Tandy is reliable for decent liquid supplies (dyes, glues/cements, edge coats, top finishes, etc.), has a few decent tools, carries some worthwhile supplies like needles, rivets, etc., but a lot of the stuff is just awful. I looked through the pile of "premium" 7/8 oz. sides they had on a house special, for example. What a wrinkled, blotchy, scarred, cut & scraped, uneven, dry and faded mess! Granted, that's why it was on sale, but the regular price veg tan stuff didn't look a whole lot better.

The manager, on the other hand, was great, answering questions about some acrylics he carries, and offered to mail me the gum trag. on which he was out of stock without a shipping charge.

I guess I always leave a Tandy wishing they offered better, or maybe a fuller range of quality. But, as it is, it's more like a convenience store for certain types of supplies only.

Bill

[cjbleather]

Good catch, Russ! I fixed the poll to have a "does not apply to me" as a choice. Maybe the folks who couldn't vote will try again?

In retail, we say the customer who complains does us a favor by giving us the opportunity to correct the original problem and keep the customer. Hilly made a good point:

If you are not happy with the person representing Tandy, or whatever retailer, you have to let someone know or service will never change, and you won't be satisfied. If you follow the chain and keep complaining upwards, responsible managers will probably try to make things right. If you don't let them know directly what is wrong, you can bet you won't be the only unhappy customer.

Johanna

Johanna, I agree with you. But, even after my first complaint was answered by someone in corp, I never did hear from the manager. Now it is a mute point as I think our guild is belly up because of the lack of a meeting place. So, it is kinda of hard to have anything but a cold feeling about Tandy. Carlb

[Duke]

THANK YOU BILL!!!!! you hit the nail on the head. everyone wants top quality, but dont want to pay for it.in order to keep a business running, and inventory in the store, so that people will still have merchandise to buy,tandy has been forced to go overseas for alot of thier stuff. I work for tandy, and have only been there for a little over 6 months but I am proud to say I work there. yes, I am guilty of apoligizing for working there, but that is only because I am not proud of the way that business is being ran. for the merchandise that we sell, and the availability that he have of it, and the fact that our customer service is a standard to be kept(at least in my store), I have alot of pride in the company that I work for. I wish the pay was better, but hey, it keeps me indoors out of the weather during the winter, and the hot sun off my back during the summer.we can all take the stick to the bull :deadhorse: and say that tandy has gone down the drain, but if we think back we will realize that at some point in time, we have all had dealings with tandy. and 98% of you will say that that experience was good to great.

I would like to add a different point of view and that is the decline in any and all Hand Craft Hobbies whether it be leather craft, wood burning, plastic or metal model building or electronics for that matter. If you look at what happened to Tandy, and I remember the store in Baltimore, Md in the 1970s and all the supplies, kits, tools, etc. they had compared to what they have now and look at the other "hobby" industries over the last 30 years in the US and you will find that they have all declined. Since I work in the electronics industry I look around and wonder what happened to Heath Kit, or the Radio Shack kits where you could build your own radio, then later you own computer from the basic components, e.g. chips, resistors, capacitors. Go to a Radio Shack store today and almost all of their piece parts are gone and will never come back. We have grown into a "must have it now, it must be cheap, I will throw it away in less than a year because there is a new model" society.

Quality is an interesting issue when you are trying to stay in business in a very small niche market. I recently received my Uncles tools set from the 1940s and 1950s. There is one crafttool that I now have three versions of the same bevel. You can see how the tool head has grown in size over the years. I will keep three because of that size variation. Other than size, the only real difference is in the quality of the chrome plating with the 2000 version being the worst. I don't blame Tandy for that since I also ran into the same problem in restoring my wife's 1959 Triumph TR3A Roadster. To find good chrome plating today means first finding a company that still does chrome plating on metal and not on plastic. Very similar to the problem we now have with finding a tanning company in the US.

I better stop my rambling now but want to sum this all up, in MY OPINION and it is CLOUDED with my experience, If you look at what is happening to basic manufacturing industries in the US, and how we have devalued people that work with their hands (except sports figures) we are slowly losing them to foreign countries and what is left are the assembly plants, and service jobs. Time to climb down from the soap box.

Thank all of you for letting me ramble on.

[AlcoveShop]

Couldnt vote either.

That aside, I did work for Tandy for a number of years, then Leather Factory and ultimately TandyLeatherFactory. (20 Years on and off)

and another 10 prior just plain being involved.

I'm glad to be NOT working for them any longer for a number of reasons, very few of them personal- it's more what has become of the system. (This can apply to alot of businesses mind you)

Its no secret that a vast majority of the products we find now (not just from them) are imported. Tandy is great for introductory level hobby, but beyond basic you start to find various issues that leave you really thinking hard if you want to improve; Being on the management side of the counter, you quickly learn to make up for the low quality product's shortcomings the best you can, and trust me, it's not always easy. Personally, I'll say this: The hardest thing for me to do as a manager was to keep the "crafstman" under control; If you ask me specific questions, I'll give you answers you probably wouldnt like much. (So dont)

The imported thing could very well be a whole discussion thread unto itself (hey, not a bad idea!) nut in dealing with the poll, I'll simply say I worked for them for a very long time, and would never go back. My efforts are concentrated on bringing our money back to the states- Tandy isnt responsible for all the propaganda regarding domestic product being high priced, but I'm sure (No, positive!) Charles Tandy would have swallowed a case of cigars to see the mess that the industry is in now.

On the plus side I'll give TLF some kudos- Some of the folk in corporate I consider close friends (Which made my decision to begin the process of leaving all the more harder) and a pleasure to work with. Just try to remember that people there are just doing thier jobs, which ultimately comes down to being bean counter board of deeee-reeector driven. Money. They are a great company to start out with, but unless they stop making cuban cigars, hell freezes over and someone pours some alchy-hol in the dye, the industry is both being hurt and yet driven thusly. I may be jaded by so many years, but dangit, I'm happy now and beg anyone who does enjoy them/thier product, to continue doing so.

[AlcoveShop]

I thought a bit about the Wal Mart comparison, above. I think a better comparison is McDonalds - limited menu, relatively low but predictable quality, usually good service but can apparently differ from site to site. My personal experience with Tandy customer service has been very good at several stores, so I'm surprised to hear some of the negative stories.

I was at my local Tandy today. I needed thread today and they had the only 277 locally I could find (A&E bonded poly, which was WAY too expensive, by the way). I also picked up some glue and deglazer. Tandy is reliable for decent liquid supplies (dyes, glues/cements, edge coats, top finishes, etc.), has a few decent tools, carries some worthwhile supplies like needles, rivets, etc., but a lot of the stuff is just awful. I looked through the pile of "premium" 7/8 oz. sides they had on a house special, for example. What a wrinkled, blotchy, scarred, cut & scraped, uneven, dry and faded mess! Granted, that's why it was on sale, but the regular price veg tan stuff didn't look a whole lot better.

The manager, on the other hand, was great, answering questions about some acrylics he carries, and offered to mail me the gum trag. on which he was out of stock without a shipping charge.

I guess I always leave a Tandy wishing they offered better, or maybe a fuller range of quality. But, as it is, it's more like a convenience store for certain types of supplies only.

Bill

Thats it in a nutshell- trust me, the people behind the counter feel the same way. (Sigh)

[David Genadek]

Couldnt vote either.

That aside, I did work for Tandy for a number of years, then Leather Factory and ultimately TandyLeatherFactory. (20 Years on and off)

and another 10 prior just plain being involved.

I'm glad to be NOT working for them any longer for a number of reasons, very few of them personal- it's more what has become of the system. (This can apply to alot of businesses mind you)

Its no secret that a vast majority of the products we find now (not just from them) are imported. Tandy is great for introductory level hobby, but beyond basic you start to find various issues that leave you really thinking hard if you want to improve; Being on the management side of the counter, you quickly learn to make up for the low quality product's shortcomings the best you can, and trust me, it's not always easy. Personally, I'll say this: The hardest thing for me to do as a manager was to keep the "crafstman" under control; If you ask me specific questions, I'll give you answers you probably wouldnt like much. (So dont)

The imported thing could very well be a whole discussion thread unto itself (hey, not a bad idea!) nut in dealing with the poll, I'll simply say I worked for them for a very long time, and would never go back. My efforts are concentrated on bringing our money back to the states- Tandy isnt responsible for all the propaganda regarding domestic product being high priced, but I'm sure (No, positive!) Charles Tandy would have swallowed a case of cigars to see the mess that the industry is in now.

On the plus side I'll give TLF some kudos- Some of the folk in corporate I consider close friends (Which made my decision to begin the process of leaving all the more harder) and a pleasure to work with. Just try to remember that people there are just doing thier jobs, which ultimately comes down to being bean counter board of deeee-reeector driven. Money. They are a great company to start out with, but unless they stop making cuban cigars, hell freezes over and someone pours some alchy-hol in the dye, the industry is both being hurt and yet driven thusly. I may be jaded by so many years, but dangit, I'm happy now and beg anyone who does enjoy them/thier product, to continue doing so.

It is a corperation and the job of the management is to create return on the investment. If we want to complain we have to be able to give that return. If they invest in the quality are we willing to pay the price to make it worthe thier while.

With what has happened to Hidecrafters I would say no we are not. The other part of this is numbers there is not enough volume of people doing this craft to make it pay. It would be very easy to duplicate Bob Beards tool line down to every nuance and have them done in China but the 3d modeling would take some investment. Is there enough people to make that pay. I would say no or Bob would have done it by now. In my mind the best thing we can all do is start teaching and sharing our love of the art.

David Genadek