Northwest Hardware Company — Attraction in Winston-Salem

Poor Customer Service; Management is Rude.

On Wednesday, 04 January 2012, I entered Sherwood Ace Hardware to purchase a Stihl MS211 chainsaw. I had been quoted this model at a price of $199.95 over the phone on Monday, and then told in person by Ken that the price was 199.95 as I handled the chainsaw.

I went home to think about the purchase and compare with other products, Husqvarna, Echo, etc. I decided on the MS211 because it met my needs (tree felling and firewood cutting).

I went in on the evening of Wednesday, 04 Jan 2012, to purchase the chainsaw. At the register the price came up as $279.95, not $199.95 as I was twice quoted. It turned out that the stickers were in the wrong place.

I asked for the manager, Alan, who's communication was short and irritated with me. After explaining the situation with Ken present, David's only response was "279 is the price." I then explained that I always go to ACE before Lowes or Home Depot even though ACE only has what I need 30% of the time because I like the people and the smaller feeling in the store. David's only response was "Well we fail you 70% of the time, so this shouldn't be a surprise. Have a nice night." and walked away.

The MANAGEMENT at this store has no customer service. They may market themselves as "the Helpful Place", but this Ace Hardware is not at all.

I didn't even want the saw for $199.95, I just wanted to have a reasonable conversation, but I got nothing of the sort from Alan.

I left the store and drove to Lowes where I purchased a Husqvarna Model 435 for $279.95 and it has done a great job.

I called Ace's customer service line and spoke with Stefan, who was very helpful. I filed a complaint against this store. Stefan contacted the store owner and district manager and gave them my story and contact information. He said one of them would contact me directly. As of today, I have not received a call.

It is obvious this store's management and owner do not care about providing their customer's with quality experiences or maintaining their customer base.

I will not be going to Sherwood ACE Hardware again even though I live only 0.6 miles away; nor will my father or brother. I suggest you do not go...

It took me longer that I would like to admit to realize where Ace fit into the big picture of home improvement big box stores. Now that I own a home and the closest place to pick up toilet float valves, bird seed, and odd bolts you don't seem to have in your collection of random hardware is Ace, I get it. Do you keep random hardware as a homeowner? Because if you don't you should.

Anyway, I've come to appreciate the fact that I can just quickly run up to ace and pick up 90% of the items I need without having to make a trip to one of those OTHER stores. Like that orange one. Or the blue one. They're all the way across town and although the selection is significantly better there, I still can't help but feel like the majority of that stuff isn't worth stocking.

Ace doesn't give you the plethora of choices, but you also probably don't need 18 different float valves to choose from. You just need that one right now so that stupid toilet in the downstairs hall bathroom will stop wasting water and running up your water bill and making that awful racket all the time while the tank...

I love this place. They keep a great inventory, particularly for hardware. The big boxes make a nod at hardware that isn’t screws and scoff at more obscure but not uncommon bits that you still need. This store has always had what I am looking for. They carry a ton of other stuff too. Too much to list, ut I don’t think I’ve ever walked out of there disappointed.

They have a good number of staff too. And they’re knowledgeable and helpful. You know how hard it can be to find a staff member at their bigger competitors. And forget about finding someone who actually knows what the stuff is for and how it’s used. Not the case here. If you grab the rare person who doesn’t know an answer, they instantly get on the radio and have the solution or another staff member in the know straight away.

This place is a gift to the...