This year’s top five are:

1. John Lewis
2. Amazon
3. Play.com
4. Dunelm Mill
5. M&S

A recap of 2009′s top 10:

1. John Lewis (no change from last year)
2. Ikea (up 3)
3. Amazon (up 1)
4. TK Maxx (up 20)
5. Avon (up 3)
6. Brantano (up 5)
7. Waitrose (down 5)
8. Clarks (up 13)
9. Marks & Spencer (up 4)
10. Shoe Zone (up 19)

It’s very much the norm to haggle in America, however us Brits seem a bit reticent to try.  So I decided to give it a go – my car has been having problems so I took it to a well-known automotive dealer in Swindon.  With the news story fresh in my mind, I politely requested a discount from my regular service consultant – and managed to get 11% off the bill.

Here’s the thing: if I had never asked, I’d have never been given the discount.

So my first consumer tip of 2010: never be afraid to ask for a discount.  So what if they ultimately say no – it costs nothing to ask.  Makes you wonder how much you can get off if you just ask.

However on a recent weekend trip to see Sherlock Holmes (thoroughly recommended in case you’re wondering), after parting with nearly £7 for a jumbo-sized vat of popcorn and similarly-sized drink, I was given a free Kit-Kat!

This had the effect of making me think less about how much I paid for the tickets and the popcorn, and it just shows that the small things really can make a difference, leaving me with a positive impression.

Update 05/01/2010: Credit card surcharges currently hot news in the UK: Ryanair has attracted the wrath of the Office of Fair Trading OFT chief executive John Fingleton

On a cold New Year’s Day Italian food appealed – but I wasn’t sure if they were open for dinner.  I called the Bath number to be greeted by a standard message (reservations for over 8 people etc) and gave normal opening hours – no mention of New Years Day.  Also called a London location and got the same message.  The website proved no help.  Went into Bath later and passed by the restaurant – all closed up, chairs on tables (so went to Wagamamas instead).  No opening hours posted on the window (random sample of shops I passed in Bath: less than half had opening times posted in the window).

Come on Jamie – great food but please make it easy to get in and tell us when you’re open!

1) During holiday periods update your website and answerphone message with opening hours

2) If you’re bricks and mortar (like a shop) – put your opening times in the window

3) Use every channel to communicate with your customers – for example print contact details and opening times on receipts

After each order I’ve received an email confirmation (not always the case with on-line retailers – such as Easyjet who never send me an email confirming my bookings when placed), and delivery has been super speedy and reasonably priced.  It’s when things go wrong that the quality of service counts: after a week one of the clocks stopped working.  I emailed the company and they swiftly authorised the return.  However I went to LA in the middle of this so it took me 8 weeks to return the clock… But this caused no problems – they refunded the postage (based on a verbal statement of cost) and sent me a new clock.

I know legally that companies have to refund or replace malfunctioning items within a guarantee period – however it’s the ease and timeliness of the process that sets apart the good from the bad.  Well done Contemporary Heaven.

1) Good practice to acknowledge internet & telephone orders as soon as possible

2) Making the return process easy and fast leaves customers with a positive impression

Also the staff in the shop (in particular the Bath and Edinburgh stores, both of which I visited recently) have in my experience been very friendly and attentive.

I know they are going through hard times, with the Kamprad family (of Ikea fame) brokering offers to sell the business, after many difficult years of break-even (at best) and losses.

So to my tale: about 10 weeks ago I ordered (in store) a light box by the name of ‘Mr Woo’ (£95).  A  design that was both functional and unusual. I was told by the store manager that it would take 6-8 weeks to come into store.  I duly received a phone call last month to say it was ready for collection.   So far, so good.

Upon collecting the goods I asked if they had a bulb – to be told that they had run out.  They did recommend an alternative shop, where I then got a bulb from (after looking at the instructions and checking out the reference number).  Took the whole shebang home, unpacked… and you’ve guessed it – the bulb was the wrong sort.  Cue then a trawl of the net to find the right bulb – called an on-line retailer, gave them the exact reference on the instructions for the lamp and two days later another bulb arrived.  Guess what?  It didn’t fit.

By this stage I’d spent £95 on the lamp and a further £20 on bulbs and postage.  So I emailed customer service at Habitat.  No reply EVER received.  I got fed up with the whole process, so I found another light box (£249 – John Lewis this time – more of whom on a later posting) and returned the lamp.  The lady at the till (and the manager who originally took the order) were very understanding and completely apologetic and gave a refund, no problems.  They both deserve credit for reaffirming the customer service reputation of Habitat.

The story ends with a Christmas-sales inspired trip into the Bath store (again) – where I saw the lady who took the refund and also spotted the correct bulb for the lamp – (finally) now in stock!  She remembered me well – I’m very recognisble.

So the lessons from this episode:

1) Keep accessories and supplies for your product in stock.  They often enjoy better profit margins.

2) No matter where your products are made, make damn sure the technical description and requirements (e.g. bulb type for a lamp) – in the catalogue, on the product and in the manual – all match.

3) If you are serious about customer service in any shape or form, make sure that you a) make it easy to communicate with your customers, and b) actually respond to them when they take the trouble to contact you in the first place.

4) Friendly staff at the shop floor level are your ultimate champions: they can make or break you, so train them well.

Thanks to Andy for both responding to and discussing my post.  It’s great to see the dialogue starting with the Retailers.

*Update 15:14 2nd January I’ve been contacted by the area manager responsible for the Bath store – I’ll update you all on the conclusion.

So it’s New Years Day.  Time of resolutions and action.  Resolution no 1: get fit.  Need to buy some shorts.

Trip to the Bath branch of JJB sports, 4pm.  Greeted by – hmmm – that’ll be no-one.  Down escalator to basement (Why do all US stores have menswear on the ground floor whereas all British have menswear on the upper or lower floors?).

Walk past a lady who is trying to pay for shopping at an empty bank of tills.  She asks a young assistant if she can pay there – only to be told by the assistant (who asks his supervisor who is standing right next to the customer) that nope, she’s gotta go upstairs.  Seriously, wouldn’t it have been quicker just to run her small stack of items through the till?

After hearing this then walk past another assistant vacuuming the store floor (one hour before the shop closes!).  Why do stores do this?  Do they not know how off putting it is to see retail staff cleaning the store in preparation for closing before the store is actually closed?  Fair enough if something is spilt etc, but to start vacuuming the place with customers still shopping is inexcusable.

So once I’ve dodged the vacuum and realised that I have to go and pay upstairs I try and find some sports shorts.  Well I shouldn’t have bothered.  Stock grouped around brands – so all Champion stuff together, Nike together etc.

Decided it was easier to forget the whole idea and leave the store.  So in summary:

1. Tills only open on a single floor

2. Vacuuming the shop while it’s open

3. Poor stock display

I’ve recently come across two power-orientated concepts – which, if made into production, will certainly be gracing my office and home:

A new take on the over-large British electrical plug:

The creator of the plug, Min-kyu Choi, is a recent graudate of the Royal College of Art in London.  Detailed design notes for the plug can be found here.  The plug came third in the 2009 James Dyson award, with 80,000 votes.

And for those across the pond, an elegant solution to the powerblock spagetti often seen under desks across the country.  The power strip is designed by Hyuk Jae Chang, and contains a visual indication of the power consumption of each attached device.

Power Bridge

The Power Bridge was a finalist in the Student Design Category of this year’s International Design Excellence Awards (the Folding Plug won a Gold in the IDEA).

The good news for consumers is that there is more choice than ever.  For design conscious buyers, there are a few great options out there.  Dell has done a lot of work in the last several years to revitalise their design language.  They’ve seemed to have been able to break the cycle of mediocrity in the PC world.

I thought that the Dell Studio Hybrid Desktop in particular had a pleasing design in a variety of colours – and even a bamboo outer finish.  The compact dimensions, curved edges and bright colours reminded me of 70s chic – and the tech specs kept pace with the looks – HDMI, low power consumption & Blu-ray with significant use of recycled materials.

I poked around for some reviews – whilst most praised the design, common criticisms were the high cost / performance ratio compared to a desktop, no expandability, average performance and lack of a remote control.

But hey, whoever said everything was bought for its function rather than form?

The Studio brand has been around now for nearly a year, initially launching with a number of laptop models.  And Dell clearly thinks the brand has mileage: “People seeking stunning design, brilliant colors, and innovative new technology find inspiration in Dell’s new Studio brand,” commented Michael Tatelman, VP of Dell worldwide consumer sales and marketing.  It’s not clear whether the Studio Hybrid was designed in-house or by an external agency.

So this one gets a recommendation to Holly, given her mix of web surfing, word documents, itunes and photos.

It’s great to see a different take on the ubiquitous usb key – so far the designs I’ve seen are either a variation on a theme for an oblong box or something more novelty.  With these keys you won’t be laughed at when you whip ‘em out to get at some data.

I was so impressed with the design I went out and bought one.  It feels sturdy to touch, sits well on a key ring, and generally feels well-built.  Being a very slim design, it only has the metal strips to make contact with the USB port, so a small clear plastic cap is provided to prevent pocket fluff from getting into the innards.

The only concern I have is how much wear-and-tear it will take when it’s dangling from a usb port with a bunch of keys weighing it down.

Iamakey is part of a range of key-shaped usb sticks – with varying capacities, dimensions and price tags…

The project follows on from an earlier collaboration between Lacie and 5.5 for a range of coin-shaped usb keys.