Discovering a Family Owned Business
Shopping is one of my favorite things to do, second is people watching. The detail I was able to see when you’re looking for them in a store is truly amazing. Anyone can see these things if they know what you are looking for. “The science of shopping” through Paco Underhill eyes is found in Carl’s Locksmith Service business, from the zones when you first walk into the building to the Invariant right, right down to the awesome customer service.
Carl’s Locksmith Service is a specialty shop located just up from the heart of the city in Fall River, MA. It is located on a corner lot on a main road and has a large sign on the front of the building. There is street parking along the front and side of the building and they also have a small parking lot in the rear. At first glance it looks like a tan wooden shingle building with colorful signs in their windows that states “open” “keys made here.” The signs flash different colors and bring attention to the otherwise quiet looking neighborhood with rental houses all around. This shop is not located in a busy shopping area but always has people in and out of its doors.
Once inside the first few steps in there is nothing on either side of you just as Paco Underhill stated the decompression zone I noted the blue tile floor that was extra shiny considering there is a lot of foot traffic traveling in and out. The decompression zone is the area directly inside the store within five to fifteen paces which gives them time to adjust to the lights. Paco states “he believes that as a rule of thumb that customer’s interaction with any product or display will increase by thirty percent if moved to the back edge of the zone or even to the right.” My first impression was that the store was very organized and clean. Taking a few more steps into the building on the right hand side there is a carpeted display stand of small fire safes followed by a display of locks for both residential and commercial applications at eye level Zone 1. Paco also talks about the invariant right meaning everything of importance or promotional displays should be place on the right hand side because most people are right handed and they naturally turn right when entering a store.
Zone 3 is where you generally want customers to go to get their do it your self-stuff in this store. You can find these items along the back wall where there are neatly placed name tags above each item hanging there and below them are more safes in all different colors, sizes and ratings. On the left hand side there was a large variety of keys that hung from one side of the wall to the other. The owner stated that it is “approximately thirty eight feet long” and about “forty-five thousand keys” that hang on it. Below the massive wall of keys sits many different key machine and bin boxes filled with all sorts of smaller locks. In front of the machines there is a work bench and a counter with the cash register about three quarters of the way into the shop Zone 4. On the right hand side of the counter there is novelty items or impulse items for customers to buy, like keychains, key rings, screwdrivers and flashlights. Impulse items are little things that people buy on the go and conveniently place where otherwise they would choose not to buy.
The atmosphere is very inviting, friendly and warm. The walls are wooden panels with all kinds of pictures about locks and handouts on items located around the shop. Located on the back wall are written stories of their success along with awards and certifications of each employee. The lighting is just right, not overly bright, but enough to see the merchandise. There is no music playing in there show room unless you count the owners grandchildren playing quietly in the corner. There are two wooden chairs available but don’t look inviting. I sat there as I observed the staff and customers with the owner’s permission.
As customers enter the building the sales staff knew them by name and if they didn’t they still treated them with the up most respect. The business consists of three sales/technicians personal. The older gentleman (the father) whose knowledgeable, straight forward, older business likes, and dry, a woman (the mother) whose personable, knowledgeable, friendly, helpful, pleasant, and honest. The third is a younger man (the son) who is also knowledgeable, friendly, professional and has a sense of humor. The three of them wear the same uniform, blue stripe shirts with the logo printed on one side and their name on the other side.
As I watch the staff interacts with customers I noted that the men usually went to the male staff members and woman went to the female. Women explain what they were looking for in simple everyday terms while the men were very specific. There were more people that purchase items than non-purchasers. Customers that bought items spent more time in the shop than ones that did not. If the customer needed a key cut the shop people kindly told “them to leave it on the ring, they didn’t need to take it off.” I think this helps the customer out with fighting with the key ring and also saved the employee’s time. There was a lot of positive energy in the store, definitely a family orientated place (you could feel the love.) There are all types of people who enter through those doors. Young and old, rich and poor, as I was sitting there I saw a lawyer, police officer, teacher, real estate agent, the electric company, homeowners and a renter come in for a variety of things. (I was there for about an hour on two different occasions.) The staff seems to generally care and offers all kinds of help even if they can’t accommodate their needs. They seem to put the customer first and making a sale second.
A young couple entered the shop and excitedly explained that they just bought their first home and needed new locks. I quickly jotted down the conversation between the two. The owner asked the couple how many locks they had on the home. The couple replied with three doors with two locks on each. The owner said so six locks in total, do you have working keys for them now. The couple stated they did. The owner asked what type of locks you have on your doors now. The couple showed a picture to the owner and stated that they really love the lock that were on the house and if they could get something in a similar style. The owner replied by saying if you would like to save money and keep your hardware now we could just rekey your current locks on the door. The couple was very excited and said yes. The owner gave them a price and set up a time for one of the service technicians to go to the home and rekey the locks for them.
Overall I think this shop is a very well-known family orientated business, with great customer service that keeps them coming back for more. Who knew a locksmith did more beside cutting keys and repairing locks. I was surprise how busy the shop was, and all the different type of people that came in and out of the business. This shop didn’t follow “The Science of Shopping” exactly but things Paco Underhill stated were true in this business. The zones were there and the Invariant Right thing was there because the show room was on the right hand side of the building. I think the real reason the business is striving is the customer service.