Kevin doesn’t freeze and keeps his cool

Located on the busy Preston Road, Carters conveniently offers five or six car parking spaces right outside its front door.
The large store was tightly packed with hundreds of white goods and cookers and a sea of bright red posters suggested I was in the right place for a bargain. However, on closer inspection, the posters were not sale signs, but printouts listing every model’s key features and price. Very handy if there were no sales staff around to help.
However, this was not the case during my visit. Kevin came and found me immersed in the fridge section.
“Hi there, how are you? Are you looking for a fridge or a fridgefreezer?” he asked with a welcoming smile.
“A fridge-freezer,” I said.
A series of questions designed to establish my needs followed. How much room did I have in my kitchen? How much freezer space did I want? How much did I want to spend?
Kevin made several recommendations, explaining the benefits of each model. “Right well I’ll leave you to keep browsing, but I’m just over here if you need me,” he pointed in the direction of the counter.
“Oh, and any purchase over £150 comes with free delivery and installation.”

Score: 9 out of 10

Important advice

Comet had an enormous shop located at the Pavilion Retail Park. A bit of a trek on foot but plenty of parking for customers.
After several minutes browsing in the laundry department, an amicable looking lady named Stephanie asked if I was looking for a washing machine.
“Yes,” I informed her. “Mine has just broken down. I want one that dries too, but I don’t want to spend more than £300.”
She stopped in front of a Hotpoint model. “I recommend this one as you get a 6kg wash and 5kg dry capacity. My one at home only lets me dry half the wash load, which is such a pain.
“It also gives great wash performance”, she continued, “and this is the most important thing to look for when buying a washing machine. Miele gives the best wash performance, but they cost several hundred pounds more.”
When I said I might shop around before making my decision, Stephanie printed out the details of the Hotpoint model for me. “This way you can compare it with everything else you see.”

Score: 9 out of 10

For a few pounds more

Heading down Western Street I came to one of Brighton’s two Sony Centres. The store was immaculate, with sparkling glass cabinets and shiny gadgets that invited you to ‘touch and try’.
Two young lads stood behind the counter chatting animatedly and, as far as I could see, I was the only person in the store.
I was drawn to the camcorder display, where I started to browse. After a minute of being left to my own devices, one of the guys approached me with a friendly smile.
“Can I help you with anything,” he asked.
“I’m looking to buy a camcorder, but there’s such a wide choice, I’m not sure where to start,” I told him.
“Right” he responded with a business-like tone, “Well, you have a choice of tape, DVD or hard drive, which stores your footage straight to the camera,” he explained.
“And you also have a choice of standard definition or high definition, which is obviously much better picture quality but also a lot more expensive.”
How much did I want to spend? No more than £300.
“In that case, I recommend the SR32E. It’s £20 more than you’re looking to spend but it gives you 20 hours of recording time and has lots of useful features, such as ‘night mode’.”
“What about this one that’s £90 cheaper,” I said pointing to a DVD model on the right.
“Well, it only gives you half an hour recording time so you would need to buy lots of discs, which can end up being expensive and more hassle,” he explained helpfully.

Score: 8 out of 10

Plasma or LCD?

SEVERAL blocks on from Richer Sounds was Audio-T, with its stylish and remarkably tidy interior showcasing numerous home-cinema systems and audio equipment from brands such as Onkyo and Denon. Several TVs were also on display and I wandered over to have a look.
One of the two salesmen appeared at my side immediately. “Hi there, can I help with anything?” he asked politely.
“Yes, I’m interested in buying a TV – a 37 or 42in.”
“Well, we do LCD up to 37in (mainly Panasonic) and then plasma from 42in upwards, which are Pioneer. If you have room for a 42in, then I would personally go with that as Pioneer’s picture quality is stunning – it’s very natural.
“All models come with wall brackets or table-top stands depending on what you want,” he continued. “The wall brackets start from £100 and can go up to about £300 for designs that come out from the wall and swivel around.
“Are you looking for a home cinema system to go around your TV? Because we have lots available here, too.”
Making my excuses to leave, he informed me there was a sale on until the end of January and gave me several brochures with a mark next to the 42in Pioneer for £1,799.

Score: 8 out of 10

Stand back and take a look

Richer Sounds was heaving with customers. Two salesmen were serving behind the counter, while another two were on the floor giving advice.
Realising it could be some time until I received assistance, I decided to look around.
The far wall was covered from floor to ceiling with TVs of different makes and sizes.
All of them were turned on, but none appeared to be showing HD. The only model that did have an HD feed was a 50in Pioneer screen on the other side of the room and the picture quality was breathtaking.
It was 20 minutes before someone finally became free.
“Do you need any help there?” Andy asked.
“I’m looking to buy a TV – about 37 or 42in,” I offered.
He asked me what I would be using it for and I informed him it was just to watch TV and the occasional DVD.
“In that case, you don’t need a 1080p panel,” he announced. “Unless you’re considering buying a Blu-ray player some time soon. This LG for £599 is a great deal,” he said leading me over to the wall of screens. “LG makes 80 per cent of the world’s panels, which is why they can offer such a good price.”
“But how does the picture quality compare with other brands?” I asked.
“The picture is great – stand back and take a look for yourself. This is why we turn all the TVs on, so people can compare and decide for themselves.”

Score: 7 out of 10

Best because it will last

Central Appliances was a no frills shop predominantly selling white goods and cookers along with a few smaller appliances. At the front of the store were cheaper ‘rebuilt’ models while the back accommodated a selection of new machines.
A small sign at the front of the store warned: “Those wanting a new Rolls Royce for Mini Minor money need not apply.” Fair enough.
Heading towards the back to look at washing machines again, I wasn’t expecting much help. However, a young woman quickly surfaced and asked what I was looking for.
Sticking with my story from Comet, I told her I wanted a washer dryer for around £300.
She hung around but didn’t offer any advice, so I asked if she could recommend anything.
“Well, I think Bosch is the best because it lasts the longest,” she replied. “It comes with a two-year guarantee. But then it’s a bit more expensive than the others.”
She waved me over to a Zanussi model. “Zanussi is a really good brand too and a bit more affordable. Plus this model has a half-load function, which is really handy if there’s not many in your household.”
“And did they offer installation and deliver,” I asked. “Yes, we do all that for free, plus remove your old appliance.”

Score: 7 out of 10

Is it worth the extra?

Sunderland Electronics was slightly removed from the main shopping centre and crowds, but a multitude of bright signs were plastered over the exterior to attract passers-by.
There were just two other customers, but only one member of staff in the entire shop. He was busy with one customer, so this left me and another without any assistance for 10 minutes.
Eventually the man left and the salesman turned his attention to the next customer, who said he was looking to buy a TV. A lengthy explanation of the various models ensued. After 10 minutes, there was still no sign of the conversation drawing to a close, so I decided to listen in as I didn’t fancy spending the night in Brighton.
“The 100Hz is smoother but if you step back and compare them, the colour looks better on the 50Hz, so I don’t think it’s worth the extra money.”
He seemed helpful and what I heard sounded good, but at the end of the day, I still walked out unserved.

Score: 2 out of 10

Sorry if I’m in the way!

Curry’s was an impressive sized store located at the front of Churchill Square shopping centre. On entering I noticed there weren’t many customers but plenty of sales staff. Great, should be easy to get some service then….
I headed over to the TV section, where some fantastic deals were on offer: A half price stand, half price Sky HD box and £50 off a home cinema system when you purchased a 37in LG set or 37in Toshiba model.
After 10 minutes browsing, I looked around for some help but there was none available. Two sales staff were setting up a TV display, while another two were busy chatting as they polished the glass cabinets housing digital cameras.
I waited several more minutes until I saw a young man in shop uniform heading my way. Finally, some assistance. But he just squeezed past without so much as a ‘hello’ or ‘excuse me’. Not even a cursory nod. He then went to join his cabinet cleaning friends for a chat

Score: 0 out of 10

I’m on my own again!

Last stop of the day was Maplins. It had clearly been a busy day if the state of the floor was anything to go by. Small bits of paper and fluff were interspersed with the odd cardboard coffee stirrer.
In fact, a glance towards the counter revealed it was still a busy day, as two sales staff attempted to deal with an impatient queue. Another queue, which was rapidly growing, had also formed towards the back of the store at the ‘components and cables’ desk.
After wandering around for 15 minutes I reflected that at least the clear signage made it easy to locate the various product categories.
However, then I was on my own. There was one employee wandering around the shop floor, but sadly he never came near me.

Score: 0 out of 10

DE SPITE a disappointing start to the day with Currys, Brighton turned out to be a very pleasant shopping experience.
Most of the sales staff not only acknowledged me, but offered a bright smile and appeared to be enjoying their work.
They also seemed genuinely happy to spend time with customers and help them determine what product best suited their needs.
Stephanie at Comet and Kevin at Carters particularly stood out in my mind, as they made me feel at ease straight away.
If only the Currys employees could spend a day or two with them, learning the meaning of ‘service’.
A simple lesson in greeting customers would at least have gained them one point out of 10.