Post by JW on May 4, 2008 15:28:41 GMT -5
Thought I'd start a thread in which we can share how we manage the fan/lighting sections at our stores so we can learn from each other, get new ideas, ask questions, etc. Warning, this is a LONG post 
For starters, I have learned a lot since I started working there, and have adjusted the way I manage the section accordingly as my experience and the demand for product increases. At the beginning there was an entire slew of fans that were either lying in pieces or cratewrapped, and only a few were hanging. Now, I refuse to cratewrap any fan, as this usually bends the brackets, blades, or motor housing.
I used to test the motors immediately before the customer paid, since I couldn't guarantee beforehand that the fans worked. Now that I have the room, I test EVERY fan as soon as I hang it, with the blades on, in order to have accurate proof that the fan will run as designed. If there is excessive wobble or misalignment, I bend the brackets accordingly while they are still on the fan, and retest the fan. Fans that run like new will be priced higher than those with bearing noise, uncorrectable wobble, etc. I label every fan "PRE-TESTED", but will not throw a fan out based on noise as I have learned that a lot of people just want an inexpensive fan (Habitat, after all, is an organization that caters to the less fortunate, and if I can get fans in homes instead of wasting them, I will do so.) In addition, I try to have one fan hooked up and running whenever I am there.
As far as pricing, I dropped a LOT of prices when I first started and I had a lot of fans that were not selling. In part I based this on what they'd go for at garage sales, and this was probably a fault as I underpriced quite a few. However, now that they are selling, and since every fan is now pre-tested, I have started raising the prices again. The lowest quality fans (or those with tarnish, paint damage, etc.) I may still put $15 on, but I go at least $30 on the decent fans and at least $50 on those in near perfect condition or with unusual features. If a fan sits for an extended period of time, I'll drop the price. I have also started labeling all fans with the brand and the known details (speeds, reverse, etc.)
Any fan that I cannot sell due to condition I part out. I save all the screws, blades (if they're in decent shape), brackets (if they're not bent), mounting hardware, downrods, light kits, glassware, and any pull chains that I can take the wires out of and they still be in one piece. All of these pieces I put in bins so I can either fix other fans or sell them to customers. I have an entire shelf for blades, another for brackets, two shelves for glassware, and a bin for light kits (which usually stays pretty empty, as these break/bend/corrode/etc. very easily).
The glass shelves are organized based on type and size. Small glass (such as those on 4-lighters) are 50 cents-$2.00; center or single glass will go for $2-$5, rare glass will be priced higher, and those ubiquitous "frosted tulip" shades are a quarter a piece as I can't seem to get rid of them. Glass for "hurricane" fixtures usually goes for $1-$5.
The blades are bundled with cratewrap and sold in matched sets. I don't sell blades individually and there are signs asking not to break the sets. I price the sets at 50c-$2 a blade (total of $2-$10 a set) based on the quality, brand, and rarity of the blade. While the average customer probably won't know the brand of his/her fan, I still put this information on the cratewrap, and I also advise customers looking at blades that many of them are brand-specific (since Habitat has a no-refund policy). The brackets do not have prices on them, and I usually don't tell customers about them. I use these to fix other fans.
I have a section that I've labeled "Incomplete-Not for Sale" in the back corner. If a fan works but is missing one or two pieces (such as a mounting bracket, which 90 percent of them that come in are missing), I put it in this section until I can find the correct part or assemble something from an unusable fan. If a fan sits there for too long I may just part out that fan itself. I will not sell motors by themselves.
Our ReStore recycles all metal, and I just found out they also recycle glass. Any unsalvageable metal parts are either placed in a junk metal hopper, which is then emptied elsewhere, or taken out to the large "metal dumpster" in the back.
As far as the non-fan lighting, I find that it is very difficult to manage this section as there are an incredible number of fixtures, some of which do not sell for months. I want to drop a lot of the prices, but I honestly think that some of this stuff would not even sell for a quarter (the 60's stagecoach lamp style lights, the glass "canisters" which usually have paint all over them, the old timey glass covered bath bars, etc.) What do you guys do with these type fixtures?
Finally, I concentrate nearly 100 percent of my time in the fans and lighting section. I have tried to familiarize myself with the store's layout so I can direct customers to the correct section (and/or walk them over there if I can), but I don't want to sound rude when I do this. How do you handle customers who have questions about, say, paint or doors? Do you do the same, or do you do like most of the other volunteers and work the entire store?
I hope we can get some good discussion out of this.
For starters, I have learned a lot since I started working there, and have adjusted the way I manage the section accordingly as my experience and the demand for product increases. At the beginning there was an entire slew of fans that were either lying in pieces or cratewrapped, and only a few were hanging. Now, I refuse to cratewrap any fan, as this usually bends the brackets, blades, or motor housing.
I used to test the motors immediately before the customer paid, since I couldn't guarantee beforehand that the fans worked. Now that I have the room, I test EVERY fan as soon as I hang it, with the blades on, in order to have accurate proof that the fan will run as designed. If there is excessive wobble or misalignment, I bend the brackets accordingly while they are still on the fan, and retest the fan. Fans that run like new will be priced higher than those with bearing noise, uncorrectable wobble, etc. I label every fan "PRE-TESTED", but will not throw a fan out based on noise as I have learned that a lot of people just want an inexpensive fan (Habitat, after all, is an organization that caters to the less fortunate, and if I can get fans in homes instead of wasting them, I will do so.) In addition, I try to have one fan hooked up and running whenever I am there.
As far as pricing, I dropped a LOT of prices when I first started and I had a lot of fans that were not selling. In part I based this on what they'd go for at garage sales, and this was probably a fault as I underpriced quite a few. However, now that they are selling, and since every fan is now pre-tested, I have started raising the prices again. The lowest quality fans (or those with tarnish, paint damage, etc.) I may still put $15 on, but I go at least $30 on the decent fans and at least $50 on those in near perfect condition or with unusual features. If a fan sits for an extended period of time, I'll drop the price. I have also started labeling all fans with the brand and the known details (speeds, reverse, etc.)
Any fan that I cannot sell due to condition I part out. I save all the screws, blades (if they're in decent shape), brackets (if they're not bent), mounting hardware, downrods, light kits, glassware, and any pull chains that I can take the wires out of and they still be in one piece. All of these pieces I put in bins so I can either fix other fans or sell them to customers. I have an entire shelf for blades, another for brackets, two shelves for glassware, and a bin for light kits (which usually stays pretty empty, as these break/bend/corrode/etc. very easily).
The glass shelves are organized based on type and size. Small glass (such as those on 4-lighters) are 50 cents-$2.00; center or single glass will go for $2-$5, rare glass will be priced higher, and those ubiquitous "frosted tulip" shades are a quarter a piece as I can't seem to get rid of them. Glass for "hurricane" fixtures usually goes for $1-$5.
The blades are bundled with cratewrap and sold in matched sets. I don't sell blades individually and there are signs asking not to break the sets. I price the sets at 50c-$2 a blade (total of $2-$10 a set) based on the quality, brand, and rarity of the blade. While the average customer probably won't know the brand of his/her fan, I still put this information on the cratewrap, and I also advise customers looking at blades that many of them are brand-specific (since Habitat has a no-refund policy). The brackets do not have prices on them, and I usually don't tell customers about them. I use these to fix other fans.
I have a section that I've labeled "Incomplete-Not for Sale" in the back corner. If a fan works but is missing one or two pieces (such as a mounting bracket, which 90 percent of them that come in are missing), I put it in this section until I can find the correct part or assemble something from an unusable fan. If a fan sits there for too long I may just part out that fan itself. I will not sell motors by themselves.
Our ReStore recycles all metal, and I just found out they also recycle glass. Any unsalvageable metal parts are either placed in a junk metal hopper, which is then emptied elsewhere, or taken out to the large "metal dumpster" in the back.
As far as the non-fan lighting, I find that it is very difficult to manage this section as there are an incredible number of fixtures, some of which do not sell for months. I want to drop a lot of the prices, but I honestly think that some of this stuff would not even sell for a quarter (the 60's stagecoach lamp style lights, the glass "canisters" which usually have paint all over them, the old timey glass covered bath bars, etc.) What do you guys do with these type fixtures?
Finally, I concentrate nearly 100 percent of my time in the fans and lighting section. I have tried to familiarize myself with the store's layout so I can direct customers to the correct section (and/or walk them over there if I can), but I don't want to sound rude when I do this. How do you handle customers who have questions about, say, paint or doors? Do you do the same, or do you do like most of the other volunteers and work the entire store?
I hope we can get some good discussion out of this.
