Welcome to the first edition of The Stocklists’ Mystery Shopper! In case you missed the preview we ran last month, this feature sees our partners at ProInsight visit independent carpet shops around the country, posing as prospective buyers in order to evaluate the customer experience across a set of objective, measurable criteria. The feature aims to highlight the overall high-quality of the UK’s carpet retail industry while noting where there might still be room for improvement.
This month, our Mystery Shoppers visited Cheltenham, a historic spa town in Gloucestershire. As you’ll see, the overall standard of carpet shops in this area was both very high and remarkably consistent!
Tony Mustoe’s Carpets
Located on Cheltenham High Street, Tony Mustoe’s Carpets was established back in 1978 by Tony himself, who believed that “no matter how large or small the job, the customer should always get excellent personal service”. Fortunately, in our shopper’s case, that was exactly what they received.
Across our criteria, Tony Mustoe’s achieved a very high score, beginning with first impressions. The Mystery Shopper said: “The outside of the store was clean, tidy and well-maintained. You could see the carpet displays through the window. The store was full of stock with a wide range of items on display. I only encountered one member of staff, who was dressed suitably for the hot weather whilst appearing professional. I was greeted and approached as soon as I entered the store.”
The assistant was very helpful, greeting our shopper and asking how they could help. In this case, the shopper said they were looking for a carpet for the dining room, which the assistant was able to offer a number of options for, both synthetic and natural. “The assistant told me synthetic is easier to clean,” our shopper said, “but is man-made. They asked me what colour I was interested in, and my options were narrowed down to two.”
As part of the customer experience testing methodology devised by ProInsight, the shopper then brought up a minor objection, to see how the assistant would respond. “I expressed concern about the size of the pile and how it would wear, but was reassured that it would last me a number of years.”
Overall, our shopper rated the experience as very positive, scoring both the shop and assistance with high marks across each of our categories. Offering one piece of constructive feedback, the shopper said: “I felt that the assistant could have been more proactive in trying to secure the home visit and sale, but they were respectful and polite throughout.”
Winnen Furnishings
The second stop on our tour of Cheltenham came in the form of Winnens Furnishings, found at the Neptune Business Centre on Tewkesbury Road. Winnens actually began its life in East London back in 1929, as a furniture manufacturer, before moving to Cheltenham in 1937. Over time, the family business phased out manufacturing and began stocking high-quality flooring instead. Our Mystery Shopper was impressed with both the presentation and customer service at Winnens, rating it (according to our criteria) exactly as highly as Tony Mustoe’s!
On their first impressions, our shopper said: “The shop, although small, looked luxurious on entry. The shop was clean and tidy, and all the downstairs wooden flooring displays looked impressive. Carpet samples were upstairs, again in a small room. On entering the premises, a female staff member was sitting at a desk out of view and when she saw me asked if I wanted to have a look around and if there was anything I needed help with, to come and get her. Staff were well presented.”
After browsing this upstairs carpet section for a few minutes, the shopper went back downstairs to ask for some help, and similar to the quality of the shop itself, the assistance offered was top notch. “She asked what I was looking for, and I gave her the room dimensions and said I wanted a hard-wearing carpet due to having a young toddler and dogs. Initially, she began to recommend a range of carpets that I was standing near, and she explained that it was expensive. She also explained that darker carpets would show up fluff, although I had said I wanted a darker style carpet.”
Once again, our shopper brought up an objection to see how the assistant responded, suggesting that the recommended carpet was too expensive for their budget. “She then recommended a second carpet to me. I gave her the dimensions and she calculated the cost to carpet both rooms. She then recommended an underlay which she said was a good product.”
This proactive, problem-solving sales approach impressed our shopper, who highlighted Winnens staff in particular as a strength of the store: “The lady who assisted me was very pleasant and very knowledgeable about the products. She seemed like she genuinely wanted to help.”
Corinium Carpets
The third and final location we visited in Cheltenham was our highest-scoring shop of the month, edging out both of its peers by a very slight margin. Currently located at Unit 2 on Kingsditch Lane, Corinium Carpets was originally founded in 1976 by Robert Jewkes and his wife, and has moved location several times since then. Although our Mystery Shopper was a little in the dark when actually trying to find Corinium’s current address, the shop’s excellent customer experience more than made up for it.
“The location was very hard to find,” the shopper said. “I have previously lived on the same road and found it impossible to find the car park and store location. The store was also in between two closed shops, one of which was in the process of being demolished. Based on the location and the fact the site was surrounded by fences blocking part of the site off I feel that they could be losing trade.” Of course, although much of these circumstances are out of the shop’s direct control, it is a shame if they are losing business on this basis, as the quality of the store itself is excellent.
According to our shopper, who visited on a Tuesday afternoon, the shop was relatively quiet when they entered (matching the above concerns) but even so service came promptly and proceeded attentively. “I was proactively approached by the member of staff,” our shopper said. “I asked for a recommendation on carpet for my living room.” The MOS gave the shopper an overview of natural and synthetic carpets, listing pros and cons, providing just enough information for the shopper “to know the difference without being overwhelmed”.
The shopper was comprehensively quizzed on the room they were aiming to carpet – including questions on size, budget, current flooring, whether there were doors, the rough shape of the room and its colour – demonstrating both a real interest and a rigorous approach from the MOS. “I was initially shown synthetic carpets and I said I would prefer to look at natural. I was shown some mid-price ranges and said I would like to look at cheaper options, to stay within my budget. I was told about complimentary measuring and given an overview of additional products I would need to purchase such as underlay.
One minor oddity our shopper experienced being given their quote for the prospective carpets on a Post-It note rather than a branded pad, but they were given a business card and told that they could call and discuss further once they’d made a decision. “I was not pressured into booking a measuring appointment, nor did I feel like I was being told to.”
Overall, the shopper was most impressed by the member of staff they spoke to, describing them as “very knowledgeable about the stock, different carpet types and the current trends”. The enthusiasm and knowledge of the staff was enough for our shopper to state that if they had genuinely been in the market for a new carpet, Corinium Carpets would have likely been the place that they bought from, demonstrating clearly the value of good customer experience for a shop even during times of lower trade.
Given the overall high quality of this area’s independents, the tight spread of scores should come as little surprise, but for gaining the highest overall rating in this inaugural edition of The Stocklists Mystery Shopper feature, Corinium Carpets deserves the warmest congratulations!
IN THIS SECTION
Tony Mustoe’s Carpets – www.tonymustoescarpets.co.uk
Winnens Furnishings – www.winnens.co.uk
Corinium Carpets – www.coriniumcarpets.co.uk
As always, the Mystery Shopper feature is facilitated by the excellent work of ProInsight, which organises and carries out campaigns for businesses of all types, helping them to evaluate and ultimately improve their customer experience metrics.