Getting help from the customer (lifting)

[sofadoc]

Kodydog mentioned in another thread that him and Rose usually ask the customer to provide lifting help when loading or unloading at their home.

I do the same as much as possible. Especially since my regular helper ran afoul of the law, and is currently incarcerated.

But some things I've noticed about having the customer help:

1) The customer is usually the wife who volunteers her husband's services. The husband may, or may NOT be enthused about helping.

2) Sometimes it's an elderly lady who summons a grown son to come over to her house and help. Again, he may not be too terribly enthused about taking the time out of his busy life.

3) A teenage boy who REALLY REALLY REALLY is NOT enthused. In fact, if he is to help take the sofa out to the truck, he will first have to GET UP off of it. And he will take his ever lovin' sweet time in doing so.


I once watched a man scream at his wife while pointing his finger in her face that he will never help carry a sofa again. She flinched as if she expected him to hit her.

I usually have to wait around for a husband, son, or neighbor to show up and help. And they don't get in any hurry either.

Doesn't really matter anyway. Because even though the customer knew fully well that I was delivering her sofa, she never bothered to move her car out of the driveway. And the keys are nowhere to be found.

The wife usually fully understands that she is getting a price break for providing a helper. But the helper doesn't see it that way. He wonders why my price doesn't include a big crew of strapping burly men.

Many of the big retail furniture and appliance stores now only offer "driveway delivery".

[MinUph]

I guess I've been on the fussy side of deliveries. I need to know my help knows how to handle furniture. I have used customers on a couple of occasions through the years. Couple being true. But never liked asking for them to help. I make sure I have an employee with me unless they can do it on their own.

[kodydog]

e wife who volunteers her husband's services. The husband may, or may NOT be enthused about helping.

2) Sometimes it's an elderly lady who summons a grown son to come over to her house and help. Again, he may not be too terribly enthused about taking the time out of his busy life.

3) A teenage boy who REALLY REALLY REALLY is NOT enthused. In fact, if he is to help take the sofa out to the truck, he will first have to GET UP off of it. And he will take his ever lovin' sweet time in doing so.

We have had elderly ladies say they will get help but when we get there THEY are the help.

One teenage boy was still in his PJ's even though it was noon. Both for pickup and delivery. he was overweight and very "not in the mood." Somehow he got stuck going backward and missed a step and landed on his ass. His mother was behind him and he screamed, I hate doing this f***in s**t. Later, after the Chaise Lounge was set in place his mother was writing the check. She says, you know Jimmie I don't appreciate you dropping the F bomb. He stood behind her with a big old grin on his face.

[sofadoc]

My (now former) helper would always lift, and stand there as if his feet were nailed to the floor waiting for me to swing around and walk backwards.

As we approached a sofa, he would look at the doorway, and determine which end he needed to get on in order to avoid walking backwards. He always made sure that it was me that sat my end of the sofa on the tailgate and climbed up into the truck to finish loading it.

[MinUph]

Not much of employee was he.

[gene]

I had a guy who helped me for the past 11 years. He's close to my age and I paid him well for his time and often bought him breakfast or lunch. I really appreciated his help. I thought of him as a friend.

He is a Christian fundamentalist and occasionally would say things that were simply absurd. I truly don't care what anyone believes as long as you don't try to force it on me.

I was working on Sunday a few months ago and he stopped in my shop to talk about bee keeping. Out of nowhere, he made some bigoted and racist statements about black people and AIDS. I wonder if he had been to church that morning and heard those things in the sermon and maybe he was still pumped up with God's love. Anyway, I commented that his statements were bigoted. And before I could say his comments were also racist, he literally jumped up and screamed that I was calling him a bigot and he was not going to take that. He stomped out of my shop.

The next 3 times I saw him I waved and smiled like I always do, and he stretched his neck out as far as it would go and leaned toward me and stared. I recently had lunch with a friend who was dropping me off at my shop and I said, "Hey, watch this guy." I waved to him and he stretched his neck out as far as he could and leaned toward me and stared. My friend said, "Weird. I trust you're staying away from that guy?"

Is leaning and staring like that a way to keep Satin away?

Today I just ignore him but I do miss having a good, reliable helper to move furniture.

gene

[kodydog]

We had a high school student who grew up around horses and liked to wear cowboy boots. Soon after he started working for us I told him he needed to wear more practical shoes. Those cowboy boots were too clumsy. After that he started wearing sneakers.

A few weeks later he came in wearing the boots. Grrr. We had a delivery that day, a long sofa recovered in a silk fabric up to a third floor condo. As we were pulling it out of the van he stumbled and the sofa hit the side of the van door. It wasn't a hard hit so I didn't think much about it.

It was a struggled to get it into the elevator and into the condo. As we set it down the customer said, whats that? There was a small tear on the front of the seat.

We didn't talk much on the way back to the shop. The good thing is we had enough fabric to fix it. The bad thing, I had to take half the sofa apart to replace it.

[sofadoc]

We didn't talk much on the way back to the shop. The good thing is we had enough fabric to fix it. The bad thing, I had to take half the sofa apart to replace it.

I've had quite a few of those silent rides back to the shop. But I always had to remind myself that I was basically getting what I was paying for.

Carrying a sofa without damaging it ain't exactly rocket science, but I've met plenty of well-educated customers that can't seem to grasp the concept. And the local furniture stores change delivery guys about as often as they take out the trash. I make a pretty nice income just fixing all the damage they do.

You pay for a knucklehead, you get a knucklehead.

[SteveA]

I think of pick up and delivery as important as the craftsmanship.  Letting the customer see you on pick up day - talking to them - making sure their property is protected - removing the item without incident - creates a friendship whereby if something isn't perfect they will be more inclined to say " no worries"
I worked in the moving industry out of high school - which gives me an edge handling the pieces in and out of folks homes.  I drag my buddy (same trade)  to help and I help him with his stuff.  Your average arthritic 60 year old's carrying furniture  -  and sometimes my wife will help me - what a way to earn a living ?
SA

[kodydog]

What a way to earn a living is right. The customer I spoke of was an engineer and kinda anal. He watched us struggle to get the sofa into the elevator and then into his condo and when he saw the tear he must have lost what little confidence he may have had left.

[kodydog]

and sometimes my wife will help me - what a way to earn a living ?
SA

lol, Rose helped me pick up a chaise lounge. Rose is usually a sensible girl and usually wears sensible shoes. This day she decided to wear shoes that you can just slip into. Shoes where the back is empty around the heal. I had one end walking backward she had the other. She stumbled and fell. One shoe went one way and the other went another. Luckly she didn't get hurt and the customer wasn't watching. That was years ago but I still tease her every time she gets ready to pick up a piece of furniture. Its amazing she still helps me.

[gene]

I had an ID help me carry a small love seat out to her SUV from my shop. She was wearing a tight blouse, cut off jeans that were cut off at the crotch level, and stiletto high heels.

As we are carrying the love seat, I commented on how well she was doing while wearing those stiletto high heels. I told her I could never do that. I told her I tried once, so I know I could never do that.  :)

gene

[kodydog]

Sofa Doc, are you reading this^. ID's really know how to get the discounts. Pictures would be nice Mr Gene. (And I'm not talking of you in your stiletto's)

We use to have a gay fellow come in who liked to decorate and gave us much work. He worked for his father who owned a construction company. I was out of the shop one day when he came to see Rose. She told me he was wearing cut off jeans, a cutoff tee shirt and construction boots. I'm thinking about the song YMCA. Rose said when he came in he asked in a sexy voice, is Ed here. I didn't believe her but she likes to bring it up once in a while. 

[sofadoc]

Sofa Doc, are you reading this^.

There is no justice in the world. How come I never get a helper dressed like that (unless they do look like Gene)