Welcome to the inaugural edition of Tile and Stone Journal’s Mystery Shopper column! In this feature, we send an undercover representative to tile retailers around the country. Our Mystery Shopper poses as a prospective customer, however in reality they will be evaluating each stores’ performance across a range of objective metrics. The purpose of this column is to highlight the exceptional quality of the UK’s tile retail sector while – where appropriate – offering some constructive feedback from our shoppers. The TSJ Mystery Shopper feature is facilitated by the fantastic work of Proinsight, which helps many businesses evaluate and improve their customer experience.
For this first column, we visited three tile shops across Wales. Although the nation’s population density is significantly lower than England’s, Wales still has a thriving tile market with customers looking for excellent products and helpful service. How did the retailers we visited perform? Read on to find out…
The Tile Centre
For the first stop on our tour, we visited The Tile Centre in Angelsey. Located on the Gaerwen Industrial Estate, this retailer offers a wide selection of wall and floor tiles, including porcelain, slate and natural stone.
From outside, the store appeared clean and inviting, and this impression continued onto the shop floor itself, which was tidy, well-stocked and clear of clutter. Upon entry, all staff were well-presented and engaged in work related activities.
“I walked into an office where a man was sitting at a desk in the corner,” said our shopper. “He greeted me and asked if he could help me. I told him that I was looking for floor tiles. He told me to go through the door in front of me and have a look round, and if I needed any help, to let him know.”
Typically, we would be looking for a more proactive sales approach, however for some customers this less aggressive tactic may be preferable.
After a few minutes of browsing, our shopper returned to the front desk to seek out the member of staff for further assistance. “I looked around the showroom for a few minutes and then returned to the office to ask the assistant for help. I told him I was looking for tiling for a bathroom,” explains our shopper. The assistant proceeded to ask follow-up questions regarding the colour and style of tile our shopper was looking for. “I told him that my bathroom was small so I would like a light colour such as cream, without a pattern.”
The member of staff showed our shopper two sizes of tiles and went through several different designs, noting that the most popular colour in the showroom was grey. He also offered the option of taking a tile home to see how it looked in the bathroom, a generous and welcome gesture which impressed our shopper. “I thanked the assistant for this offer but said I would decline. He then suggested I take a photo of the ones I liked, which I did.”
After narrowing down their options to a shortlist of two, our shopper asked for a quote. Although it’s typically best for a quote to be actively presented to the customer, this member of staff was encouragingly swift in calculating and presenting a quote to our shopper. “He was not at all pushy as a salesman,” our shopper concluded, “but I got the impression he knew his product, and he answered all the questions I had. I thought the fact he offered to lend me a sample tile was a good selling point, and I felt comfortable during my visit.”
Overall, a very good showing for our very first visit!
County Tiles
Remaining on the Isle of Angelsey, our next location was County Tiles. Located on the Holland Park Industrial Estate in Holyhead, County Tiles was established in 1982, and is now a third-generation family business. The retailer boasts both technical and sourcing expertise as well as 40 years of experience, but how does it stack up against the competition?
“On approaching the exterior of the store,” our shopper begins, “it looked clean, tidy, and with no signs of obstruction or litter. The paintwork was clear, and you knew it was the correct store immediately.” Although this sounds like basic stuff, first impressions make a big difference to customers, and clarity that they’re at the right location can be the difference between entering or finding somewhere else. The interior of the store continued to impress:
“Displays were neat and tidy, in sections for the different types of product and room.”
Immediately, our shopper was approached by a friendly member of staff who asked how she could help. “I explained I had a renovation project for the bathroom and needed floor tiling, preferably marble-effect and anti-slip due to grandchildren visiting,” explains our shopper. Even with this relatively detailed request, they were taken “straight to the correct section” and showed a range of suitable options. The member of staff determined what our shopper’s preferences were around colour and design, using these details to further tailor her recommendations.
To test the assistant’s sales acumen even further, our shopper raised an objection, suggesting that the marble-effect tiles they had been shown were still not anti-slip enough. Undeterred, the member of staff took our shopper across to a selection of slate products in the colours they chose, and provided them with a quote which happened to be cheaper than the original tiles.
“At every level the staff member was knowledgeable, knew where products were and went out of her way to see if they had more in the back and on the website. They were friendly and polite and even chatted about home life and tried to build a rapport,” concluded our shopper.
Tile & Bath Co
Our final stop took us down into the mainland to Carmarthen, to visit Tile & Bath Co. With six showrooms across South Wales, Tile & Bath Co is a large retailer, stocking not just tiles (as the name implies) but furniture, screens and showers too.
Although from the outside, Tile & Bath Co’s signage appeared to be in need of some TLC, the inside proved a marked improvement.
“The store interior was well displayed and well presented, as well as clean and tidy,” said our shopper.
“One staff member was on the phone, and one was in a kitchen area to the front of the store. The staff were dressed in official fleeces and trousers.”
While the store itself seemed promising, our shopper’s experience at this particular location unfortunately fell short on a few fronts: “I had to approach the till area to ask for help, at which point an assistant showed me to the floor tile area, but didn’t ask any questions to establish my needs. I had to lead the conversation throughout and had to push for recommendations and information about the products. I was mainly left to browse the department.” Of course, while a less-pushy sales approach can be appealing to some customers, it is almost always beneficial for a retailer to provide proactive information and assistance.
In conclusion…
Although all three shops we visited this month had their strengths and weaknesses, County Tiles came out the clear winner according to our criteria, with particular credit given to the member of staff who offered our shopper personable and expert guidance throughout their visit.
Look out for the next edition of Mystery Shopper in TSJ May!
The Tile and Stone Journal Mystery Shopper feature is made possible via the work of Proinsight, which helps many businesses evaluate and improve their customer experience with its Mystery Shopper programmes.
