OV9

You're telling me B&Q is so massively in demand, that at 11:15pm on a week night there is a 31 minute queue to use the website? I don't have to queue that long to get in a physical store where there is a capacity limit to maintain social distancing!

There is no way a company like B&Q are using such a shitty back-end that would require this level of restriction

It's bullshit, we waited an hour plus last week and the bulk of what we needed wasn't available for click and collect which is the only option.

Try a local builders supplies or Screwfix.

They’re restricting the number of orders deliberately so they can run reduced staff in the warehouses and enable social distancing.

I've noticed a few websites are doing that as well. I end up just resorting to Amazon for a lot of things.

NotoriousREV wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 8:58 am They’re restricting the number of orders deliberately so they can run reduced staff in the warehouses and enable social distancing.

Yeah - it’s a pretty strange way to do it though. Apply throttles at the ordering stage surely? I went to the site to look for something, but couldn’t get on, so have no idea if they sell them.

mik wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:23 am

NotoriousREV wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 8:58 am They’re restricting the number of orders deliberately so they can run reduced staff in the warehouses and enable social distancing.

Yeah - it’s a pretty strange way to do it though. Apply throttles at the ordering stage surely? I went to the site to look for something, but couldn’t get on, so have no idea if they sell them.

This. Went on the site just to look at what they had, saw there was a queue and left again.

mik wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:23 am

NotoriousREV wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 8:58 am They’re restricting the number of orders deliberately so they can run reduced staff in the warehouses and enable social distancing.

Yeah - it’s a pretty strange way to do it though. Apply throttles at the ordering stage surely? I went to the site to look for something, but couldn’t get on, so have no idea if they sell them.

So either you tell people up front there’s a queue and let them decide to wait or not, or you let people into the site so they spend time researching and choosing their purchase and then stick them in a one hour queue to pay? I know which I think is the better customer experience that achieves what they want.

NotoriousREV wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:23 am

mik wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:23 am

NotoriousREV wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 8:58 am They’re restricting the number of orders deliberately so they can run reduced staff in the warehouses and enable social distancing.

Yeah - it’s a pretty strange way to do it though. Apply throttles at the ordering stage surely? I went to the site to look for something, but couldn’t get on, so have no idea if they sell them.

So either you tell people up front there’s a queue and let them decide to wait or not, or you let people into the site so they spend time researching and choosing their purchase and then stick them in a one hour queue to pay? I know which I think is the better customer experience that achieves what they want.

Me too. It’s not this.

I don’t want to wait in a queue for an hour to find out that you don’t sell the item I want to buy, or to find that you do sell it, but I can buy cheaper elsewhere.

They don’t want you buying stuff. It worked.

It did. But in a stoopid way.

Wickes have the same crap system, except you then go on the website and everything is in stock but they won’t sell it unless they decide it’s essential. Even for home delivery that it.

It sets out the stall immediately though. Restricts buying to people who really do need it and know what they want.

I’d rather know that at the beginning rather than happily filling my basket then to find out I can’t actually buy any of it without waiting 3 hours.

Rich B wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 1:01 pm It sets out the stall immediately though. Restricts buying to people who really do need it and know what they want.

I’d rather know that at the beginning rather than happily filling my basket then to find out I can’t actually buy any of it without waiting 3 hours.

Very much this.

Try Screwfix.

Got online straight away. Chose Click and collect. Paid. Text within 5 mins to say it was ready. Collected in 30s once I parked up. And handily my nearest Screwfix is 2 mins drive from home.

I googled the bbq I wanted, clicked on a B&Q link and got a 44 minute wait. I let it elapse in a tab, went back when it had expired, to find “no longer available”.

Fuck them.

Jobbo wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 8:36 pm I googled the bbq I wanted, clicked on a B&Q link and got a 44 minute wait. I let it elapse in a tab, went back when it had expired, to find “no longer available”.

Fuck them.

well it clearly wasn’t anything essential!

Man's desire for grilled meat is surely top of the list isn't it?

Rich B wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:22 pm

Jobbo wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 8:36 pm I googled the bbq I wanted, clicked on a B&Q link and got a 44 minute wait. I let it elapse in a tab, went back when it had expired, to find “no longer available”.

Fuck them.

well it clearly wasn’t anything essential!

Are B&Q limiting what people can buy? I shall have to go to The Range tomorrow

It is a weird way to do it, I guess it’s different if you have a click and collect service.

Our website is running normally but with a banner warning people that there’s a small shipping delay. We’re doing alright tbh. We’re still getting orders out within a week despite only running a quarter of our usual warehouse staff.

Screwfix is an odd one at the moment - showing as nothing available to click & collect locally in pretty much the entire of S. Manchester. Probably a good thing for me as I really need to stop buying shit