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Arctic Spas Durham

Gord coy, owner of Arctic Spas Durham in Whitby, Ontario, took over the expanding hot tub business from his cousin’s pool store in 2004. Now in 2008, he and his business partner, ro mehta, have expanded their business and opened up a new location in a nearby town.

What has been your most successful promotion? // We call it our “all-included” event and we run it a couple times a year. They [the customers] come in and we basically lay it out: This is the hot tub, this is how much it is and we’re going to give you all this stuff.  It’s displayed on our spas right up front.

People come into a store and they see a price stuck on a hot tub and they think, “That’s great! That’s what I want, that’s the right price.” Then they sit down and it’s going to cost for delivery, it’s going to cost for this, it’s going to cost for that. So it’s not like they’re sitting down thinking the spa is going to cost them a certain amount and then they find out they need to purchase a cover and stairs and all those accessories.

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That has been one of our most successful promotions because it takes all of the stress away from the customers. They come in and they can see right off the bat what they’re getting and how much it’s going to be. Especially this time of year, in this market with all the competitiveness, people aren’t enjoying shopping for a hot tub. Doing that takes away a lot of the stress.

What advice would you give to other retailers? // You need to keep yourself visible. Our referral sales have started to climb in the past couple of years. We’ve been following up with our customers more, keeping them informed of updates and changes. If you can maintain good service and look after your customers, they’re going to be happy.

The main thing is try to stay focused on what you do. Try to keep your enthusiasm about your product. Try not to let the market bring you down. Look after your existing customers. There’s always going to be some people that are out looking for hot tubs, and if your customers are happy they’re going to refer those people. An unhappy customer tells 100 people. If you do bad service, they’re going to tell everybody, so keep everybody happy.