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Presenter For The Day – My Foray in to Being on Screen

June 2, 2010 | Uncategorized | No comments

As you may have noticed if you’ve read previous posts, I have assumed a role as one of the presenters of our How-To videos. Now this isn’t a natural progression for me, it had not been part of my plan to go all Dave Benson Phillips. In fact, just two months ago, I’d have described myself as a camera shy fellow who’d never dream of doing anything like that. However after some gentle, coaxing assurances from co-workers I decided to give it a crack. Why not I thought, hopefully these videos will give people more confidence to fit spare parts themselves – they seem to have responded positively to Helen, Matt and the gang’s work.

With this in mind I headed to my first shoot, ‘How to reverse a fridge door’ – but it did nothing to calm my nerves and I was all ums and ahs and what-am-I-doings for the first few takes. Soon after though, under the tutelage of Helen, queen of the Fix It Yourself video, and cool hand Gabe, super director, I was feeling relaxed and getting in to the groove. In fact, I was really enjoying myself. The words started flowing easier and we got in to the nitty gritty of hinges, doors and the rest.

I’ve since fronted a few more videos, and hope that I can continue doing so. Mostly though, I hope they’ll help people to fix it themselves.

The Digital Switchover Is Here

Top Money Saving Reviews From The Last Week

May 12, 2010 | eSpares Updates | No comments

I love customer reviews. Being a bit thrifty myself, it makes me feel particularly good when a customer says that we helped save them money. Here are my two favourite money saving reviews from the last week:

  • “This is the second time I’ve used espares. V impressed, Product exactly as described, easily ordered and speedily delivered. Last time I became a domestic hero by mending our oven with an espares part saving us about £100 for calling out electrician!” Fridge Door Shelf, Anonymous from London.
  • “eSpares is awesome! I was quoted £58 from a repair man to fix the door catch. I just put in the make and model of my ancient drier (15 years old!!!) and I found this part. It arrived in just 3 days and it is the exact replacement- All for £6.00! In the old days before the economy went bad, I would have at best hired a man to do it, or at worst just bought a new machine. For just a few pounds, I was able to do it myself! If you do buy this part, you will need one of those strange little star head screwdrivers or maybe do it with a tiny straight one. You will have to prise the 2 sections of the door apart gently to enable you to get to the screws. But do it! eSpares will save you MONEY!!!” Tumble Dryer Door Catch, Singmoregirl from Northants.

Fixing It Yourself = Saving Money

April 27, 2010 | Uncategorized | 2 comments

You’ve probably noticed that we’re big on the idea that fixing an appliance with spares can save you a lot of money. In the last 24 hours we’ve received some fantastic customer reviews that reaffirm our view that the equation “fixing it yourself = saving money” is 100% true. Here are our favourite money saving reviews from the last 24 hours:

  • “Element for AEG B4101-4, this is exact replacement, very quick to fit, just make sure the mains are switched off at cooker point or main consumer unite. 4 x screws and the back plate are off, 2 x screws and the element is out, two connections to remove and just fit in reverse order. Make sure fan does not touch that element. Plus, wife thinks it’s better than before. Quality of this part to me seemed better than the original part. The approved agent wanted over £50.00 + VAT for their replacement part.” 2400 Watt Circular Oven Element, Anonymous from North Wales.
  • “Brilliant Purchase. Just like the video* said to fit, it took exactly 10 minutes to fit, it saved me £140 will definitely use espares again.” 2500 Watt Fan Oven Element, Anonymous from Norwich.
  • “Life Saver. So easy,it saved me £700 and my wonderful cooker too.” Oven Thermostat, Anonymous from Newbury.
  • “Fantastic Value. I thought we needed a new cooker as the door wouldn’t close then we found this company via the internet, I now have a brand new cooker for less than a tenner. The door catch was a god send, fast delivery and constatnt updates, easy to fit and has saved me a fortune. Thank you.” Oven Door Roller Catch, Anonymous from Bolton.
  • “Great saved tons! Had to wait a while as out of stock but received emails to update re delivery. Great product and easy to fit and saved tons as thought we were going to have to buy a new cooker!” replacement grill electrode,Anonymous from Bedford

As a consumer I love saving money and spending wisely. It’s rewarding to work in a business that enables others to make smart financial decisions and it’s even more rewarding when they share their money saving stories with us.

* The video referenced in the review for the 2500 Watt Oven Element is How to fit a fan oven element.

Grey Pencil And Paper Icon On White Background

Retail Week Awards 2010

March 11, 2010 | eSpares Updates | 1 comment

It’s now nearly a week since the biggest night of the retail calendar and I’m only just getting over it. We were short-listed for the Best Online Retailer gong, so we donned our DJs and best frocks and headed up to the West End for a lavish bash at the Grosvenor House Hotel. All of the leading figures from the UK retail sector were there and a good night was had by all.

Jeremy Vine was the somewhat surprising choice as host for the evening. However, we were treated to the irreverent sounds of Tim Minchin on the piano. His performance of Canvas Bags was a joy to behold. The somewhat confused looks from some in the audience just added to the enjoyment.

Unfortunately, we didn’t walk away with Best Online Retailer award – Amazon were the worthy winners on the night. Although a bit disappointed, we are nonetheless honoured to be shortlisted alongside such illustrious online retailers. The full list of finalists for Best Online Retailer was:

Amazon
Argos
Asos
eSpares
N Brown Group
New Look
Shop Direct Group
Tesco

The Retail Leader of the Year award went to Britain’s best grocer, Mark Price from Waitrose. Mark has been with the John Lewis Partnership since 1982 and is now MD at Waitrose. Very well deserved.

But the big winner of the evening was Primark and its founder Arthur Ryan. Primark took the Retailer of the Year award and Mr Ryan was honoured for his outstanding contribution to retail. Making what was described as his first ever public appearance, the septuagenarian accepted his award following a video tribute from Sir Philip Green. Retail Week’s editor, Tim Danaher, said: “Primark has transformed fashion retailing over the past decade, and that’s all down to the vision of Arthur Ryan.”

Happy Fathers Day Cupcake

2 Minute Interview With…

March 10, 2010 | eSpares Updates | No comments

Name: Tofik Saad

Job title: Customer Support Supervisor

Length of time at eSpares?
6 or 7 years, not sure

Most recent CD purchase/download?

Paolo Nutini – Sunny Side Up

Favourite TV shows?

Family Guy, Scrubs, Black Books, Heroes, Bottom, 24, Boston Legal

Worst habit?

Bacon

What stresses you out?

QPR losing games, so I’m stressed all the time

What do you do to relax?

Listen to classical music, jog, sit on Brighton Beach

Why are we here?

To enjoy the journey

Who is your role model?

Muhammad Ali

Is there anyone you’d like to fight?

Cilla Black (my arch nemesis) and the whole cast of Hollyoaks (past and present)

What are you up to this weekend?

My dissertation (boring)

You’re in a time-machine – where would you go?

Japan, Samurai era

Is it you that makes a mess in the Unit 21 kitchen?

Me! Never! I have a warrant out for the culprit. There is a reward don’t you know?

Favourite spare part, including ES number?

Fridge lower bottle shelf ES478390

Funniest thing that has happened to you at work?

When doing a cheque order we have to give the customer our address so that they can send their cheque. I took a call for an old aged pensioner, who had difficulty hearing. So the first line of the address, which is eSpares Ltd, took 10 minutes for the customer to spell correctly. Then the rest of the address took another 25 minutes (Unit 13-14 Chelsea Wharf, 15 Lots Road, London SW10 0QJ). She then asked me for my name, which to my surprise the customer couldn’t spell but was adamant that she would take it, so that took another 10 minutes for her to jot down. And it was only for an order that was under £10 but we both laughed at the situation.

Ideal holiday scenario?

On a beach and it’s 35C in the shade

What are your chances of winning the eSpares bowling competition tonight?

No chance [And he didn’t]

Who do you want to be interviewed next?

Lloyd [our Business Development Manager]

Winners’ Dinners…

March 4, 2010 | Uncategorized | No comments

And so I find myself preparing my first contribution to the new eSpares blog with heavy eyes, a headache and a general sense of weariness. Alas, last night I overindulged and today I am paying in kind. There is, however, a good reason for my sorry state today; last night, I went to the Econsultancy Innovation Awards Winners’ Dinner to collect the Most Innovative Digital Marketing Team Award. Now, I’ve never been to anything even remotely awards-related before. The closest I’ve come is watching the 2005 Brit Awards on TV, so it was with slight trepidation that I accepted the invitation to collect the award on eSpares’ behalf. My uncertainty was compounded when I found out the do was being hosted at the Park Lane Hotel – a place so swanky I thought I mightn’t even be allowed in.

My initial reservations proved to be unfounded (apart from an encounter with a menu that had words I didn’t understand on it – piperade? Magret?), and it turned out to be a wonderful evening. Esme, our designer, and I mixed and mingled with fellow victors, as well as chatting to a few of the very nice people at Econsultancy.Of course, that brings me back to my earth shattering hangover – spirits were high and the wine flowed like, well, wine. A good night was had by all; I suppose it’s a shame it had to end.

About this blog

February 26, 2010 | eSpares Updates |

Even we’ve got to admit that spare parts are slightly dull. So you won’t see us writing about how passionate we are about appliances spares or how we take parts very seriously. What gets us excited is our customers. We work nonstop for them making our website better, keeping our product descriptions unparalleled, shooting ‘how to’ videos, answering the thousands of questions they leave on our website and having a smooth delivery process. The purpose of this blog is to document the adventures of a small company trying to make it big by making fitting appliance spares slightly less dull.

Blog contributors

David Duffett – IT Director. Brains of the operation.

Matt Henton – Marketing Director. Big cheese, head honcho.

Mike Hodge – Web Analytics Manager. Number cruncher and Karcher aficionado.

Rory Dunne – Community Manager. Avant-garde spare part agony uncle.

Gabe Sosa – Video Manager. Shoot. Edit. Repeat.

Esmé Taljaard – Designer. Makes stuff look good.


Where to find eSpares

Our homepage: www.espares.co.uk

On Twitter: www.twitter.com/espares

On YouTube: www.youtube.com/esparesvideo

On Facebook: www.facebook.com/fixityourself

About this blog

February 26, 2010 | Uncategorized |

Even we’ve got to admit that spare parts are slightly dull. So you won’t see us writing about how passionate we are about appliances spares or how we take parts very seriously. What gets us excited is our customers. We work nonstop for them making our website better, keeping our product descriptions unparalleled, shooting ‘how to’ videos, answering the thousands of questions they leave on our website and having a smooth delivery process. The purpose of this blog is to document the adventures of a small company trying to make it big by making fitting appliance spares slightly less dull.

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