We're Running a Half Marathon!

A group of us here at eSpares (although not me, I’m not brave enough) has decided that we’re going to run The Royal Parks Half Marathon in October. As their website rather eloquently puts it, “[The Royal Parks Half Marathon] is one of the most scenic city runs in the world, starting and finishing in Hyde Park, and taking in Kensington Gardens, Green Park and St James’s Park.”

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Golden Awards And Achievements Medal

Effectiveness Awards Finalist

I’m delighted to announce that we’ve been shortlisted for two New Media Age Effectiveness Awards.

Our Fix It Yourself videos are up for both the ‘Best Retail Campaign’ award and the ‘Best Use of Video’ campaign. To see our name (or rather, the name of our Fix It Yourself campaign) in a shortlist that includes Nike, Coca-Cola and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1(!) is a bit mindblowing really.

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Elementary

The oven element is one of the most commonly bought part types on our website. In the cookers & hobs category, it sits alongside control knobs, cooker door seals and oven shelves.

The major difference it has with those exalted peers? It involves getting ‘under the bonnet’ of the appliance a little more, and is a Fix It that less people are willing to try than the simpler task of replacing a control knob.

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A Quality Lawnmower

Love the lawnmower in this video. I’ve had a go on it, it has a throttle and propels itself, you pretty much just guide it. Great for medium sized gardens. The thing may look pretty gnarly (the cassette blade looks like it’d make a bit of a mess of your extremities), but simply put together and easily maintained. C

heck out this video, in which Helen replaces probably the most common lawnmower part to fail in the mower – the nylon gear. Not a problem if it does fail though, because they’re dirt cheap and easy to repair:

4 Day Weekends Are All The Rage

They’re like London buses, kind of. A mere two days after reopening after Easter 2011: The Eastering, the Call Centre will be closing again this afternoon. It will remain in that state until Tuesday, a day when I daresay the country’s collective head may be slightly fuzzy. Apart from our Call Centre agents of course – they will be fresh as daisies and waiting to take your calls.

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Easter Weekend

The eSpares Call Centre will close at 6pm today, Thursday 21st April. It will remain closed for the duration of the Easter weekend, and will reopen at 8am on Tuesday 26th April.

In the meantime, have a great weekend. You probably won’t need much inspiration, but here is a list of things you could do over the next four days:

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Goodbye To A Fellow Employee

Product of the Day

I really like this product. It’s called the Drapers Tools Garden Kneeler and Seat.

image from www.espares.co.uk

Drapers Tools Garden Kneeler and Seat

If you have even the most fleeting experience with gardening, you’ll know there’s one main occupational hazard: back pain. Even if you’re no grandad, a few hours with the trowel down on hands and knees can mean you really suffer for the next day or so. It’s not very nice.

And that’s where this bad boy comes in:

image from www.espares.co.uk
An upside down Drapers Tools Garden Kneeler and Seat

Rather than crouching on the cold, hard sometimes even damp ground, you can now kneel or sit on a Draper Tools Garden Kneeler and Seat. I’ve tried one out and it really is a real help – you can weed and plant and aerate to your hearts content. Kneeling is particularly useful for pruning, while sitting works a treat for soil-work.

It’s a great versatile tool, and even has a storage space for your garden utensils, look:

image from www.espares.co.uk
The Draper Tools Garden Kneeler and Seat’s storage space for garden utensils

I heartily recommend this product to anyone who, like me, has suffered the anguish of waking up the morning after a good gardening session, only to feel like a group of large men are having a tug-of-war with your spinal column. Especially with this sunny looking long weekend coming up.

Lawnmower Racing

Today I have been watching a bunch of people on lawnmowers going round a muddy field, battling for the title of ‘Lawn Mower Racing World Champion’.

Carnage.