Positive Experiences With Cm Businesses

[jaideeguy]

We seem to love to bash local businesses here [and elsewhere] in LOS and even have a pinned topic on businesses to avoid.

Maybe we should approach it in a different way by posting our POSITIVE experiences with local companies, services, vendors, and shops and hopefully it will get pinned along side of the NEGATIVE business bashing thread to help us survive here in CM.

I'll start it off by yesterday's experience when my truck driver's side power window control stopped working. After doing the usual first aid of checking fuses and all were normal, I went to my local mechanic and he did same as me and suggested that i go see a window specialist in CM.

We had a good experience years ago with a big locally owned auto shop named 'Amnuay motor air' and thought to start there. I was prepared for worst case scenario of having to buy the whole component [2-3kbaht], but they quickly found a simple, cheap relay that had failed and I got out for 350baht in only 15 minutes and a warantee.

Very profesional, clean shop with good english speaking staff and absolutely the best waiting room in town with UBC, recliner chairs, newspapers, coffee, tea. I had to drag the wife out because she was so sabai.

Hopefully others will continue this POSITIVE experience thread with their good experiences with CM businesses..........

[p1p]

You will find Amnuay and many other notably good businesses in the recommendations threads in the sub forum.

[Gravelrash]

This is a mixed story. Doing a condo renovation and went to Global House to organize bits and pieces. Made my selections which totaled THB 95.000 (there would be much more to come later). At the cashier I assumed I could pay 10% cash and the rest on delivery, this to insure all arrives correctly. I was told no, I would have to go to my bank, draw the money return and pay in full before they would send anything. Oh, and they would drop it all off downstairs and would not deliver to my room.

Bare in mind if I didn't pay goods on arriving they would have picked up THB 9,500 for their trouble. I decided to leave which they couldn't have cared less about anyway.

I then went to a Thai looking place on Ring One near Payap, Home Sukkapan, where I was able to find everything I wanted, the sales person was pleasant. I was able to haggle on prices and put a deposit down and paid on arrival, which was when they said it would be. Plus everything was delivered to the room. It was all correct and unbroken.

[rishi]

You will find Amnuay and many other notably good businesses in the recommendations threads in the sub forum.

Hmm ... Businesses to recommend relegated to some subforum. Businesses to avoid like the plaque pinned on top of the main page as to make sure that'll be the first seen... Personal preferences clearly detected.

[Mapguy]

Really, almost everywhere has been a pleasant experience. That may appear to be a silly thing to say, but it's true. I have had common communications errors occur that have almost always been amicably resolved except for two, one at a Homemart Store and one at Sportmart, but I didn't consider those as big problems.

Some miscellaneous highlights (not a comprehensive or always detailed list):

- Bangkok Bank Kad Suan Kaew Branch with its top notch no-BS manager and assistants

- the Honda repair shops (East and South) have been great. At each I have dealt with people who have gone out of their way

- a paint salesman went out of his way to "get it right" at xxxxxx [the hardware place across from Carre Four] plus others there in various departments.

- a busy electrical shop obviously frequented by contractors (midway up the inside route of the moat road just before the crossover west of Chiang Mai Gate [Look for Phillips" sign]

- another similar but even busier shop on the right about 200 meters south of the moat road on Wulai Road

- Central at Kad Suan Kaew

- Siam TV

- various Mom and Pop shops with really cheap (You get what you pay for!) stuff if that's what you want

- Suan Doc and Chiang Mai Ram hospitals

- Both UBC and WE-TV

- Even TOT!! [Although the staff itself winces at their outdated business system!]

- Can't remember a late delivery from anyone, and almost every delivery very, very soon after the store visit

- The zoo [Never overcharged the farang rate

- Ditto for all national park admissions

- Almost without exception [Exception: when I was second or later on that day's appointment list because repair teams can't really anticipate what they might run into on "house calls'] on-time repair and installation calls

- Good recommendations on independent "installers" (e.g., aircon units) from stores like Carre Four.

- On-time and professional construction sub-contractors

- The city garbage pickup men, the water meter reader and collection guy

- Lots of small shops for miscellaneous things, like locksmiths.

- Even many tuk tuk and songtao drivers

Please don't PM for individual references! It would be a bit of a bother. The big point I really want to make is that you'll find these folks and many more like them on your own. I don't think it is luck or inordinate charm, but I do suggest patience, smiling, not being a nuisance and no silly "cheap Charlie" price haggling. Of course, it pays to look around to compare products and prices and get a sense of when to smile, say thank you and walk away.

General rule of thumb: You get what you pay for. Every once in a while you will pay a farang penalty, but if you do some homework that won't happen very often.

[highonthai]

I'd have to say that the good/great service, that I have received has far out wayed the bad ones.

[KohKarrang]

the Yakult lady is always hanging around the street, and even gives us credit when we don't have the right change for her...

become a Yakult lady

[Loaded]

We had a good experience years ago with a big locally owned auto shop named 'Amnuay motor air' and thought to start there. I was prepared for worst case scenario of having to buy the whole component [2-3kbaht], but they quickly found a simple, cheap relay that had failed and I got out for 350baht in only 15 minutes and a warantee.

Very profesional, clean shop with good english speaking staff and absolutely the best waiting room in town with UBC, recliner chairs, newspapers, coffee, tea. I had to drag the wife out because she was so sabai.

Hopefully others will continue this POSITIVE experience thread with their good experiences with CM businesses..........

You forgot the air-con in the waiting room as well. They also have an air-con dust-free drive-in room for window tinting so that absolutely no dust can get between the tint and the glass that could cause future problems.

I know Khun Amnuay and his family quite well. Son no.3 Dan and his wife Kung run Amnuay 1 along Charoenmuang Rd. Son no. 2 Chit and his wife Jeab run Amnuay 2 along the superhighway. A very hardworking and honest family.

[p1p]

You will find Amnuay and many other notably good businesses in the recommendations threads in the sub forum.

Hmm ... Businesses to recommend relegated to some subforum. Businesses to avoid like the plaque pinned on top of the main page as to make sure that'll be the first seen... Personal preferences clearly detected.

Personal preferences have nothing to do with it.

They were moved to the sub forum at the request of forum members who thought there were too many pinned topics, taking up too much room at the top of the forum.

[jaideeguy]

Well, why not pin 'positive experiences' or 'recomendations' at the top....... to be fair. Altho I appreciate the warnings, I find some of the posts on the 'warnings/plague' topic to be biased and altho some have had bad experiences with mentioned vendors, not all have had bad experiences and I take most warnings with a grain of salt...unless there are multiple warnings on the same vendor/business.

[Ajarn]

I think the positive comments, and the negative, should be pinned together at the top, imo.

[Steve2UK]

This is a mixed story. Doing a condo renovation and went to Global House to organize bits and pieces. Made my selections which totaled THB 95.000 (there would be much more to come later). At the cashier I assumed I could pay 10% cash and the rest on delivery, this to insure all arrives correctly. I was told no, I would have to go to my bank, draw the money return and pay in full before they would send anything. Oh, and they would drop it all off downstairs and would not deliver to my room.

Bare in mind if I didn't pay goods on arriving they would have picked up THB 9,500 for their trouble. I decided to leave which they couldn't have cared less about anyway.

I then went to a Thai looking place on Ring One near Payap, Home Sukkapan, where I was able to find everything I wanted, the sales person was pleasant. I was able to haggle on prices and put a deposit down and paid on arrival, which was when they said it would be. Plus everything was delivered to the room. It was all correct and unbroken.

Global House is basically a supermarket for materials, tools, household hardware etc - you seriously expected them to take 10% cash and the rest on delivery? Where in the world is there that kind of store operating the way you expected? If you go to Tesco Lotus, do you expect them to take 10% and wait for the the rest until they have put everything away in your refrigerator/cupboards?

Something tells me that a halfway sensible approach on your part would have got the delivery to your condo. Som nam na...........

PS - I'm still wondering what a "Thai-looking place" is - given where we are............

[Blinky Bill]

Global House is basically a supermarket for materials, tools, household hardware etc - you seriously expected them to take 10% cash and the rest on delivery? Where in the world is there that kind of store operating the way you expected? If you go to Tesco Lotus, do you expect them to take 10% and wait for the the rest until they have put everything away in your refrigerator/cupboards?

Something tells me that a halfway sensible approach on your part would have got the delivery to your condo. Som nam na...........

PS - I'm still wondering what a "Thai-looking place" is - given where we are............

Mr Steve, I sense that Khun Gravel Rash might have bumped his head on the kurb at the same time as he received his other injuries.

[Mapguy]

I think the positive comments, and the negative, should be pinned together at the top, imo.

Agree.

[miltonbentley]

I have recommended it before but had another good experience with Goodspeed Computer so I think it deserves another mention.

I took a computer to them on Tuesday to be reformatted and set up. I bought it from Goodspeed 2 years ago but since then it has had a lot of crap put on it and was very slow and unreliable so I decided to start from scratch after backing up my data.

They reformatted and set up the OS again, delivered back to work and connected it up, made sure everything was working etc but then left without giving me a bill. Having received good service I telephoned them the next day to ask how much and they said no charge as I had bought the machine from them. That kind of service is a rarity anywhere.

Goodspeed are official dealers for Toshiba, NEC and BenQ, They also build machine to your own spec. The have two shops in computer plaza one for sales and one for repairs and accessories. They also have an outlet in Pantip Plaza but I haven't used that.

Never had anything other than a goo experience with them.

[Ulysses G.]

When I first got glasses, I went to Chakksu Pattana Clinic - behind that new French restaurant on Rajwithi Road - and ordered some very good, Hoya, non-scratch lenses. They knew that it was my first set of glasses. Within a month the lenses had scratches all over them, even though I had treated then gently and cleaned them only in mild soap and water. When I went back to the Chaksu Pattana clinic and asked what was wrong, they told me that I had cleaned them with Ajax - that it was my fault - screamed at me and threw me out.

A friend recommended the Charoen Suk Optician Shop at 281 Thapae Road - one shop down from Art Cafe on Thapae Road -and when she saw the lenses, she told me that they were the cheapest lenses possible, not Hoya and not non-scratch and I had paid much more than they were worth. She also explained Hoya's color code system for different types of lenses and sent me to the main office to confirm what she had told me.

I went to Hoya and everything she had told me was correct.

I have bought all of my glasses from Charoen Suk Optician ever sense and always been happy.

[bunta71]

Rented a car and a pickup recently from an outfit called Scorpion...across the moat from original Mikes burgers. Neung and Surat are the names of the proprietors. Excellent sevice,15,000 baht per month and not much paperwork...actually just a passport copy and signature and there you go. Highly recommended