Recession means busy time for repair sho

Ray Packer at work in Norfolk Household Services, Dereham Road, Norwich fixing electrical goods.

Two years ago, repair shops were struggling as low prices and high wages meant people were throwing faulty goods away rather than getting them fixed. While for many the struggle goes on, since the recession took hold some have never been busier. SAM WILLIAMS reports.

The plummeting cost of household goods over the past few decades has made items like fridges, furniture and computers far more affordable to the average family.

But the cheap price tags came at a steep cost for traditional repair shops up and down the country in recent years.

With rising wages and vacuum cleaners on sale for as little as £40 and computers from £150, repair bills of £40-plus no longer made economic sense for many families.

But while bad news for the majority of businesses, recessions can lead to a reversal of fortunes for the nation's Mr Fix-Its, as more shoppers are seeking to save a few pounds by giving their old items a new lease of life or preserve better.

Despite cheap Chinese sofas on sale for less than £350 in budget furniture chains, the city's upholsterers are doing a roaring trade.

While re-upholstering a three-piece suite may cost more than a new one, Brian Moppett, partner at B & R Upholstery, on Hewett Yard, Hall Road, says many are spending cash on their existing furniture rather than buying poorer quality new ones.

The trend has left Mr Moppett busier than ever.

He said: “We have never had so much work. We have got more work than we can cope with.

“When we heard about the credit crunch we expected trade to go as flat as a pancake, but actually we had more and more people ringing up.

“People are getting wise to the furniture chains which sell cheap sofas which come from China. They would rather re-cover the sofa they have and end up with something with a better frame and that is likely to last a long time rather than buying rubbish.”

Mechanics garages and second-hand shops have also reported increases in trade in the city, but not every repairs sector has benefited from the credit crunch.

Entrepreneur Leum Dunn, who set up his computer business Get IT Dunn in August 2007, offers computer repairs and tuition to families and business customers.

But he said rather than paying someone to fix problems on home computers, more families were resorting to amateur help or simply putting up with continuing technical glitches to try and save money.

He said: “Particularly in the last two or three months it has been very noticeable that people with computers in their homes are less interested in getting them fixed professionally and are turning to cheaper alternatives, such as help from amateurs like a teenager down the road, or they are putting up with faults they might have found intolerable a year ago.

“Even some business customers are paying me to come in for an hour and fire-fight rather than spending a bit longer fixing the problem because they can't afford it.

“There is no doubt that people with home computers are spending less money.”

And he said people with laptops that developed problems were downgrading to compact, basic “netbook”-style laptops costing as little as £150 new rather than having them repaired.

He added: “It's quite a frustrating time to be in business.

“One side of my business, helping people with computers in their own homes, has almost completely dried up, but I am still doing quite nicely with charities, non-profit organisations and schools.”

Two years ago, the Evening News reported how many general repair shops were struggling as the prices of new products fell.

Among them was Ray Packer, who runs Norfolk Household Services, an electrical repair business on Dereham Road he has managed with his wife Sue for the past nine years.

In April 2007 Mr Packer said trade had been hit as people were no longer interested in getting things mended, but preferred to throw things away and buy new ones from supermarkets, and he said even the idea of getting things fixed was seen as “old fashioned”.

When he bought the business, the previous owner said trade had “boomed” in the last major economic slump in the late 1980s and early 1990s as people looked to save money by repairing their electrical equipment.

But the shop was not benefiting from that pick up in trade this time round, partly due to the continuing falls in prices of many white goods.

Some smaller products can now be bought new cheaper than they can be repaired, and even bulky household items have become cheap enough for many to consider buying news ones rather than refurbishing older models.

And he said former competitors had been forced out of business or decided to close, meaning his store is one of the last electrical repair shops in the region.

Mr Packer said: “The man who used to run the shop said during a recession it booms. He said business was brilliant for him in recessions, but in this recession for some reason that isn't the case.

“We are still fixing plenty of vacuum cleaners, particularly the more expensive Dysons, but even washing machines are cheap enough to throw away and buy another one.

“A lot of people are bringing in toasters and kettles but we can't fix them for the price they are willing to pay. A new heating element costs me £10 but you can buy a kettle now for £4.99.

“I have got a market stall in Yarmouth that is doing ok as people are trying to save money in the recession, but I haven't seen any improvement in the shop.”