A few weeks ago I dug up an old watch that I hadn't worn in years that needed a new battery (quartz movement)....I have been passing this old Jewelry store on my way to and from the gym and decided I would go in....this family has operated for nearly 100 years...I walk in and the guy behind the counter ask if he can help me I tell him I need the battery replaced in my watch....he immediately pulls a loupe out of his shirt pocket and says sure hang on...he steps behind the counter and low and behold he has a work station that must be decades old...old certifications from watchmaking repair facilities from the 60's ....polishing equipment....tools...cabinets with parts  etc...everything you used to see in a real Jewelry store...he finishes it up hands it back to me.." I replaced the battery, pressure tested and polished the crystal for you" great how much do I owe you? " $7.00 plus tax" ....wow I was expecting $20 or more!
Fast forward to this morning...I have an older Chronograph that  needed one link removed and also had a broken pin where band attaches to watch....same story guy looks at it...sits down at his work station with loupe on his eye....mumbles something...rummages through his parts drawers...emerges 3 minutes later...."here you go, try it on"....fits great what do I owe you...."Mehhh $5 bucks should do it" once again ...I was impressed to say the least...old school knowledge, proper tools and the place has been there 3 generations....no way I would get that from some kid at the mall....I will go back

thats pretty awesome i miss old skool places like that.

That's why they've been around for almost 100 years.

Old korean guy owns a watch shop near me, and he's the same. He fixed one of my watches for FREE (would not even accept a tip), and replaced the battery in another for 5 or 6 bucks.

I need to find a guy like that in my area. I have several old mechanical watches (some automatic, some manual wind) that need to be serviced. One of them is an early 60s vintage Omega Seasmaster that is pristine, and I don't trust the younger/newer folks with something like that.

Places like that are rare anymore. There used to be a shoe guy near me . There is a guy down the road who still does TVs.

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Of all places like this I remember going into the cobbler as a child with my mother. The smell of shoe polish and old leather, mmmmmm!

I would suggest look in older part of town...locally owned.....you might get lucky

I imagine that's the way most businesses would operate if they weren't taxed and regulated into obscurity.

Sounds like my jewelry store. I own it. I do the work in-house. I do the simple stuff for cheap. Heck, I don't even charge for things like clasp adjustments, cleaning, minor fix-it jobs. People are amazed when I tell them they don't owe me anything. I gain a future customer almost every time.        
 

If lived there I would patronize...and your right....he has gained a customer......

I like that!

Theres a machinist down the block thats helpful, and with a lot of little stuff I'll ask "how much do I owe ya?" and he'll be like "No charge, just let me see it when you're finished."

Good customer service is a lost art.

Your story reminds me of Marie's thread update from yesterday.

I try to patronize small family businesses as much as possible, but it's getting harder and harder to find them these days.

We have a small local owned hardware that I love doing business with.  They have everything and can show you how to fix things instead of replacing them.

There is a Wal-Mart and Home Depot 10 miles away that is hard on them but they still make it.  I use them all the time.

  Where in Ok is this located?

I miss old school hardware stores

Now that really is a CSB.......

They're out there.  It's just that they're off the beaten path, because they can't afford the rents in strip malls and shopping centers.

I had a very similar experience to the OP when I worked in Wilmington. I found the place on a side street I would walk to the shop were I got my morning coffee.

I also had a couple nice pairs of shoes resoled by a cobbler on the same street with excellent results.

Those businesses are there if you look for them.

Similar story, got the SO a watch for her birthday, need two links removed. (ordered online)

Went to the regular big name jewelers, Kay Jewelers etc, and a couple others in my area. All asking between $50-$80. I was all like, , this sucks.


Popped in a dingy little old jewelry shop, old Korean guy is like, tree dolla. I said holy shit, handed him the watch and he gives it back like 3 minutes later. I gave him his three dollars and a twenty dollar bill.

I have never been charged for a link removal/addition even at the big jewelry stores.  Sounds like a good guy to go to though.

I always help support small business because i own one.  I do my best to stay asay from big box chains as they suck.

Amen.

I buy local every chance I get. Gas, groceries, electronics, ....everything. However, my local gun shop owner is a fucking D BAG. I buy guns in another town.

There's a welding shop I go to every so often and unless it is something that's going to take any appreciable time it's a freebie, although I do give him a 6-pack.

He says that the shit I bring in is at least interesting.

What part of OH?  (please say near Cincy..... ). I need a new watch guy... The one I used to use moved to Puerto Rico so I've been mailing him work.

There it is.

I pay ~$20 to get a Seiko auto movement cleaned and oiled at my local place and they polish it for free

Dietzel Watch and Clock in Old Town Alexandria was around the corner from my house.  Great bunch

1.  If in your AO
2.  If they are still open (last time I looked circa 2008)

There was an amazing hardware store near us. The guy wanted to retire and none of his kids were interested.
He tried selling but fear of Sears hardware and a proposed Lowes killed the sale.
He had an increasing discount sale over a weeks time, I bought stuff I still haven't used.
On the last day I was buying paint buckets and small cans of stain for 70% off.
It was a great sale but I wish we still had the store.

As for the watch repair, my dad was a journeyman watch maker in Berlin...he made a watch except for the case to get his certificate.
He's amazed that the mall shops get $27 to "look over" a watch and install a battery. He says the "kids" have no idea what they are looking over.

Charging ridiculously low prices better evoke enough loyalty that you buy often from them, or they go the way of the dodo bird.