Our On-the-Spot Racquet Stringing program is very popular. Simply bring your racquet into our store any Sunday afternoon from 1:00-4:00pm and we will string it while you wait for just $20.00, string and labour included. It’s a great program that has saved a lot of squash, tennis, badminton and racquetball players a lot of money since we introduced it in 2017.
Not everybody is happy about it, though. There are some people who try to game the system and end up genuinely upset when we stop them from getting their way. The purpose of this article is to let everybody know the rules so that we can prevent problems before they happen.
Rule #1 – Nobody Gets Special Treatment
All of the rules are fair. They apply equally to everyone. There are no exceptions. Every week, for example, we have somebody who comes in a few hours early and tries to drop their racquet off. “I’ll be back to pick it up later,” they say. “No. No. No. No. No,” we say. “Nobody takes short cuts. We don’t allow that.” So they end up leaving angry.
Rule #2 – Sign Up Starts at 12:45pm
The sign up rules have been set in stone since Day One of this program. Sign ups must be in person and first come first serve. If the racquet you are getting strung was purchased from us, you can sign up anytime after 12:45 pm. If you did not purchase the racquet from us, you can sign up anytime after 1:00 pm. If you are not in the room when we call your name, we move on to the next person.
Common questions about this… All answered no … Can I sign up early? Can I sign up over the phone? Can I reserve a spot? Can my friend sign me up? Can I leave my racquet here now and come back after 1:00 when it is done? Like we said. The answers to all of these questions is no. So please don’t ask.
Rule #3 – Do Not Leave the Store
Another common question: can I leave the racquet with you and come back later? Again, if you want on-the-spot stinging the answer is no. If you want to run out to the bathroom or go get a coffee, that’s OK. But this is a stringing-while-you-wait program. Not a drop-it-off-and-pick-it-up-later program. If you leave, we will take your racquet off the stringing machine and move on to the next customer.
Rule #4 – No Outside String
Would you take your own meat into a steakhouse and ask the chef to cook it for you so you can save some money? Would you take your own rice to a Chinese restaurant or your own bread to a deli? Of course not. So please don’t bring string to our stringing store. We sell string. More than 150 different kinds of string. More than anybody else in Calgary.
Rule #5 – One Racquet Per Person
Each person is limited to one racquet per day. If you have two racquets to do, you can come on two different Sundays. Nobody walks in with an arm full of racquets and forces everybody behind them to wait. This is a firm limit. One racquet per person per Sunday. No exceptions. So don’t ask.
Parting Thoughts
We started our On-the-Spot Racquet Stringing program so that we could get to know our customers and so that our customers could get to know us a little better. That tends to happen when people spend an hour or two together every few months. However, not everyone is equally good at waiting. In fact, even the idea of waiting is enough to make some people grumpy. If you are one of those people, we strongly suggest our “Just the Basics” racquet stringing program. It’s the same result, without having to wait around the store.
