Topps Tiles -Love it or hate it?

[TilersTilingTiles]

Recently priced a job in a loft conversion. One bathroom and one ensuit shower room About 50m2 total with porceline floor tiles and ceramic wall tiles. The client asked me to provide a labour only quote and a seperate quote detailing the materials needed and how much I could supply it all for. Apparently topps tiles is doing a discount on materials if you buy your tiles through them too. Anyway it turned out that I could get the materials for just under half of what topps quoted even with the discount.

Topps tiles used to be our main supplier when i was an apprentice and when they used to have their own brands of adhesive were very reasonably priced.

Now some of my clients are paying £50 a bag for Bal rapid set flexi. How do they justify that!

Topps Tiles -Love it or hate it? for more...

Tile Forums @ tilerstilingtiles.co.uk

 

[BDS]

No i return single tiles as well but i`ve been told that they are going to stop that so weather its true or not i dont know.

 

[White Room]

I'm getting cheesed off about hearing how good CTD are, I may drive to my nearest one just to find out what kind of reception is although it may be over 20 miles away

 

[theyomper]

Only ever been able to return a full unopened box to Topps, you must have a "special" relationship????

At Topps tile are bought individually and any unused one can be returned on that basis, one exception to the rule is for special orders.

The following from their website.
Over’s, Refunds & Buy Back

As exact estimating is difficult, make sure you buy more than enough tiles to do the job. Apart from special orders (see below), the goods we supply to you are on approval and you may return any undamaged stock tiles or goods that do not meet with your approval provided you do so within 45 days of the purchase date. Please bring back your original receipt to a store when returning goods as without this a Head Office refund will have to be issued.

• Special Order Goods
  
  Please note that special order items are not supplied on approval and the refund arrangements described above are not available. In certain limited circumstances however we may, at our discretion, be willing to “Buy Back” special order items.

Some clarity for you.

 

[CTD inverness]

As others have said both Topps and CTD depends on the Staff

CTD just open in Inverness with the topps manager now there
so we get the best of both worlds.

All the best from the west :santa_cheesy:

haha thanks for that!!

we actually have the whole management team from topps in here now!!

topps have lost around 70% of their staff in the last couple of years (whole company)

having spent a long time with topps and now with CTD my honest opinion is that CTD are far better geared for trade customers and have more control locally on prices and pallet deals for example, dont get me wrong i loved working for topps until they started moving away from good service and friendly banter to get money in the till and do it without discount and then write 20 reports on each sale!!!!!! and why didnt you sell 10 add-on products with that 2m2 of 8p white wall tiles???!!!!lol

as far as prices go CTD have a much wider choice of adhesives etc. with bal, mapei, sontex, dunlop, pro-fix
so its very hard to beat us on price

oh yeah and free coffee!! cant be beat

 

[BDS]

I get free coffee and tea,great banter,and topps wont be beaten on price for BAL products not in my area anyway(cos already spoken to another BAL retailer and cant get anywhere near) even tho he`d like to get my custom/customers.i`m loyal to the point of if i`m getting a good deal i`ll spend spend spend oh and did i mention i`ll spend and i`ll send my customers :santa_cheesy: ,if not then i`ll go and take my custom elsewhere :gettree:

 

[DHTiling]

CTD will price match any genuine price for BAL products from any retailer.....:20:...all you have to do is ask....

CTD also many other makes of adhesives etc....Mapei/Ardex/Weber/sontex/pci/pro-fix etc etc.....

 

[malcolml]

lets get our priorities right
1 free coffee (most important thing to start day)
anyway didn't have 20 reports to do but had to push for 8items per sale at topps but staff were a great team.but the people you work with make the store!!

 

[CTD inverness]

lets get our priorities right
1 free coffee (most important thing to start day)
anyway didn't have 20 reports to do but had to push for 8items per sale at topps but staff were a great team.but the people you work with make the store!!

i agree completely i loved my store had a great team and always had a laugh in topps as you say the people you work with make all the difference.

my add-ons were over £11 in the busiest store in scotland but was never enough that was the problem!! :santa_cheesy:

 

[DHTiling]

lets get our priorities right
1 free coffee (most important thing to start day)
anyway didn't have 20 reports to do but had to push for 8items per sale at topps but staff were a great team.but the people you work with make the store!!

i agree completely i loved my store had a great team and always had a laugh in topps as you say the people you work with make all the difference.

my add-ons were over £11 in the busiest store in scotland but was never enough that was the problem!! :santa_cheesy:

hey up lads....check this out.... http://www.tilersforums.com/ctd-tiles-only/

 

[BDS]

Well dave if thats right thats great,but i sat at the desk at swedecor a couple of days ago and said what i get from topps and all i get at CTD (swedecor is 30%) which has been put up from 20% and thats as good as it gets for NOW,which is no where near topps price to me,they`ve got WP1 kit on offer at the moment and its still more than topps price to me,i even brought this situation up with an ex member and even he was shocked i get it cheaper at topps,but as i say if your right then thats great i`ll go in and have a word.