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Buying Appliances from ESB

  • 22-07-2008 10:21am
    #1
    MistyCheese
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,006 ✭✭✭


    Does anyone have any experience in buying appliances (TVs, Washing Machines etc) from ESB? I know of someone who bought such furniture for their new place and the items were put on the ESB bill and paid off by the month - interest free.

    Is this still a service they provide? Or is that story just an example of the Good Old (pre-recession) Days?


Comments

  • #2
    Run_to_da_hills
    Closed Accounts Posts: 20,009 ✭✭✭✭Run_to_da_hills


    I think all this died a death, nearly all theformer ESB retail outlets are sold off along with the stock. People pay DD or lodge their bills into the post office.

    I Never bought stuff this way but the old man used to get a 10% discount being a employee from the ESB. Power city and Harvy Norman have beaten them on competition i.e price and range of stuff.


  • #3
    jor el
    Closed Accounts Posts: 16,713 ✭✭✭✭jor el


    Since the ESB shops closed, this service is no longer available. I know of people who bought several items interest free over various time-frames. It was a handy service, but Internet prices, and even places like Harvey Norman (never anything special), pretty much spelled the end.


  • #4
    ytpe2r5bxkn0c1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 32,688 ✭✭✭✭ytpe2r5bxkn0c1


    MistyCheese wrote: »
    Does anyone have any experience in buying appliances (TVs, Washing Machines etc) from ESB? I know of someone who bought such furniture for their new place and the items were put on the ESB bill and paid off by the month - interest free.

    Is this still a service they provide? Or is that story just an example of the Good Old (pre-recession) Days?

    ESB Retail have been closed for years. You could never put furniture on your ESB bill - only Electrical appliances financed through FinanceElectric and bought from ESB Retail. You could at one time spread your connection charge but that went about 10 years ago. The "someone you know" is pulling your leg if they say they paid for furniture on the ESB bill.


  • #5
    ytpe2r5bxkn0c1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 32,688 ✭✭✭✭ytpe2r5bxkn0c1


    jor el wrote: »
    Since the ESB shops closed, this service is no longer available. I know of people who bought several items interest free over various time-frames. It was a handy service, but Internet prices, and even places like Harvey Norman (never anything special), pretty much spelled the end.

    ESB Retail Closed before Harvey Norman opened their first store in Swords and Dundalk. Get the facts right!


  • #6
    parsi
    Site Banned Posts: 5,904 ✭✭✭parsi


    ESB Retail was a good way of spreading costs and their prices were competitive (generally) especially if you got the interest free option.

    However they were under regular pressure to close as it was claimed that they had an unfair advantage over ordinary electrical retailers.


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  • #7
    Davy
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 19,340 CMod ✭✭✭✭Davy


    parsi wrote: »
    ESB Retail was a good way of spreading costs and their prices were competitive (generally) especially if you got the interest free option.

    However they were under regular pressure to close as it was claimed that they had an unfair advantage over ordinary electrical retailers.

    Why should they be under pressure to close if they were providing a good service, which it seems they were, need had a dealings with it myself but never heard anything bad towards it.

    I would say they weren't making that much so probably didn't have to be forced that much selling of the shops i gather was a nice way of raising income time of the boom, think RBS took a majority of them at the time


  • #8
    ytpe2r5bxkn0c1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 32,688 ✭✭✭✭ytpe2r5bxkn0c1


    davton wrote: »
    Why should they be under pressure to close if they were providing a good service, which it seems they were, need had a dealings with it myself but never heard anything bad towards it.

    You obviously missed all the court cases about this. The independant retaillers said that ESB Retail had access to ESB customers and their billing system. Also they maintained (although it was proven otherwise) that the shops were cross-subsidised by the Account Collection and Enquires functions from the main ESB business. Lots of arguments like that. The CEO decided to concentrate on the "core business" and got out of sales to concentrate on the supply and distribution of Electricity. They were involved in phones with Ocean and other enterprises which they got out of since as well.


  • #9
    ejmaztec
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 24,227 ✭✭✭✭ejmaztec


    When the ESB shop was open in Tralee a couple of years ago, someone in there told me that the stock didn't actually belong to the ESB, but weren't forthcoming as to whom it did belong, apart from mumbling something about Dublin. I suppose it could have been sale-or-return, or some other scheme. Ironically, when the Tralee place closed, it was then rented by a Harvey Norman franchise.


  • #10
    ytpe2r5bxkn0c1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 32,688 ✭✭✭✭ytpe2r5bxkn0c1


    ejmaztec wrote: »
    When the ESB shop was open in Tralee a couple of years ago, someone in there told me that the stock didn't actually belong to the ESB, but weren't forthcoming as to whom it did belong, apart from mumbling something about Dublin. I suppose it could have been sale-or-return, or some other scheme. Ironically, when the Tralee place closed, it was then rented by a Harvey Norman franchise.

    That's total nonsense. I can tell you 100% the stock was purchased by and owned by ESB Retail.


  • #11
    ejmaztec
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 24,227 ✭✭✭✭ejmaztec


    Freya Unsightly Wheeler-dealer wrote: »
    That's total nonsense. I can tell you 100% the stock was purchased by and owned by ESB Retail.

    Well, thank you very much for setting me straight with that unnecessarily abrupt response. I'm not responsible for what an ESB employee tells me.


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  • #12
    jor el
    Closed Accounts Posts: 16,713 ✭✭✭✭jor el


    Freya Unsightly Wheeler-dealer wrote: »
    ESB Retail Closed before Harvey Norman opened their first store in Swords and Dundalk. Get the facts right!

    Ooh, testy. I said "like" Harvey Norman, not specifically, and I also said that Harvey Norman don't have anything special.

    Also, Harvey Norman opened it's first stores in Ireland in 2003, ESB Retail only started closing shops that same year with the last of them in 2005. Check your own facts.


  • #13
    ytpe2r5bxkn0c1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 32,688 ✭✭✭✭ytpe2r5bxkn0c1


    jor el wrote: »
    Ooh, testy. I said "like" Harvey Norman, not specifically, and I also said that Harvey Norman don't have anything special.

    Also, Harvey Norman opened it's first stores in Ireland in 2003, ESB Retail only started closing shops that same year with the last of them in 2005. Check your own facts.
    The Board decision to close ESB Retail was made in late 2002 (I was at the meeting!) and had nothing whatsoever to do with other retailers opening for business. It had been suggested that HN and others came to Ireland in response to the Board deciding to exit the retail goods market. It doesn't really matter but I thought it needed saying for the sake of accuracy!


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