To the editor:

Life is good in small towns and small businesses. I am a 65-plus-year-old lifelong resident of south Douglas County and I shop in the big box stores and the small mom and pop stores as well. It is interesting to compare the attitude and service provided by both.

I recently had a need for a new push lawnmower. Shopping around, I selected an advertised special that I saw on the floor of the Do It Best franchise store in Baldwin City. As a pure coincidence I had purchased a new chain saw from the same store late last summer. When I went in the store to pick up my new mower, I was informed that the store owner had noticed that the sale-price label had been switched on my new mower and I was overcharged by $12.

I had spoken with a store clerk about my difficulty in starting my 6-month-old chain saw, and her response was “get that saw in here before the (1-year) warranty expires.” A few days later I checked on the repair status and the response was that it was found to be faulty, and they had ordered me a new unit, which I just picked up.

Either of these two experiences could have been handled much differently, and I would have considered it business as usual. I have no relationship with the owner and crew at the Baldwin Do It Best hardware store. But it a pleasure to deal with an owner that is personally involved and understands the value of customer relationships.