Wayne Endicott

The Bow Rack

Springfield, Oregon

Turnaround is usually 3-5 days. We’ve always been as rapid as possible, but it depends on several things.

Bowstrings are the most common type of work order at any time, but especially during our busiest times. We do thousands of strings. We stock as many as we can for all of the most current and common bow makes and models, but there will inevitably be older bows that require us to special order strings. Accessory upgrades are typically easier and we’ll tackle those right now. If it’s anything related to warranty, we’re stuck with the manufacturer’s lead time.

We have a really good track record with keeping customers happy. Many folks are now accustomed to the world we live in and are OK with reasonable delays. We do everything we can to turn around orders in a timely period. It’s usually prolonged warranty cases that get customers upset or concerned. You can’t please everyone. Still, I’ve had probably less than five customers become truly upset in the last decade. Most folks are reasonable. They know that we’re working hard.

We run a simple Square point-of-sale system. We write up everything really rapidly on a PO (purchase order). The PO stays with the equipment until it’s complete. We hang all of the bows above our workspace. It keeps everything right there, and we’re looking at it all of the time. When bowstrings or other parts come in, we’ll install them and then call the customer. We’ll need about 20 minutes with the customer so that we can refit everything and then paper tune.

Matt Eddie

The Archery Den

Franklin, Tennessee

If we have the parts here, our turnaround is generally 48 hours. If we don’t have the parts, then it depends on the manufacturer and can be tough to predict — it could be 2-6 weeks in some instances. Most prolonged work orders often entail archery parts covered under warranty, but sometimes they involve something like a special-order custom sight.

Occasionally, something takes longer than expected. From 22 years in this business, we know that we must be up front with the customer when we foresee that their order will take longer. For example, if someone accidentally cuts their bowstring in the beginning of September, we tell them it will be 2 weeks. Of course, we try to get it completed inside that timeframe, if possible.

Regardless, we stay on task and fulfill work orders as quickly as possible. Either during free times throughout the work day or at night after we close, we tackle as many work orders as possible. During the busiest part of the season, I’ll order bowstrings every other day. An order might have as many as 12 sets. We’ll separate the order and match each string with the respective work order, then install all of the strings on the bows. Then, we go back through and set them up with loops and get them ready for the customer to come in so that we can paper tune.

Our busy season begins tapering off somewhere between October 15 and early November. Don’t get me wrong — we’re still busy, but that’s the time when a lot of our customers are out hunting. During bow season, the most common service work entails a bow that the customer reports just isn’t shooting right, or accidents such as a bow that fell off a tailgate or out of a tree.

Laura Rosenthal

La Crosse Archery

Onalaska, Wisconsin

We strive to complete the order as soon as possible. We address it immediately if we can, but if we’re working with other customers, it will generally be a couple of days to a week.

When a customer asks how long a work order will take to complete, we try to be realistic. We stay on top of which manufacturers are on time and which are running behind. In some warranty cases, we’ll ask the manufacturer for current lead time, and then we’ll add a week to that when we tell the customer. It looks better for us if we’re able to complete it earlier, and if not, then at least we don’t have upset customers because we still completed it on time.

To stay organized, we use our point-of-sale system to track work orders by date and name. When the customer drops off the equipment, we input all of the info related to it. We write down what needs to be done and any parts or accessories that must be ordered. Then, we complete everything based on the date it was received, as long as we have everything on hand. Our service work is date-driven, but it also depends on if we have everything needed to complete the order.

Tune-ups and bowstring replacements are the most common work orders during our busy time. We try to stay ahead of that by stocking up on bowstring sets for common bow models. Regardless of the product category, we schedule shipments to arrive prior to when we anticipate the demand for the item to hit.

Our busy season hits a transition when the Wisconsin gun deer season opens (around November 20). Our work orders taper off a lot, and then we transition full on into holiday mode.

Photos courtesy of The Bow Rack