Joe’s Hardware

for SMALLBROOK this place has near everything you need
Somewhat like the old fashioned HDWR store in that you can buy items in quantity of ONE
You need to be aware of the store hours ‚
and it is HIT n MISS on Staff –
I have had some great help and some that anywhere one would question .
Yet for what it is — I am giving Joe’s 4* as it is essential for the community
Fallbrook is a small town, Welcome to Mayberry RFD 2016 West Coast Style

The good, the bad, and the ugly!
The good: I can usually find what I need here.
Their prices are a little more than the big box stores, but reasonable.
They are only a few minutes drive from my house.
Pretty well stocked.
The Bad: Like most reviewers here I agree that this store is off the charts when it comes to bad customer service. I have never, ever, ever, seen such poor service. Except for a few employees most of them are very unfriendly and pretty much avoid helping you unless you chase them down. I’ve probably been to this store a couple hundred times and never been greeted with a good morning or afternoon. Never have been asked if they could help me find something either.
The Ugly: Service probably will never get better at this store because of the owner/​management. This store has been like this for the eight years that I have been in Fallbrook. They are the only game in town so they have a don’t give a s**t attitude. I guess also under the ugly category is the dilapidated building where they are located. Dark and dingy inside and needs a face lift outside as well.
In conclusion I shop here only if I need something right away and don’t want to drive to Home Depot. I would probably spend a lot more here if I felt they were trying to earn my business.
Where I previously lived they had a small local hardware store in a much bigger city that was always a pleasure to go to. What a shame that this small little so called «friendly village» has such a unfriendly business.

Joe, half of your employees need a lesson in customer service. Their skills are driving customers away, or at least me. Several of your employees seem aggravated and unhappy to assist. Tried to find plastic anchor kits this morning and after the 2^nd time of getting pointed to the hardware section and feeling bad for even bothering to ask I freaking walked out.
I’ve spent several thousand dollars in your store over the years and it angers me that I’m treated like a POS.
My apologies to the few great ladies at the counter and floral and the men in paint who do a great job servicing. This review has no reflection on how hard you work. But silently you probably agree this place needs an overhaul of willing, enthusiastic employees.

Love the «Mom and Pop», reminds me of the hardware store in my parent’s hometown. I avoided the «grumpy» old man, but caught one of them (an older guy with a frown on his face) that fit the description eyeing me at the front of the store while I was looking at a small box of incense…
Anyway, I still love it-​they seem to have everything you need as far as home repair and gardening-​the Christmas deco is heartwarming!

Horrible service!
I was in there today asking for help. Spoke to an associate explaining my needs and out of nowhere anther employee tells him he’s needed in another department and he just leaves. Nice service!
Made me feel real important.

This hardware store is the only one that I know of in the area that I live. The employees here are very helpful and will guide you directly to the items that you are searching for. There are a few very unfriendly older men working at this store that act like they do not want to be working much less dealing with the customers. They are very very grumpy and I just avoid them when i go to this store. The prices on there items are very reasonable and they have an excellent selection for being a smaller store. The store closes early (I believe 6pm) like most places in Fallbrook. Overall this is an excellent hardware store as long as you avoid the angry older men and you do your shopping in the morning/​afternoon.

It looks like the rudeness of the cashiers has been corrected. I go to Joe’s a couple of times a month. The cashiers have all been prompt (I can help the next in line) and courteous. Just this past week after two trips to Lowes (first time for a wrong part, the second after I received bad advice), I went to Joe’s for the solution. Found the right part but had to go back for one more part to solve my plumbing challenge. Dan was a big help and offered the solution and even showed me the right parts form another isle. Great service from nice people. I will go again as I have remodeling needs.

Been going here for years. True, the customer service sometimes sucks but if you need an oddball part to repair something, Joes has it.
I find it a lot more convenient than driving to Lowes or Home Depot but not for major purchases.

Great place — Went in to buy fixtures to repair a lamp for my father. Good service and good price and friendly staff.

I am really sad to say that since my first review, I’ve had numerous visits to the business and had many unfriendly customer service. The last experience was when I approached the entrance of the check out line (it’s a short maze to get to the register). I could hear the cashiers chatting, and when I finally had view of them they were standing together and just looked at me. I finally had to ask if they were open for a ring up. They looked at me like, duh, yeah. One of them finally said yes with a bit of an attitude. Yes, there were 3 lit lights showing they were open, but usually when you approach, one would think that a cashier would greet you and say something like, I could help you here.
Now, I take our hard earned money elsewhere if I can help it. The only reason it is standing at 2 stars is because they carry a little bit of everything.

Worst service I’ve encountered in all of Fallbrook. Employees react to questions as if you’re interrupting them. Owner of this biz needs to make a clean sweep of the deadbeat employees and spend a day at Home Depot to learn customer service. Really is amazing how rude they are. This review is by a Fallbrook home owner, me, who lives on an acre and needs a good hardware store nearby. This place is the worst.

When you need something in low quantities quickly, this store is an option. Parking lot is usually jammed on weekends since there are few alternatives nearby. Customer service has been satisfactory; no complaints.

I like having Joe’s in town. The manager is always helpful. They have a lot of cool things that you don’t normally find in other hardware stores.
Example: I make soap and they have the right kind of lye that I need at a good price. It’s a convenient place and we’ve given them a lot of business. If there’s something you need that they don’t have and you can wait a few days they’ll order it for you.
Fallbrook is a small village so people shouldn’t expect Joe’s to have a Home Depot or Lowes attitude. It’s family run and owned. It’s a great amenity for the residents here.
They’ve recently rearranged the store. I think I liked the old way better. It’s confusing to get to the cashier but it looks like they did it this way to avoid theft. Maybe some of their inventory was growing little feet and walking out the door so they rearranged the front to discourage theft.
I only have one complaint and that is the service from the people on the floor and some of the cashiers. They aren’t very eager to help and sometimes act like they are put off by your questions. There was one guy a few months ago — I’m not sure if he is there anymore — who gave me a creepy feeling. He was overbearing and just rubbed me the wrong way — reminded me of a sex offender — so I just put up with him until I could get away from the conversation. There are a few cashiers that are super nice, mostly the older ladies, but the young ones are very curt and rude.
On a more positive note, I don’t really think most of the floor folks are trying to be rude. In truth they could use some customer service training but they are just small town folks. They do know their business — very knowledgeable about what you need — even though sometimes it’s like pulling teeth to get the info out of them.
If I owned Joe’s I would want to be sure that every customer has a positive experience and leaves feeling a-​ok.

Joe’s hardware has the worst service I have ever experienced! No one wants to help are cares to help you. The employees don’t make eye contact and just walk by! They also have a poor selection of products so I don’t even bother to shop there any more. I rather drive to Home Depot as least my patronage is appreciated there.

Let me start by saying that I’ve shopped at Joes for years and really want to like this place. It’s close to my house and I like to support local businesses. Unfortunately, Joes disappoints time and time again. Joes has significantly higher prices than Home Depot and Lowes. I’m ok with that and am happy to pay the higher prices but expect a superior level of customer service to accompany the higher prices. This SHOULD be how Joes differentiates itself from the other big box hardware stores.
I will say that the level of service at Joes is not as good as the Oceanside HD and their prices are often 50% higher. I’m saying this after several hundred trips to both establishments over 10 years. I recently bought a Makita drill set at HD for $ 199.99. I saw the same drill at Joes for $ 289.99. Over the past two weeks I’ve called both to ask about items they carry and it always takes longer to get an answer at Joes.
I recently sent my pregnant wife to joes to pick up a piece of sheer. The sheer would have required a very insignificant tie down to be safe. The employee at Joes refused to tie it down for «liability» reasons. My wife then went to HD and they were happy to tie it down for her. I would have expected this from Home Depot as HD is a large corporation and much more exposed to lawsuits.
I unfortunately have countless examples like this…
If you’re live near Joes and need something small and quick then get it at Joes. If you need to make a larger purchase or live anywhere between Joes and Home Depot… Sadly, go to Home Depot for better prices, faster checkout, friendlier people and overall better customer service.

I love this hardware store. It is old time and has everything. Plus the customer service is great. Always someone available to help you and they know what they are talking about.

Joe’s Hardware is the best. Old style hardware store. I love that they got a section for all kinds of nuts and bolts. Main reason I go there.

Very expensive pricing and the staff is rather rude. When I asked for the best price for some material sold by the cubic foot, the helper who could not speak English, suggested the very most expensive product. So he was not helpful and I picked the cheaper product he did not recommend. Immediately thereafter (as well as every time I meet him) I received a sour an attitude from him. Cashiers are unfriendly, and it’s a hassle to get extra help carrying items to the car. Will not go back if I can help it.

I like Joes. The gals have always been nice to me and the floor service has been great for me. With a recent move to Fallbrook and much to do on this old home, we were there almost every day for the first few weeks.
Maybe it was because I looked like a deer caught in the headlights or simply clueless, that everyone bent over backwards to help me, but my experience was great. They have had everything we have gone there to buy, half of which I was sent with a list and had no idea what it was. They were quick to assist!
Home Depot is 11 miles too far. Like to keep the money local. =-)

You’re welcome, Joe’s Hardware for my business. & thank you so much for your rude cashiers who have more regard to chatting (bitching) with each other than greeting me, acknowledging my purchase, or thanking me for my business. Next time I’ll be sure to drive to Home Depot! =\
Thumbs down.