Ransom Brothers…Where Customer Service Is Not Just a Cliché

The Ransom Brothers Lumber & Supply staff with owners, Joanne (fourth from left) and Jimmy Gilchriest (sixth from left) . Photo by Jeanne Wood

By Jim Evans

Is there a man, woman or child in Ramona who doesn’t know about Ransom Brothers Lumber & Supply? Not likely.

For more than 100 years — since 1895, to be exact — the lumber yard has stood the test of time. Opened by John C. Barger and sold to the Ransom Brothers in 1924, the business was purchased by the Gilchriest family in October 1989 and has continued in the now almost-legendary tradition of offering the best in customer service and professional advice.

Some readers might say that touting customer service is just another cliché that sounds good but doesn’t necessarily ring true. But any business that’s successful for more than a century surely deserves some credit for offering the real thing.

What’s more, by continuing to conduct its business at its original and relatively out-of-the-way site at 533 B St., Ransom Brothers consistently defies the standard rule of thumb for a successful business: “location, location, location.” They easily could relocate to a more visible location and construct a larger building where they could be right in your face like other businesses, but they prefer to let their customer service do the talking instead. So far, it seems to be working pretty well, because they have an army of loyal customers.

“We have managed our customer loyalty because we are loyal to our customers,” said manager Jimmy Gilchriest. “We will always go beyond the call of duty for our customer to make sure their projects go off without a problem. We will always fight for the lowest prices and pass the savings on to our customers, and our customers can trust us when we say we are looking out for their best interest. Our service does not stop at the cash register.”

Many prospective buyers might have balked at the challenge of taking over a successful business such as Ransom Brothers with its sterling reputation. After all, it’s always more difficult to follow a class act.

But the Gilchriest family wasn’t exactly new to the lumber business — quite the contrary. “The lumber and hardware business has been in our blood for three generations,” Jimmy Gilchriest said. “My grandfather, James C. Gilchriest, owned HG Lumber — still owned and operated by our family — and my father, James D. Gilchriest, worked for my grandfather until he and my mother, Joanne, purchased Ransom Brothers.”

James D. Gilchriest died in 2002, but Jimmy Gilchriest and his mother continue to be actively involved in the day-to-day operations. The younger Gilchriest started working part-time for his parents when he was 16 and has worked full-time since he graduated from college in May 2001.

“The operation really has not changed over the years (since the purchase from Ransom Brothers),” Gilchriest said. “We still have many people working for us who started with us in 1989. We have hired a larger staff to assure that we have very knowledgeable employees to help with everyone’s home improvements.

“We are always looking at ways to better our customer service to Ramona residents,” he added. “We are currently looking at many products that have been given Class A or Class 1 fire ratings, which will help fire prevention and home safety.”

There you have it again with that customer-service stuff. These folks are serious.

“Ramona is a great country town away from the hustle and bustle of the big city,” Gilchriest said. “We enjoy the traditions and friendships here that go back many years.”

Obviously the community feels the same way about Ransom Brothers — a class act by a class family that doesn’t just talk the talk about customer service, it walks the walk. It’s the real thing and a rare thing in this day and age. Who says they can’t compete with the big boys?

For information about Ransom Brothers, call (760) 789-0240 or visit their Web site at www.ransombrothers.com.