jón from nesdekk
When RZ needed his first oil change, I took him down the road to the lovely peninsula of Seltjarnarnes. There, near the town center, stands the vast tire-covered facade of Nesdekk. Nesdekk (English translation: Peninsula Tire!) had been recommended to me as a good place for the basics: oil changes, tires, brakes, that kind of thing. They did the oil and I felt much better, and so did RZ.
When I went for a second oil change, months later, the owner Jón remembered all about me. He remembered my name, that I had come from Boston, and that I liked the Red Sox, a team most Icelanders have never even heard of. This surprised me. I chalked it up to my superstar Boston-immigrant status.
But no, turns out I am in no way special. This Jón character remembers each of his hundreds of customers by name, and knows the details of their lives like they were his friends. I know a few people who go there, and they all say the same thing. The man is a walking encyclopedia of human knowledge.
So it was great to go there today to get a headlight bulb installed. Jón greeted me with a smile, said hello to E, and had me pull right into bay #2. No matter that the mechanics were all busy on bigger jobs. They had the headlight changed out in less than 10 minutes. And the bill, 690 krónur ($11), was less than a hamburger-tilboð at the local burger shack. It's good to have a friend at Peninsula Tire.
When I went for a second oil change, months later, the owner Jón remembered all about me. He remembered my name, that I had come from Boston, and that I liked the Red Sox, a team most Icelanders have never even heard of. This surprised me. I chalked it up to my superstar Boston-immigrant status.
But no, turns out I am in no way special. This Jón character remembers each of his hundreds of customers by name, and knows the details of their lives like they were his friends. I know a few people who go there, and they all say the same thing. The man is a walking encyclopedia of human knowledge.
So it was great to go there today to get a headlight bulb installed. Jón greeted me with a smile, said hello to E, and had me pull right into bay #2. No matter that the mechanics were all busy on bigger jobs. They had the headlight changed out in less than 10 minutes. And the bill, 690 krónur ($11), was less than a hamburger-tilboð at the local burger shack. It's good to have a friend at Peninsula Tire.
posted by JB at 7.2.06
2 Comments:
They say Bill Clinton had this very same talent - remembering every face and name and personal details.
I bet this guy is born and raised outside of Reykjavík - they have a thing for people, names, and familyties on the countryside, especially in the rural areas. I´ve heard of farmers who claim to know the names and details of every farmer in Iceland. :)
I've received the same excellent service as you at Nesdekk - always friendly, efficient and polite. I've yet to strike up a conversation (after all, I have no outward characteristics to indicate I'm anything other than your run-of-the-mill Icelander ;)) but they've always remembered my face and greet me with familiarity. I didn't know they did oil changes, though - you can be I'll go there for my next one. Thanks for the tip.
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