Key takeaways

  • FM Laptop Repairs, a respected independent on Lower Ormond Street off Oxford Road, has closed after 12 years serving Manchester.
  • Rising rents and a constant race to the bottom on price are squeezing good independent repair shops across the city.
  • The cheapest option rarely means the best outcome. Skill, honesty and value matter far more than simply being the lowest price.
  • We would urge Manchester's commercial landlords to offer shorter, more flexible leases to help keep the high street alive.
  • If you used FM, you are not stranded. Manchester PC offers honest, local laptop and computer repair across Greater Manchester.

It is with real sadness that we mark the permanent closure of FM Laptop Repairs of Lower Ormond Street, off Oxford Road in Manchester. After 12 years in business, another genuinely good local computer repair shop has shut its doors for the last time.

Their closure puts a lot into perspective about what it takes to run a computer repair business in Manchester today, and why so many skilled independents are struggling to keep going.

Why another great Manchester repair shop has closed

Honestly, it came as no real surprise. The ever increasing cost of office and retail space in Manchester puts enormous pressure on small businesses, and a city centre location like Lower Ormond Street does not come cheap.

A closed independent shop with its shutters down on a Manchester high street
Rising rents and shrinking margins are leaving too many good independent shops shuttered for good.

At the same time, customers increasingly demand the lowest possible repair costs and the fastest possible turnaround. When rents keep climbing and prices keep getting squeezed, something eventually has to give. For too many good independents, that something is the business itself.

The problem with always chasing the cheapest price

Having started several businesses myself, I know what it takes to build one and how hard it is to keep it afloat. Too many businesses today spend their energy trying to be the cheapest rather than the best at what they do, and we have all been trained to expect it by Amazon, eBay and the hundreds of price comparison sites.

The trouble is that the cheapest computer repair service rarely leaves you with the best solution to your problem. A rushed, corner-cutting repair often costs more in the long run than doing it properly once. Rock-bottom prices always come at someone's expense somewhere along the chain, and an underpaid, overstretched workforce cannot deliver the care a customer actually deserves.

I think we are finally reaching the end of the "stack them high, sell them cheap" era, and I for one will be glad to see us value good products and honest services again.

A message to Manchester's commercial landlords

I would also gently say this to commercial landlords across Manchester: the retail sector has had a punishing decade, and the upheaval of 2020 has made it harder still. Yet many premises are still let on eye-watering rents tied to long, inflexible leases.

Retail is changing fast, and it is not going back to how it was. So please, work with your tenants rather than against them. Allow shorter, more flexible leases so that local entrepreneurs can test new ideas without betting everything on a five year commitment. Adapt with the high street, or watch good units like FM's stand empty.

Choosing value over price

None of this is sour grapes about a competitor. FM did good work, and a city is better for having skilled, honest repairers in it. Their closure simply reinforces how we have always tried to do things at Manchester PC: compete on value, not on being the cheapest name on a list.

That means diagnosing the real fault before quoting, giving honest advice even when it is not the most profitable answer, and standing behind the work. Whether you need a laptop repair or a wider computer repair, the goal is the same: the right fix, fairly priced, done by people who actually care about the result.

Need a laptop repair now FM Laptop Repairs has closed?

If FM were your go-to repair shop, you are very welcome here. We help home users and small businesses right across Manchester and Greater Manchester, with friendly, jargon-free advice and free local collection and return. Get a free, no-obligation quote or call us on 0161 820 1992, and we will take good care of your laptop or PC.