Sell accessories in your repair shop: boost sales without new customers

Every day people walk through your shop door with a cracked screen, a battery that won't hold, or a loose charging port. You put all your attention on the repair, take payment, and see the customer out. And right there, without noticing, you let the easiest sale in the trade slip away: that same customer, phone in hand and wallet open, is the one most keen to buy accessories to protect the device they've just had repaired. You didn't spend a cent attracting them. They're already inside. Making the most of that is the difference between billing one thing or two per visit.

The customer is already inside: the cheapest sale there is

Winning a new customer costs money and time: ads, social media, discounts, signage. Selling an accessory to someone already standing at your counter costs nothing. You've already paid the rent, the electricity and your time; that extra revenue is almost all margin. It's the most profitable lever a repair shop has, and yet most ignore it out of pure habit: fix, charge, next.

Think in round numbers. If you handle 300 repairs a month and get one in four to take an accessory averaging €12, that's €900 extra a month without winning a single new customer. With accessory margins around 50%, most of that is clean profit. The accessories line doesn't compete with your repair: it rides along with it and makes it more profitable.

Which accessories sell most and why

You don't need to set up a bazaar. A short, well-chosen selection covers 90% of demand. These are the ones that work best in a repair shop, precisely because they connect with the reason for the visit:

• Tempered glass screen protectors. The absolute king. Someone who has just paid for a new screen doesn't want to break it again. The sale justifies itself and conversion is very high.
• Cases. They protect the whole device. Keep a range of models and colours for the best sellers; a customer who sees options buys more than one who sees only one.
• Quality chargers and cables. Many charging faults come from cheap cables that damage the connector. Offering a good one isn't forcing a sale: it's preventing the next fault.
• Earphones. Impulse buys, wired or wireless. They turn over well and carry a good margin.
• Stands and power banks. Add-ons that lift the ticket when the customer is already paying and feeling generous.

The logic is simple: accessories that extend or protect the repair sell themselves because the customer is already thinking about looking after their phone. Impulse items (earphones, stands) top up the ticket. Start short, watch what turns over and expand only what sells.

How to display them: counter and till area

An accessory tucked away in a drawer doesn't sell: the customer doesn't buy what they can't see. Display is almost everything. Basic rules:

• In plain sight and by the till. The display should be where the customer waits while you repair or take payment. That's the hot spot of the shop.
• Tidy and clearly priced. Without a price, many won't ask and will leave. A clear tag removes the friction of having to interrupt to ask.
• Screen protectors and cases next to the till. They're the most natural impulse buy after a repair; put them where the eye falls when paying.
• Few items but well stocked. A clean, tidy display sells more than a crammed, dusty one. The sense of quality rubs off on the product.

If you have a glass counter or display case, use it: small valuable accessories (good chargers, earphones) look the part and stay protected at the same time. And rotate the display: anything that hasn't moved in months goes stale and gives the impression of a shop standing still.

Cross-selling at hand-over

There's a perfect moment to sell an accessory, and it's the hand-over. The customer picks up their phone, turns it on, sees it works and feels relief and trust. That's exactly when they're most receptive. You've delivered on your promise and proven it.

Don't just take payment and say goodbye. Add a natural line, as advice, not as pressure: "Now you've got a new screen, shall we put a protector on so it doesn't happen again?" or "I noticed your cable is pretty worn — want a good one so you don't stress the new connector?". You offer once, honestly. If the customer says no, you respect it and move on. Offering isn't being pushy; insisting is.

This sale at hand-over has the best conversion in the whole process because it builds on the trust you've just earned, rather than competing with it. Many shops waste it out of haste. Turning it into a habit (a fixed question when handing over every repair) is what separates a shop that bills one thing per visit from one that bills two.

Pricing and margin: how to set them

Accessories are sold on margin, not at cost with a token mark-up. A protector that costs you €2 sells easily for €8-10 because it includes your selection, your warranty and, if you like, the fitting. The key isn't being the cheapest (the internet already handles that) but offering the convenience of buying it here, now and properly fitted.

Three ideas for setting prices:

• Use round prices. €10 is understood and accepted better than €9.80. It reduces the friction of deciding.
• Charge for fitting the protector. No bubbles, perfect finish. Many pay not to risk it at home, and it's almost pure margin.
• Bundle it. "New screen + protector + case" at a fixed price feels like a deal and lifts the ticket in one go. You sell three things in one decision.

The figures are examples: adjust them to your supplier and your market. What matters is the pattern: margins of 60-80% that turn every visit into more profit with very little effort.

Control your stock and mistakes to avoid

As soon as you sell accessories regularly, a new problem appears: knowing what you have, what's running out and what's sitting dead on the display. This is where tracking by eye loses you money on two fronts: you run out of the protector you sell most just when you need it, and you pile up cases for a model nobody asks for anymore.

With a system like TekPair you manage the accessories catalogue and its stock just like repairs: you record each sale in the same POS, stock goes down automatically, and you see what sells and what doesn't so you can restock with judgement instead of on a hunch. Repair, accessories and services all sit in the same sale and the same reports, so you really know how much your accessories line contributes to the business.

Typical mistakes worth avoiding:

• Buying too much and too varied at once. Start short, watch what turns over and expand. Dead stock is frozen money.
• Not putting prices on. A customer who has to keep asking doesn't buy.
• Insisting or selling what's not useful. Recommend only what genuinely helps the customer; a forced sale costs you their trust and the next repair.
• Not measuring. If you don't know which accessory earns you margin and which sits on the shelf, you're deciding blind.
• Neglecting the display. Dust and clutter kill the impulse buy. Keep it clean and rotate the window.