Cliff’s Variety

June 9^th after 10am and before 1pm i was running errands and i needed to get shoe glue for my football cleats and well when i smoke my medical marijuana i like to shop. I was just browsing and enjoying the environment that day but i kept getting watched or followed. I think asking me if i need help after 5 times means «No». i felt completely raped as a customer. After Orlando, are you targeting you’re own customers now? can i not shop without be harassed because i look different. you live in a community full of drag queens but I’m a mixed Latin/​Caucasian guy and you follow me like i killed and raped someone, all i wanted to do is shop and go home. follow the clowns not me.

Came hear with local friends. Staff, African American lady cashier, and other cashiers make rude comments about customers where customers can hear it. Also, they offer no assistance to the customers and create an atmosphere of tension upon entering the establishment. Needless to say, nothing was purchased here and several of our other friends have decided to stop buying here! Nasty with a capital N

Every city needs a hardware shop like this. A little bit if everything. Exactly what you need. Wonderful, helpful service. This is a great local establishment. Looking forward to returning again soon.

Worst customer service I’ve ever had. They don’t even know what they Cary. Freaks
First time I went there was good

Heaven! I LOVE going in here, and always find something fun to buy. The clerk told me «if we don’t sell it, you don’t need it» — TRUE! This is a 80 or 90 year institution in the Castro. Prices are excellent, the people, the selection. SO many reasons to love Cliff’s. I suggest people stop buying the stuff that Cliff’s sells on Amazon and give Cliff’s a try!

Very excellent customer service.
I recently called regarding their composition books and the man on the phone went to check back and forth for the books.
The people at Cliff’s go out of their way to help you out.
It also feels great to support a local business.

From making keys to selling you pickle jars and monopoly, you ask for it and they have it! The staff is friendly and willing to help, and they’re easy to find in the store.

San Francisco is world renowned as a great food and wild sex mecca, but what about having the best hardware stores? Between Cole and Cliffs and Fredricksen’s and Brownie’s, SF is hardware heaven. And anyone who doesn’t give Cliff’s 5 stars has a screw loose. Luckily, Cliffs has that screw you need and the wrenches to tighten it. You get the idea? No? Light bulbs of all sizes and shapes, LED, CFL, flashlights to spotlights, and the wires and sockets they love are all at Cliff’s. What’s cooking? If Cliff’s doesn’t have the appliance, gadget, knife, pot, pan, mug, plate, spork, coffee filter, cheeZe plate, french press glass, wine glass, etc. you need, it doesn’t exist. The best of taste. No need to sift thru ugly shit.
Lost? The staff at Cliff’s will give you no-​nonsense advice on how to find and do what you need, whether it’s a good screw or 2, a hand tool, a welcoming socket, linen and lace, trusses and towel bars, feathers and fabric, games and grinders, keys and knives, paint and plaster. All in the very best of taste. It’s Cliff’s. If you don’t love Cliff’s, you need to get medicated.
Home Despot? Lowe’s? Crap! Barf! Garbage! Bleck! Back to Suburbia with you!

I love hardware stores in general but I am rarely impressed with hardware store service, especially in places such as Ace and the kind. I always felt differently at Cliff’s Variety, always felt completely satisfied with the help I have received. Yes sometimes you have to wait a little but once someone is with you, they really try to understand what you are trying to do then help you kindly, non judgmentally and efficiently until you have everything you need (plus they always have everything you can imagine and at better price than anywhere else!)
Well yesterday I realized this was only the tip of the iceberg… I went for a special project that required a custom cut shelf (they are pretty much the only ones who do this in the city). The person who helped took the time to find everything I needed to do the work and we figured there was a precut shelf that would be perfect. They needed to do an extra work on the shelf which they did super fast after I explained my difficult situation. Won’t go into details. I bring the shelf home (3 flights of stairs) and unfortunately hurt my back carrying it. I had taken a day off the next day just to do this work (single mother of a baby, can’t do drilling with the baby at home) so when I realized the shelf was not the correct size and I would have to carry it back to the shop and get another one and wait and carry one back up and likely lost the day I was really upset and depressed. I called Cliff variety and when I explained my situation to one of the managers/​owners (Richard) he did what I dreamed they would do but never believed they would. I know they had mislabeled the shelf so they would likely offer me another shelf if I returned that one but I really could not do that and he took the time to listen to me fully and offered to help without hesitating. He cut another shelf, laminated it, drove it to my place (a good 20min drive), took it up the stairs to my apartment. Not only that, but he had done extra post processing to make the shelf perfect and safer for my child (at no cost) and stayed at least 30min if not longer to help me with the mess I was in, trying to complete my project.
I could not believe it! I was so grateful, It really made my day! That is customer service at its very best. I was already a return customer but this shop has me now forever and I will advertise it any chance I get. THANK YOU AGAIN Richard and the team at Cliff’s Variety, you guys rock!

I love this place! It has most of the things I want for last-​minute crafting or costuming– and is super convenient. For those who have never been, cliff’s is a variety store that has everything from children’s crafts to more intense building stuff. The store connected to them has fun costume-​y stuff like wigs and also fabrics, ribbons, buttons, etc. it’s a really fun store and the employees are super friendly and helpful.

This place is a miracle. Twice now I’ve had somewhat «niche» needs, and this store always seems to come through where no other store could.
Melamine boards cut to a specific size? Home Depot couldn’t do it because their saws were broken (I went to 3 different locations). Cliff’s not only had a nice stock of boards at a cheaper price, but the cuts were free! And done quickly and well.
Shelving pins? Not only did they have the spoon bill ones I needed but other kinds I didn’t even know existed.
Crab cookie cutters? I really didn’t think they’d have them. But I called today, and two reps went looking. One of them needed to check back storage since they didn’t have them on display. But he found it! Within minutes. I went to the store, picked it and other art supplies up (to make a holiday ornament), and was out of there in 10m instead of having to make multiple trips to different stores.
You’d think they’d hike prices up for needing to stock so many different items. Nope, my cookie cutter was less than 2 dollars and all of my other supplies have been cheaper than other stores with similar items.
Cliff’s Variety Store, you’re honestly my favorite store in town. Thank you!!!

You need a tongue in cheek greeting card?
You need a shower curtain?
You need tons of glitter?
You need fabric for sewing and decorating?
You need a funny wig?
You need Christmas decoration?
You need some geeky stuff?
You need board games?
You need a new hammer?
You need …
Whatever it is, you will find it here! :D
The more art/​cafty stuff you will find in the left store, the more hands-​on stuff is located in the right one. Took me some time to realize that these two shops belong together ^^

My friend took me here one day because he told me that they had some really cool stuff in here. I feel like he’s easily amused so I just shrugged it off and thought it would be average.
Finally came here with him and oh my gosh they have some really cool stuff. It reminds me of a general store in downtown China because they have everything here!
I’d love to come back and highly suggest checking this place out!

We all know how awesome this store is and pretty much an adult candy shop with everything you could ever need, so I’ll skip to to the important info.
Rich, one of the managers gave me the BEST customer service I think I’ve ever had in SF. We had a pretty weird and difficult Halloween project which included cutting a big plastic bowl. Rich was beyond accommodating, and really worked so hard to see our vision and make it perfect. He even worked more on it after it was finished and we forgot to add something. He’s amazing and deserves a huge raise or something. Rich gets it and is amazing at his job, all while being so beyond friendly and professional.
Thank you so much!

Lovely, adorable, quirky, fantastic, super local hardware and anything you could possibly imagine store. Seriously, this store has the most amazing selection of just about everything you could ever imagine.
The staff is super friendly and talkative. Truly a local business. Feels like an old hardware store from the good old times. It’s almost like you’re transported back in time back to when everyone when to their local hardware store and knew all the employees.
There are two stores right next to each other with separate entrances. One is more arts and crafts while the bigger store front is more of the hardware, all around store. Or you could do what I do an aimlessly stroll around both! It’s quite entertaining to see what you can find

Who could resist Cliff’s after reading these reviews?
I was in town and hey, I truly needed to pick up a Magic 8 Ball. So I headed to Cliff’s and yep, there they were, right in the toy department.
Yes, Cliff’s has a little of everything (please be aware that there are two stores, next door to each other, with separate entrances — don’t miss anything!). Service with a smile at both stores — and here are the highlights for me:
Adorable selection of books for young children. Great gifts.
The «Little Mister» and «Little Miss» books from –what? — 25 years ago or so?
Flags of the world
Dishtowels featuring all the states
Yarn that was actually decent wool — not just the stuff you get at Michael’s
Moleskine journals
Le Creuset bakeware
Fishnets, tiaras, and boas — hey it’s the Castro
Pastel crayons and nice artist quality tablets
Cool kitchen-​y stuff — I loved the wooden salad bowls and may go back…
Kiwi shoe polish in those little round cans
They sharpen knives and make keys
Knit finger puppets (I wish I’d bought a handful of these)
Candles
Glitter in the large size container (about the size of a jar of peanut butter)
Wigs in all colors — you just never know when you’ll need to go pink.
Such fun! Worth a return trip. You can spend just a little, a lot, or nothing at all and have fun at Cliff’s!

Great local hardware/​variety store to grab a simple gift or tool for a particular project.
The staff is friendly, knowledgeable and the store is relatively inexpensive!
Seriously, who doesn’t appreciate a $avings when they can find one?!

Okay I declare Cliff’s one of the BEST stores n the Universe.
This is really my kind of store — so much stuff under one roof!
Greeting Cards and stationery!
Flags!
Masks!
Shower curtains!
Toys!
Craft materials!
Fabric!
Every kitchen knick knack you’ll ever need!
Sewing, knitting and crocheting tools!
Key making!
Wigs, feathers, boas.
Hardware – nails, screws, hammers, etc
Pans, bakeware,
It’ll boggle your mind.
If you were to up and down each aisle and look carefully at everything you might
have to spend the night.
The staff is friendly and helpful.
The ambiance is so clean, well-​organized and well lit.
Plus I love the hardwood flooring — especially the creaks, makes me feel like I’ve gone back in time to the Woolworth stores of yesteryear.
Cliff’s is where Retro and Modern live blissfully together!

Cliff’s Variety is the place to go, especially if you’re toting a random shopping list.
This was today’s list: toilet plunger, USB iPhone cord, sketch pad, framed cork board plus I needed to have a key cut.
What we actually walked out with was a whole lot more because around every corner is something you’ll exclaim,
«Oh, I need a new one of those!» (muffin pan)
«Oh, look! They have those larger ramekins for French Onion Soup!»
«Need one of those» (metal tongs for grilling meat/​vegetables)
«Here’s a good-​looking, BPA-​free snack/​lunch box.»
«Oh, do you want a new Lego set?» (NanoBlock Empire State Building)
«I’m out of these» (business-​sized envelopes).
With an amazingly friendly staff and just about everything under the sun you’ll need except food and clothing (but you can find a tutu or feather boa), I love Cliff’s Variety.
It’s the hippest hybrid of hardware store and 5 & Dime, sprinkled with a little pixie dust.

My roommate was told that Cliff’s Variety had many decorations for those celebrating Hanukkah. Well, the variety wasn’t as large as we thought, but they have everything else! From hardware to kitchenware, they have a lot! We were longingly staring at knives we can’t afford, and one of the employees chatted us up on his favorite brand. He was so friendly and enthusiastic!
I ended up getting a light timer which was around $ 13, which is the standard price on Amazon.
If I ever need anything, ANYTHING, I’ll check Cliff’s Variety first since they probably have it.

Cliff’s Variety ist wirklich eine feste Institution hier im Castro… neben dem Castro Theatre und dem Twin Peaks gehört es zu den «alten Hasen» unter den hiesigen Geschäften. Und der Name ist wirklich Programm, denn hier gibt’s in der Tat eine große Vielfalt an allen möglichen Dingen, die man so im Haushalt benötigt: Verlängerungskabel, Einmachgläser, Schraubenschlüssel, Töpfe, etc. Kurz gesagt: was es hier nicht gibt, muss noch erfunden werden.
Nebenan haben sie vor einigen Jahren dann noch ein weiteres Geschäft eröffnet, welches das Bastler– und Handarbeitsherz höher schlagen lässt: ob man sich nun ein Drag-​Queen Kostüm schneidern will oder ob man dem/​der Liebsten eine selbstgemachte Karte zukommen lassen will — hier kann man seiner Kreativität freien Lauf lassen!
Obendrein ist das Personal hier einfach klasse: sehr gut geschult und super freundlich. Da kann sich so manches Fünf-​Sterne-​Hotel eine Scheibe von abschneiden !