Brick&Mortar experience - minor rant! (1 Viewer)

[Jeff D.]

OK Bill, I stand corrected.

Nevertheless, I'm sure you could've found quality products at a local store - they may have even been better than what you found online. And by purchasing them locally, you would've been supporting your community. Sure, you pay a bit more, but you get more for your dollar.

Now, if you have absolutely NO good B&Ms in your area, then the online purchasing may be the only recourse left.

Why did you choose to purchase online?

 

[DanaA]

Personally, I like buying from both B&M and online dealers. The problem is, as allowed by Jeff, is that you have to have "good" B&M's in your area. For me, the supporting your community goes only so far and is a two way street. Recently, I TRIED to purchase a new preamp/processor. I was shopping for a piece in the $2000-$4000 range. When I asked how much the first three dealers would discount the Parasound Halo, the Anthem, and the Rotel 1098, I drew only blank stares and statements that they wouldn't discount period. I was polite and friendly in my requests and even said I would buy cash-in-hand if they discounted so much as 10%, but no dice. By the way, I have made purchases from two of the three in the past. Two of the dealers were relatively friendly, the third, I felt, very snobbish and arrogant. He made certain claims that I know are not true. When politely corrected, he still persisted that he had his facts straight. Two of the three dealers said that I wouldn't be satisfied unless I bought pre/pros in the six to eight thousand dollar range and that anything else wouldn't be up to snuff. I'm just not going to do business this way. I'll be fair, but fairness is a two way street.

By the way, I did end up buying a pre-pro from a fourth local B&M, who was friendly, polite, and willing to bend a little as far as price.

 

[Bill Polley]

I'm impressed Dana...if I don't count Circuit City and Best buy (along with a large appliance store), I have 3 small chain mid to upscale shops around here, and a few others if I drive 100 miles or so. While one of the small chains (4 or 5 stores) used to have great sales at all their locations, it has now become more of a custom install place for the very well-to-do people looking for whole house installs. They were not willing to order a Rotel pre-pro unless I was willing to buy it! Hell, in home demos? I couldn't even get them to get one for an in-store demo! The second small chain store (2 locations) has always been snobbish and I refuse to go in there anymore.
By the way Jeff, the nearest of these shops is 25 miles away and in a different county, so don't talk about supporting my community. As far as paying more to support my community...I'm a huge fan of American freedom and capitalism, and buying from the local hardware store where the owner has acceptable (but higher than Home Depot) prices and drives a 15yr old pickup is fine. Paying 20-50% more for electronics from a high end shop where the owner and his wife have matching Mercedes and live in a 5000 SF home in an exclusive neighborhood is not something I care to do.

 

[LCSeminole]

I too am one of those that will frequent a local dealer on just about any product. I have a small local computer dealer I have dealt with on the last 3 computers I have built, have built a relationship with them and would never go to another store like BestBuy to pick up a hard drive that is $20 cheaper, simply because of the knowledge of their service and for their bailing me out on helping me build my computers.
I however am interested in going to separates in the home theater and wish to relegate the Onkyo Receiver, bought locally I might add, to the bedroom. NAD is one of a few brands I'm interested in because a friend of mine has had experiences with. NAD, however, has no AUTHORIZED dealers within 160 miles of my North Florida Panhandle location. Being that I value my off-work time, I choose not to spend my time driving 2 1/2 hours to audition what I have already auditioned in my friends home. NO where on the NAD website does it say that their AUTHORIZED dealers are not allowed to sell outside of their local trading area nor does it say they can't sell on the internet. If you read their website carefully it says their dealers don't, but doesn't say they are not allowed. The below excerpt is from the NAD website:

"SHOPPING FOR NAD ON THE INTERNET

NAD Authorized Dealers do not solicit business outside their local trading area. While the Internet is a great place to gather information and to find a local Authorized NAD Dealer, we do not believe it is a good place to purchase highly sophisticated electronic instruments, like NAD components. It is impossible to evaluate the sonic performance of any electronic component, without actually listening to it — specifications simply don't describe sound quality.

While you may find what look like great deals on the Internet; remember that you generally get what you pay for. Open box demonstration products or refurbished units are often sold as "new" to unsuspecting customers. Or worse, unscrupulous merchants strip off or replace serial numbers of "gray market" or even stolen goods to hide their true origin. These goods are not covered by any manufacturer's warranty. You are on your own with these orphaned products. And even legitimate goods may not meet your expectations or arrive damaged in transit, necessitating costly and inconvenient returns.

Our recommendation: DO NOT BUY SIGHT UNSEEN."


Jeff, I have a legitimate question that maybe you can answer with some good insight. I have found 2 AUTHORIZED NAD dealers outside of Florida that are willing to sell me the NAD components I am interested in, they have no problem advertising NAD products on their website nor do they have a problem selling me the NAD components I am interested in. What would you do if you're in my position? I haven't ordered yet but look to very soon.

 

[Jeff D.]

By the way Jeff, the nearest of these shops is 25 miles away and in a different county

Bill, I'm not going to be ludicrous in my argument. If distance is an issue, then perhaps online is your best option. I'm not expecting people to drive hundreds of miles to support B&Ms. That is one of the legitimate reasons for online retailers.

However, your argument about the electronics store is a bit weak. So the owners have accumulated wealth after building up a sound business - what's wrong with that?? Provided that they offer the services we pretty much agree must be seen in a B&M - good service, in-home trials etc etc - why are you begrudging them their fortune? Are you telling me that you would continue to live in a cardboard box if you built a successful business?? If they are providing a quality business, and not just ripping off their customers, they deserve what they have earned. And hopefully, the money that they earn is put back into their community - through their purchases of cars, property etc etc. It's a big circle, and it benefits everybody. Sending your money out of that community does you a disservice.

Laurence:

If you have no authorized NAD retailers in your area, then its fair game to get your NAD product from wherever you choose. Further, no NAD retailer should have any issues in shipping to you.

NAD can be advertised on websites, but cannot be sold directly to areas that already have NAD dealers. I believe this is mentioned on the website that was linked to earlier.

 

[Jeff D.]

For me, the supporting your community goes only so far and is a two way street.

Absolutely, and I have made this clear from my first post.

I DO NOT advocate carte blanche support of B&Ms. They must be competitive (willing to deal), as well as offer stellar service.

At the same time, the customer should be understanding of why the B&M needs to make money, and should see the value in higher prices.

Absolutely, it is a two-way street.

I think people just don't understand what good value is. As discussed earlier, good value is NOT the lowest dollar figure, its about getting the most for the dollar - the two are not the same.

You might pay a bit more at a B&M, but you will be getting more value for your dollar because your money goes back into your community and helps you in ways you might not recognize.

 

[DanaA]

Can't disagree with anything in your post Jeff. It shouldn't have to be a game of tug of war between the consumer and the merchant. It's possible for both to leave a transaction with satisfied smiles on their faces. And, this should be the basis for a possible long term relationship.

 

[Bill Polley]

"However, your argument about the electronics store is a bit weak. So the owners have accumulated wealth after building up a sound business - what's wrong with that?? Provided that they offer the services we pretty much agree must be seen in a B&M - good service, in-home trials etc etc - why are you begrudging them their fortune? Are you telling me that you would continue to live in a cardboard box if you built a successful business?? If they are providing a quality business, and not just ripping off their customers, they deserve what they have earned."

And if you read the entire post , and my previous ones, you would have read that they are offering poor service and high prices with snobbish service, which I consider to be a ripoff. So I guess my arguement is not all that weak. Damn, just read the paragraph before the rich owner paragraph!

 

[Jeff D.]

Bill;

Sorry, I just read your post in the wrong way - wasn't tying the two places together. So obviously, I would agree with you, on the basis of poor service.

 

[MatthewJ S]

I still love my brick and mortar stores and would be sad to see them go…just want much more reasonable prices without being taken to the cleaners
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lets all buy chinese stuff at walmart and "RACE TO THE BOTTOM"....the problem is that I don't need to do an A/B comparison of widgets to make sure that the one isn't truely worth the extra $0.22....but I KNOW THAT QUALITY ON AUDIO COMPONENTS WILL DROP WHEN THERE ARE FEW PLACES LEFT WHERE YOU CAN GET A PROPER DEMO (A/B COMPARISON).....i HAD A CUSTOMER WHO SAID ,AFTER A 30 MINUTE DEMO OF A COUPLA OF MID-PRICED SYSTEMS, THAT "CIRCUIT CITY HAS A SURROUNDA-SOUND SYSTEM FOR $399, WHY WOULD i PAY $2,000 FOR ONE?"...I said "have you heard that system?"...'NO", HE SAID , "BUT WHAT DIFFERANCE DOES IT MAKE"..... I TOLD HIM THAT HE SHOULD TRY WALMART BECAUSE THEY HAD A SYSTEM ADVERTIZED AT $159.....

 

[Jerome Grate]

Not knowing the customer's demeanor, I guess the approach makes the difference. If the statement and approach was in a helpful manor after recognizing the customer didn't have a clue then the comment can be very helpful, especially if the customer was price conscience. But if it was a response based on that customer's demeanor and was meant to project that the customer is a pain in the ass, then I think this goes right to the heart of the original thread. Comments made based on retaliation is what the problem is, at least with me. I think the presence of politeness and good customer service carries through even under tough situations. That Walmart customer can walk off and say you know what, that guy was helpful or some other word (fill in the blank). Like I said I don't know what the air was during this exchange but this is my take of both possible situations.

 

[MatthewJ S]

I was not being flippant ,I was truely stating that if what it sounded like didn't matter and price was the key element ,then walmart has surround sound systems for $159...

 

[Jerome Grate]

As I said before, helping the customer in that fashion was a good thing, helping him understand that his taste is based on price was definetly steering the customer in the right direction and therefore that's the kind of customer service I look forward too.