Biggest thing killing dive shops?

[muzikbiz22]

There are parts of the world I boycott......places like North Korea, Cuba, and California are on my list....places with alien values, political systems that I cannot stomach or support, so while I appreciate the invite, thanks but no thanks.

I don't blame you for putting California "on the list". Quite frankly, my beloved state has become an utter embarrassment. Besides the fact that it's expensive here (both for business and living), the State is more concerned with looking out for criminals instead of John Q Taxpayer, Veterans, homeless, etc. As I said in an earlier post on this thread, people and Big Business are fleeing this state. More people are moving out than there are moving in, and taxes keep going up and up. And to top it off, Dingbat Brown insists that a 60 Billion dollar train from nowhere to nowhere, that no one will ever ride, is the answer to all of our problems. Other than that, the diving this past weekend on Catalina Island was nothing less than phenomenal, and the weather has reminded me why I stay here. 100 foot vis, 60 degree water temp at 107 fsw and outside temp in the 80's.

 

[tursiops]

if you had ever tried to deal with Oxycheck you wouldn’t have to ask.

I completely understand this.

 

[Saniflush]

We definitely price match (and generally price beat), and I'm always very upfront about that, but I was curious from the consumer end, how people feel asking a shop to price match (whether it's a consumer confidence thing, or the culture of the shop) or if anybody has a shop that encourages people to price match, and how they go about letting people know that.

There's some places I go into that I would feel uncomfortable asking them to price match, through no fault of their own, and will go online without ever offering them a chance. At it least for most North Americans, we're kinda taught not to haggle, despite the fact I would much rather people "haggle" (which would just be "this costs X on LeisurePro, can I get it for X here?) than go online because they just don't feel comfortable asking--which is a largely ingrained consumer mentality. At least, it is for me.

We're riding the aforementioned dragon, but I was poking to see if anybody insight from a good or bad experience with shop in this regard, and why.

I don't ask folks to price match but I try to horse trade and ALWAYS ask what their cash discount is.

 

[mdb]

I don't ask folks to price match but I try to horse trade and ALWAYS ask what their cash discount is.

I always barter, as politely as possible.

I just say; I have been looking at xxx for awhile online and these stores have it this price.
I would like to buy it here. Can you help me out?

If done in a low key manner it seems to work. Sometimes not a total price match, maybe
a free air card for a year, or some such thing.

If the store gets very defensive-I just say thanks for your help, let me think about it.

Then I order online.

I do continue to go into the store for air fills etc.

 

[Steve_C]

I don't blame you for putting California "on the list". Quite frankly, my beloved state has become an utter embarrassment. Besides the fact that it's expensive here (both for business and living), the State is more concerned with looking out for criminals instead of John Q Taxpayer, Veterans, homeless, etc. As I said in an earlier post on this thread, people and Big Business are fleeing this state. More people are moving out than there are moving in, and taxes keep going up and up. And to top it off, Dingbat Brown insists that a 60 Billion dollar train from nowhere to nowhere, that no one will ever ride, is the answer to all of our problems. Other than that, the diving this past weekend on Catalina Island was nothing less than phenomenal, and the weather has reminded me why I stay here. 100 foot vis, 60 degree water temp at 107 fsw and outside temp in the 80's.

View attachment 442336

Looks like the Kelp is back. Did two sets of dives at Catalina. One with Keip and then later with almost no Kelp. Both nice but missed the Kelp. Need to get back out there.

 

[mdb]

Looks like the Kelp is back. Did two sets of dives at Catalina. One with Keip and then later with almost no Kelp. Both nice but missed the Kelp. Need to get back out there.

Diving in a California Kelp Forest is my favorite diving.

Rich Marine life amongst the swaying kelp.

When the visibility is great, as in the previous pics, it is just fantastic.

Diving from Baja Mexico, San Diego, La Jolla, all the way to the Oregon border.

Politics aside, I feel very fortunate to have lived in California for 40+ years.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

It is been my experience that any stores who give all the reasons they will not price match frequently lose the sale to others who will price match.

Several brick & mortar stores have been mentioned in this long and interesting thread. They adapted to the
shopping online reality. They offer same prices online as they do in their store. Frequently even better pricing
can be had when the potential customer calls the store direct.

Maybe I've missed it (though I've tried to follow this thread closely), but one of the disadvantages that LDS's often have is time. Because the online shops often purchase a volume of product, sometimes at discounted rates as compared to LDSs, they can ship to the customer much more quickly. It isn't as easy for the average dive shop to get unstocked items. In one case, one of my students/friends took months to get a BP/W. It wasn't the shop's fault, but the hassle they had with the supplier. Now he was getting free equipment tanks (as he used my BP/W in the meantime), but hey, you want to dive in your own gear. He's a super patient guy and out of loyalty to me, he stuck through it. But I have an abrasive personality, so not enough friends to always be patient.

In all seriousness, brick and mortar shops are at a disadvantage in many cases. I do not think there is much that can be done about that, other than offering awesome customer service to earn that kind of patience. I'd really like to spend a few months at a brick and mortar shop that has a strong online presence to see how they do it, as my knowledge of how the industry works is all second hand.

 

[StefinSB]

There are parts of the world I boycott......places like North Korea, Cuba, and California are on my list....places with alien values, political systems that I cannot stomach or support, so while I appreciate the invite, thanks but no thanks.

Great. Stay home then.

 

[mdb]

This is a good thread.

I hope Local LDS's are following along.

Most comments have been informative and constructive.

Local Dive Stores, quite obviously, need to recognize online shopping and
respond accordingly.

The first response is to match any legitimate online price. All available online.

It would be best to already have those prices posted in the store; perhaps
with a sign at the cash register-"We will meet or beat any posted price on the internet."
or something of that nature.

The customer is in the store, time to make the sale, don't let them walk. Calm and
easy-"We will take care of you" attitude.

 

[HantsDiver]

It would be best to already have those prices posted in the store; perhaps
with a sign at the cash register-"We will meet or beat any posted price on the internet."
or something of that nature.

Problem. I've JUST ordered some freediving fins from Amazon. They are from Amazon Warehouse as the packaging damaged. I've paid 1/5th of Amazon normal price. And 1/5th of the price that any other competition can sell them for. How can a normal store absorb the loss?

I'm happy to post evidence when people tell me I'm lying. And I'm happy to accept damaged packaging isn't the same as new. But to ME the consumer... I don't care about packaging. At the same time, I bought a mask that is 1/3rd of the nearest rival price with damaged packaging. If it doesn't fit me I'll give it to a friend.

Retail stores cannot and will not beat or compete with the internet. If they try they will fail.