Choosing a Local Dive Shop

[feldomatic]

I've (finally, wanted to since I was a kid, had some diversions along the way) decided to take up SCUBA.

Just as background, I was in the Navy and have spent plenty of time under water breathing on regulators, I just wasn't wet at the time.

Last week was my 40th birthday, so I went and visited my LDS's to meet instructors and do some basic vetting. I'm fortunate enough to have 3 (kinda 4) shops in my area.

Shop A:
- Carries Aqualung/Apeks and Huish brands along with some commercial stuff
- NAUI instructors (and can do the NAUI GI-bill training, which I'm strongly considering)
- Lead instructor is also a Navy guy and we hit it off well.
- Seems to do a lot more commercial sales/rental but does maintain a recreational program.
- No formal club, but it seems like if you train with them, you probably also travel with them and tag along any time they go to the quarry for checkout dives.

Shop B:
- Also Aqualung (maybe exclusively, I stopped looking at the gear after I spotted a pair of orange RK3s)
- SSI instructors, Lead seems like the kind of guy I want to go wreck/cave diving with 100+ dives from now. They definitely want to train above and beyond the SSI minimums.
- Some nice bundles for discounting gear and training.
- They have their own pool
- They have an active social group (good because I need local dive buddies)

Shop C:
- Exclusively sells a brand that rhymes with Tuba Bro, so exclusively that it seems like a fault (no Shearwater or Garmin computers, which the other two carry) I have no doubt it's good equipment, but it looks like I'd be paying 50% more than the other local shops, and something about the shop gives a me a culty feeling.
- SSI training, didn't get a chance to talk with an instructor, but I know at least one is also a techy guy for mentorship purposes.
- Also has a pool and active club.
- Operates their own charter boat.

I know I don't exactly have to "affiliate" with one shop, but I figure I'm probably buying my first full set of equipment from wherever I get my OW from. (after the cert and a few rental dives)

I'm leaning heavily toward shop A. The GI-bill training option alone seems worth it and I feel like this shop would have no issues servicing anything short of a CCR system.

Something about the more heavily advertised social opportunities at the other shops seems like it might be more important to invest in, and I'm curious to hear from anyone else who fell into a similar situation.

I think the most likely option is that I'll certify and gear up through shop A, but buy the odd piece of gear or specialty class from the SSI shops and join one of their clubs. I just don't want it to be weird to walk in and join the club with them knowing I decided to drop $3-5k on their competitor but still want to hang out with them.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

There's nothing wrong with scubapro products in general (just their dry suits are total garbage). Scubapro is rather aggressive with dive shops of requiring minimum sales per year (at least they did some years ago when I was at a shop and had insight into the business side).

I'd go with whomever teaches open water courses neutrally buoyant and trimmed start to finish. If they are serious about training, I would expect them to be serious about other things.

But still, you need to talk to them to see if you can build a good relationship where they look out for your interests. It isn't fun being treated like an ATM.

 

[boulderjohn]

I agree that what you need to ask is if they teach the OW class while neutrally buoyant in in horizontal trim or if they still teach with students learning skills on the knees. If they still teach on the knees, that will tell you a whole lot about them.

 

[L13]

from your tone of voice, C should be out. B deserves at least some of your business if you socialize with them.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Also, no reason why you cannot buy equipment from more than one LDS. You probably want to buy from each, and be active in both dive communities (hopefully not cliquish).

Training should be based on quality. But all shops carry good gear.

 

[L13]

Also, no reason why you cannot buy equipment from more than one LDS. You probably want to buy from each, and be active in both dive communities (hopefully not cliquish).

Training should be based on quality. But all shops carry good gear.

In my opinion, if they are to proprietary about their customers, they likely aren't a "good LDS."

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

In my opinion, if they are to proprietary about their customers, they likely aren't a "good LDS."

I agree, but is the staff or customers cliquish? Sometimes it is the latter.

You've noticed some rather extreme agency and equipment manufacturer loyalty here, right? That has no bearing on those agencies/equipment manufacturers, but it can turn people off from them, which really isn't fair to them. I've seen it in my area and it isn't the owners fault. I've only seen one shop manager who was this way, and fortunately he is gone.

 

[James79]

- Some nice bundles for discounting gear and training.

First thing to watch out for on bundles is if it's actually a deal... bundles are often used to get rid of stock that won't sell on it's own. Not saying they can't be a good deal, but do your due diligence to make sure you actually want what you are getting in it.

I know I don't exactly have to "affiliate" with one shop, but I figure I'm probably buying my first full set of equipment from wherever I get my OW from. (after the cert and a few rental dives)

When you start doing certified dives with rental gear, try different things. The usual gear related pseudo religious war here is "BPW vs Jacket BCD." Don't drop a lot of cash on gear you haven't seen if suits you.... My kids and I dive BPW, a friend dives back inflate BCD, my wife prefers jacket and can't stand back inflate or BPW. Try a few as rentals or borrowed (most divers I know will loan anything they have extras of when they dive with you.... Heck, I recently dove a jacket BCD that I personally hate to let a buddy try my BPW.) to see what suits YOU. As to regulators, take rental gear with a grain of salt.
Rental regs are often detuned to extend time between adjustments and aren't the best indicator of the capability of a brand or even specific model when tuned properly.

First and foremost, learn with the instructor you are most comfortable with (provided they teach neutrally buoyant) regardless of the shop, and deal with gear expenses after you see what you like.

Respectfully,

James

 

[feldomatic]

Heck, I recently dove a jacket BCD that I personally hate to let a buddy try my BPW

Lol, I did this with my old road bike (it was single speed and very heavy) so my could buddy try my new one. Uphill was still the only place he could beat me.

In all seriousness, I was planning on learning in whatever the shop puts on me (almost certainly jacket) and then looking into a trial dive on a bp/w or back inflate.

 

[boulderjohn]

First thing to watch out for on bundles is if it's actually a deal... bundles are often used to get rid of stock that won't sell on it's own. Not saying they can't be a good deal, but do your due diligence to make sure you actually want what you are getting in it.

I sat in on a scuba marketing workshop put on by the owner of a major agency, and creating bundles was a key marketing ploy he advised. He advised making several possible bundles, marketed for beginners through "the best." Here are some reasons for that:

• People don't want to be perceived as beginner or cheap, so having the different levels of bundles psychologically pushes them toward a higher and more expensive level of purchase than they might otherwise make.
• He advised identifying one specific model of each item (except the mask) upon which to focus sales efforts. Those would be the items in the "best" bundle. The reason is that if you sell a high enough number of a specific model, you will get a discounted price from the manufacturer and be able to get a higher profit margin. He even suggested requiring instructors to use those models as their "scuba uniform," telling students they had chosen those items because as instructors they demanded the best.
• The bundles include items you would not normally purchase if you were not buying the bundle. The markup on those items is HUGE. By putting those items into the bundle, it more than makes up for any discount on the main items.

It is similar to a ploy a friend of mine learned in the year he worked as a criminal selling furniture. The furniture store had an array of lamps for sale. They were hugely overpriced. People don't go into a furniture store looking for lamps. Those lamps were there to create bundles. "Tell you what. If you buy this furniture set at this price, I'll throw in these $300 lamps for only another $100."