Do you hate your LDS?

[Reggieb]

My local dive shop back home, where I got certified, turned me off when I stopped in to see them over Christmas. I was visiting the fam, and was in the market for a new computer, so I thought I would given them a gander. I was looking for a Uwatech, and when I got certified there, they sold Scubapro, so I figured there was a chance they would carry them. I also need(ed) a new BC, and have an older Scubapro that I LOVE, I just wish it still fit, but I was pretty young when I got it, and I need a bigger one. Because I like that one so much, I figured I would check out Scubapro first.

Now, until recently, all of my gear had come from this shop. And when I got my gear, this store's priciest brand was Scubapro, and so they pushed Scubapro as the end-all, be-all, nothing could ever touch it best thing since sliced bread of diving. Well, they have dropped Scubapro, their priciest brand, currently, is Poseidon. The first words out of this guys mouth were: "Scubapro is garbage. They don't make a decent product across their range." Then proceeded to tell me how much I need a Poseidon BC.

That is just such a turn-off to me, and I won't ever spend money there again. Now, there are a couple of shops, one in Atlanta, and one in Key Largo, where I have always been treated really well at, and they make me want to buy more gear than I need, just to support them. If you treat your customers with respect, and don't act like I was born yesterday, you might get some money from me. Whereas if you don't, you will never see a dime out of my pocket.

 

[it_mike]

Atmosphere and attitude. Everything else is gravy.

 

[Kingpatzer]

Carry 2 or 3 brands, stock most of the line from those brands. Give me choices.

My understanding is that there are a few brand's out there that make it difficult for small shops to carry more than their brand. Don't know if that's true or not.

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

Attitude and price are everything to me. Actually, if the attitude and atmosphere in a shop are good then I really don't even mind spending a little extra.

1+

And this really extends to any type of business.

I live in a small town with only 1 true dive store. It has been there since the early 1970's, it is where I first got certified (1976), and has been through several owners over the years (all have been great).

It has always been a small "mom & pop" type of dive store, and while I do not do ALL of my business there, I still try to do most of it there.

Best wishes.

 

[noreastDIVER84]

I have only one LDS that I deal with, there are more shops near me, but the one I deal with is the closest. They have always been very helpful with valid input on my questions regarding any gear I have purchased. Almost everything they sell is something that someone in the shop has used and can vouch for the pros and cons of it. I have usually paid the same or less than internet retailers and have been given the option to make payments to them. I have received numerous free air fills, and can use their pool almost any time.

I am loyal to them and because of that I get immediate service and I have also gotten some very good prices on new and used equipment that couldn't be beat by an internet retailer. I just bought a new Apeks XTX40 and they swapped out my inflator hoses, SPG, and octo all of which I am capable of doing, but they drop what they are working on and do it for me while I am there.

The other shops around here have so so pricing, they aren't as helpful, and they don't have the greatest hours either. But if you want a tank overfilled they will do it. I have seen AL80's filled by them that after cooling they were at 3500 psi.

 

[Jeff Toorish]

There are a lot of great shops out there, and some real duds.

Without naming names, there is a shop in Florida I won't go to again because of their holier than thou attitude. In one instance, they made a mistake and the woman running the shop literally started yelling at me as if the error were mine. Believe me, I make enough goofs that I don't need to take credit for anyone else's. That was enough for me, especially because there are other shops in that town near West Palm Beach.

Here's what I think makes a dive shop successuful:

-Diving is a community, make that shop the center of your area's dive community. Make it a place where divers want to drop in just to say hi and maybe chat a bit about diving.

-Prices are important, but not everything to everyone. Service is also critical when it involves an activity such as diving. Be prepared to offer real service, not just salesmanship.

-Don't assume that every diver that walks into the store knows nothing. Some dives are new, others are experienced and most are in between. Honor the diver/customer's knowldege while respecting their limitataions. If someone believes they are being respected, they will be more open about what they need.

-Hard selling really doesn't work anymore, especially with the Internet.

-Offer a monthly (or weekly) free air fill day --have a pot of coffee brewing and maybe some soft drinks. Make it an event. Everyone likes something free and a lot of divers will buy something anyway. I understand air fills cost money for the shop, but the good will generated will more than make up for the few lost dollars.

-If there are multiple shops in the area, find ways to stand out from the crowd. Tech divers love shops that "talk tech," but even non-techies like to be included in the conversation, for example.

-Don't allow know-it-alls to intimidate/annoy customers --that can mean employees or even other customers. Everyone deserves respect, at least at first. Nothing is more irritating than having someone act as if they know all there is to know about diving when the often know practically nothing.

The shops that understand and practice some of the things above are the kinds of shops I like to go into.

Jeff

 

[RJP]

Have you come to odds with your local dive shop? Will you never spend another dime in some shop for some reason?

I haven't spend a dime in my LDS in years, and am pretty sure I'll never spend another dime at my LDS again! I mean, they'll work with you on price sometimes but I've just never been able to get them down that low...

 

[Slamfire]

I don't hate them, but I feel fortunate to be practically dive shop independent. I'll still visit them and buy little things here and there, but I don't go there because I need to. I'm just being social. There's more than 10 around my local metropolitan area. Some are better than others.

Less than pleasant experiences:

- I came in at noon with my twins 1/3 full of 28% that was left over from a fill aboard a dive boat and asked the instructor behind the counter to top them off with air. I told her to have them filled up at least an hour before 5pm so that they had enough time to homogenize for the analyzer when I pick them up. The owner was not there. My twins don't have the big yellow/green Nitrox labels. When I come to pick them up, I grab the store's analyzer to confirm that I have my estimated %O₂. The owner sees this and starts to give the instructor and I grief about getting nitrox fills in unlabeled tanks. I quickly clarified that she'd only filled my tanks with air and that I was just checking my %O₂ because there was nitrox from a previous fill before. So he turns to me and says that I will not be getting nitrox fills from his shop until I put nitrox stickers on my tanks. Fair enough, I've never gone back there to get any fills from that shop. I think I've only been back once in a full year and that was to get a stainless hose clamp for rigging a stage bottle.​

- I take in my sister's German made BC jacket to get a replacement inflator hose. It looks old and faded but other than the inflator, it's fine. This BCD will not accept the typical Seaquest/Aqualung thread, but it will accept Dive Rite or OMS threads. This shop is also a Diver Rite retailer. Apparently they do not carry Dive Rite inflators on stock. After the guy behind the counter unsuccessfully tried the Aqualung hose, he said to me that I had to get a new $400 bc jacket. He gave me the "this is life support equipment" schpeil telling me I should not trust my life to a jacket that was so old. I felt like telling him that if I had to rely on a BCD to support my life I had no business going in the water. But I behaved, went home and ordered a Dive Rite inflator elbow and hose from North East Scuba Supply on the web. It took about 5 days to arrive but it was much cheaper than a full Aqualung power inflator kit.​

- The crystal display on my computer was starting to develop a bubble. The manufacturer told me over the phone to take it to my closest authorized dealer to get it replaced. I bought this from a dive shop in Georgia and I now live in Canada. So I call the closest manufacturer and they literally told me that if I didn't buy it from them that I shouldn't even bother showing up for a warranty replacement. I called the next closest shop and they were happy to help me out, they just asked that I pay the outgoing shipping.​

 

[TSandM]

There's only one shop I don't go into, and the reason is a combination of owner attitude and repeatedly bad ethics (like selling used gear as new, or trying to convince a customer that the cheaper item he received was actually equivalent to the more expensive one he ordered).

A welcoming attitude, a desire to help, the willingness to stand behind goods sold, even when the problem isn't the shop owner's (faulty items unknown when he decided to carry them) and pricing programs that meet my needs keep me coming back to a shop.

 

[Darnold9999]

Have had two bad experiences. One from a dive shop that seems to focus mostly on tourists, the other from the dive shop that was the most convenient to me.

In a previous life my experience was with Frank White's shop in Victoria that felt more like a clubhouse for divers than a shop and wanted to replace it over here in Vancouver. Was shopping for a full set of gear as I wanted to get back into cold water diving after 20 years or so of vacation diving. This was a good size sale - dry suit, BC, mask, fins, regs, hood, gloves, guages and computer. I was interviewing dive shops to see who I wanted to dive with as much as much as scoping out gear.

First one wanted to spend more time talking about himself then listening to what I might need or want. Did not get a good feeling about the community around the shop so - off the list.

Second one who is no longer in business, when I asked for advice about a dry suit - in my mind the most important piece of gear for diving up here - got a very dismissive - its just a dry suit they are all the same just pick one .... so - off the list.

The other two shops I talked to were great. Spent some time talking about the alternatives, listened to me when I told them what kind of diving I might do. One told me to come back when the boss was in as he really didn't know enough to give me good advice. The other went through all the options they had in stock and talked about the pluses and minuses of the ones they could order in.

In short they listened to me, respected my opinion and gave me the benefit of their experience without talking down to me. A third shop opened up near the one that went out of business and I get the same treatment there.