LDS or Internet

[SteveDiver]

I see your point...it is hard with limited LDS. I have 7 shops within 30 minutes from my house......

 

[friscuba]

First let me say that I believe in supporting my LDS, however there are an increasing number of internet scuba dealers popping up. They offer warranties and very good prices. Has anyone had any experiences with internet scuba dealers good or bad?

Thanks

I haven't read the thread yet, but have these comments:

I love my internet dive shops....

When I wanted to get certified my internet dive shop certifed me. They did a great job!

My internet dive instructor was there right with me when I got water up my nose and had trouble with my buoyancy. He gave me all sorts of helpful hints.

Now that I'm certifed, I get my internet dive gear and my internet air fills.

What's really cool, is trying on internet dive gear, and taking an hour or two or more of the webmaster's time to talk scuba while I'm doing it. It's so nice to have someone taking their time to inform me of handy things to know.

I love waiting for my internet dive gear to be shipped to me, and when it isn't quite right, I'm so happy to sent it back and wait for it's replacement. When anything goes wrong I love going to UPS and shipping it off and having a great chance if it being fixed within a while.

I'm now friends with my internet divemaster. He talks to me, gives tips and answers questions and keeps me safe while I am diving.

My internet store and DM have shown me all kinds of great local diving. They lead local trips and help me meet new local internet friends for cyberspace dives.

I love taking dives on my internet dive boat. They not only own an internet dive store but offer internet diving. They pay thousands, maybe even tens of thousands, to keep their internet boats running, crews staffed and insured and such.

Wow! I can't say enoough about my internet dive stores. Local Dive Stores suck and should go out of business. I will not support them.

 

[redacted]

I haven't read the thread yet, but have these comments:

I love my internet dive shops....

When I wanted to get certified my internet dive shop certifed me. They did a great job!

My internet dive instructor was there right with me when I got water up my nose and had trouble with my buoyancy. He gave me all sorts of helpful hints.

Now that I'm certifed, I get my internet dive gear and my internet air fills.

What's really cool, is trying on internet dive gear, and taking an hour or two or more of the webmaster's time to talk scuba while I'm doing it. It's so nice to have someone taking their time to inform me of handy things to know.

I love waiting for my internet dive gear to be shipped to me, and when it isn't quite right, I'm so happy to sent it back and wait for it's replacement. When anything goes wrong I love going to UPS and shipping it off and having a great chance if it being fixed within a while.

I'm now friends with my internet divemaster. He talks to me, gives tips and answers questions and keeps me safe while I am diving.

My internet store and DM have shown me all kinds of great local diving. They lead local trips and help me meet new local internet friends for cyberspace dives.

I love taking dives on my internet dive boat. They not only own an internet dive store but offer internet diving. They pay thousands, maybe even tens of thousands, to keep their internet boats running, crews staffed and insured and such.

Wow! I can't say enoough about my internet dive stores. Local Dive Stores suck and should go out of business. I will not support them.

I love it when this kind of BS works. That way I can continue to conviently get gas and take advantage of some hands on shopping if I need to while still taking full advantage of the best prices available. Do you think those prices are in your LDS?

Thanks again for your deception and coersion.

 

[Hoosier]

Wow~~~ It is so pathetic and you don’t get any points what other customers said.

Many service and manufacturing companies even throw out their money to find out what customers are thinking. If someone is a shop owner here, this board is a good place to find out the trend and current situation of diving industry. Look at our board member’s diversity in one cyberspace. Before being another pathetic LDS owners again, I hope you think about “how can Larry is making money while you are complaining about an internet business? In addition, why are you here? We are on the internet you don’t like, aren't we?

I haven't read the thread yet, but have these comments:

I love my internet dive shops....

When I wanted to get certified my internet dive shop certifed me. They did a great job!

My internet dive instructor was there right with me when I got water up my nose and had trouble with my buoyancy. He gave me all sorts of helpful hints.

Now that I'm certifed, I get my internet dive gear and my internet air fills.

What's really cool, is trying on internet dive gear, and taking an hour or two or more of the webmaster's time to talk scuba while I'm doing it. It's so nice to have someone taking their time to inform me of handy things to know.

I love waiting for my internet dive gear to be shipped to me, and when it isn't quite right, I'm so happy to sent it back and wait for it's replacement. When anything goes wrong I love going to UPS and shipping it off and having a great chance if it being fixed within a while.

I'm now friends with my internet divemaster. He talks to me, gives tips and answers questions and keeps me safe while I am diving.

My internet store and DM have shown me all kinds of great local diving. They lead local trips and help me meet new local internet friends for cyberspace dives.

I love taking dives on my internet dive boat. They not only own an internet dive store but offer internet diving. They pay thousands, maybe even tens of thousands, to keep their internet boats running, crews staffed and insured and such.

Wow! I can't say enoough about my internet dive stores. Local Dive Stores suck and should go out of business. I will not support them.

 

[JKSteger]

I have heard this more than once now (life saving/preserving/dependant gear) and I don't understand the rationale behind it. If you buy a Zeagle reg from your LDS how does it differ from a Zeagle reg bought from Scuba.com or Scubatoys.com? The only thing I can think of is that the online outfitters don't have the same reg sitting in a dusty display case for 6 months before someone buys it.

Additionaly, when I purchased my Outback BCD from Scuba.com they told me at time of purchase that I could return it to the store for credit if I didn't like it (I think they stipulated that it must be dove fresh water only).

As far as service goes, I look at my dive gear like I look at my car: Do It Yourself. And if time or skill doesn't permit take it to the LDS. I don't get the philosophy that gear must be serviced where it was bought. Either the dive shop is competent in repairs or they aren't.

I understand and it may be a placebo effect to some degree. It just makes me feel better about the purchase. When I bought my Scubapro regs my LDS actually serviced and tested them (and let me watch) while we talked scuba. I felt a little better knowing that someone who knows how to service Scubapro regs actually looked at the regulator to make sure it was working fine before I went diving.
I suppose I could have bought them from LP and took the regs to my LDS and had them inspected before I dove. It's just a matter of easing my mind.

Jeremy

 

[Al Mialkovsky]

Love it

I haven't read the thread yet, but have these comments:

I love my internet dive shops....

When I wanted to get certified my internet dive shop certifed me. They did a great job!

My internet dive instructor was there right with me when I got water up my nose and had trouble with my buoyancy. He gave me all sorts of helpful hints.

Now that I'm certifed, I get my internet dive gear and my internet air fills.

What's really cool, is trying on internet dive gear, and taking an hour or two or more of the webmaster's time to talk scuba while I'm doing it. It's so nice to have someone taking their time to inform me of handy things to know.

I love waiting for my internet dive gear to be shipped to me, and when it isn't quite right, I'm so happy to sent it back and wait for it's replacement. When anything goes wrong I love going to UPS and shipping it off and having a great chance if it being fixed within a while.

I'm now friends with my internet divemaster. He talks to me, gives tips and answers questions and keeps me safe while I am diving.

My internet store and DM have shown me all kinds of great local diving. They lead local trips and help me meet new local internet friends for cyberspace dives.

I love taking dives on my internet dive boat. They not only own an internet dive store but offer internet diving. They pay thousands, maybe even tens of thousands, to keep their internet boats running, crews staffed and insured and such.

Wow! I can't say enoough about my internet dive stores. Local Dive Stores suck and should go out of business. I will not support them.

 

[RonFrank]

Most every *Internet* scuba dealer has a store front. My LDS is starting to sell online. So should I blacklist them because they are now an evil Internet Scuba Dealer?

If an local dealer does fills, and conducts classes locally, but sells online, are they local internet scuba dealer, or a internet local scuba dealer?

I'm so confused

Nice to see this topic resurface again, I don't think we have had this discussion for at least a week

 

[DallasNewbie]

Just consider, when those local dive shops close because of the internet prices who wins?

Ten years ago, people were using the same logic to warn book buyers away from Amazon. They were wrong, too.

Some dive shops will go out of business. But that'll happen anyway without the Internet. Some will adapt. As long as there is a market for local dive shops, there will be local dive shops. Period.

In a worst case world, where your LDS owner is shortsighted and refuses to adapt, they'll eventually be whittled down to the point that they sell little other than air and training. They'll probably also sell the stuff that you might need in a pinch. You'll pay a premium for that stuff, and that LDS will eventually go under.

OTOH, if your LDS owner is sharp, he'll realise that his market is more than just the folks who walk through his front door, and that he has no choice but to be competitive in a much broader market. That will be comfortable for some, and uncomfortable for others, but the ones who do it will be the ones still in business 10 years from now.

 

[paulwall]

Just consider, when those local dive shops close because of the internet prices who wins?

The dive shop I bought my gear from closed long before the internet became a household appliance. I was SOL for local service for awhile (MFG-approved repair shop requirement). Never got cozy with another LDS since.

Still got my gear, but it's getting harder to find a L(ocal) maintenance shop.

I'll buy my gear for the best price (not always the cheapest). If the LDS is inflexible, they will break.

 

[GreenDiverDown]

There's a big difference between online sources that sell grey market products and authorized dealers that have an online presence. The LDS can't and shouldn't compete with the grey market sources.

The caveat, "buyer bewares", certainly applies to grey market purchases. If, after considering the risks vs. benefits of buying from these places, you are comfortable with how this adds up, then go for it. But don't try to use the LDS for warranty issues related to your purchase and have the integrity to not use the LDS as the grey market source's fitting room.

I also find it odd that so many think that online authorized dealers are somehow of better moral fiber than the LDS or that they offer better prices for name brand gear. There are probably a few local shops that sell at outrageous prices but in general their prices are similar to those offered by the online authorized dealers.

When I look at some of the offers from one noted online dealer, I see prices that are very similar to my LDS. I also see that this source offers a few specific items at killer prices and I applaud that store for finding ways to do this. But speaking for myself, I find these selections are typically not the products that interest me. I also would consider why a particular item is offered at such a deal…it may or may not have a bearing on my decision to purchase it.