While I think you mean well, what you don't know about economics and dive shops could fill an ocean. There is nothing so bad as a zealot with a cause. They defy reason and the truth to pursue their agenda.
Greed is the original cause of the death of truth and honesty.
You don't have a clue as to why things are as they are and blame manufacturers for pricing. You also misuse terms and don't know what they mean.
On the contrary; the dealers are the ones who are to "blame", as they are the ones doing the insisting. Talk to some of the manufacturers and you will find this out. Some of them are honest enough to discuss it if you ask nicely. Others are, well, let's just say that they are a lot like Uwatec's dive computer history in terms of honesty when it comes to issues....
I get paid for instructing so I'm not about to tell you all the reasons you are wrong and how things work. I will give you a few things to think about and point you in the right direction should you wish to cure your ignorance (compounded by sounding off when you don't know what you are talking about)
One red herring destroyed after another; I'll be more than happy to comply.
First, diving gear is not a commodity item. There is no substantial difference between true commodities. There is a difference from one brand of diving gear to another. Some of it is downright dangerous
Certainly it is a commodity item. That there are different brands of gasoline does not make gasoline less of a commodity. That there are different brands and grades of eggs, or rice, or orange juice does not make them less of a commodity. Ditto for meat. Never mind that some of the cuts of meat are only suitable for use as catfood.
Next, what you call price fixing is not price fixing. Price fixing is illegal in the U.S. Learn what fair trade pricing is, why it was created and why it still exists.
"Fair trade" pricing is a dodge around the law. So is the "limited discount" nonsense. Yes, its legal. Its legal due to a loophole in the black-letter way the law is written. It is, however, IMHO a clear
ethical violation of the intent of the law, which is to make vertical price restraints unlawful.
Such "fair trade" pricing in other industries has attracted FTC attention in the past. Read the "Nine West" case for a near-perfect fit in terms of how Nine West controlled resale prices and how the scuba manufacturers attempt to do so. Nine West, by the way, settled their case and agreed to stop doing what they were doing.
You claim most manufacturers do not allow their gear to be discounted or discounted very little. I know of three who have such limits and many that have none at all. Unlike you, I know why many dive shops prefer the brands that have limits on discounting. Its not hard to find out.
Of course I understand why they prefer those brands. That doesn't change my view of their protectionism.
There was a time when Leisure Pro did remove serial numbers from gear they sold. There was a website complete with pictures that proved it. LP doesnt do it anymore and claimed ignorance of the serial numbers being removed. I think the dive shops that mentioned serial numbers are not lying, just out of date.
Really? What website? Where's the "proof"? Was it a disgruntled dive shop that bought some LP merchandise and
THEMSELVES removed the serial numbers so they could make the claim?
To remove a serial number from a reg you'd have to GRIND IT OFF.
I believe that some disgruntled "retail" shop did this in an attempt to discredit a lower-cost seller. I find it very hard to believe that LP did this, particularly given that both I and others have purchased name-brand items from them that have arrived
in factory-sealed packages.
More recently, Leisure Pro also sold counterfeit ScubaPro BCs. This was reported in Undercurrent, Look it up. Again, they claimed ignorance even though the difference was clear to anyone who knew scuba gear. They are either incompetent and dont know what is going on in their own store or they are lying.
The difference was clear? Really? Apparently the gear in question was sourced
from a real-live ScubaPro manufacturer. Now who lied to who? Good question. You don't think that the
manufacturer would have had an incentive to lie about something like this, do you? (yeah, right.)
You mentioned your own business, changing your business model and getting many more times the number of customers. How much is the dive business like the computer business? How much of an increase do you think an LDS would be likely to get? How much of an increase in business would they need if they lowered their margin by 25%? How likely is it that they would get that kind of increase? How many ways can you say none?
Irrelavent. No consumer is responsible for establishing or maintaining a viable business model on the dealer's part.
EVER. Your attempted point is a red herring without justification.
A fair markup is one that covers the costs of the business.
No. A fair markup is one that the consumer agrees to pay. It is set, in no small part, based on the competition. Attempting to drive a lower-priced competitor out of business by lying about their business practices and offerings is unethical at best, and should be reacted to by consumers in a manner that punishes the liar.
Whether that markup will support
the business owner's choice of business practices and costs is not relavent to whether or not it is "fair".
While it is true that manufacturers have different pricing levels so some shops will pay less than others will, a bigger difference is the volume of a shop. An LDS that has a high volume can afford to lower prices. This is an advantage mail order companies have. They are selling to a much larger audience than the LDS and the bigger ones will do a much greater amount of business. The large outlet stores in places like Key Largo and Florida City beat even LP largely because of volume. So many divers go through their doors that they can afford to discount prices substantially, Most LDS dont have that option.
Certainly they have many options. The shops just choose not to accept and work with them. Instead they try to lay the guilt trips on divers and outright lie to people. That's where its wrong.
I agree with you that a lot of shops probably need to change. Making instruction a loss leader and making up for it on equipment puts pressure on gear sales. I think it was SSI that decided not to charge for instruction and give instructors a commission on gear sales instead. In a way, I admire them for their honesty though it might make matters worse.
SSI? SSI as an agency is not a gear company.
The flip side is that without more new divers being certified, gear sales will drop from any source, LDS and mail order.
And? Pumping the "new diver" mentality and fleecing them sounds like something out of the penny stock business - and about as honest of a way to make a living as that one is.
Again, you probably mean well, but know what you are talking about. You clearly dont. You have the ability to educate yourself and fix that. As it is now, no one can take you seriously (nor should they).
Really?
Truth is, for any random group of 4 divers, if you bought your gear from LP instead of the LDS you could
also buy a compressor, and tell the shop to kiss your butt.
Of course the shops won't bother explaining any of that to you, because then their primary argument - "what 'ya gonna do when you force US out of business - get airfills from LP?" would go "poof."
So instead we have lies, deception, and other forms of chicanery and falsehood, all of which are calculated to keep the local shop in business.
The problem isn't that people are trying to make money - that's fine, and in fact, its how capitalism works. As an enterpreneur I not only understand but fully support capitalism!
The problem is that they're doing it by lying to people.
When the lying stops, so will my arguing against it.
