First time shopping at the LDS. I didn't do well, lesson learned.

[GYANNI]

That wasn't aimed at you, just agreeing in principal with the poster. Bob

didn't read carefully. I appreciate your previous advice.

[fireflock]

You guys are missing the bigger picture.

A new and enthusiastic divers comes into a store, asks a few reasonable questions, and makes a big purchase. Even being new to the sport, it took him all of 1 day to realize that the retailer was not price competitive, and might have taken advantage of his lack of knowledge.

Guess when that customer will be back for a big purchase? That shop had a chance to earn a customer. They blew it. You can't charge a premium for knowledgeable service when it takes a newbie less than 24hrs to figure out that you don't know what you're talking about.

Rich

[awap]

So you try on the wetsuit, mask and fins, and then you ONLY return the mask and fins so you can buy them later on line. Great logic.

Now I buy my share of gear on-line. I research it on-line, I buy it on-line, and then if it doesn't fit/work, I exchange it on-line. What you did was just plain wrong.

I really don't see it as any more wrong than selling fins for $200 when you know your competitor is selling the same fins for $150. One is just trying to make $$$ and the other is just trying to save it. Both have some ethical issues but nobody broke any laws. Of course, the better technique for both parties is the buyer does the price research before he buys, makes his final selections of gear, and asks the seller to provide a more competitive deal.

The downside is many sellers will be unwilling to deal and some may actually attempt punitive action against the buyer.

[tridacna]

Totally wrong analogy, but thanks for playing. Does your wife go to Nordstroms to get the perfect fit on a new dress, only to go home and buy it online b/c she likes that price better? That's lame. I hope your wife isn't that lame. Hopefully the OP realizes he was being lame and stops. Lame is lame.

Like TSandM, this just doesn't strike me as ethical behavior.

BS Red flag thrown. I hate self-aggrandising moral garbage. :11:

We all engage in competitive pricing behavior every day. When I go out to buy a car, am I obliged to buy from the first dealer where I test drove the car? If I get a better deal at another dealer or online, am I engaging in unethical behavior if buy elsewhere? Are you saying that after you try something on, you are ethically obliged to buy it at that store? Ridiculous and self-serving rubbish. As consumers we have choices and if exercising those choice pisses you off - hey that's your problem. But cut the crap about moral obligations because "you tested it", then went elsewhere. It is the obligation of the reseller to make the item desirable and affordable. Not for the consumer to get ripped off because you think that it is "the right thing to do".

[awap]

Right, he returned exactly those items which required a fitting. Seriously, I have no respect for those that engage in such behavior. Totally, totally lame. You want a good price, do your homework and get yourself educated BEFORE you buy. And if you make use of someone's service, man up and pay a premium.
.

Interesting attitude from someone who is (also) not a supporting member of scubaboard. How do you draw that line? If you try on a mask at an LDS and it fits, do you have to buy it? If you try on a pair of pants at a clothing store and they fit, are you committed. If you try a free sample at the food store and like it, must you purchase? If you make thousands of posts on SB, should you pay them?

[hlsooner]

This point has struck me for a long time in the neverending LDS vs. Internet arguments. Many, like some in this thread, argue that if you enter an LDS and try on a piece of gear, you are somehow morally obligated to purchase it, otherwise you have somehow ripped off the LDS by taking their precious time and checking out an item. This is the most illogical argument I have ever heard. Does anyone actually believe this in other retail situations. If I enter Target, and look over an item, am I now morally obligated to buy it?

If dive shops and other divers cultivate this perception in new divers, they may end up feeling like me: If I am going to be scorned for not purchasing everything I look at while in an LDS, I will just stop going at all. It costs Leisure Pro money to keep a web site online for me to review their goods, and I bet you they would not for a second argue you are somehow ripping them off by using loads of their bandwidth to check out their product offering.

[Going The Distance]

Supporting your local LDS to a point is not really a bad way to go. It took me a while to find a decent shop. Their prices are very competitive, and the service my entire family gets is top notch. (It wasnt that way with a few other dive shops Ive dealt with.) So browse around other shops and see what prices they are charging. Keep in mind you said the shop was close to your office, had a decent staff. If these shops go out of buiss where are you going to get your air ???

[awap]

If these shops go out of buiss where are you going to get your air ???

Lots of shops have gone and will continue to go out of business. The overwhelming answer to the "where are you going to get your air" question seems to be at some other shop that now has more customers.

[perdidochas]

As I said on my original post, I was an idiot and I paid the "fair" price for it. it wasn't even on the back of my head to go to the LDS with the intention to try stuff and then buy it online later. (By the way, I'll check again mask and fins with another LDS before buying online). I went there to buy my equipment and keep it. Did I return the wetsuit? I could, but I didn't. Boots? Bag? Defog? MASK SCRUB? I kept the mask scrub even if I returned the mask. (The mask scrub was the hottest item, I could not part from it. You should see my mask scrub how nice it is. I love my mask scrub. My mask scrub is my best friend. Whatever... )Again, I returned fins and mask within two hours from the purchase after realizing that "YES I'M A SUCKER". I had a guilt feeling was embarrassed and apologized. Never returned something before, seriously. I kept all the other items hoping that it'll pay for the hour that the LDS spent with me. Will I buy again from them? Yes, no problem. Price vary for a lot of different reason, overhead first and I believe in their good faith. Now, let me ask you something. Next time I go to a LDS to buy something for my hobby do I really have to be suspicious and continuously watch my back, bringing my laptop computer with wireless and check online and immediately every single price because if if it cost double (like the mask), I cannot return it? If it's like that, maybe I should start looking for another hobby, I really wouldn't enjoy that. But I don't think that this is the case.

You check the prices before you go to the LDS. I probably wouldn't do business with the LDS again (unless it was the only shop in town), due to them putting things into the purchase without asking you if it was OK.

[Cajuncru Diver]

Check out this. My LDS has a web site with a full page dedicated to the perils of purchasing on line and the benefits of purchasing from the LDS. Now I have not been a customer who became certified and never saw the LDS's front door again. Have purchased over 80% (not all) of my gear from that shop. Went in one week and purchased an Oceanic air integrated for me and a Sunuto for the wife and some other "stuff"($2000.00+). Got great service from the employee (non-owner) who was on duty that day...very helpful, Went back a couple of weeks later, employee was off and owner was in charge, wife asked him (per his full page web site) for a little advice on a new wetsuit she was considering and about the style and millage for tropical waters.......his respons was "I don't give advice anymore because people are always asking my opinion and then don't follow it anyway"........WHERE TO YOU THINK I AM GOING FROM NOW ON ----THE LDS SHOP OR LEISURE, PRO, DIVER'S DIRECT, ETC.
PS. This post is intended only to remind the LDS's that you get customer loyalty when you truly provide service and if you don't provide service don't complain about the customers leaving for a better price---lots of time that's not the real issue.