LDS - They have a bad attitude.

[dmoore19]

It must be because you live in a purple state. I live in a blue state, or is it a red state? whatever it is the dive shops in my area can suck depending on the weather and day of week, which also determines who is working that day and what kind of mood they are in.
The internet doesn't have a mood, just good prices, but no personality.
I'm still trying to figure out why I'm supposed to support my LDS when they don't give a rip about me? Maybe for they're bad attitudes and high prices?

Yeah! sign me up!!

You can shop online if you like. I don't like buying anything from Walmart so I don't go there. There are car dealerships that have given me cause to go somewhere else. I can buy a car online if I want, I chose not to. I am not trying to convince you that your LDS is best for you, your purchase doesn't make a bit of difference to me. You can dive anywhere you want with any equipment you want purchased anywhere you chose.

Like I said, sorry that is your experience. It is certainly not mine. If you don't want to buy from the LDS then buy it online. If that's what make you happy, get after it. It does seem to be a shame that everytime somebody has a bad experience at a dive shop they post it here and then everybody trashes all LDSs.

I like my LDS, that is why I buy there. If I didn't like the way I was treated I would either find a different LDS or buy online like so many do.

The debate rages on, the answer is not a simple buy it at the LDS or buy it online. If you don't like buying it at your LDS or online then do what so many have done, open a shop and do it your way. I can't imagine getting stressed out over where anybody buys there equipment.

As to the purple state, I think it will turn red after the next election but that's for a discussion on a different thread.

Have fun diving wherever you go! That is why we do it, for fun, right?

 

[JCAT]

For example, can two Scubapro shops exist within 5 miles of each other?

 

[movieflick]

@JCAT - From my uderstanding no.

 

[movieflick]

Well I was referred to a dive shop in NC called RUM RUNNER DIVE SHOP. They hooked me up with a package deal. It was $300 more than Internet pricing but the guy (Andrew) was very helpful and pleasant so it did not bother me to spend the extra. Just goes to show customer service WILL override Internet pricing. Sad that I had to call a shop across the country to get decent service.

 

[captain]

Well I was referred to a dive shop in NC called RUM RUNNER DIVE SHOP. They hooked me up with a package deal. It was $300 more than Internet pricing but the guy (Andrew) was very helpful and pleasant so it did not bother me to spend the extra. Just goes to show customer service WILL override Internet pricing. Sad that I had to call a shop across the country to get decent service.

He would have had to do a lot more than be helpful and pleasant for me to pay $300 more, if you get my drift.

 

[movieflick]

Lol well most of that is tax so it isn't as bad as it seems.

 

[JCAT]

@JCAT - From my uderstanding no.

Exactly, the suppliers control who, what, and price, which many do not seem to understand.

This is the conversation that needs to be in the open.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Exactly, the suppliers control who, what, and price, which many do not seem to understand.

This is the conversation that needs to be in the open.

With this policy in place it's easy for these few manufacturers to control the industry and have a grip on certain sensitive parts of retailers.
They have influenced way more than just pricing. They have slowed down or even blocked many new and exiting advances in scuba.
These companies have put millions into advertising and name recognition. This name regognition and hype is what sells gear to the average diver that hasn't gone a step further to investigate the gear they're buying to see just what exactly it is they are spending hundreds more for.
This hype that the manufacturers create is why some retailers choose to carry these products, even though there are other brands out there that are just as good but don't have the same name regognition of the big companies.
So in order to carry those big names the shops must conform to their rules and demands. One of the rules is they are not allowed to discount the merchandise below a certain point and there are only so many dealers within an area. The demands are that dealers who choose to sell the big gear is that they must meet a certain quota to remain a dealer and the more they sell the better wholesale pricing they get and that means a higher profit margin.

I ran into this wall head on when I tried to market my product and get it into different dive shops. The shops loved the product but couldn't carry it because it would have diluted sales from the big companies that they were tied to. They couldn't afford to sell one item that was not one of the big brands because all the products branded by the manufacturer counted. So in a way they made a deal with the devil.
These types of mandates keep an industry from growing by blocking many new ideas and products because the little guys like me can't get in. The big guys have it cornered.
This is why many LDS's won't carry alternate BC systems and all you see are a rack of poodle jackets from the big names.

In the end it's you the diver that actually gets screwed because you get fed the same regurgitated crap with a few new colors, more gagetry, and maybe an exterior design change but an all new higher price for that new "cutting edge" product that is basically the same damn thing from 30 years ago.
The only thing I can blame the LDS for is making a deal with these gorillas.
But then don't treat me like crap and be all pissed off because I go on the internet to buy stuff you screwed yourself out of being able to carry.

 

[Belce]

Best thing to do is go to the dive shop and ask them, "I want to buy this bit of gear or this setup, what do you offer?"

Dive shops have advertising about the products they carry, asking about gear x in a shop that carries gear y and z is like going to a Ford dealership and asking for new Civic. Better to present your problem, I want to do this kind of diving for this budget what is your solution?

 

[skubadoo]

LDS's can't compete with online prices, there is no way. So they should try to excel in what they can do to keep and hopefully get a returning customer. Offer what online shops can't and this is friendly atomoshere to look around and hopefully buy something and a good service plan and just friendly honest advice if asked.