ScarbsSUP said..
Hi Peeps,
There is no collusion of brand reps, shops or brands conspiring or dictating prices. All kites come with recommended Retail Prices (RRP). When a new model comes out, it is when it is most in demand, so it is the best opportunity for a retailer to get a good price or the recommended price.
When a new car is released, you will not get a discount. Discounts usually start later in the life of that particular model or just before it is superceded by a newer model. If you are after a better price, wait for the gear to go on sale at the end of the season. It's still a new kite with excellent performance, you just get it a bit cheaper.
If you want discounts on gear, form a relationship with your favourite retailer. Almost all of us offer discounts to customers who stick with us, it's simple, we support those who support us. We have customers who get regular deals on everything they buy after we know them and see that they continue buying from us. The more a customer spends with us over the years, we want to repay the loyalty and they are the first customers who come to mind when we have special offers, special events, giveaways, or we hook them with special stuff like film or TV opportunities etc or whatever else may come along. Often these customers become "shop riders" and eventually stop paying for gear.
We stay back after hours to help customers running late, give them preference when it comes to repairs, bar tuning and will even open up the shop on days off if they are in emergency situations. On warranty issues, we often loan boards and kites to keep our best customers on the water. We sometimes loan kites specialist kites or boards for customers going away to destinations where their normal gear isn't ideal. This happens more often than most of you know in our shop.
Our best customers get bits and pieces for free and at cost from time to time. It's all about relationships. Generally, the person always looking for the cheapest price has no loyalty to anyone as they go from shop to shop looking for the cheapest deal. We are not interested in rewarding this type of customer as they will go elsewhere to save a dollar to anyone who drops their price a little further. How far out of our way do you think a retailer will go when a customer comes in with a warranty issue with a board or kite they bought online?
Kite retailers are no different to any other retailer. We are small businesses with overheads and fixed costs. I don't know a single kite retailer driving an expensive car or living in a posh suburb. The lowest paid mine worker earns more than most retailers, without the headaches and stress. No one goes in and asks coles or Woolies to give them a discount. On pay day would you give your boss a discount on your wage? Think about it...
Try supporting your retailer and you'll see that they in turn will support you. It ain't rocket science!
DM
Red thumbs hey. Sounds a reasonable and logical argument to me? You wonder why experienced guys like DM stop posting on this forum. We all lose and are left with twits commenting on gear that have no Farqin idea. This leaves new guys with stupid information I read all the time.
Anyhow rant over...