Chrispy I do hear now and then, oh we had a bunch of tire kickers in,sure this can be true but it can also be used as an excuse.
Tire kickers are hanging around for a reason,the job for the salesperson is to sell them something,a tire kicker can be sold on something
the salesperson may need to work harder and or smarter.


Me I love kicking tires.

It would have to be hard being a small operation shaping/glassing boards yourself & having enough interest in your product that your getting enquiries within hours of operation via phone & email. Having to take time away from the creation process to respond to those enquiries & not having anything beneficial come out of it would be frustrating when your busy or the surf is good.

To prosper I think you would need good sales people to deal with enquiries & allow the shaper to concentrate on what he does best, creating boards. Coz that's what ultimately brings in the cash....plus anything that can lower overheads, maximise output & increase profits with good production environment, tools & processors.