Why is it not possible...

[02GF74]

http://www.cyclorama.net/blog/ramblings/full-price/

Full price?!
Thursday, April 1st, 2010 by Mick Allan
I worked in cycle blah blah etc. blah .....

hmmm, IMO there is always room for negotiation and cutting the profit margins. Is it better to to be £ 20 down on a £ 300 bike and be in a postion to get more stock to sell on or have the bike sitting for gawd knows how long?

 

[TheDoctor]

Is it better to sell something for £280 or for £300 a week later?
On a £300 bike, £20 is probably a reasonable chunk of the profit.

 

[hondated]

Since my original posting I seem to have had a lot of response to my question. Some of it I appreciate and some of it I found to be offensive. Sorry very thin skinned.I now have a better understanding and others comments on being a skin flint given their experiences and in some instances agree with what has been said.
Thankfully like you really appreciate my LBS and LBS 's everywhere. If we ever lose them we will be lost.
They supply a service that neither the internet or bigger outlets can provide.
Just as an illustration of what I am saying, two years ago my eldest grandson wanted a BMX bike so my daughter wanted me to go with them when they brought it.
Against my better judgement she wanted to go to Halfords and would not listen to my protestations so that is where we went.
Thankfully they did not have one in stock that he liked and so I was able to persuade her for us to return home and go into the LBS which we had passed on the way to Halfords.
Well guess what ! when we went in there the grandson immediately saw one that he liked and given it was within the price bracket we had, we brought it.
So naturally when we took it home to see whether we had paid over the top for it we went on the Net to check it out.The good news was that we could not have brought it cheaper anywhere else and in fact we had been given a bargain.
Rather than keep this good news to ourselves I wrote a letter to the local paper about our experiences which they published in the paper the following week.
I am pleased to say that two years later and in these times of recession that little shop is still trading so hopefully others have had the same experience I have had.
Finally at that same shop I can buy consumerables ie tyres inner tubes at a lower cost than Halfords so why would I want to go anywhere else.

 

[CopperCyclist]

hmmm, IMO there is always room for negotiation and cutting the profit margins. Is it better to to be £ 20 down on a £ 300 bike and be in a postion to get more stock to sell on or have the bike sitting for gawd knows how long?

Yes, but it's down to supply and demand really... If you KNOW you can easily sell all your stock at 300, then you won't be accepting less.

 

[NotthatJasonKenny]

http://www.cyclorama.net/blog/ramblings/full-price/

Full price?!
Thursday, April 1st, 2010 by Mick Allan
I worked in cycle shops for over twenty years. Preparations for the Cyclorama Retailers section had me reminiscing about working at the sharp end of the cycle industry. It’s not easy running a bike shop, customer expectations are high and margins are low. Finding and retaining experienced staff at lower than average wages is never easy. And as an employee it was often quite a challenge to retain ones sense of humour when dealing with the general cycling public. Whenever I meet up with my old bike shop mates the talk soon turns to particularly memorable episodes involving certain ‘clients’. ‘Client’ being the code word we used for difficult customers.


Picture the scene, an early season sunny Saturday afternoon, a busy shop and a client who seems genuinely interested. I’ve walked him up the price-points, explaining the fundamental differences between £300, £400, £500, £600 and £700 bikes. He seems a friendly guy. He’s with his wife who waits patiently nearby. He keeps asking questions and I feel like I’m on track for a sale. After an hour or more I approach the close, it seems like he’s struggling to find questions to ask and my shop is getting really busy around us. He has already stated that he definitely wants to purchase a bike today.

Eventually I say; ‘Which bike are you particularly interested in? If you’d like me to have it checked over now it can be ready to go in half an hour’.

He wanders back down the shop, points to a bike and says: ‘What’s your best price?’

‘£300′ says I, ‘Just as it says on the price label Sir’.

You’re not understanding me’, says he. ‘What. Is. Your. Best. Price?’

To which I reply, as politely as is humanly possible, words to the effect that; ‘The price is on the sticker Sir, that’s how much we charge because we are a small but nonetheless full-service cycle shop with a carefully selected range of fine products, knowledgeable staff and a hard earned reputation for the quality of our assembly. That is a brand-new-bike inasmuch as it is not this year’s model but next year’s and has just arrived in store. It represents such great value for money that I do not anticipate having any difficulty selling each and every one that we order. At the suggested retail price. In fact there is a very high likelihood that our supplier will run out of stock half way through the year leaving us crying out for more. Just like they did last year. And the year before that. I’ve been happy to stand here for all this time providing you with all the information you need to make an informed decision on the purchase of a machine which you may likely own for the next decade. That’s the price, right there on the sticker. It represents a gross profit to us of £X, much of which has been absorbed by my wages standing here talking to you. But if it makes the difference between you buying the bike and walking out of here empty handed I am prepared to offer you a discount on any components and accessories you purchase with the bike today.

To which he responded; ‘I don’t want any accessories, just the bike. And let me tell you, (drawing nearer, his eyes fixed to mine) I never. Ever. Pay full price. For anything.
I’ll ask you again; What is your best price?

I said; ‘I’m sorry that we can’t do business today,’ smiled, and walked away.

He stormed out.

Two days later he came back into the shop (without his wife), avoided my gaze, approached another member of staff and bought the bike straight off the shop floor.
I often wondered how on earth he was able to get through life ‘not paying full price for anything’. Supermarkets and petrol stations must have been challenging!
The bottom line is, if we want high quality, enthusiastic, knowledgeable, full-service high-street bicycle retailers to survive in good health we cannot expect them to charge high-volume, low-service, internet retailer prices. We are right to expect high levels of competence and professionalism but we can’t simultaneously beat them up over price.
Bicycle shops, use them or lose them! The world will surely be a poorer place when they’ve gone.

Sounds a lot like selling cars and I bet you all haggle! Someone will say, yeah but you make loads of money per car..go on, have a guess! How much do you think we make on a £10k car on average? Closest will win a jelly baby.

 

[mickle]

Sounds a lot like selling cars and I bet you all haggle! Someone will say, yeah but you make loads of money per car..go on, have a guess! How much do you think we make on a £10k car on average? Closest will win a jelly baby.

I'd say: 'Go on tell us, don't keep us guessing'! If it wasn't for the fact that i just don't care.

 

[NotthatJasonKenny]

I'd say: 'Go on tell us, don't keep us guessing'! If it wasn't for the fact that i just don't care.

Fair enough, my point is that you don't think we should haggle when buying a bike but everyone haggles when buying a car and I'm willing to bet when you look at overheads and costs the return on investment will be much lower on cars.

 

[02GF74]

£ 348.26p

 

[Cubist]

£ 348.26p

Lower......

 

[Cubist]

Lower......

Higher......

 

[02GF74]

£ 215.47

 

[mickle]

Fair enough, my point is that you don't think we should haggle when buying a bike but everyone haggles when buying a car and I'm willing to bet when you look at overheads and costs the return on investment will be much lower on cars.

Reading it back now my post reads much ruder than I intended, sorry.

I know that everyone haggles when buying a car and I hate that too, its a nonsense. If everybody haggles why bother? Just post your 'best effing price' on the ticket and save everyone the pointless waste of time.

 

[02GF74]

I know that everyone haggles when buying a car and I hate that too, its a nonsense. If everybody haggles why bother? Just post your 'best effing price' on the ticket and save everyone the pointless waste of time.

blinkiin flip!!! where's the fun in that. have you bought your own property (house), did you offer below the asking price?

surely the buyer feels happier by "saving" £ x when haggling and the buyer is happy since it is more the his/her "best effing price"?

without happiness the world would be a much less happy place.

 

[PpPete]

Reading it back now my post reads much ruder than I intended, sorry.

I know that everyone haggles when buying a car and I hate that too, its a nonsense. If everybody haggles why bother? Just post your 'best effing price' on the ticket and save everyone the pointless waste of time.

yebbut.... everyone feels better if they've got "a bargain"
A lot of shops will offer discounts (off RRP) to members of local clubs, last new bike I bought I even got a discount for membership of an online forum !
(not this forum, but if you've read enough of my posts on here you'll be able to work out which bike, which shop, and which forum)

If the shop puts the sticker price a tadge high and makes a point of talking to the customer, and in doing so finding an "excuse" to discount, shop ends up with the price it needs (and maybe a few sales at the sticker price) AND happy customers who have a "got a bargain" and so come back for more.

I've been in sales businesses (not retail and not bike related) long enough to have used this many times over, although I have to say confronted by the Mr "I've never paid full price for anything" I've walked away from potential sales just because I found the customer's attitude objectionable.

A successful salesman is often one who can quickly tell which approach will work with which customer.

 

[mickle]

blinkiin flip!!!

Buyer: How much is your car/house/bike/item?
Seller: £x, would you like a bag?
Buyer: Yes. Here is my money.

Or

Buyer: How much is your car/house/bike/item?
Seller: £x, would you like a bag?
Buyer: No, Goodbye.

Simple.

Or.

Buyer: How much is your car/house/bike/item?
Seller: £x, would you like a bag?
Buyer: I'll give you £x
Seller: You offend me with this offer, I will not take less than £y for this quality car/house/bike/item.
Buyer: I'll give you £z and not a drachma more you cross eyed son of a camel
Seller: You sh!t on the grave of my mother with your offer. $x and not a sheckel less!
Buyer: £XX!!
Seller: $YY!!
Buyer: £$£$XYZ!!!

(This goes on well into the afternoon with a break for tea...)

Seller: My children will starve if I sell this premium car/house/bike/item for anything less than $xxxx
Buyer: I would not buy this piece of crap car/house/bike/item for that much if it were the last car/house/bike/item in the known universe!
Seller: Get off my land/forecourt/stall before I stab you!
Buyer: Ok, chuck in a set of carpets and you've got a deal.