Benchmade or Spyderco if you had a store??

C

cckw

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May 24, 2008
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I have been asked help with a decision in a retail store. They have decided to carry a good knife brand, and have narrowed it to Benchmade or Spyderco.

I own both and like both and want to give good advise, not person bias. Probably can't go wrong no matter what, but which brand would sell more knives in a retail store with decent line representation and good pricing?

EDIT: It occurred to me that discussing this in an open forum might be in poor taste. If so you can PM me
 
I'd think Spyderco would be a better choice, simply because they have more options at more pricepoints than Benchmade does.
 
It would be nice for the consumer if they could choose between both but my personal choice is Spyderco. Their variety and price points (as already mentioned above) appeal to me more and they seem on the go with new things all the time.
 
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Doesn't hurt to try both in limited inventory. See which brand does better and then make the final decision.
 
"Which brand would sell more knives in a retail store with decent line representation and good pricing?"

Perhaps you would be better off calling stores that sell both brands and ask them. Because there will be very few people here that can honestly tell you which brand will sell better and have any real world experience to back it up.
 
tjsulli790 said:
"Which brand would sell more knives in a retail store with decent line representation and good pricing?"

Perhaps you would be better off calling stores that sell both brands and ask them. Because there will be very few people here that can honestly tell you which brand will sell better and have any real world experience to back it up.
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That's true, but results may vary in different stores. Based on salespeople preferences, demographics, etc What works in one store may not work in another.
 
tjsulli790 said:
"Which brand would sell more knives in a retail store with decent line representation and good pricing?"

Perhaps you would be better off calling stores that sell both brands and ask them. Because there will be very few people here that can honestly tell you which brand will sell better and have any real world experience to back it up.
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I agree with this, but if i had to guess, it would be spyderco...you just cant beat them for the money, IMHO
 
i would think spyderco because they have both high and low cost knives that are all high quality. but that is just my opinion.
 
I like Spyderco knives much, much better, but does BM have better overall sales in the outside world? They might, and I have a suspicion that they might, but I really don't know.
 
RxEnergy said:
That's true, but results may vary in different stores. Based on salespeople preferences, demographics, etc What works in one store may not work in another.
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True but it still may reveal a trend. I mean if you get a hold of 6 stores and they all say Spyderco sells better than the odds are in your favor that Spyderco will sell better.

cckw, Do you have any other stores in your area selling Spyderco or BM? If there is already a local dealer that may play a part in your decision.
 
I am in the market looking for a knife, and after looking at both spyderco and bench, I like spyderco better.
 
BM treats dealers like crap. Minimum advertised prices, etc. Spyderco treats dealers like royalty. The choice, from that standpoint alone, is clear. You need to tell these folks to call a storefront that deals with both brands. One or two phone calls is gonna tell the story.
 
I'd go with Spyderco, especially since the red line from Benchmade is being discontinued, but there are some people who absolutely don't like the Spyderco design, so you might have that to consider.
 
A GOOD knife store will carry both. The point of a store is to sell knives. Stocking only what you like loses money. Watching customers leave without buying doesn't ring your cash register, it rings the door bell on the back of the last you may ever see of that customer.

He won't recommend you, you don't get good word of mouth trade, others won't hear about you, or if they do and ask around, they hear you only sell a few brands. Not worth the visit unless they are in the neighborhood with 10 minutes to kill.

The best customer service is to have the product in stock. In fact, that's the number one complaint seen in posts - out of stock, won't ship, don't have it, can't get it.

How many of us buy on the internet because we just can't get it locally?
 
If I ran a B&M knife store and could only sell one knife line it would be Spyderco. As mentioned, a full range of knives from inexpensive to high tech.

Sal Glesser is a true gentleman, one of the finest people to ever get involved in the industry. We are lucky to have him.
 
Carry Both, they are both good brands of blades but of course some people will like benchmade and others will like spyderco, and then others will like both..
 
I prefer Spyderco, but I could see how Benchmade might even go over a bit better for non-knife people. True, Spyderco has good, and inexpensive, knives in just about every flavor. But a lot of people just don't "get it" right away.

Seems that things like Assisted Opening might attract some non knife people, and Spyderco's blade shapes are often unattractive at some glance to certain people...

But I'd vote Spydie anyways. :P
 
If they don't already carry Kershaw, that would be the one to pick up.
But chances are they do. In which case my personal preference would be Spyderco.
 
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