Buy local or online?

i'm a cheap bastard. i'll happily buy locally and sometimes even pay a few bucks more than ordering online.

however i'll be damned if i'm gonna get raped on the price for the option of buying locally. 10% meh, no problem. 50% oh hell no!
 
I had the same experience trying to by locally in the Ft. Worth area. There's a knife store that has a HUGE selection of knives. I was looking to by my RC-6 and checked out their shop. They wanted $200 for the knife! Crazy. I can get the knife online about half that. In fact I can get an RC-6, Izula, and maybe a RAT-1 (my favorite folder) for about that price. I would love to support a local shop but theres no way I'm going to pay double for knife. $20 more to by local..probably...but double..no way. I ended up buying online.
 
I am contractually bound to sell certain lines at what is called the LARP (Lowest Allowable Retail Price). There are other anachronisms, but they all mean the same thing. It is not an uncommon thing. A manufacturer can pull your dealership if they find you discounting their brand. Benchmade was notorious for that, so, I stopped carrying them. Plus, they stopped selling to distributors, and, wanted everyone to buy directly from them, at a higher price. So, like a lot of dealers, I just decided to not buy any.

There are a couple other lines out there that frown upon lower prices. It has a tendency to "diminish the value of the brand".

If you have a local business that is trustworthy and provides great service, then, by all means, support them. If not, then, shop around on line.
 
there are no local stores around here that sell ESEE knives, all we have is wal mart, and local gun stores that carry buck or sog knives, I proud to say that I've gotten all my rc and esee knives online from Dale @ the knife connection, he's here on bladeforums, and you can give him a call anytime!!!!!
 
the only ESEE/RC knife I have that was bought from a dealer was my Junglas.
All of the others have come from trades and the exchange here on BF. (including 2 I picked up for a buddy before he finally broke down and joined)

to address some of the price differences, B&M stores generally buy from distributors - that adds a level of $$ to the final price. some distributors have sliding scale pricing, depending on how much you buy at a time and/or per year, so if you don't buy at Bass Pro quantity, you have to pay more per piece.
a gun (or knife) dealer selling at 30% over online pricing may be telling the truth about only having a 15% markup if his distributor already hit him with a 10% markup - especially if his distributor is buying from the same online source you are.

OTOH, we already know there doesn't need to be a mid-line distributor for ESEE and there's no MAP or LARP from them, so if your B&M store is telling you these things, it may be information they're geting from their distribution point, or they may be lumping all their lines together and sticking with 10% below MSRP.
Either way, I know I can't afford to pay an extra 30-40% for anything when thanks to inflation I'm already living on a diminishing income. (Thank god for OT & side jobs!)
 
I'm a big fan of supporting my local shops if they can at least be competitive. The money differences your talking about go on-line. Great ESEE dealers that support our forum. :thumbup:
 
A local dealer in my area has great brick and mortar prices, sometimes worth it to pick it up at his store, instead of saving a couple dollars (yeah, I have no patience).

Look in your area for a dealer with good msrp prices. Ask if they can barter the price? Are you a regular customer? They might work with you.
 
I have only bought online cause im not sure where to buy them locally, either in the DC area (mobilized) or in the St. Louis area (normal home). I seem to have good luck with New Graham Knives, CRKS, Rocky National, and KnivesShipFree.com. Prices are all pretty comparable. All have good customer service.
 
I used to buy from a local shop. For years I would go in, buy crappy knives at higher prices even after he "gave me a good deal". I simply didn't know any better. Over the years I spent a lot of money in that place and feel I was ripped off. Now I buy online, it's cheaper and I can shop around for the best prices. Most online shops are cheaper than my local shop even after shipping :confused:
 
When it comes to Esee I have to buy online. No dealers local. In fact I had never seen an Esee/Rat in person, until mine was delivered. Rocky National did a great job, but I'm looking at some that have been mentioned as well.
 
I bought online.

I hated to not support my local business. I went with the-knife-connection.com
They were cheaper by $65.25 if I recall right.

Sorry local dealer, we're in a recession and I can't trash $65.25 away.
 
The closest I have to a local source is a leatherman dealer (have bought several from them), and Wal-Mart (they don't get my knife money).
A larger center (4 hours drive) has a knife shop that has seen lots of my business - until last year. I picked up a SOG Twitch XL Tanto from them, and later found I could have picked it up online for literally 1/2 what I paid.
I bought my ESEE's from an online dealer based in the same city for a very reasonable price.
 
One thing that bothers me is when someone wants to go into the local store to handle the merchandise, then go order it online.

I used to work at a camera store a long time ago, and I really got irritated at people who want to come into the store, play with the cameras, see what they like, use up the salesperson's time, and then not buy anything, and you find out they ordered it online. The online stores may be cheaper, they don't have to have a "demo" model for people to play with, but don't take advantage of the local store if you do order online.
[/rant off]
:)

It's not the local dealer's fault he has to collect sales tax either :). I just don't know of local dealers near me with a good selection -- even being "in the metroplex" they may still be an hour drive away from me.
 
I feel bad for the little shops. Usually the owners and staff know their stuff but can't beat internet prices. But the big box stores are worse. I went to a Cabela's store and the guy was surrounded by hundreds of cheap folders and blades and didn't have a clue about why you should buy one over another.

Its not right but the all the hobbyists who opened stores are disappearing . I always like to buy local and build relationships but most things aren't repaired there, the prices aren't structured for small volume and retail space keeps getting more expensive, not to mention the cost of holding inventory and hell even talking to customers costs money.

That's why forums with folks that sell online are becoming the new retail environment. You can say something once, reach hundreds of people and if they like your style they can click on your internet store and buy something.

Its also why manufacturers can make less of a good thing and know that a smart dealer will grab his allotment and sell it through quickly. It reduces costs when you don't have unsold inventory stealing your cash flow.
 
rodloos said:
One thing that bothers me is when someone wants to go into the local store to handle the merchandise, then go order it online.

I used to work at a camera store a long time ago, and I really got irritated at people who want to come into the store, play with the cameras, see what they like, use up the salesperson's time, and then not buy anything, and you find out they ordered it online. The online stores may be cheaper, they don't have to have a "demo" model for people to play with, but don't take advantage of the local store if you do order online.
[/rant off]
:)

It's not the local dealer's fault he has to collect sales tax either :). I just don't know of local dealers near me with a good selection -- even being "in the metroplex" they may still be an hour drive away from me.
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Sales tax is not an issue for me. I figure most online dealers charge shipping which is close to the cost for added tax. My issue is when you think the local guy is not being honest and claims the online dealers are the dishonest people. By the way the time I stopped by the local and used their time, I thought i was going to purchase there and there was no other customer their. Believe me, the sales person gave me way more info then I was looking for and seemed to enjoy talking. I doubt I wasted their time. It was when I found out the price was extremely higher and their reasoning seemed fishy did I decide I might want to purchase online. Don't forget the whole reason for this thread was because I felt a little guilty not to support the local guy, but really having a hard time with cost difference and possible dishonesty. The RC4 locally is $145 with just Kydex Sheath. Online that same knife is $83 - $90. You can get the RC4 with Kydex and Molle Back for $109.
 
RYP said:
I feel bad for the little shops. Usually the owners and staff know their stuff but can't beat internet prices. But the big box stores are worse. I went to a Cabela's store and the guy was surrounded by hundreds of cheap folders and blades and didn't have a clue about why you should buy one over another...
Click to expand...

I feel bad too and I have bought from smaller shops more often than big box. Again, my problem is the cost difference is worth the value of a whole other ESEE knife. I have also mentioned that I would even spend a little more at a local shop, but I have a hard time believing the price needs to be double. What the small shop is missing out on is volume sales when they over price a product. Sure, knowledge and touching the item is worth soething. I see that. But not when you think they are taking advantage of you. In business you learn their is an appropraite price. Charge too little and you make too little profit, have a shortage of product as demand ends up more than supply and eventually fail. Charge too much and you hurt demand for your product and fail. There is a good business sense price and IMHO its not almost twice as much as online pricing. I have purchased other items such as electronics at local stores and the pricing was within $10 of online pricing. I have never experienced such a price difference which is why i have had no problem buying locally. I buy my ammo locally and it is more than online, but not double the cost.
 
Sorry for all the typos. I start to get a passionate and type way faster than i should.
 
I buy online. I used to buy at one outlet store, but they shut down. One big reason I shop online (aside from free shipping, lower prices, taxs, ect.) is online. You don't have a SALESMAN.. BSing ya. "well its like this" Yeah right! Online Enjoy. edgy:thumbup:
 
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