Shop Loyalty or Cheapest Price?

b00n

b00n

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Dec 15, 2016
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As the title indicates I was wondering what everybodys preference was? Do you stick to 1-2 shops who provide excellent service and okay prices? Do you look everywhere for the lowest price? Do you pay a bit more if it's a local business you want to support?
We all got our budgets so money is always a question and nobody would grossly overpay just to help a store, at least I wouldn't and imagine most others wouldn't either.
I have settled on 3-4 shops that I buy from depending on the knife brand, I at least try to buy from vendors I bought from before, I paid a bit more at times but it was never more than about 5%.
And when I paid that bit extra it was from a store where I had great service before.
 
Ideally of course you find a great shop with the best prices, but that doesn't always work unfortunately.
 
Quite difficult to find good shop with good prices where I live so I usually have to shop online.

When buying online I usually stick to 4-5 shops that I trust for having a good customer service and reasonable prices.
 
Usually but not always the cheapest price.

I shop for knives at various sites, including BF, EB, a local dealer and variety of online retailers. I still buy knives from online retailers despite their slightly higher prices, depending on the availability of the knife I want to buy, the cost differential, the method of payment that they accept, the speed/reliability of shipment and their return policy.

I have only bought 1 out of over 200 knives that I've purchased recently from my local dealer because he had the knife I wanted when I wanted to buy it but his prices are generally too high given the availability of the same knives for less online. However, I would not refrain from buying more knives from that dealer if he had what I wanted when I wanted it for a price I would be willing to pay.

Unfortunately, loyalty doesn't have much to do w/it; it's business.
 
I don't buy wholesale, so if I get good service I might pay extra. If the seller cares about the product and the customer, then I'm always happy to pay even if it's "more expensive". And that's not just knives but everything.
 
Unfortunately, I really have no decent brick and mortar stores nearby that deal in much selection of knives.
That being the case, I do almost all of my knife shopping online. What I look for is...
A. Decent pricing
B. Good care in packaging and speedy shipping
C. And them having what interests me

I have a few online companies I stick with, and it's because they fill those needs I list above.
I too look at it as just a business transaction. If a company turns out to be a good source for me, (meeting my needs), I may then become a return customer... A win win situation :)
 
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I try to buy from smaller mom and pop stores whether its online or not, there are many online mom and pop stores. As long as they have good service that's what matters. I don't care if I spend 5 or 10 more dollars. I will also rarely if ever buy from Amazon or Ebay, even though many mom and pops sell on those sites, I just can't support them for what they do to sellers and how they treat them.


I won't really buy stuff from stores who are extremely higher, but if its 10 more or so, I do not mind.
 
I shop online from the same three dealers that I've used for years. The prices are competitive and I know that I'll get quality service. Then there's this tool store downtown that stocks some unusual knives at very reasonable prices. I vowed to avoid the place until I saw the Enzo necker in stock. They seem to know my weaknesses. I'm heading downtown on Monday, methinks.
 
I don't buy much anymore, but when I do get ready to buy, I try to support local shops first. There's a store in Athens that has a pretty good selection and it usually includes new BM releases, so I'll go there first. If I like the knife, I'll buy it from them even at MSRP. If I need to order online, I usually try NGK first since they're a "hometown" store from years ago when I was growing up in WV.
 
My preferred shops are all online. The closest Brick&Mortar store is about a 2.5 hour round trip, which isn't exactly what I call economical. So I buy from them online.
As others stated, I don't buy from Ebay anything anymore and from Amazon just certain things (Books, Movies, Batteries and such. No knives, or or others things I habe other sources for.)
 
I was pondering this very question this morning since my favorite online dealer has a knife I want for $35 more than other sites for some reason.
 
I buy from the online shops that support Bladeforums exclusively or purchase from the exchange right here.
Just so happens that I find the best prices around these parts as well.
 
Wolverine666 said:
I was pondering this very question this morning since my favorite online dealer has a knife I want for $35 more than other sites for some reason.
Click to expand...

Considerable amount. Although it depends a bit on the overall price. On a 1100$ Shiro it is less significant than a 10$ Opinel. :D
 
I used to go with the cheapest price I could find when I started out collecting. I've since found a few stores I'm loyal to because have good prices and excellent customer service. It's also no accident that all those stores are supporting dealers here.
 
I'll pay a little more to a local store (5 to 10%, over online price give or take a few bucks depending on the knife, demand, availability etc). I try to do my best to keep stores in my area going. If the price difference is more than that I have no guilt ordering online. Loyalty needs to work both ways.
 
The only game in my town is a brick-n-mortar “tactical supply” that has good-to -average prices on the knives they stock. Their selection is limited, but if they have what I’m looking for, I’m loyal. It doesn’t matter if I can save a few bucks online.

If they don’t have it, I’m price shopping.
 
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I’m always seeing signs saying “thanks for your support”...I don’t “support” stores...I shop at stores that have the product I want at a price I think is reasonable...and, we shop at Amazon whenever possible...not ashamed of it one bit...

As far as knives go, I don’t collect manufactured knives...I buy custom knives only from the maker (so far)...I don’t see any reason to deal with a middle man...that way the maker gets all my money and doesn’t have to share it with someone who had nothing to do with the creation process...
 
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I kind of do a combination. I generally prefer BladeHQ, because of the extra effort they go to to make informative and fun YouTube videos. Nice to support ma 'n pa business.

However, if I'm shopping for a knife and I feel like the price is high, I do look on Amazon and ebay for comparison. Then, I decide if the higher price at BladeHQ is worth the premium. There's only so much mark-up I'm willing to tolerate. Plus, it takes twice as long to get the knife.
 
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