Who buys from the manufacturer?

A

addylo

Joined
Oct 28, 2009
Messages
1,521
The recent Black Friday sales period had me wondering if anyone orders direct from the manufacturer anymore.

I received emails from a couple of knife makers and various other product manufacturers (i.e. Maxpedition, etc) advertising discounts up to 25% or even 30% off MSRP. In most cases this put the price down into the same range as their distributor's regular (non-sale) street price.

So this had me wondering, in the case of production knives does anyone buy their knife direct from the manufacturer anymore? Are you willing to pay full MSRP? And if so, why?

(This topic has probably been done but if so I couldn't find it.)
 
Thank you for your participation in this poll. After 24 hours the final results are in and the vote has been tabulated.

It appears that 100% do NOT buy direct from the manufacturer (or you are afraid to admit you throw money away by doing so). The margin of error is +-2%.
 
I must have a problem with my software, since I don't see a poll; that said, I buy from Spyderco direct if a knife they offer and that I want is only sold by them, and not for general distribution or sale by vendors....the Swick 3 is an example, and the soon to come Swick 4 will only be sold by Spyderco. Otherwise, if isn't on sale, I don't buy it. The only knife I bought that is never discounted anywhere is a Strider PT, which I was able to order through the Navy Exchange for $175.00.
 
The poll was my weak attempt at humor.

And yep, that's the only scenario that makes sense. Come to think of it, I've done the same.
 
I've rarely bought directly from a manufacturer. Some companies, such as ESEE, are huge supporters of LE/Mil. and offer great discounts which are unbeatable. Most companies, one you mentioned specifically, sends out these "hot deals!" emails which still cost much more than the discount outlets. The funny thing is I picked up some nylon gear from one of the discount outlets and discovered it shipped directly from that manufacturer and beat their price by a wide margin. The other exception, aside from pro-deals and such, is an occasional really great deal. I picked up two double hammocks from Trek Light during their 44% off Thanksgiving deal and it beat every price around. Good luck and shop wisely.
 
It makes sense that manufacturers charge more for small retail orders than their distributors, after all they make most of their money through bulk sales and it wouldn't be a sound business practice to undermine their own customers.

Like some folks mentioned before, I only buy from manufacturers when they offer some sort of special or exclusive deal.
 
I think the exception is the one listed above I. The 3rd post and warehouse sales like KAI does which usually beats any Black Friday sale by far, but it only takes place at their "brick and mortar" warehouse and not online. It is obvious why and very cool especially at the prices they offer on their products.
 
I buy from the SFO whenever I visit Golden. I find it impossible to walk around their display room and not walk out with a new sharp and pointy. Last time was a few years ago. I bought an orange Mili and a yellow Aqua Salt on clearance for right at what the street price was at the time. When I checked out I discovered they were adding a Cricket at no charge if the amount was high enough so i added a tee shirt to bring it up to the qualifying amount. A good day in Golden!

I handled customer and technical service for a high end audio manufacturer at one time and I got many calls from people thinking to cut out the middle man and get a deal by ordering direct. We always refused in a nice way and directed them to their dealer.
 
I bought a knife from Buck when I was on vacation and visited the factory. It was spendy there but I didnt mind beats the other crap I get at other vacation spots (its actually a great knife).
 
A nearby dealer charges full retail, but they are a registered shop on the Benchmade website.
I dont mind paying retail to have zero doubt that it isnt a fake.
 
I buy crk knives directly, but they aren't discounted so you are not paying any more. All other knives I buy through dealers.
 
bladeboss said:
A nearby dealer charges full retail, but they are a registered shop on the Benchmade website.
Click to expand...
We've got a similar retailer here. I'll go there to check out a particular knife and then go home and order it from an online dealer I trust.

I don't mind supporting a local small business by paying a fair markup above the dealers cost. We all have to earn a living. But this place charges full MSRP on nearly every knife. I am not paying that.
 
Most manufacturers who sell through distributors try to not directly compete with their own resellers, so they keep their prices high on purpose.

I've only purchased direct from the manufacturer on three occasions, and that was for limited edition knives that were only offered directly to paid members of that manufacturer's collector's club.
 
I made a big Cold Steel order last winter. Will not do so again - not because their prices or products were bad, but because the shipping, duties and taxes were astronomically high.
 
I have ordered from Cold Steel and Emerson directly. The best way to get lefty Emerson's is from the manufacturer...
 
addylo said:
We've got a similar retailer here. I'll go there to check out a particular knife and then go home and order it from an online dealer I trust.

I don't mind supporting a local small business by paying a fair markup above the dealers cost. We all have to earn a living. But this place charges full MSRP on nearly every knife. I am not paying that.
Click to expand...

Brick and mortar shops have overhead expenses they must meet to stay in business. If everyone does as you do the shops will go out of business. Then you can complain about not having a shop to handle all the goodies. I'm not saying you're wrong, just that you should expect to lose the local shop if you don't care enough about having them around to toss them a bone once in a while.
 
I have had manufacturers INFORM me that I would save a bundle if I ordered instead through one of their distributors. So I did.
I was quite young at the time...
:)
sonnydaze
 
A number of manufacturers sell directly for the same price that their dealers do. In those cases I will buy from them. I've splurged on a William Henry a few times and purchased directly from them at least once. They keep their prices the same (albeit high end) the same all down the line. Mike
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top