Price match revised

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Capt Jack

Senior Member
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211
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Salty
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Fu Hwa 34 Europa
West has revised their price match policy. Now the store has to be within 50 miles of the location you are purchasing at. It was nice while it lasted but I really wondered how brick and mortar could match internet prices for long.

John
 
Here is their policy:

Price Match Guarantee

If you find a lower price on an identical product (Brand and Model) at a retail competitor’s store or website within 30 days of purchase, West Marine will match that price. Available sources for price matching include competitor stores and websites that carry the identical product (Brand and Model) to be price matched. This guarantee does not apply to refurbished, used, damaged or open display box items; freight, delivery charges and installation; items sold at auction sites or liquidation sales; PLUS Plans, shipping/handling charges; expired ads/pricing over 30 days; or competitors outside the U.S.A. West Marine Stores in Puerto Rico only price match their own local competitors. This guarantee applies to the price of the product before shipping, handling or sales tax charge(s).

To have a price matched, follow these steps:

Visit your local West Marine store or call 1-800-BOATING (262-8464) and let a West Marine Associate know you have an item to price match.
Provide the name of the competitor, the item price and the advertisement, store or online location where you saw the price.
The West Marine Associate will confirm the price of the item and that it meets all requirements for our price match guarantee, and match it.​

I see nothing there like what you're describing.
 
West has revised their price match policy. Now the store has to be within 50 miles of the location you are purchasing at. It was nice while it lasted but I really wondered how brick and mortar could match internet prices for long.

John


Internet pricing & shopping was the best thing that could have happened in our industry / fraternity ....so WM can keep on screwing you until someone brings the " price match " to their attention ... and then they will match it ... LOL That's absurd ! They should beat it by at least 10% or pee on em'. f
 
Internet pricing & shopping was the best thing that could have happened in our industry / fraternity ....so WM can keep on screwing you until someone brings the " price match " to their attention ... and then they will match it ... LOL That's absurd ! They should beat it by at least 10% or pee on em'. f

Everybody seems to want something for nothing.

You want to be able to see, touch and maybe try it on before you buy it, today. That comes at a price. If it's all about price, then find it, buy it online, wait for it to show up days later, maybe return it to get the right one. If none of the local store holds any value to you, then don't shop there.

Ted
 
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Here is their policy:





I see nothing there like what you're describing.



Agreed. I was at the Punta Gorda store and told it is new and just implemented. I was shown a small sign near the register with the new policy on it. It was in the West colors and did not look like a local change.

Ted - I agree with you and went home to place the order online. Quart of Cetol was part of the order. West $54.69. Defender $36.49 + hazmat ship $4.99. I will pay some premium for service and overhead but ouch. My bride and I have owned and run businesses and never would have expected that kind of premium for convenience. Not trying to argue the point just my opinion. Everyone will make their own choice based on the need. If I was in the middle of a project and ran out the price may have been worth it.

John
 
They just updated their web page to the new policy. Last night it showed the old policy and the new policy this morning.

Retail stores within 50 miles and Amazon if shipped direct from Amazon.

Although it’s nice having a store next door to marina I guess it’s back to ordering from Defender.

John
 
They just updated their web page to the new policy. Last night it showed the old policy and the new policy this morning.

Retail stores within 50 miles and Amazon if shipped direct from Amazon.

Although it’s nice having a store next door to marina I guess it’s back to ordering from Defender.

John

Price Match Guarantee
If you find a lower price on an identical product at a local retail store, West Marine will match that price within 30 days of purchase.

We will price match:

Local Stores within 50 miles
Amazon, direct from Amazon only
Sale and regular prices before shipping, handling and/or sales tax charges
Retail prices for wholesale Customers​

This is consistent with many vendors. Still matching Amazon. Just not matching all the other vendors selling on Amazon where the products may not be the same and the guarantees not the same. Also, note that they do this for any prices within 30 days so allows you to purchase and then get home and find another lower price.
 
Seems fair to me. Being able to walk in and grab something should have a cost. The exact amount that's worth is an individual choice.
 
I suspect WM will continue to get most of my money. You see, I dont plan ahead much.
So many things I need now, not next week.
We have BOWs and Lewis also in the Ft Lauderdale area.
And one other wholesale place.
 
Greetings,
Mr. OD. Wasn't aware of Lewis-thanks. What is the other wholesale place in FLL you were referring to please?
 
Agreed. I was at the Punta Gorda store and told it is new and just implemented. I was shown a small sign near the register with the new policy on it. It was in the West colors and did not look like a local change.

Ted - I agree with you and went home to place the order online. Quart of Cetol was part of the order. West $54.69. Defender $36.49 + hazmat ship $4.99. I will pay some premium for service and overhead but ouch. My bride and I have owned and run businesses and never would have expected that kind of premium for convenience. Not trying to argue the point just my opinion. Everyone will make their own choice based on the need. If I was in the middle of a project and ran out the price may have been worth it.

John


And remember that Defender is a retail store. They do a lot of mail order business, obviously, but they are brick and mortar, selling for $36.49



Jamestown is another brick and mortar store, selling Cetol quarts for $35.92


Hamilton Marine is also a brick and mortar store, selling Cetol for $39.99


Seamar is another brick and mortar retail marine supply outfit selling Cetol for $39.69


Fisheries is a brick and mortar store selling Cetol for $36.70


Brick and mortar is no excuse for West's pricing. It's flat out rape and pillage.
 
Completed an entire trawler refit about 90 percent of lower value parts using internet. Even beats Donovan and Land n Sea list less 40-45 percent. Huge savings. Bought new 8hp dinghy motor brand new package for"make an offer" price which was accepted by the authorised mfr dealer ...
 
Greetings,
Mr. OD. Wasn't aware of Lewis-thanks. What is the other wholesale place in FLL you were referring to please?

LOL If I could remember the name I would have posted it. They are in the same area of Lewis. Same road, further out..... around the bend in the road on the right.

Years ago, I remember how I would always turn right, going home, where their was a big oak tree on the left. Some fool cut the tree down..... I missed my turn a couple of times. LOL
 
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Greetings,
Mr. OD. I hear ya' brother. The memory ain't the first thing to go...Right behind Lester's diner. Why am I not surprised?


Regarding WM price matching: Mr. (Saint) tt. makes a very valid point regarding WM's competition having brick and mortar locations. As extensively discussed in another thread, WM seems to have a somewhat strange, to me at least, business model. I really thought WM had turned things around with their price matching policy and as a result, they had regained my patronage. With this latest "qualification" they may be sent back to Coventry.



Also interesting is the "wholesale" side of WM, ie: Port Supply. https://www.westmarine.com/PressRoom/Press-Release-2015-02-03


“We expect the new portsupply.com to be very well received by our commercial accounts,” says Osborn. “Customers are free to make all their purchases independently online, shop the convenience and assortment of our 275+ stores, or utilize the service and expertise of our sales team. It’s always the customer’s choice what selling channel they prefer to purchase from.”



So, ONE segment of their customer base gets a price break and another doesn't? Perhaps this is common practice in the sales industry but it still rubs me the wrong way...
 
So, ONE segment of their customer base gets a price break and another doesn't? Perhaps this is common practice in the sales industry but it still rubs me the wrong way...

They've done a lot of damage to Port Supply as well. The original setup was a wholesale company and a retail company. As is normal, the wholesale sold to those who would resell the product and worked on a very slim margin in doing so. No different than any of the other wholesalers who sell to dealers, boatyards and yacht management companies. Industry professionals like captains and engineers fit in between somewhere.

However, along the way they decided to try to consolidate under the West Marine name and locations. As a result, Port Supply is no longer a pure wholesaler as their discounts are not competitive. Also, they stopped giving the full discount to many of their customers who now get a lesser discount.

It is common for companies to have a wholesale business and also go into retail. However, it's extremely important they keep the two separate and are firm in customer requirements for the wholesale customer.

Here is their current requirement for purchasing from West Marine Pro.

West Marine Pro offers competitive wholesale discounts for companies that are in the full-time business of selling boats and/or selling or installing marine equipment, government agencies, full-time charter companies or companies who are purchasing marine equipment for use in the manufacture of non-marine products. Accounts must maintain a minimum annual volume of $1,500.​

A brief look at a company that has maintained wholesale and retail independently. D. S. Hull Company is a long time wholesaler located in Fort Lauderdale. They're the "other one" on the list. They opened Boat Owners Warehouse as a retail company. While BOW does have good pricing, they do not offer the pricing DS Hull does, nor should they. However, Port Supply is no longer competitive with DS Hull and West Marine isn't competitive with BOW. A lot easier to be in the marine business in South Florida than to be nationwide however.

This is common in other industries but one must be careful not to compromise the wholesale side. We sell some products both wholesale and retail. The wholesale companies sell only to legitimate retailers. They do not allow any walk in customers. Their locations are in warehouses. Meanwhile the retail stores are in high traffic areas, have no wholesale or discount prices. Their overhead is much higher. The average sale of the wholesale company is 50 times that of the retail. The rent of the retail location is 10 times that of the wholesale. Other overhead is also many times. Even buying is very different. The retail will buy one of a kind or small quantities of identical items, typically no more than 10 or so of any item per store. The wholesale will not buy less than 100 of any item and often buys many times that. The two businesses are kept separate in every way.
 
Greetings,
Mr. OD. I hear ya' brother. The memory ain't the first thing to go...Right behind Lester's diner. Why am I not surprised?
...[/QUOTE

It is not right behind Lester's but it is close
 
The real wholesale distributors in Ft. Lauderdale are Lewis, Donovan, and Land & Sea. I heard that Lewis recently filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy.

In theory you shouldn’t be able to buy from them unless you have a marine related business and a State of Florida resale certificate.

I think Lewis got pretty sloppy about enforcing those requirements and lost a lot of their real re-sellers business.

Frankly I’m glad I’m out of the retail business. I have seven cats. There is a Petco store about five minutes away but I buy most of my supplies online from Chewy. I feel guilty because it’s really nice to have a store so close.

If you go to BOW in Ft. Lauderdale, ask for Pam Hutchison. She used to work for me and is terrific! Tell her I sent you.
 
Luckily I planned to go to WM on Sunday after being out on the boat because I was adding 100 ft of anchor chain (5/16, G4). Earlier in the week I had checked online for price match and found WM was $5.99/ft and Defender $3.44/ft. The cashier honored the 'match' and mentioned that the policy was changing and Defender was one that was being 'dropped'. Lucked out on that one ... saved $272.85 with tax.
 
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