[Alberg30] Bacon, Ocean Outfitters, Fawcetts

[Brian and Elaine Timmins]

Tom,
Don't misunderstand me. I DO use West Marine a lot. I have 3 conveinient
stores plus 2 VERY conveinient stores in my area. When I first bought my
Alberg, I spent uncounted dollars at West, rebuilding, refitting and setting
it up. (I rescued my boat from near junk) I count on West a lot and do use
their excellent mail order set up as well. The only real problem I see is
that in my area, their size and power has put most of their competition out.
Even Defender closed their New York store.(Now, it's a hike to the other
side of Connecticut to go and touch something before I buy it).
Nothing against West Marine, I just like competitive pricing for similar
products.
I'm also not happy about salesmen pushing house brands, even though I know
West doesn't manufacture what they sell. Once a product goes from "Name
Brand" to "House Brand" it frequently means it was manufactured especially
for the house at a negotiated price. Then, the manufacturer has to maintain
their profit so the product HAS to be produced cheaper. If their are enough
resellers around, profit can be made through volume. If the number of
resellers is shrinking so production stays at the same level or below, and
the return on investment has to stay at least as good for the manufacturer,
these "House Brand" arrangements cause the quality to go down.
I'll vote for fair competition in the open marketplace!
Regards, Brian
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tom Sutherland" <sutherlandt at prodigy.net>
To: <public-list at alberg30.org>
Sent: Wednesday, April 04, 2001 9:56 AM
Subject: Re: [Alberg30] Bacon, Ocean Outfitters, Fawcetts


> I feel like I have to step in here and defend West Marine a little bit.
> For those of us out here in mid America things would be pretty tough
> without what I consider a real good mail order outfit such as WM.
>
> I remember the first time I ever stepped inside Fawcetts several years
> ago I was shocked at the price of there goods. I don't recall anyone
> taking me off to the side and explaining their pricing structure.
>
> I would have to bet that some of Fawcetts more competitive pricing has
> come as a direct result of places like West Marine.
>
> Just my .02 worth and a bit of support for a company (WM) which has
> served myself and many of my sailing cohorts very well over the years.
>
> Tom S
> A30  # 412
>
>
> James Davis wrote:
> >
> >    Part 1.1    Type: Plain Text (text/plain)
> >            Encoding: quoted-printable
>
>
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