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Effective December 1 West Marine will no longer price match their products at their store against online competitors. They won't even match their own online price or offer at the store.
A friend was attempting to purchase an item and had the West Marine webpage, where the price difference was significant. The store would not honor the price and quoted the new policy and told him, nicley, to go order it from the online store.
i know i will get flamed here . Good for them people dont realize the overhead and cost involved in running a store vs online i could make this into a long lenthy paragraph but dont have the time thoughts that come to mind shipping, employees, advertising, stock ,rent and more
i bye all means am not siding with west marine as i feel they are expensive ,and do business with boaters world but their stock is by far bigger then most marine retail stores
maybe if west marine didn't try to gouge you on everything then this policy woudln't be needed. Overhead or not they still have to be competitive to remain in business.
maybe if west marine didn't try to gouge you on everything then this policy woudln't be needed. Overhead or not they still have to be competitive to remain in business.
i guess with them buying their competitor out and the recent boaters world closures it dont seem to be effecting them
All I know is that every time I've been into a West Marine I say to myself, "man are these guys expensive"! I guess with 3,000 plus stores (?) they have managed to find a way into a lot of people's pockets.....I know they haven't scratched my pockets yet!
To me it's crazy to think that a company won't honor it's own pricing????
To me the stuff a company sells should be the same price weather it's online or in a store. I don't like this so I'll avoid shopping there even more then I do already.
I understand the concept of employees ext. but they need to have the same pricing all over.
Or, just look at it at the store and buy it online. Paul
We ahve our choice of WM or Boaters World here for the large boating supply chains. Last year I noticed that the price for the zinc on the trim tab on my Yamaha was excatly double at WM over Boaters World.
I won't be shopping there anymore without the price match policy. Defender is not that far, and there are some GREAT online vendors right here on THT.
.. but they need to have the same pricing all over.
On-line operations are lower overhead than brick and morter, therefor they can have lower prices. Makes perfect sense why the price wouldn't be the same in the store. By all means look at it and then buy on-line. But for those with "gotta have it now" syndrome it's pretty simple, pay the price or go elsewhere!
"they need", they need", jeez, every Tom, Dick, and Harry is a marketing expert! WM seems to do reasonably well by deciding what "they need" all by themselves. Maybe when Tom, Dick, and Harry run a company as large someone will listen.
It's hard to refute the business judgement of WM when they are as successful as they are. There is no shortage of people who do not shop there as is evidenced in this and many threads. Should WM continue to neglect that segment of population or should they be looking for ways to make customers (profit) out of them?
WM is a Stock Market Company. A Publically held Company is under pressure from their main stock holders to make more money all the time. Plus a Public Company is free wheeling when it comes to wages at the top of the ladder. THey will always be looking for the next way to squeeze a buck out of the consumer, bump of the Competitor, charge the Manufacturer out of this world advertising fees, discounts for shelf space, etc.
Bottom Line- you pay more, store employees make the same, no ones job is safe, they may have it in stock or not. The one thing that isnt going to change is the Top Dogs, CEO, CFO, Board Members, Major Stock Holders, Etc. are going to continue getting richer by the minute.
Online shopping is the way to go. They have to lower the online price to compete with so many others. And 95% of what you buy online at West and Boaters World you can buy on Ebay for 50%. I shop for everything on EBay and I save alot of money. EBay is where a guy is happy to make 25% profit on a sale. All the major guys are making 100%
BoatersWorld has a huge online market and people dont even know it. Shopzilla, Buy.com, Amazon and more. All get their marine products thru BoatersWorld. They both get a % of the sale. But if you Google any marine product BoatersWorld will have10 of the first 30 sites or the link will lead you to them or one of their trading partners.
Hamilton Marine will be getting my sales from now on. They went above and beyond for me last month on 3 cold water suits. The price could not be beat either.
__________________ 2003 Boston Whaler 255 Conquest w/ twin 200 HPDI's
I've never been a racist. I don't like the white half either.
I took this off the WM website just now. It seems to differ from what is being said here. Is the site not yet updated or maybe the store manager didn't quite understand his own companies policy. Including the shipping cost does seem like a new addition from what I have read in the past but is certainly a far cry from not matching online retailers.
Price Match Policy
West Marine guarantees the lowest price available from any competitor on identical items we carry. When in our stores or on the phone with us, simply ask the manager to match the advertised price of any local competitor or the final delivered price (e.g., adding to the cost of the item any shipping and handling charges) of any internet or catalog competitor. You may be asked for a copy of the advertisement or catalog which shows the local or final delivered price. After confirming the price and availability of the item, the price will be matched. When shopping online email CustomerCare@westmarine.com - include the model number(s) of the item(s) that you are interested in buying, and paste the URL the item(s) from the online competitors to match. These requests will be reviewed daily, and once confirmed you will receive an email with instructions on how to simply purchase this product at the final delivered price. Please note that price matching cannot be combined with coupons or other promotional offers.
Just a question on this line. Do any of you who complain that West Marine is ridiculously expensive also buy Soda, Milk, Bread or Beer at convenience stores or gas stations? Why don't we start a complain thread for every other retailer charging a premium for the convenience of their products? Ever buy children's Advil at midnight at a gas station? It is damn expensive but if you need it and don't have it then you pay to play! West Marine has two stores within 5 miles of my house and it is very convenient. Certainly not the cheapest in town but really easy to get in to and out of 7 days a week. Doesn't mean you have to buy everything there. Funny thing for me is frozen sardines at WM is cheaper than any bait and tackle store in my town. I've also gotten an awesome set of bibs and jacket/ foul weather gear for about $50.00 total. Oh and then there is the example that my local WM store manager personally located two Shimano Tiagra 50W reels at an upstate New York WM when they were put on clearance this year due to the model change/handle. Wow I paid $300.00 a piece for +$600.00 reels, and he found me the 30W and got me one for 265.00. So I just thought one person who had a positive experience could post a dissenting opinion.
I actually had this exact conversation with a WM store manager yesterday. The policy is effective Dec. 1 so it may not be on the web yet. Thier own people aren't real thrilled about this either. The manager I spoke with said he thinks it's going to cost his store at least 20% of thier sales. What he's the most upset about is that the stores can't even match the "mother companies" pricing.
My guess is that you'll see the stores getting smaller and the stuff in them getting more expensive. I think that the mucky-mucks at WM have figured out that we all only go there when we have to or we can't wait so they'll be sticking it to us in those situations from now on.
On a positive note, the online retailers have gotten sooo good that it really doesn't make that big of a difference. BOE for example can have stuff for you the next day, I know they did for me, so why do I need to go to WM. As far as the stuff I will continue to buy at WM, I don't care, they can have an extra couple of bucks a year. Where the mistake is though, I spend thousands and thousands a year on boating that they don't get.
I actually had this exact conversation with a WM store manager yesterday. The policy is effective Dec. 1 so it may not be on the web yet. Thier own people aren't real thrilled about this either. The manager I spoke with said he thinks it's going to cost his store at least 20% of thier sales. What he's the most upset about is that the stores can't even match the "mother companies" pricing.
My guess is that you'll see the stores getting smaller and the stuff in them getting more expensive. I think that the mucky-mucks at WM have figured out that we all only go there when we have to or we can't wait so they'll be sticking it to us in those situations from now on.
On a positive note, the online retailers have gotten sooo good that it really doesn't make that big of a difference. BOE for example can have stuff for you the next day, I know they did for me, so why do I need to go to WM. As far as the stuff I will continue to buy at WM, I don't care, they can have an extra couple of bucks a year. Where the mistake is though, I spend thousands and thousands a year on boating that they don't get.
I saw the absorber. Used to dry cars etc.. a synthetic chamy of sorts.. i love this thing. $15.99 at west marine adn 8.99 everywhere else from autozone to target. How can they justify doubling the retail price?
I saw the absorber. Used to dry cars etc.. a synthetic chamy of sorts.. i love this thing. $15.99 at west marine adn 8.99 everywhere else from autozone to target. How can they justify doubling the retail price?
amazing but they claim to be there for the boating public and they wonder why people shop around for prices and ask them to match because people know that either you pay a ok price or get ass raped...
New West Marine Prince Match Policy 
thoughts that come to mind shipping, employees, advertising, stock ,rent and more
