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Another reason to not shop Cabelas

8K views 88 replies 56 participants last post by  Don Freeman 
#1 ·
I normally like to shop the small shops but I had this gift certificate that I needed to use and went to Cabelas at Tulalip. Trying to find something to spend the gift certificate on I came accross an encap of rod and reel combos all set up with everthing needed to hit the water, normally $169 but had a sale pice sign on the top of the endcap for $59. I know from the past that the quality of the Cabelas line isn't so good but for the right price, what the heck, might make a good gift for one of the kidsSo I grabbed a box and headed to the cash register. To my suprise it rang up at $169. After a long discussion at the register, ended up going back to the guys in the fly shop and found out that the folks that set up the endcap the previous night put the wrong sign on the endcap. Being that it was well into the afternoon I was suprised that they hadn't noticed this big mistake. The best that they could do for me is to take the sign down and not even an appoligy for the mistake.They made me feel like I was the idiot and it had a little of the feeling of the old bait and switch. Well I guess it was my mistake to believe in the encap sale sign and maybe a bigger mistake to walk into the place at all. Won't be making that mistake again!
 
#64 ·
I like cabela's generally and have for a very long time before they had stores (almost all my clothes are cabela's, purchased by catalog). I have their credit card, and have had nothing but outstanding customer service by phone (live people), or in person at their nearest store (~110 miles in a different state, Nevada). No issues at all in anything (returns, exchanges). They can open a store up in California any time they want.
 
#65 ·
I like bashing, so here's one... my mom n pop store has me mail back in the R U HEARING ME the same rod I can buy at Cablea's for 40$ rubles cheaper at Cabz place, get it these are BOAT RODS not to impress u gents from the other ENGLAND but the time from the tea n crumpents joint that I so liked very well just doesn't suit my justification of my hard earned pawn handling skills.
 
#66 ·
I've stopped doing the Cabela's thing after an experience a couple of winters ago. It was a couple of weeks before Christmas and my father in law and I made the trip up to Tulalip with my three boys and three nephews (all under 10 years old). We had given them each $15.00 and had done a drawing so that each would buy one gift for whomever they drew. While we were looking for treasures, my wife calls and emails a coupon that would save us $30.00 off our purchase. So I've got this coupon on my new smartphone which my wife assures me they can scan at the register. It sounded suspect to me so I waited in line at customer service for forty minutes to make sure it was O.K. while my father in law shopped with the boys. I finally get to the front of the line and they assure me, "oh yes we can just scan it at the register no problem." We finally get our shopping done and I stealthily load up all of the handwarmers, mini yellow knock off leatherman tools with LEDs, camo stuffed animals and popguns, while grandpa waits with the kids. Another forty minutes in line and the wet behind the ears cashier doesn't have a clue what to do with the coupon on my phone. There are two registers not being used and nobody's calling for back up cashiers as the line grows. Not a big deal to me but after 2-3 minutes of messing around with the register and my phone, the grumpy old fart behind me yells. "This moron's trying to use a coupon on his phone." I had been about ready to head back to customer service but decided I would let the guy wait after that. The old man continues to grumble as do the rest of the folks waiting as they bring someone in to show the cashier how to ring it up. Finally done, I smiled politely at the old man (who was 7 inches shorter than me and probably weighed 100 pounds less)and wished him a Merry Christmas. He seemed taken aback and a little nervous and didn't say anything. As I turned my back and walked away, he yelled "yeah, merry Christmas to you too, asshole!" Classic.
 
G
#67 ·
JE - While I've never set foot in a Cabelas store, and haven't bought any of their products since the early 1980s, I have to say the irate old guy in line behind you seems to shop at every store in the country. He's not a Cabelas' employee, so I wouldn't hold that against the store. The long lines and the lack of training of the cashiers. That's on Cabelas and I'd hold them responsible for that part. The grumpy old guy would have likely been grumpy if there were no lines.

I've got lots of fly fishing gear. Some of it I've had since the 1960s. When I go looking for new gear to replace my old stuff, I want someone who has done the research, preferably first hand, to answer my questions. I don't find that in the big box stores.

Forums like this one would be a great way to find out first hand about a product. If I were going to buy something new I'd likely come here and see how others experienced that product.

Trapper
 
#68 ·
JE - While I've never set foot in a Cabelas store, and haven't bought any of their products since the early 1980s, I have to say the irate old guy in line behind you seems to shop at every store in the country. He's not a Cabelas' employee, so I wouldn't hold that against the store. The long lines and the lack of training of the cashiers. That's on Cabelas and I'd hold them responsible for that part. The grumpy old guy would have likely been grumpy if there were no lines.

Trapper
Yep, however, poor service exacerbates the grumpiness in even the best of us. I guess you have to weigh whether or not 1.5 hours of your time standing in line surrounded by turkeys is worth the $ you save.
 
G
#69 ·
With the price of gas in the $3.50 - $4 range alone, I tend to buy more online and have the nice UPS or FedEx lady deliver it to my door. These delivery folks enjoy coming to my house because I plow my road and my road has a loop at the end so they don't have to turn around. They are always pleasant and I never have to wait in line.

Aside from groceries, I shop online for the things I want to save money on, and visit the small locally owned stores for things I want information, advice, etc for. I tend to visit these stores during non-busy times. Often I'll show up with coffee in the morning or beer in the afternoon and we'll sit and talk about the pros and cons of some gear.

The grumpies are the reason I no longer go to movie theaters. They seemed to always sit behind me, talk through the entire film, and talk about how bad the film was. I now subscribe to Netflix because it's cheaper, better selection, and no grumpies.

Trapper
 
#81 ·
With the price of gas in the $3.50 - $4 range alone, I tend to buy more online and have the nice UPS or FedEx lady deliver it to my door. These delivery folks enjoy coming to my house because I plow my road and my road has a loop at the end so they don't have to turn around. They are always pleasant and I never have to wait in line.
I understand the benefit of convenience and not having to fight traffic to shop in person. But all the package delivery companies bake a fuel surcharge into their rates. Whether you put fuel in your own tank or UPS or FedEx puts it in theirs, you're still the one paying for it. There's no free lunch in life.

K
 
#73 ·
Hey Cup,
I'm a dad that likes doing stuff with my kids. We had a great time other than the hassle related to management at Cabela's, no dragging involved - they were all pumped to pick presents out for each other. The kids didn't even know about what went down in line. We do stuff like that together all the time at all times of the year. We also do backcountry camping, hiking and fishing etc. No big deal.

I regularly take my boys to Costco when my wife is working an evening shift so she doesn't have to worry about it- sometimes with a friend of theirs or two in tow. Often times there are 10 times the number of people going through the line and in the store than the day we had our issue at Cabela's. Never had any problems - even during the first week of the opening of the Woodinville store and during busy times of the year. We can get a cart full of groceries, snarf down a large pizza and be out of there in 45 minutes. There are a lot of other businesses that have it dialed in as well. It's all about systems.
 
#74 ·
Like most, I have had good and not-so-good experiences shopping at Cabelas. I have a couple Three Forks rods for trout fishing with the kids, and they are a tremendous value, for all I have seen. I've bought some gear rods, reels from them. Some's been good, some not so much.

The thing I have been frustrated by on multiple occasions is that their in-store inventory is nowhere near what is in their catalog, and in some cases, items they say are in stock are not in stock when I get there. An hour of driving without getting what I came for never sits well with me. One area where they have yet to fall short of my expectations has been customer service. They have been outstanding in dealing with returns, etc., and that deserves credit in my mind.

I put the bad off as the ills of dealing with large corporations and box stores, and I don't expect them to be the most knowledgeable or to have the best quality fly fishing stuff. When I need advice, tying materials, or a quality line, the local fly shop is the default, but I think Cabelas does a pretty decent job at what they do.
 
#76 ·
Here is my last Cabelas purchase that was shipped for will call to the Tulalip store.
Funny how the outside box it was shipped in was in perfect condition...... :rolleyes:
Glad I opened the box up before I drove home. The look on the faces of the two gals working behind the counter when they saw the condition of the reel was priceless.

Bumper Table Electric blue Packaging and labeling Automotive exterior
 
#78 ·
Well, we don't have any freshwater fishing stores in Hawaii, so we have to mail order EVERYTHING. So far, over the last 10 or 15 years I've had good luck with my orders from Cables... a lot better luck than with BassPro (which I don't order from any more) You guys on the Mainland are lucky you don't just have to look at pictures of stuff... you can actually go into a store and pick it up and touch it.:)
 
#84 ·
Weak training... or thorough training? I'm with Cupo'. A simple no isn't even heard by their cashiers. They proceed to try and make you feel stupid by for not taking them up on their generous offer of a $20 savings if you sign up for the card. I've shopped there twice and only because I could buy a couple new Viento's for $79/each and some .22 mags that are hard to find.

When asked for my phone number I gave them my standard 425.555.1212 answer. Dude punched it in but teller across the way looked at me all disgusted like and said he could be fired if he was caught putting in a false number. I politely asked if I could borrow her number for the purchase.

Ted's, Sportco and the like, will continue to get my business.
 
#86 ·
I only order stuff from their website or catalog, if I can't find comparable or cheaper prices closer to home or elsewhere on the internet. Round-trip driving to their nearest store (Lacey) cost me more than $20 in gas, the one time I went. They are currently offering $5 flat-rate shipping.
I found a long-sleeve UPF t-shirt by Columbia that isn't too expensive, and my "points" nearly have it covered!
I usually only purchase stuff from Cabela's thats on sale or marked down. I think that their regular list prices are kind of high.
I can order higher quality fly-tying materials from Waters West, if I need to order any. Usually, I just wait until I'm driving thru Port Angeles, so I can stop in the store and browse.
 
#87 ·
I understand the benefit of convenience and not having to fight traffic to shop in person. But all the package delivery companies bake a fuel surcharge into their rates. Whether you put fuel in your own tank or UPS or FedEx puts it in theirs, you're still the one paying for it. There's no free lunch in life.

K
Kent, I wonder if all the driving the UPS and FedX drivers do on their routes (presumably at a higher rate of fuel consumption than most passenger vehicles) cancels out all the gas that isn't burned by drivers who choose not to drive in, but instead order from the catalog or online? Of course, I'm sure that the truck that makes it out to the beach isn't loaded only with Cabelas gear. My package might be in the very small minority.

I don't get any exclusive "in-store" deals, but since I usually only order stuff when its on sale, I think I am winning at the pump by not driving in.
I have managed to cut my driving down to less than 8,000 miles per year.
 
#88 ·
Our business uses UPS WorldShip to send orders across the country. Every morning when I fire it up, the software automatically loads up the days recalculation for fuel surcharges. While it costs less in fuel to ship one package from say Cabelas tan it would either of us to drive there, all those packages loaded into a Brown truck every day do add up to some substantial fuel costs.

BTW, my 1998 Ranger just turned 108,000 miles, just over 8,000 per year. Sometimes several days go by without even firing it up.

K
 
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