Seen it today. Z axis 5 weight and some Tree-fiddy waders. In an upright glass case, like the rock and roll hall of fame would put an Elvis outfit in :rofl:
I'm shocked, shocked that you could even think that any of us could be hypocritical!Does anyone ever feel bad about buying a tv at Costco rather than a smaller "authorized retailer" of the brand?
Reality isn't so cut and dry. One can still go down to Outdoor Emporium, a 'local' company that doesn't have knowledgable (fly) staff and doesn't pay/compensate their employees dick, and buy Simms for MSRP. Because Costco didn't honor MSRP they can no longer sell said items, even though they take care of their employees and offer them a liveable wage. In this situation who benefits from the protectionist measures?It's unfortunate, but they're doing what they should to remedy the situation.
I remember reading, about 6 or 7 years ago, that nike's median priced shoe cost them about $7.60 to put on the shelf. Haven't worn a pair since! But hey, I'm a cheap f*cker!Don't worry Kent, I'll PM you when the garage/basement sale happens!
As I continue to think about it, really, I think we all would be astounded to see the profit margins many of these outdoor "manufacturers" make. It's hard for me to call them manufacturers, since most of them don't "make" what some poorly paid Vietnamese child sews their label on. Probably costs more to unload the containers at Port of Long Beach or Port of Seattle with union labor than it does to buy the raw materials, assemble, crate, and ship! And while Sage assembles their high end rods in the US (do we know that?) Simms sure doesn't make their waders here. So, what you're paying $500 for more than likely cost Simms....? If they were worried about "the brand," they would worry about the quality. But why worry when it costs so little you can easily replace it.
I think of my good friend, Dave Lewis, who would rail about guarantees for rods. I used to argue with him, saying I loved the Patagonia guarantee until it dawned on me that the guarantee cost them far far far less than it would to actually make a quality product. Make sense?
Kim - let me simply say - as someone who commutes between Washington and China - as someone who is intimately familiar with those brands - as someone who does QA inspections and walks those factory floors - you simply have no clue.Don't worry Kent, I'll PM you when the garage/basement sale happens!
As I continue to think about it, really, I think we all would be astounded to see the profit margins many of these outdoor "manufacturers" make. It's hard for me to call them manufacturers, since most of them don't "make" what some poorly paid Vietnamese child sews their label on. Probably costs more to unload the containers at Port of Long Beach or Port of Seattle with union labor than it does to buy the raw materials, assemble, crate, and ship! And while Sage assembles their high end rods in the US (do we know that?) Simms sure doesn't make their waders here. So, what you're paying $500 for more than likely cost Simms....? If they were worried about "the brand," they would worry about the quality. But why worry when it costs so little you can easily replace it.
I think of my good friend, Dave Lewis, who would rail about guarantees for rods. I used to argue with him, saying I loved the Patagonia guarantee until it dawned on me that the guarantee cost them far far far less than it would to actually make a quality product. Make sense?
Yes, but I don't understand why people don't care that they still seem to be price fixing (not sure if that is the accurate term), and the only issue I have is that they still require shops to sell at MSRP, and not Costco. As a consumer I think it is great, but for the fly shops it isn't. That is my only problem. How can you or Kent say it is the same as selling at Cabelas, if even at Cabelas they are required to sell at MSRP, and Costco is not. That is how it is different.I'm not sure what, if anything, to think about a Sage rod and Simms wader being sold at Costco. Both companies have engaged in what used to be called price fixing since day one, offering strict contracts to their retailers about selling only at MSRP. Since that is anything but free market economics, having these products sold in Costco should be a good thing. And as Kent mentions, how is it different than these products being sold by Cabela's the last few years? It doesn't really affect me much. Sg
ABSOLUTELY, and I have. Bought two BIIx rods at the Silver Bow Fly Shop. I could have saved $317 on those two rods buying them online - new. I chose to support Sean. I don't even know how that place online was able to sell them cheaper. I thought Winston didn't allow that kind of thing.Lots of thoughts on this for me on this topic...probably won't share most of them.
Question for those who bring up the point about "supporting your local fly shop". Would you buy a rod or pair of waders at your local shop, knowing that you can get the same thing for hundreds less at Costco?