Lee-Bro

17 snare drums.

I can't remember who did the research, but I recall reading about the emotional attachment shoppers will get from over analyzing a purchase. Essentially if they are trying to decide between option A, B, and C, even though they conclude option B is best for them, they may not make a purchase at all because they've subconsciously become attached to A and C as well through all the research and saying "no" to those options doesn't feel right. That's the short version of it and I'm certain I saw it more than a few times in my old retail days of musical equipment. There's a whole bunch of info out there on behavioral finance (spending) and how to help a client work through it, not become paralyzed by indecision, and preserve your own business development.

Is that a modified Florida Panthers logo?

"Retail would be a great business, if it weren't for the people."

Whether I'm buying hockey gear, shop tools, musical gear, etc., I typically ask if there's a package or combo special. When I started hockey last year, I told the co-owner (who fitted my skates) that I wasn't sure I was going to go "all in" just yet. I mentioned I wanted to get gloves and skates. He said he'd give me 10% off if I bought them together. Sold.

I understand your reasoning but respectfully disagree. For security purposes, I keep a low purchase allowance on my debit card. I know other people do not do the same. Charge cards are different and have different financial protections. Either way, I have access to my financial resources and can cover a "no checks" policy if needed.

Non-hockey related retail store I used to work at had check approval but the store owner had a policy that the check processing fee had to be paid in cash by the customer. You simply can't roll it into the amount of the check due to it perpetually affects the amount the check would need to be. Interesting side note, I was part of a discussion with some retailers (non-hockey) about implementing a PayPal checkout option in-store. I'll comeback and update if anything develops.

...which is exactly why I ALWAYS get the name of the person I speak with, give them my name, note the date & time, and let them know I'll be asking for them when I go to the store, who to ask for if they aren't there and ask they let this person know I'm coming. Believe me, I learned early on in my retail career (not hockey related) to do this on my end so when someone came in I spoke with, I took care of them, got the sale (usually) and built the relationship with them.

Dude, punctuation and spell-check are the rant's friend.

To the D2 guy playing down in my D5 league, I owe you big time for "sweep the leg Johnny" you gave me from behind. Yeah, I played the rest of the game with a sore ankle, but your b.s. move has left me with a sprained ankle.

At 40 years of age, and only on ice skates only maybe a dozen times in my life, I had my first game ever last night. I played defense most of the night. Here's probably the clearest pic. We won 7-5.

This. My shoe size will range anywhere from 9.5 to 10.5 depending on what type of shoe, manufacturer, and style. When buying shoes I'll typically start at the 10 and go from there. There's a couple 11s in there too. For my running shoes, I've never bought the same shoe twice (updates & such). I bring in my current shoe, talk to the associate about what I like, they look at the wear pattern, measure me and we go from there. I got into hockey just before the holidays and I went to 2 diff't LHSs. The first store had me feeling good in a 8.5 Reebok 4k (can't remember width). The second (better stocked & where I purchased) had me feeling good in Vapor 30s @ a 9EE.

Yeah, actually there have been patents on drum hardware. Tama Drums introduced the Lever-Glide hi-hat stand 20+ years ago and had patents on the the level-glide system, they also have patents on their off-the-shell mounts or "suspension mounts" -which opens up the tone & sound of the drum. Other companies have their version of suspension mounts and each are patented. The concept of suspension mounts aren't new. RIMS were introduced in '79 and were the first mass-marketed version. They were, in fact, used by DW until they developed their own version. Most lesser-known drum companies use the RIMS system until they develop their own. </derail> I get what everyone is saying. I think the difference between the music gear then & hockey gear now, is that back then the drum market wasn't as competitive, we didn't have internet stuff and the drum reps would openly tell us some of their stuff was same as ABC generic brand only w/ their hardware. I doubt they'd own up to it today and I'm certain a Bauer rep wouldn't say their X:20 is the same as the CCM V02 they each just put their own label on it. (Now don't get in a hussy, I know they're not, just using an example). I'll stop this journey down the music road because once you get a drummer started... I will say that I find it funny my 2nd expensive hobby is played w/ sticks, wrapped in the same tape as my sticks from my first hobby.

Well it seems hockey gear is a lot like music gear: There are brand loyalists and there are those who wants whatever works best for them. To share some insight: Drum Workshop (DW Drums) used to buy their drum shells from Keller, a shell manufacturer here in the states. They would put their own style lugs & such on them, paint (or cover) them, cut bearing edges and send them out the door obviously as DW Drums. Nothing wrong w/ that. I sold tons of them and they are a high-end drum. Nowadays, DW makes their own shells. No biggie. Anyone could buy shells from Keller and do exactly what DW did. Many did, and many still do. But back in the day, some people came in to specifically buy a DW kit and would save money for an additional 6 months to buy one instead of buying another Keller shell-provided drumset at about 65% of the cost of the DW. Although, the drummers in the know would usually give the other custom drum companies business because they knew the shells were the same as DW's. I'm guessing that it comes down to: 1) Does the customer need to see the name brand on his/her gear? 2) Does the off-brand have the ability to entice someone to give them a try? 3) What incentives do store-owners have for adding lesser known brands? 4) Does the evolution/updating of gear render off-brands an inventory liability? Oh, let me share this with you: This is drumstick tape. It usually goes for $8-$10/roll in most music stores. Yes, this is the EXACT same sticky tape for hockey at $3/roll. Here's another type of stick "tape": It's not actually tape, it's like a thick cloth-tape w/o the sticky side. Think of a super-scaled down steering wheel cover -hence the tape at the top & bottom. $8 to wrap only 4 sticks.

Would like everyone's thoughts on this and sorry for another music industry reference... Some of the companies I used to represent would have their hardware and lower line drums "factory produced" -meaning they outsourced them (even though they were already in Asia). A lot of times you could buy 3 name brand cymbal stands and 2 "budget friendly" stands, they'd all be exactly the same with the only difference is the packaging for each and the 3 name brands were significantly more -usually 50%-100% more. You could buy a name brand snare drum and a generic that had the same shell, but maybe the lugs were different, again, name brand more expensive. I had several reps tell me certain pieces were in fact the same as the inexpensive or competitor's versions other than packaging and came from the same source. When customers came into the store looking for a cymbal stand (as an example), I would show them the name brand and an off-brand and how they were exactly the same. Unless they psychologically needed the brand name sticker on there, they'd usually go for the more inexpensive version. I read the thread about counterfeit gear and it reminded me of this. So what I'd like to know from the LHS owners or those w/ experience is: Is there a such thing as an OEM version of gear in the hockey world? Example, if XYZ123 Company outsources their Hulka-Hulka gloves and the factory offers their version under a different name, Smasha-Smasha, if they're made on the same line from same materials, do you consider this: OEM, counterfeit, or off-brand? I'm newer to the hockey gear world so if this is old-hat, it's new for me. Thanks for your thoughts. And FTR, I claim trademark rights no "Hulka-Hulka" and "Smasha-Smasha." :-)