LHS owners

[All Torhs Team 0]

I know a few mods and members are LHS so i was wondering if you guys give alot of special deals to locals. I know if you are manager of like a peranies or a johhnymax/totalhockey then its gonna be alot harder to give special discounts. But for the guys who started it all on theyre own.

My town has only ever had one hockey shop and it was started all by him self so deals were all up to the owner. It went out of business two years ago because he gave is biggest customers free stuff or major discounts. Then he would complain about not getting enough money because of online purchases.

I think you guys would know about how far you guys could go on the discounts, but this guy was to the point he was giving away his stock.

The reason I ask this is because we finally have another attempt with a new guy. I was gonnna try to get a job there and wanted to know how much money he should be willing to sacrifice for his friends. The store hasnt even got a name on it yet and hes already telling people the discounts hes gonna give them.

Any thoughts?

[jimmy 194]

I play hockey with about 80 to 100 guys (on their team). I try to keep it professional, no discounts on equipment, perhaps a free sharpening or repair now and then, but that's it. When you are in business, you have to seperate friendships, otherwise you will go out of business. I do though give my teammates special deals first when I get them, but regualr discount, absolutely not. It's my livelihood, I have to pay my bills and feed my family. A hockey shop is by no means a cash cow business, you have to scratch and work for every penny you earn. I find it hard to believe that guys always expect the hockey shop owner to give them discounts, but the doctor or dentist on the team, they have no problem paying him full price.

[sdcopp 1]

I actually have been the person to benefit from one of my local shops giving me a frequent discount and the occasional free item, but I spent so much time there and had sold many of their skates for them that the staff was not as knowledgeable about that I definitely earned it since I wasn't getting a paycheck from them. I think to just expect it because the owner is a friend is flat out dumb. Anyone who has that expectation should try just handing over their paycheck to a friend to see how it goes from the other side. I can't imagine this new owner in your area being in business for long if he's giving it away like that.

[hehatemefrisbee 0]

Its tough. Like any business you give your best customers certain deals on things. But in a shop like ours where we are well known to people around the rink, and friendly with everyone, it makes it difficult. Everyone wants a deal on something. So we try to have lower prices than Peranis or some of the other big shops around here. But at the same time we are here to make money, its not a charity. And yet people still expect a deal from us. I think part of the reason is that the public has a skewed image of how much we make on things. People see a skate for $400 and think we are making atleast half of it back. In reality we are lucky to make $100 on that skate. Consider salary, rent, shipping costs and other running costs, the end amount of money earned from your $400 sale isnt very much.

[DarkStar50 679]

I had to chuckle after the hockey dad lawyer asked me for a discount on an 06 Synergy SL Jr. I told him that was the reason for no discount: the OPS in his hand was 2006 product!

[hehatemefrisbee 0]

One thing I usually say is, "Do you ask for a discount on your bananas? No? Then why should I give you a discount here?"

[JR Boucicaut 3791]

Mine is "Do you get a discount at a restaurant because you like to eat?"

[Chadd 916]

I never gave a discount to anyone who asked for it.

[DarkStar50 679]

I haven't said it in a long time but my answer used to be "And what are you going to do for me?"

There is always the old favorite: "If I pay cash, don't charge me tax?" Now lets think about this. First, I don't charge tax, I collect tax. Second, its my job and therfore, my risk to not charge you tax. So, if I was going to do anything illegal with the IRS, maybe I would charge you tax and keep the $ for myself. With the customer's way, I take the risk and he gets the $! Yeah, right. I love it when people make idiots of themselves in front of you and then you call them out for how stupid they are and they get pissed at you! Hey, if you weren't such a knucklehead in the first place, I wouldn't have to remind you.

[gman 0]

If I actually liked the owner and respected him/her I would certainly never ask for a discount and would have a hard time accepting one. They do not do this for their health, they are trying to feed their family and pay a mortgage or rent and have a life. In my opinion it is unbearably selfish to even think of asking for a discount, and close to that to accept one.

[DarkStar50 679]

Thanks for that comment. When I go shopping, I never ask for a discount. I know how the guy in front of me feels and I would just never do it. Finally, its usually the ones who don't need a discount who ask for it and the ones who need a discount never ask for it.

[jimmy 194]

There are ways to payback good customers who are friends/aquaintences. One of the guys I skate with brought in his Bauer skates because the blades were loose. Total rust on the bolts, I spent about 1 hr labor fixing them for him. Good guy, spends lots of money in my store. He did not ask for anything free. I didn't charge him.

hehatemefrisbee, you are right on. People think we make the same profit as the department stores do on their clothes, etc. I often get asked, hey how come you never have the 70% off sales. Oh yea, and that $100 we may make on the $400 skate often is lost at the end of the year when manufacturers discontinue a model and dump their warehouses to the internet sites who then sell them for $100 less than we paid for them. We take a loss on all our remaining inventory and that sucks up the $100 we may have made earlier in the year.

[hockeyherb 1]

I like asking for discounts from big box stores only. After all, they're just a big faceless corporation and so it's ok to screw them over!

[jjalb29 0]

I agree with jimmy on this one...after they make the purchase then you take care of them, maybe a free sharpening here and there, a roll of tape, some maintenance to keep your equipment up and running.

Some people just plain don't get it. And it always makes me feel better to give something to someone that doesn't expect it rather than someone who thinks they deserve it.

[Reaper 0]

While I am an intensely value driven consumer when it comes to buying hockey gear I never ask for a discount when I deal with my regular lhs.

I simply ask "What's the best price you can sell it to me for?" and I respect the number they give me.

If it's more than I can afford then I either a) look for a deal at a big box store or B) ask what they have that could fit my needs in the price range I'm looking for.

I don't ask them to price match on anything because I know that a lot of manufacturers stick it to the lhs by selling remaining stock to box stores for ridiculous prices simply to move product.

I still get good pricing from my lhs because I'm honest about the fact that while I would like the lowest price possible I realize that they need to make a certain amount of profit in order to keep the store running.

[Hawkeye 0]

In my area the local LHS seem to charge much more than the online retailer.

When the XX skates were real hot I went into my LHS and they were asking $479 for them. I looked online and found them for $299. I would love to buy things from my LHS but $180 is a lot of money. On sticks and things the $10 - $15 more the LHS charge is no big deal.

I think some of that is why people ask for discounts. They know they can get things cheaper online. After you take into account shipping the proce is usually a wash.

[Chadd 916]

The only place I rememebr selling XX's for that cheap was Perani's and some of them were pretty screwed up. That's what happens when you buy seconds and blems though.

[Hawkeye 0]

The only place I rememebr selling XX's for that cheap was Perani's and some of them were pretty screwed up. That's what happens when you buy seconds and blems though.

Mine were a Blem.

To much glue came out the sides where the footbed attaches to the boot.

But $180 is a lot of money.

[hehatemefrisbee 0]

And the online stores never tell you that they are blems or seconds. So the consumer comes to our shop after having a problem with online bought skates, and trashes on that particular skate company. When if they would have just bought the skates from us in the first place they would have been fit correctly, would have been able to take them back without shipping them somewhere, and would have been remembered when wanting a helmet part, etc.

[hehatemefrisbee 0]

The only place I rememebr selling XX's for that cheap was Perani's and some of them were pretty screwed up. That's what happens when you buy seconds and blems though.

Mine were a Blem.

To much glue came out the sides where the footbed attaches to the boot.

But $180 is a lot of money.

Any if you are lucky, you wont notice the difference. If you are lucky.

[Edge 0]

We give discounts for players who play in the local leagues and such.

[UMWhockey 0]

the only time i give discounts that are not already given to leagues or teams is if a beginner or a parent who has a child who needs all new equipment comes in. If they are going to be buying everything off the bat and spending about 1k on equipment i will give them a little discount (10% or so). this has worked well because i see the same people coming back with friends or other parents who need equipment.

[jimmy 194]

The only place I rememebr selling XX's for that cheap was Perani's and some of them were pretty screwed up. That's what happens when you buy seconds and blems though.

Mine were a Blem.

To much glue came out the sides where the footbed attaches to the boot.

But $180 is a lot of money.

A blem! You shouldn't even have brought this up, you are not comparing apples to apples. So, let's do. Let's take the Vector 6.0 skate. Virtually all online stores were selling it for $179. Some gave free shipping, so let's say you could get it online for $179.99. When you get them, they need to be sharpened and heat molded. So you go to your LHS and pay to have that done. Approx $10 for sharpening, $25 for heat molding. Add that $35 to what you paid and now your total is $215. Most LHS's sold that skate for $199.99 with free sharpening, free heat molding, free minor repairs like blade straightening, blade tightening, rivits and eyelets, and free comfort adjustments like punching and stretching. So tell me, what did you save? Nothing, it cost you more, in some cases way more. Now, lets go one step further, let's say the skates you ordered didn't fit you right and you had to return them, now YOU pay shipping both ways, or worse a restocking fee from the web stores. Granted some good deals are to be had online for closeouts, but for regular items, the LHS is still the best choice. Service before and after the sale is what you are paying for, as well as the "showroom".

BTW, I can get blems and sell them cheap too.

[gman 0]

If I had a full service local hockey shop I would pay pretty much whatever they asked for anything I need. Of course, this is predicated on the local hockey shop being knowlegable, reliable, and expereinced. Knowlege is an intangible that really is priceless. Even something as "simple" as getting a good skate fit can mean night and day differences in enjoyment and, I imagine, performance of your game. I only wish hockey were more popular in the US so we could go to any major city and find a good reliable shop with guys who actually have a clue to what they are doing.

[All Torhs Team 0]

If I had a full service local hockey shop I would pay pretty much whatever they asked for anything I need. Of course, this is predicated on the local hockey shop being knowlegable, reliable, and expereinced. Knowlege is an intangible that really is priceless. Even something as "simple" as getting a good skate fit can mean night and day differences in enjoyment and, I imagine, performance of your game. I only wish hockey were more popular in the US so we could go to any major city and find a good reliable shop with guys who actually have a clue to what they are doing.

;) mmk.

Guess you havent actually looked.

There are the big ones with total hockey and peranies and of course those kids are all over the info. and prices and stuff.

And there are alot of good shops around rinks. I can tell you there are a ton in chicago. And even if its not a building in it self and its the rinks proshop, its still going to be very relaible and knoledgable to the equiptment.

I think most hockey shop owners probally know alot about hockey or at least hire people that do.

If you find a place that doesnt let me know and Ill hit it up.