Jump to content

Thoughts on "the Fair"


Guest amanda

Recommended Posts

Fair season in my area has just begun. The smell of cotton candy and elephant ears swirl around everyone. Each year I see more and more companies going to the fair with their spas dazzling people with flashy things and tons of give-aways. The people talk fast, move fast and give a ton of information. Sometimes there are up to 16 different spa companies boasting the best spa. It's gauranteed that if someone is doing research there and have talked to 3-4 companies... by the time they get to me their eyes have started to glaze over and many have been turned off by the high-pressure-buy-now attitude portrayed. "I'll club a baby seal to make a better deal" and "get yer spas hear" have been turn offs for many folks. A lot of good prices are available during this time. You can also find these good prices in the showroom and avoid the hype and confusion while getting the individual attantion you deserve. If a company is reputable and of the non-pressure type, ask for a way to thengthen the period of time beyound the period of the fair with a "price hold" of some sort to make sure you are not forced into making a decision emediately without all of the information you should have. Some will do this with 100.00 that's fully refundable to protect you. Any thoughts on this?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest East Tx Spa

Yep, a deal at the fair will be a deal in the showroom, maybe better at the showroom. The fair guys are usually, not always, dealer support. They get their money on top of the dealers profit. Where do you think the better deal is?

We will be at the local county fair in a couple of weeks. I will be manning the booth. It is more of an exposure opportunity than anything else. We have a pretty good deal as the fair organizer bought a spa from me a few years ago, so we have an exclusive as the only spa manufacturer allowed.

Terminator

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A great venue to compare and get the best deals on spas. In San Diego, all major spa companies exhibit at the Del Mar Fair and the Homeshow. The dealer's specials and prices are better than at any other time of the year. Good way to compare several brands at once as well. (Kind of hard to wet test though!) Seems to work for the dealers as well, as their delivery times and backlog always go up during fair time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Del Mar Fair is usually run directly by the manufacturers. It is huge, and the cost is prohibitive to small businesses. HS works with several dealers in the area- I have been told - to spread out the sales and also the deliveries.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Jim Arjuna

I wrote an article about these shows. My favorite story from the home and garden shows was this fellow who bought at the home show, then came into the store to find the same spa for $1000 less.

I don't think I can remember anyone more loud and upset at the store. The owner of the store wrote the guy a check for $1000 and apologized for the "mix up".

At the home shows the "factory rep" is a professional salesman, who may be selling RV's next week and use the same tactics, putting on a factory rep shirt adn have a tag on his left pocket with his name and "spa company factroy representative" on the tag. The commisions are heavy and so are the sales tactics. The idea is to use some horrible sales tactics of intimidation, coersion and utter discusting methods to get you to sell.

I remeber one guy saying to a nice young man in front of his wife who did not want to buy: "Who wears the pants in your family? If you want it, are you going to let your wife tell you what you can and can't do?"

You need to know exactly what you are buying and what you should pay for it.

If you buy from any of these fairs, you need to know what the heck you are doing becasue you are going to be stuck with that spa for a long time. If you find out later it is a mistake, then you will feel bad about it all. It really spoils the joy of ownership.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Guest_Roger_*

Jim wrote..............I wrote an article about these shows.............

Shouldn't it be...........I wrote my opinion about these shows.

We don't even get opinions in Jims world yet he can have all kinds of them and somehow thinks they sound more factualy or something when he calls them articles instead of opinions.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Jim Arjuna

Roger; How many home and garden shows have you participated in, behind the scenes?

This is first hand information, that I felt needs to be shared. If a shopper doesn't know what they are doing, they can be taken advantage of.

The way they worked the commissions is that there was a "par" price for the spa and the commission was 10% of that. Lets say the tub sold for $7K. That is $700 commission. Anything the salesman got above that was 50% split with the dealer. If it was $1000 more that brought the commision up to 700 plus 500 or $1200 for the sales guy. That means that a slick sales person could get an extra $500 just because the consumer doesn't know what the price really is. Those are facts by definition.

My opinion is that consumers need to know what they are doing and I don't think I care for that method of sales. I feel there is something wrong with it according to the way I was raised. You know: "Treat people the way you would like to be treated."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Let's be clear that not all dealers do events this way in fact, that would represent a very small %. The major dealers don't need to do this and in fact, since many previous prospects (leads) are notified of these events, my dealers actually make less margin to be able to show greater value at event sales.

There's a cost to doing business and the challenge is to decrease margins slightly and rely on increased numbers of sales by showing real value. There's a proper way to run a business and the scam you suggest is the "make a quick buck and get the hell out" sort of companies. In no way does it reflect the majority of respected dealers. Maybe the guys you hang with...

Steve

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Guest_Roger_*

Jim....every single year, for the last 22 years. 2 Shows, contractors only and the consumer home show. There's hot tub manufacturers there every year. I talk to them every year and find out whats new. I have owned a hot tub on and off for all of those 20 years, although this is the longest stretch with a new one 4 years. The rest were used freebies or 500 dollar tubs I bought and made run, then either sold or used them till they were no longer cost effective to repair.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi folks.... been a little while since I checked in... (1 day off in 23 days-due to my co-worker./good friend being ill during the fair season). Figured I'd stop in for a look see. Many good points have been brought up! Study the market... great advice! Be careful for sure! There are definately "some" dealers out there that have a "I'll club a baby seal to make a better deal" kind-of feel to 'em. But not all are like that. In many cases, you can find someone very respectable who represents a company in a professional mannor and will offer support throughout the whole process (not just at the sale). If you want to avoid the "hooplah" more often than not, the company will have the same pricing at the showroom and you can avoid getting cotton candy in your hair. I usually hang in the showrrom because I get a better chance to spend more individual time with each person and I have all my information at my fingertips. If you're shopping... good luck and definately do the research! :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...