Almost 100% Sure Of Our Choice, Now I Haggle, Right?

[homerandpooh]

It looks like we're leaning towards the Jacuzzi 480. We've wet tested a bunch of spas and this one has the size, lounge and foot massage features that we like. In our area (Baltimore) there is one dealer for Jacuzzi that has 3 stores. Amazingly enough all 3 stores have different prices for the same spa.

Store #1, they didn't have a 480 to look at, quoted us $12,500.

Store #2, they had a 465 wet and no 480 but were around the corner from work so we went in ayway, quoted us $11,500

Store #3 had the 480 wet, we tested and liked it, they quoted us $14,500

Obviously there is a mark-up, the question is how much? The logical choice is to go to store #2 and haggle there. Any suggestions on price haggling or even on this model versus others?

Just for the record we tested the following models:

Hotspring Vista (wet) nice but my wife floated in the lounger, no foot massage

Hotspring Vanguard (wet) nice but no lounger and small

Sundance Optima (wet) big spa, excellent foot massager, no lounger

Sundance Cameo (dry) no wet test is hard to review, felt nice dry but who knows, also no foot massager

Sundance Altamar (wet) father-in-law's spa, nice but no foot massage

Jacuzzi 480 (wet) big spa with ok foot massager and a lounger

Again any opinions are welcome.

[seahawk]

homerandpoo,

At this stage you should ask to speak to the owner of the company and express your liking of that particular model, but not comfortable with their salesmen/womens tactics and differences in prices. Let the owner you want a fair deal on both sides. Express you disdain for such differences in prices between the 3 stores. You'll see a major difference between what the owner will quote because of their salepersons ways. Good Luck

[Shaamus]

One thing to think about when looking at the new Jacuzzi 400 series: You will be locked into an (expensive depending on your dealer) Jacuzzi cover for the life of the spa. Look at the rise on the one end. Ask to look at the OEM cover. One side has a foam core that is 1/2" thicker than the other while the other side sports a custom pad designed to match the rise of the shell. As a replacement cover manufacturer, I took one look at that cover and advised the Jacuzzi dealers that buy their replacements from us to buy those 400 series covers from Jacuzzi. I would have to charge them way too much to reproduce that cover.

I thought this kind of stuff was subsiding. Just when we get pop-up speakers instead of the permanently raised ones that we have to cut the cover around, Jacuzzi goes and does this. What's wrong with a flat surface for the cover to lay on?

Just FYI.

BTW - I really like the high-end Jacuzzi tubs. I just hate that new shell.

[Jetman]

It looks like we're leaning towards the Jacuzzi 480. We've wet tested a bunch of spas and this one has the size, lounge and foot massage features that we like. In our area (Baltimore) there is one dealer for Jacuzzi that has 3 stores. Amazingly enough all 3 stores have different prices for the same spa.

Store #1, they didn't have a 480 to look at, quoted us $12,500.

Store #2, they had a 465 wet and no 480 but were around the corner from work so we went in ayway, quoted us $11,500

Store #3 had the 480 wet, we tested and liked it, they quoted us $14,500

Obviously there is a mark-up, the question is how much? The logical choice is to go to store #2 and haggle there. Any suggestions on price haggling or even on this model versus others?

Just for the record we tested the following models:

Hotspring Vista (wet) nice but my wife floated in the lounger, no foot massage

Hotspring Vanguard (wet) nice but no lounger and small

Sundance Optima (wet) big spa, excellent foot massager, no lounger

Sundance Cameo (dry) no wet test is hard to review, felt nice dry but who knows, also no foot massager

Sundance Altamar (wet) father-in-law's spa, nice but no foot massage

Jacuzzi 480 (wet) big spa with ok foot massager and a lounger

Again any opinions are welcome.

Homerandpooh,

I recently purchased a pre-owned Serena Bay by Dimension One and absolutely LOVE it!!!! If you have a Dimension One dealer near you make sure you check out some of their spas in the Bay series and Reflection series. You may really like the Nautilus Chairman or Californian (Reflect series). Nautilus has a foot massage , but no lounger. Also check out the Serena Bay and Lotus Bay in the Bay Series. They are a high quality innovative company that stands behind their products. Always remember the higher end tubs have higher margins....more room for negotiation. You would be very surprised at the amount many tubs are marked up! They are worse than cars because they do not sell in high volume so dealers need the higher margins to stay alive.

I don't know how I got along without a spa for so long. I sleep so much better after a nice evening soak under the stars. It's a GREAT way to end your day!!!

Anyway good luck with your search!!

Paul

[TravelingSpaGuy]

Which dealer is closest to you? Problem is your going to want service, buy from the dealer who will service you.

[Northern Willy]

3 different quotes on the same product from stores under the same ownership? I wonder why people here are wary of dealers.

[homerandpooh]

It looks like we're leaning towards the Jacuzzi 480. We've wet tested a bunch of spas and this one has the size, lounge and foot massage features that we like. In our area (Baltimore) there is one dealer for Jacuzzi that has 3 stores. Amazingly enough all 3 stores have different prices for the same spa.

Store #1, they didn't have a 480 to look at, quoted us $12,500.

Store #2, they had a 465 wet and no 480 but were around the corner from work so we went in ayway, quoted us $11,500

Store #3 had the 480 wet, we tested and liked it, they quoted us $14,500

Obviously there is a mark-up, the question is how much? The logical choice is to go to store #2 and haggle there. Any suggestions on price haggling or even on this model versus others?

Just for the record we tested the following models:

Hotspring Vista (wet) nice but my wife floated in the lounger, no foot massage

Hotspring Vanguard (wet) nice but no lounger and small

Sundance Optima (wet) big spa, excellent foot massager, no lounger

Sundance Cameo (dry) no wet test is hard to review, felt nice dry but who knows, also no foot massager

Sundance Altamar (wet) father-in-law's spa, nice but no foot massage

Jacuzzi 480 (wet) big spa with ok foot massager and a lounger

Again any opinions are welcome.

Homerandpooh,

I recently purchased a pre-owned Serena Bay by Dimension One and absolutely LOVE it!!!! If you have a Dimension One dealer near you make sure you check out some of their spas in the Bay series and Reflection series. You may really like the Nautilus Chairman or Californian (Reflect series). Nautilus has a foot massage , but no lounger. Also check out the Serena Bay and Lotus Bay in the Bay Series. They are a high quality innovative company that stands behind their products. Always remember the higher end tubs have higher margins....more room for negotiation. You would be very surprised at the amount many tubs are marked up! They are worse than cars because they do not sell in high volume so dealers need the higher margins to stay alive.

I don't know how I got along without a spa for so long. I sleep so much better after a nice evening soak under the stars. It's a GREAT way to end your day!!!

Anyway good luck with your search!!

Paul

Paul,

We went with Jacuzzi because it has the lounge and the foot jet dome. The D1's also had that ugly blue tile embedded in them. The Bay series didn't have anything that we liked or could afford (Amore Bay).

[homerandpooh]

Which dealer is closest to you? Problem is your going to want service, buy from the dealer who will service you.

TSG,

All 3 stores are owned and run by the same people, so I would up buying from the cheapest priced of the 3. Service and chems will come from the closest. I was told it didn't matter which one I bought from, so they must be unaware of their price differences.

[homerandpooh]

We bought the J480 from store #2. I managed to get him down to $10,500, which was a 10% drop. Now all I have to do is wait. Pics will be forthcoming.

[Tom]

We bought the J480 from store #2.

Congratulations and happy hot tubbing.

[D.P. Roberts]

Congratulations!! I can't wait to see pics. But now can you tell us what Homer and Pooh have to do with each other?

[homerandpooh]

Congratulations!! I can't wait to see pics. But now can you tell us what Homer and Pooh have to do with each other?

Homer

Pooh

[TravelingSpaGuy]

I understand wanting to get the best deal but there are other ways to get a good deal then goto 3 salesman of the same company. Please tell me the 3rd store didnt have to fill the tub or waste any time with you. Were you honest about having seen the tub in the other stores previously or did you pretend you had never shopped for the tub before? Sorry if this comes off rude but no one who buys a tub would work for free, but they expect salespeople to...and now 2 salespeople just had all there time wasted. Have had that happen before were I did ALL the work and got screwed out of deal because my co-worker didnt have to do anything but drop below my price to steal my deal. Its just unethical in my opinion.

Come on here, do research do what you have to do to find the best price and use negotiation skill to get a good deal, not screw 2 salespeople and their families.

not trying to offend you but this gets under my skin

[itsallgood]

I understand wanting to get the best deal but there are other ways to get a good deal then goto 3 salesman of the same company. Please tell me the 3rd store didnt have to fill the tub or waste any time with you. Were you honest about having seen the tub in the other stores previously or did you pretend you had never shopped for the tub before? Sorry if this comes off rude but no one who buys a tub would work for free, but they expect salespeople to...and now 2 salespeople just had all there time wasted. Have had that happen before were I did ALL the work and got screwed out of deal because my co-worker didnt have to do anything but drop below my price to steal my deal. Its just unethical in my opinion.

Come on here, do research do what you have to do to find the best price and use negotiation skill to get a good deal, not screw 2 salespeople and their families.

not trying to offend you but this gets under my skin

Store #1, they didn't have a 480 to look at, quoted us $12,500.

Store #2, they had a 465 wet and no 480 but were around the corner from work so we went in ayway, quoted us $11,500

Store #3 had the 480 wet, we tested and liked it, they quoted us $14,500

[homerandpooh]

I understand wanting to get the best deal but there are other ways to get a good deal then goto 3 salesman of the same company. Please tell me the 3rd store didnt have to fill the tub or waste any time with you. Were you honest about having seen the tub in the other stores previously or did you pretend you had never shopped for the tub before? Sorry if this comes off rude but no one who buys a tub would work for free, but they expect salespeople to...and now 2 salespeople just had all there time wasted. Have had that happen before were I did ALL the work and got screwed out of deal because my co-worker didnt have to do anything but drop below my price to steal my deal. Its just unethical in my opinion.

Come on here, do research do what you have to do to find the best price and use negotiation skill to get a good deal, not screw 2 salespeople and their families.

not trying to offend you but this gets under my skin

Store #1, they didn't have a 480 to look at, quoted us $12,500.

Store #2, they had a 465 wet and no 480 but were around the corner from work so we went in ayway, quoted us $11,500

Store #3 had the 480 wet, we tested and liked it, they quoted us $14,500

/\ What he said.

The 1st store sent me to the 2nd store because he didn't have the model I wanted to see. Store #2 sent me to store #3 so I could wet test the model I wanted. Store #3 was aware of my whole journey. None of them were aware of what each of them quoted me.

Btw, I'm not offended.

[Northern Willy]

TravelingSpaGuy,

What I think is unethical is a $3000 variance on the same product from the same store. How much time does a consumer have to waste with salesman before the $3000 is gone? I bet the final price was not taking food off of anyones table either.

Suppose you go to 3 Best Buy's for your new HDTV and you find prices of $2625, $3000 and $3375 for the same thing? I'm glad you would not be annoyed.

When you have commissioned sales and non-regulated prices the consumer should not hear any whining. Your current setup is designed to make YOU the most money. Live with getting shopped or change your process.

NW

[Roger]

TravelingSpaGuy,

What I think is unethical is a $3000 variance on the same product from the same store. How much time does a consumer have to waste with salesman before the $3000 is gone? I bet the final price was not taking food off of anyones table either.

Suppose you go to 3 Best Buy's for your new HDTV and you find prices of $2625, $3000 and $3375 for the same thing? I'm glad you would not be annoyed.

When you have commissioned sales and non-regulated prices the consumer should not hear any whining. Your current setup is designed to make YOU the most money. Live with getting shopped or change your process.

NW

I agree, sales is ugly, and for the savy shopper a game of true skill. I have nothing against salesman or saleswomen but there are several kinds, and some are not so honest in there representaion of there product no matter what it is. Let the buyer beware and be prepared to do whatever it takes to get what's best for him!!! Period! And IMO a mentality brought on by all the crooked sales people out there.

[D.P. Roberts]

As for the 3 stores having radically different pricing:

It MAY be a bad thing, but we really don't know enough about the situation to say what's going on there. I would think, from the owner's perspective, that each store has to turn a profit individually, not just the company as a whole. If you have two stores and you're thinking about opening a third, you'd only do so if your overall profits went UP, right? And if you had two stores that were making money but a third was losing money, you'd probably close that third store. So, each store has to turn a profit. Each store is going to have a different rent (some may be in really expensive areas, some less so, etc.). One store may have a higher sales volume than another, or different operating costs, or who knows.

This is NOT to say that the price SHOULD be different. It could be that the manager of that store, or the chain's owner, is just ripping people off at one particular location - maybe he/she thinks they can charge more in a more affluent area, or maybe the manager has a different pricing strategy than the others. I'm just saying that perhaps we shouldn't jump to conclusions without knowing the facts behind them.