Support your LHS, WHY!#?

[savageguy80]

I feel the same way, the first time I went to my LHS first thing that pissed me off was the staff who knew everything about anything and where very snotty towards a novice to the hobby and didn't really want to share ANY information second I ordered a part they made me pay for it up front and said to come back in 2 weeks I came back and they had no recollection of me ordering the part, I even showed them the receipt and they told me that it was not valid. So I buy EVERYTHING exect for fuel online, becasue most people will not ship fuel over the border due to hazardous materials code or something. The bad part is there is only 1 Hobby shop in my area that I know of....anyone in the Niagara Region (Ontario Canada) know of any other hobby shop other then Central?

again just MY

 

[Plaidfish]

they ripped you off???
that definately deserves opening a can of whoopass on em man.....

 

[Throttle]

I started this Hobby about two years ago and I have always bought my rides from a LHS. I also designed and built my own plane and bought my wood and electronics from them. I bought an HPI micro RS4 for winter bashing in my basement and I bought the electronics from them the day before Xmas. Well the ESC crapped out the first day and I returned it.
They told me they have to ship it out for the warranty. I had the ESC one day. Well the LHS called yesterday and I picked it up. They charged me $3.85 to ship it out. I am pissed!!! From now on I will only buy fuel from them. I also work with guys who have had problems with them and they only buy fuel now. One guy has been going there for 20 years and he said he will only buy if absolutely necessary.

 

[Plaidfish]

did you try talking to the mngr or owner??

 

[wigsplittah]

the manager or owner has to authorize a return -- so they knew about it.

 

[Plaidfish]

I meant did you point out how much money you spend w/ them and that you were unsatisfied w/ the fact that they wouldn't swap it out and return it for their own stock....don't be an ass about it but point it out and see how they react...if they still give the attitude then go elsewhere....loyal customers are hard to get I'm sure they can appreciate that.....If not then I don't see them being in business long.....

 

[wigsplittah]

^ exactly

 

[Throttle]

The owners did know about it. My point is, is when I went in to return the ESC the next day, they should have given me one from stock (which they had one to replace) and then returned the defective and put that back into stock when it was returned. My problem is that I should not have to point out how to keep a customer happy.
Back the product that you sell. It's not like I used it for a couple of weeks and then it burned up. It was one day. I think if you sell the product and within 14 days of the sale, you should replace immediately and then let the LHS take care of the issue. That's why I wanted to buy local. So if they don't back the product they sell, what's it worth paying the extra cash locally and 9.25% tax. When I can get it for much less on the internet without the tax. And if it burned up when buying it from the internet, I would have sent it back myself to the manufacturer and I would be in control of the issue. There are too many people I know that deal with them and having issues because they are not paying attention to the customer.

Scott.

 

[cbreaker]

There's a few shops near me. Mostly, they don't sell 1/8th stuff. Always a lot of 1/10th scale stuff and planes, moster trucks too.

There's one guy that runs a few shops. Two at malls, and one stand-alone place. I like the guy, and they got some great people working for them. He runs a dirt track in the summer and a carpet track in the winter.

Anyways, his prices are way high. Sells the Storm RTR for $600. The LST for $700. All the parts are high too, but not too high for me to not buy them - I'll buy a suspension arm for $6.50 instead of $5 if I need one or just need a spare. The thing is, he still sells a LOT of the stuff. I live in a populated enough area with a shortage of hobby shops, and there's a lot of backyard bashers. And there's a lot of people that buy the things and maybe use them twice, break them, and shelf them.

Nobody at the track runs cars they buy at the hobby shop, they all buy online. I go even further and buy almost everything online. With enough parts to almost build another complete buggy, I don't really need the LHS, and I didn't pay a lot for my collection of parts.

A lot of it is how much extra you're willing to pay for the convienence and whether or not the people running the shop are asshats. Depending on online purchases requires enough of a bankroll to stock all the common parts you'll need for a successful day at the track.

 

[DarthRacer]

I started this Hobby about two years ago and I have always bought my rides from a LHS. I also designed and built my own plane and bought my wood and electronics from them. I bought an HPI micro RS4 for winter bashing in my basement and I bought the electronics from them the day before Xmas. Well the ESC crapped out the first day and I returned it.
They told me they have to ship it out for the warranty. I had the ESC one day. Well the LHS called yesterday and I picked it up. They charged me $3.85 to ship it out. I am pissed!!! From now on I will only buy fuel from them. I also work with guys who have had problems with them and they only buy fuel now. One guy has been going there for 20 years and he said he will only buy if absolutely necessary.

Scott, I haven't heard of problems with our LHS until now and I just had my own problem there. I ordered the new HPI cam servo saver for the Savage from them instead of getting one on ebay. Right now they are hard to get and are currently on back order. I went to pick it up last Wednesday and it was pointed out to me that "I opened your package so I could look at something". I said sure OK whatever. I get it home and one of the cam parts is missing. I call over there and they can't find the part, they sold me the last one, and they are having problems getting another one because of supply. Then I get told "try to call HPI, they will probably send you one". I'm thinking to myself WTF, you lost the part, you get the damn replacement for me. Who knows how long my Savage will sit in pieces waiting for that part. Why the hell did they have to open the damn package when they are clear in the first place.

 

[Throttle]

I hear you Darth, they don't care about the customer. They should take care of it and not have you call HPI. I'm buying off the net and when I need fuel I'm going to buy from ARP. They are only 2 miles away. The only thing I can think of why Fields is doing this is that they are getting too big and that's when the customer suffers.

Scott.

 

[Plaidfish]

Does the LHS you guys got to know you or are you just another walking dollar sign?
I always make it a point to get to know who I'm dealing with......I find a little shmoozing goes a long way when it comes to getting things from business owners....I know you shouldn't have to do that but it sure makes for great discounts....perfect example: I'm at the LHS and they get a BIG shippment they are tracking boxes through the store...I just pick up a few boxes and bring em to the stock door for them....I got 20% off the stuff I bought that day, w/o even asking.....I know that's a little more than most do but they are not obligated to do you any favors either....I do agree w/ you guys that your situation is way out of line for a business to treat you like that....If I was treated like that I would definately look to give my dough to someone else.....