wholesale?

[Farrell]

The few things I looked up were similar to the dolly you cited. Online prices were about double wholesale. I guess it looks like they give shipping away. I would agree it is a problem if the wholesalers are selling to these online sources at a price lower than what we see. Definately a problem. I would be suprised to find that to be true though. I suspect these online folks are just selling at a bit less than 100% markup. But I think that is alot like anything else. You can buy a computer online cheaper than at a store. But at a good store, you can get a lot of info on what computer is best for you. That is why many folks buy from the store. I buy a lot of stuff at a local EXPENSIVE hardware store. I know I can get the same thing at Homer's or online for less, but I value the expertise the dude at the local hardware store offers. He helped my find much better fittings for my fire hoses on my soundboard clamps than what I had originally started out with. People who value your input will buy from you and not online. Most piano owners are good people that will value your experience and input. Maybe I'm more at ease with it because I don't chase after any retail sales. If I sell $800 worth of stuff a year, I would be suprised.

FWIW

Terry Farrell
  
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Joseph Alkana" <josephspiano@attbi.com>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Wednesday, May 08, 2002 12:03 PM
Subject: Re: wholesale?


Terry,
I'm not sure you and I are looking at this the same way. Take the dolly with 5" castors. Price at My Piano Shop is $295.00. The price I pay at Schaff is $160.00. It is general practice to "keystone", or double our cost to the retail customer plus add our shipping which according to my invoice from last year was about $40.00. That will bring the unit's cost to the customer to around $360.00. If I want to compete with the online retailer I've got to beat the $295 price or lose the sale. I can't do that and still make a profit. 

The Hands Off fallboard  lock is another item I get asked about a lot. Schaff's price is $48.00 my cost, which translates to $96.00 retail to my customer. Plus sales tax of $8.45.I can get it myself for $59.95 at  many online stores. And not pay our state sales tax. 

Either the piano supply houses or the suppliers to these house are selling to on line marketers at prices we can't compete with. That's my point. And for what it's worth, I see this as an increasing challenge (threat) to our attempts to retail merchandise. 

I had url references showing Dampp Chaser products for sale but have lost the source. As I recall, the situation was the same, with out the door prices to online shoppers far below the ridiculous figures suggested by Dampp Chaser in their latest literature to us techs.

Am I missing something here or don't any of you really think it's worth getting an eyebrow raised over?

Joseph Alkana  RPT
josephspiano@attbi.com
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Farrell 
  To: pianotech@ptg.org 
  Sent: Wednesday, May 08, 2002 4:11 AM
  Subject: Re: wholesale?


  Don't know what you are talking about here. I looked up the student hammer, the gooseneck hammers and the European hammers and each one is available at Schaff for less than half the advertised price on the site below. I have looked at a couple other sites in the past just out of curiosity and found that the prices are all pretty much wholesale plus normal markup.

  Now be careful what you are comparing. For instance, a tuning fork - so many grades at varying prices are available - the site below does not state the exact fork they have for sale. I didn't even want to compare the "hardwood" tuning lever price. Who knows what kind of wood or the quality of the hammer. Whenever I have found items that I a sure of the exact mfg., model, etc., I find that we get wholesale from the suppliers.

  Terry Farrell
    
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: "Joseph Alkana" <josephspiano@attbi.com>
  To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
  Sent: Tuesday, May 07, 2002 11:30 PM
  Subject: wholesale?


  List,
  I was trying to price out some accessories for a customer using my normal piano parts suppliers. i.e., Schaff, Pianotek and compared their "wholesale"  prices to retail prices offered by any number of on-line distributors. For example:
  http://www.mypianoshop.com/tools/

  Not only do many such companies offer free shipping their retail prices are, in some instances, lower than what we piano techs can get at the supply houses. So much for even considering a mark up on our end. Plus the shipping.

  Any comments on this annoying situation? Are the suppliers to the supply houses really under cutting us by selling direct to what I would call "jobbers" or are the supply houses just gouging our checkbooks?


  Joseph Alkana  RPT
  josephspiano@attbi.com