Buying direct

[Stew boo]

I don't know why cues from companies like Joss, Schon, and Schmelke are more expensive on their own websites than they are on wholesale sites. I'd rather buy direct from the manufacturer so they can make a bigger profit but it doesn't make sense to pay more for the same product. Just my little rant for today

 

[hurricane145]

They often have obligations NOT to undercut or compete with their dealers so only offer sales at full suggested retail prices.
Otherwise there is no reason to even have retail or wholesale outlets and those outlets won't want to bother carrying those brands.
Around here (Seattle) there used to be a lot of better quality production cues like you mentioned available in the local pool equipment shops.
Now there is nothing like that. They cannot compete with the online dealers and the cost to stock a bunch of the better cues can be high.

 

[Stew boo]

They often have obligations NOT to undercut or compete with their dealers so only offer sales at full suggested retail prices.
Otherwise there is no reason to even have retail or wholesale outlets and those outlets won't want to bother carrying those brands.
Around here (Seattle) there used to be a lot of better quality production cues like you mentioned available in the local pool equipment shops.
Now there is nothing like that. They cannot compete with the online dealers and the cost to stock a bunch of the better cues can be high.

Yeah you're probably right about them not being allowed to sell their cues cheaper. Maybe it would be a good idea for those companies to cut out the middle man and just sell direct. It would make the product cheaper for the consumer and they could still make more profit. For established brands like the ones I mentioned I don't think it would hurt their sales much

 

[tomatoshooter]

Yeah you're probably right about them not being allowed to sell their cues cheaper. Maybe it would be a good idea for those companies to cut out the middle man and just sell direct. It would make the product cheaper for the consumer and they could still make more profit. For established brands like the ones I mentioned I don't think it would hurt their sales much

I think they get more sales by having more outlets and it's easier for then to stick to manufacturing and let someone else handle sales. In the current world of online sales instead of brick and mortar stores that may not be as true anymore. I can't quite explain why, but brands available in stores typically seem a little more "legitimate" to me, at least until you move to full custom built stuff. I'm still not 100% comfortable with spending a week's pay on something I have not seen or touched.

 

[King T]

I don't know why cues from companies like Joss, Schon, and Schmelke are more expensive on their own websites than they are on wholesale sites. I'd rather buy direct from the manufacturer so they can make a bigger profit but it doesn't make sense to pay more for the same product. Just my little rant for today

I don't know why cues from companies like Joss, Schon, and Schmelke are more expensive on their own websites than they are on wholesale sites. I'd rather buy direct from the manufacturer so they can make a bigger profit but it doesn't make sense to pay more for the same product. Just my little rant for today

The brokers, retailers and wholesalers often buy on a bulk agreement. They contract to but a certain number of cue in the top range, middle range and base level, that allows the manufacturer to sell the majority of what they build rather than waiting for the public to order a cue here and there. This also insures that the they will always sell a few top end cues and not just the cues that are entry level.

 

[skogstokig]

Yeah you're probably right about them not being allowed to sell their cues cheaper. Maybe it would be a good idea for those companies to cut out the middle man and just sell direct. It would make the product cheaper for the consumer and they could still make more profit. For established brands like the ones I mentioned I don't think it would hurt their sales much

the positives of having retailers way outweigh the negatives for many small businesses. there will still be customers willing to buy directly from joss, as only having to deal with the manufacturer has an inherit value for them.

OT: bit surprised to see that joss hasn't got a cf shaft yet.

 

[Zerksies]

Customers are assholes. It’s much easier to deal with a vendor.

 

[garczar]

the positives of having retailers way outweigh the negatives for many small businesses. there will still be customers willing to buy directly from joss, as only having to deal with the manufacturer has an inherit value for them.

OT: bit surprised to see that joss hasn't got a cf shaft yet.

Ditto on the cf shaft. Kinda surprised that neither them or Schon has offered one yet.

 

[middleofnowhere]

You have a manufacturer a wholesaler and a retailer, you see this talked about on shark tank all the time. A wholesaler can be both a wholesaler and a retailer. In other words they'll give you a better price if you're buying quantity but for the most part they sell retail. The manufacturer on the other hand really doesn't want to deal with
John Q public.

Some manufacturers have set up their own brick and mortar stores, Apple would probably be a good example but for the most part they would rather just stay in their lane and do the manufacturing. Let's face it, actually dealing with the public is a total pain in the ass and you usually want to avoid it if you can.

 

[measureman]

My Schmelke cue was a design only available at Billiards Warehouse.
You can buy a lot of Joss web site only designs directly from Joss.
And yes most cue makers and other manufacturer's only sell through distributors or retail stores so they dont have to deal with idiot retail customers.
I spent over 30 years in retail and I'd rather stand on a corner with a card board sign than do that again.

Forgot to add I bought my Lucasi cue from a retail store and they matched the online price.

 

[Nick B]

It's simply. Why would a dealer invest in inventory etc if their own manufacturers undercut them? Most manufacturers are not set up for point to point sales. They would rather sell in bulk to retailer and they handle or the back and forth with public. Returns, Defects, Mods, Credit Card transactions etc.... plus the retailers can sell you more that just the cue.

Your rant is misplaced.