 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi all,
We are about to start the new series of BBC 1's successful bureaucracy battling and haggling program 'Don't Get Done Get Dom' and are searching for people looking to buy, and hopefully save £'s, on ski's or skiing equipment.
If you’re terrible at haggling and would love to learn how to get money off then contact us on:
02077136868
or alternatively send an email to gareth.flametv.co.uk telling us a bit about yourself with a contact number and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Look forward to hearing from you
Gareth
Gareth Rowlands
'Don't Get Done, Get Dom'
02077 136 868
gareth@flametv.co.uk
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Dont Get Done Get Dom, too late and no need - just bought my skis, great price too.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Dont Get Done Get Dom, Hi great show, should be on prime time. I enjoyed the recent episode when Dom negociated compensation following a ski holiday 
Be sure to let us know when this one is to be broadcast
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Dont Get Done Get Dom, Don't listen to those people. They don't know. All think very crever, stupid really.
I sell you someone for show, VERY NICE PRICE.
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Dont Get Done Get Dom, welcome and a crackin' prog, but you'll find that most of this lot could get money back off used toilet paper . . . and I'm not sure that some don't 
We do have some members who could do with a new wardrobe . . . a blue fartbag comes to mind . . . but whether this reluctance to go shopping is nervousness or obstinacy is unknown.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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It's a great programme but I have to say that the UK ski hardware trade is one place that probably doesn't need loads of people haggling over gear! It's not exactly in rude health, it's an ultra-low volume market and half the stores mark down new kit before it even arrives in shop, thereby hammering their own profits before opening their doors to the public. At least five stores (out of a total of less than 200) went pop over the summer, one of the biggest chains has just been snapped up by a bargain-minded aquisitor - the only people being done right now are the independent store owners! This story would have been a lot stronger say 20 years ago when a lot of kit was being sold; but now? I doubt 2000 pairs of skis go out of stores at anything like full retail price. That's compared with sales of over 100,000 skis a couple of decades ago. That tiny figure is to service a market of 1.3+ million annual ski trips and 2 million+ active skiers (ie been skiing more than three times and within the last three years). If 0.05% of a market are being 'done' I'm not sure it's a problem?
I do know to within a couple of quid how much a ski and snowboard costs to make and yes, they cost more than that in the shops. But until the whole consumer retail chain is broken and pure factory gate price is the benchmark, the only person losing in the haggling battle is the retailer. With their overheads they are not making the biggest profit margin.
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Can you get some of those Fischer Zephyrs that I tried at the ski test for next-to-nothing coz that's my budget?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| fallliner wrote: |
It's a great programme but I have to say that the UK ski hardware trade is one place that probably doesn't need loads of people haggling over gear! It's not exactly in rude health, it's an ultra-low volume market and half the stores mark down new kit before it even arrives in shop, thereby hammering their own profits before opening their doors to the public. At least five stores (out of a total of less than 200) went pop over the summer, one of the biggest chains has just been snapped up by a bargain-minded aquisitor - the only people being done right now are the independent store owners! This story would have been a lot stronger say 20 years ago when a lot of kit was being sold; but now? I doubt 2000 pairs of skis go out of stores at anything like full retail price. That's compared with sales of over 100,000 skis a couple of decades ago. That tiny figure is to service a market of 1.3+ million annual ski trips and 2 million+ active skiers (ie been skiing more than three times and within the last three years). If 0.05% of a market are being 'done' I'm not sure it's a problem?
I do know to within a couple of quid how much a ski and snowboard costs to make and yes, they cost more than that in the shops. But until the whole consumer retail chain is broken and pure factory gate price is the benchmark, the only person losing in the haggling battle is the retailer. With their overheads they are not making the biggest profit margin. |
Nice piece of analysis.
You guys should write an article on this and, if you haven't done so already, bang it in your excellent magazine. Maybe do an online-offline shopping comparison, too.
I would counter that teaching consumers to become more sophisticated will harm UK skitailers in the shortterm, but benefit the survivors in the longterm. They will come out of it leaner and smarter. Costs will be lower and margins fatter. Overcharging buyers to keep a few inefficient sellers in business is not a sound economic model.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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By the way, won't Dom be busy dancing with Lilia for a while?
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Whitegold, yes, there are still some crap retailers in business but probably not for much longer.
There's not a lot of overcharging going on because the wide availability of price knowledge is keeping sellers relatively honest which is why there's so much pressure on buying at the right price to squeeze more profitability.
Most consumers in any specialist market drop into the 'anything for a bargain' category (exceedingly well represented here!); the 'gotta have the latest thing' category; the 'oh my god is that the time - I'm going skiing tomorrow and haven't any clothes' slot or a couple of others the clever bugs on here can illustrate better than I.
Education in the true value of an item for your own use comes from research and diligence rather than a quick fix. It's always possible to get a cheap thing but, especially for a specialist activity, it's much harder to get the right thing... I simply feel that something more profound could be achieved by aiming at a more worthwhile target.
By the way, very little of our revenues come from retail stores though more does come from both hardware and clothing manufacturers, who generally commit between 3 and 6% of their revenues to marketing depending on how pushy they're being. The amount of marketing spend in ski hardware, certainly in this country, is very little. Most goes into retail to support catalogues and in-store promotions.
marmalade, yes, they're great skis - some of our very favourites. Sadly I don't have a line to the Fischer factory but I know they're being stocked by EB. A negotiating tip I can certainly suggest is to look up the price in the catalogue, walk into the store and then say "I hear these skis are excellent but I only have £4.32". My understanding is that the knowledgeable staff should let you hold them for a while for that fee. Surely better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?
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You know it makes sense.
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| fallliner wrote: |
| I doubt 2000 pairs of skis go out of stores at anything like full retail price. That's compared with sales of over 100,000 skis a couple of decades ago. |
AFAIK the biggest ever season was around 60-65,000 pairs (somewhere around '89). Today it's around 20,000. The big boys (EB and S+R) buy in around 1000 - 2000 pairs of any one mainstream brand. Between the two of them they account for half the ski sales in the UK. The skis get "catalogued" and sold as a package showing a saving off the full MRRP backed by a price match g'tee. Realistically, that package price IS the full price and most get sold at that price. Both companies have the buying power and the experience to safeguard a proper retail margin on most of their ski stock (and, given their high rent locations, they have to). The indy retailers simply can't match the buy in price demanded by EB and S+R and, to boot, they like to undercut the brochure prices. Their margin (if they stopped to work it out) is fairly lousy and not helped by general overstocking resulting from not having a critical mass of customers and still needing width and depth in the range. And a lot of their potential customers buy abroad anyway. I'm not surprised they go to the wall... poor margin, poor merchandising and size ranges that get shot to pieces soon after the season gets going.
A pair of skis isn't a major buying decision. Not like a car or a house. Some do want to squeeze out the final few quid from the deal (often spending more in petrol than the saving) but most actually just want the right pair of skis from a reputable retailer delivered in a quality environment. Everyone knows they can probably save £20 here and there but really can't be ars*d.
This sounds like a program format that's scraping the barrel.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| fallliner wrote: |
| My understanding is that the knowledgeable staff should let you hold them for a while for that fee. |
They might let you hold the skis as well! 
Sorry, fallliner, couldn't resist.
In all seriousness, maybe a good challenge for a future episode of "Don't Get Done Get Dom", would be to help skiers save £'s when they take their skis or skiing equipment with them on an aeroplane...
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Martin Bell wrote: |
| In all seriousness, maybe a good challenge for a future episode of "Don't Get Done Get Dom", would be to help skiers save £'s when they take their skis or skiing equipment with them on an aeroplane... |
Perfect!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Quote: |
a good challenge for a future episode of "Don't Get Done Get Dom", would be to help skiers save £'s when they take their skis or skiing equipment with them on an aeroplane...
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Now that would be much more effective, but I bet the check in staff would all cave in and 'use their discretion' if a camera crew were present 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Martin Bell, please take it any way you want. So to speak.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| Quote: |
A pair of skis isn't a major buying decision
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to judge by some of the threads on here, it is... but not a decision made by many people. I wonder if the interesting and pertinent comments above will make the programme think twice?
The wider question of how to buy a winter sports holiday would be more interesting.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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 The death clock of our industry ticks louder.
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SMALLZOOKEEPER, how's that used car sales training coming along?
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pam w, I think the number of people here who avoid buying skis is probably balanced by the number who have 2+ pairs 
Anyone who goes to North America and doesn't take skis is probably losing money - with free carriage on airlines, and high hire costs, the break even point is about 17-20 days before your skis are paid for by what you have saved. On the other hand I would buy my clothes over there too. Some premium brands are a $ for each £ they cost over here.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| Quote: |
pam w, I think the number of people here who avoid buying skis is probably balanced by the number who have 2+ pairs
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when I said it was not a decision made by many people, I meant people. Not the small and unrepresentative sample on here....sorry for any confusion.
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FAQ
