On 4/25/05, Tom C <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Beating a horse.... > > The notion that I should make a purchase at a camera shop because I walked > in and looked around, and may have engaged the salesman for a few moments, > is akin to the notion that I should make a gasoline purchase at a service > station for the privilege of using the restroom. > > The fact is, I often make a purchase at service stations *without* using the > restroom. So why should I not be allowed to use the restroom without making > a purchase? > > I suspect the same applies to small retail camera shops. They are actually > banking on and hoping that their customer who paid top dollar, DOES NOT come > back in for service and help. They are hoping he walks in only to make an > additional purchase.
That's a rather cynical attitude, Tom. Do you not allow that there are some retailers out there who may actually be in if for more than just money? Perhaps some are actually camera buffs. Perhaps some feel that providing good service (both repairs and free after-sales advice) is good for future sales and the industry as a whole. Let's not forget that one of the big problems that these poor schmucks (the mom and pop stores) have, and one of the reasons that the big boyz can undercut them, is that the manufacturers themselves will give the b.bz. huge volume discounts. Let's face it, it's cheaper to ship hundreds or thousands of units a month to some huge operation than maybe 5 or 10 units to Billybob's Cameras on Main Street. Not just cheaper to ship, but economies of scale being what they are, it's a hell of a lot cheaper to make each unit if they're made in the thousands rather than the hundreds. It's worth it for the manufacturers to support the big guy with such incentives. Anyway, again, this could go on and on, so I'll end my commie rant right about here. One parting shot, however: If I owned a gas station, you wouldn't get the washroom key, no matter how much gas you bought! <LOL> cheers, frank -- "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept." -Henri Cartier-Bresson
