Factory Direct: What does it mean?

[obi wan]

That's fine and dandy, except that they explicitly say in their ads that you can save thousands of dollars by eliminating the middle man.  I don't recall them ever saying they were factory direct until recently.  Maybe they are actually building the spas in their barn/showroom.  Then, it would be perfectly ethical to claim factory direct status.  Otherwise, I will have the opinion they are being deceitful unless someone can show me otherwise.

Terminator

YOU KNOW. .... I have heard rumors about this master spa maker who lives out west somewhere.... colorado maybe? he buys spa's, and then "makes them better" ....
would that count as factory direct ??
"jim" something.......

[Spatech_tuo]

YOU KNOW. .... I have heard rumors about this master spa maker who lives out west somewhere.... colorado maybe? he buys spa's, and then "makes them better" ....
would that count as factory direct ??
"jim" something.......

That's Factory Re-Direct.

[East_TX_Spa]

And the plot thickens.....

A man has been in my store the last hour shooting the squat.  Here is a basic rundown of what he said:

1.  I'm Doo Lolly and I'm in the oil and gas business

2.  I've heard HotSpring is the best

3.  Another dealer, who I won't name, tried to sell me a $9000 spa for $14000

4.  I own a bunch of Class III (full-auto) guns including an M-3 Colt (no such thing)

5.  I can show you how to make your weapons full-auto (illegal act that I told him I wasn't interested in)

6.  Oh, I'll go ahead and tell you who tried to rip me off (the Factory Direct dealer)

7.  Well, I live in College Station (4 hour drive from here, so I tell him to go see his local dealer)

8.  I gave the other guy several hundred dollars for a deposit, but I'll just let him keep it (OkeeDokee)

9.  I make a lot of money...these spas look nice....the other guy has this same spa (HS Envoy) for about $9000....I may go back and get it...I could've slept with this 23 year old hotel worker last night and I'm 42....blah...blah....blah

I finally told him good luck, hoped he found the right spa, he'd regret it if he cheated on his girlfriend, and bye.

Now, this is the first time I have EVER had someone even mention this other company before, and it came on the day after I posted about their advertising practices.  I smell a conspiracy and I don't know if it's my competitor or the ATF trying to set me up.

What do ya'll make of it or is my paranoia acting up?

Terminator  

[drewstar]

M3,  isn't that the "Grease Gun"?





http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M3_Grease_Gun

[drewstar]

and if he was tlaking a mile a minute....was he sniiffling a lot?

[East_TX_Spa]

Forgot about the Grease Gun, but he specifically said a Colt M-3, like a M-16.

Terminator

[obi wan]

And the plot thickens.....

A man has been in my store the last hour shooting the squat.  Here is a basic rundown of what he said:

1.  I'm Doo Lolly and I'm in the oil and gas business

2.  I've heard HotSpring is the best

3.  Another dealer, who I won't name, tried to sell me a $9000 spa for $14000

4.  I own a bunch of Class III (full-auto) guns including an M-3 Colt (no such thing)

5.  I can show you how to make your weapons full-auto (illegal act that I told him I wasn't interested in)

6.  Oh, I'll go ahead and tell you who tried to rip me off (the Factory Direct dealer)

7.  Well, I live in College Station (4 hour drive from here, so I tell him to go see his local dealer)

8.  I gave the other guy several hundred dollars for a deposit, but I'll just let him keep it (OkeeDokee)

9.  I make a lot of money...these spas look nice....the other guy has this same spa (HS Envoy) for about $9000....I may go back and get it...I could've slept with this 23 year old hotel worker last night and I'm 42....blah...blah....blah

I finally told him good luck, hoped he found the right spa, he'd regret it if he cheated on his girlfriend, and bye.

Now, this is the first time I have EVER had someone even mention this other company before, and it came on the day after I posted about their advertising practices.  I smell a conspiracy and I don't know if it's my competitor or the ATF trying to set me up.

What do ya'll make of it or is my paranoia acting up?

Terminator  

Ca you believe how much *&@$&*@ is coming from that guy? guns that dont exist, illegal conversion kits, money is not important to him, hs is the best, .......
oh wait..... that last one might not be so bad....
cant resist teasing you term.

btw, i wont get a chance anytime soon to buy a new tub from you. my career search that i thought was going to take me just east of dallas wound up keeping me right here in good old SE VA......
my caldera is only 16 months old, so i will have to "live with it" for a while longer.

[Brewman]

And the plot thickens.....

A man has been in my store the last hour shooting the squat.  Here is a basic rundown of what he said:



What do ya'll make of it or is my paranoia acting up?

Terminator  

I'd steer clear of the guy- something's up somehow, I'd bet.  Follow your instincts.

[Brewman]

That's Factory Re-Direct.

I'd consider it factory Mis-Direct.

[Spatech_tuo]

And the plot thickens.....

A man has been in my store the last hour shooting the squat.  Here is a basic rundown of what he said:

8.  I gave the other guy several hundred dollars for a deposit, but I'll just let him keep it (OkeeDokee)


What do ya'll make of it or is my paranoia acting up?

Terminator  

He sounds like a nut but I'd let him know that I take spa deposits as well, $1000 minimum, small bills.

[wmccall]

So maybe you could spend 5 minutes of your day contacing the Texas Attorney's office and find out if a law has been broken here?  I'll bet they even have a form on their website.  I know ours does, and I've used it quite a few times.

[HotTubMan]

Please someone help me out here...but aren't we all "Factory direct dealers" here....I mean raise your hand if anyone is buying their spas from a distributor of some sorts....I think it is misleading but I guess we could all make the same claim of being Factory direct since we all buy direct from the factory.....Please do not think I am a advocate for making this claim but I just suppose we all could and as it was already said it does not mean much....

Mendo, I am with you here. Anyone who buys from the factory, not a distributor, is factory direct.

In this country I live in (Canada) there are many spas that a dealer buys from a distributor who buys from the factory (Catalina, Marquis, FreeFlow and I am sure more). This is less common than a dealer that buys directly from the factory.

What I guess could be deemed as dishonest is the implication that this is better or different than everyone else.

This marketing angle is pretty common. There are many spa features that dealers and manufacturers alike claim as their advantage. This same feature may be on many if not most brands, but this manufacturer claims it is their feature. Some brands claim they are the only :
"Ozone system that is UL approved"
"4 wall insulation"
"Self Cleaning"
"No By-pass filtration"
"Heat recovery system"
I could go on...

My 2.2 cents

[Chas]

Well, we're all entitled to opinions, but facts are harder to dispute. When somebody tells me they are cutting out the middleman, and I find out they ARE the middleman, that is a lie.

Do we really have to discuss the symantics of it: "Factory Direct" always implies that a customer has somehow stumbled into a factory-owned store, an outlet, or some kind of factory clearance in which the factory is making a rare venture into the retail realm. And if that is the case, you should STILL check the prices, because if a manufacturer takes the exact same product and sells it for less in a factory-owned store, the dealers have a right to get upset - so you will most likely find the same or higher prices, or you will find blems and seconds.

Any other set up in which a dealer buys a product at wholesale and sells it at retail is not factory direct. Yes, there may be dealers who buy from a distributer, but those folks are usually reaping the savings on shipping and storage as the distributer assumes some of those burdens.

[Steve]

Any "factory direct deal" would have to be sold to the consumer at dealers cost as that's the implication. As soon as it's shipped and there are costs associated to it such as advertising and marketing and every other overhead of a retail space, anyone selling it would be loosing money.

I'd love to go into one of these and grill the sh*t out of them!

I agree with what you're saying guys about EVERY dealer being factory direct. Unless the truck driver stops for lunch maybe...  

Steve

[Mendocino101]

Chas,

I guess it is just the perception of things....I have always thought of factory direct and factory owned as two distinctively different things. but I can clearly see how one can easily lump them together.