Why People Buy a Certain Spa

[Gary]

I have been in this business almost 20-years and it seems to me that is has taken course as many other products.

Spas now are being built for eye appeal rather than actual useful stuff and when you add all the flash some thing else has to go to keep the spa within a certain cost.

All the spas with stereos, T.V., silly water falls, crazy lighting...have added a lot of cost to the spa without adding any hydrotherapy benefit. Okay the stereo I can kind of see but most of the other stuff is all fluff.

Quality cost money so the companies that make a quality tub and then when all the flash is added the pricing get fairly.

And from my experience most of the flash items do not even get used 6-months after the spa is bought, anything below the waterline you cannot see anyways and guess what your spa is closed 90%  of the time.

What is happening is spas are getting built for the eye and not for the purpose that they were intended for in first place.

Some companies can do both but it is very easy for anybody to make a very attractive looking spa, but as soon as you raise the hood it would scare you.


I do not even know if I had a point, I am just is tired of seeing all these nice looking spas on the outside and junk underneath. It is too bad for the consumer.

[vlady]

Just my opinion but some of the things you refer to as "fluff" can add to the relaxation atmosphere that most people are looking for when they get in their spa.

[drewstar]

Gary, what spas did you have in mind when you say

"I am just is tired of seeing all these nice looking spas on the outside and junk underneath."...

I agree that a lot of the "fluff" is nothing more than overpriced eye candy.

[Gary]

Gary, what spas did you have in mind when you say

"I am just is tired of seeing all these nice looking spas on the outside and junk underneath."...

I agree that a lot of the "fluff" is nothing more than overpriced eye candy.

Do really want me to mention names, some might get offended.

[drewstar]

I would.   but I like causing trouble. ..

I think if you do so proffesionaly and polietely maybe we can learn something?

[Gary]

I would.   but I like causing trouble. ..

I think if you do so proffesionaly and polietely maybe we can learn something?

There is no way to do it politely, there just some spas built for sex appeal but as soon as you take their clothes off their boobs are hanging past their knees.


MS
CS
CP
SS

[drewstar]

What do you think is the saggiest out of:

Framing, components, construction, or insualtion.

[ASAP]

Sorry Gary,

I have to agree with the end of your first post… I don’t really know what point you're trying to make.

I haven’t been in the business for 20 years but I did do a lot of shopping before making my purchase. I found that all manufactures add bells and whistles to some extent. I think every brand I looked at had at least one model in their lines that had some kind of water fall, and all had spas that come with integrated led lighting (and this from Costco spas, Dynasty spas, HotSpring, Maax, Sundance and Jacuzzi).

I think most manufactures try to cater to as large a market as they can. I’ll agree that some do it with more streamlined designs, but most if not all supply products for the bells and whistles buyer.

I didn’t opt for a model with "add-ons", but I figure if they’re makin’em someone must be buyin’em.

Maybe Hydrotherapy isn’t the #1 factor with everyone. I guess some people want to soak and watch the tube… To each his own.

BTW if you’re going to name names go all the way.

Just my 2 cents.

[eightisenough]

Gary - I figured out ms and ss, and wasn't considering any that start with C, but you think hs, and j are ok?

[Mendocino101]

I think what Gary maybe suggesting is that many makers today have gone away from quality and put more money into the eye appeal of spas. There is nothing wrong with nice packaging it is just when you would rather as maker cut the corners on the things under the shell that can not be seen and put the cost to build dollars on more eye bling, than who in long run are you serving. I mean many makers as a example used to use braided lines in there plumbing I now know of only a couple that still do it, why because it cost more and most customers place NO value on it when compared to a fancier water fall lets say. I mean when you break a spa down its about, energy efficiently, comfort, therapy, water care, those type type of things in long run will provide much more enjoyment than will a fancy light, that after a while will most likely not get turned on.

[Spatech_tuo]

I think what Gary maybe suggesting is that many makers today have gone away from quality and put more money into the eye appeal of spas.

I'm totally with Gary on this one. Sooooo many times I see people come to these sites and say "but I saw another brand and they had all the same features and they say they use the same induusrty parts and their quality looks fine to me so I don't see a difference".

I don't mean to belittle any customers out there (there truly are savvy spa buyers who take the time to research spas) but there are so many cookie cutter, so-so brand spas out there that are able to dress up the spa with the bells and whistles so that the average person can't tell the difference between a quality spa and a so-so spa that'll be in the landfill within 8 yrs.

[ASAP]

A diluted market is just a consequence of being in, consuming in, and operating in a free trade, open, capitalist system.

In the end it’s the consumer’s job to do the research and to buy from a vendor that they feel is trustworthy. If a consumer is seduced by a sexy tub with tons of bells and whistles, and misses the big picture, they have no one to blame but themselves.

The same can be said for the communications industry, the automotive industry and or any consumer goods industry.

   I drive an N and here is the list of cars that I consider badly manufactured:

G, A, W and H…  

[Jacuzzi Jim]

I'm totally with Gary on this one. Sooooo many times I see people come to these sites and say "but I saw another brand and they had all the same features and they say they use the same induusrty parts and their quality looks fine to me so I don't see a difference".

I don't mean to belittle any customers out there (there truly are savvy spa buyers who take the time to research spas) but there are so many cookie cutter, so-so brand spas out there that are able to dress up the spa with the bells and whistles so that the average person can't tell the difference between a quality spa and a so-so spa that'll be in the landfill within 8 yrs.

   I have been getting more and more people in lately that are comparing the Costco spa to the Jacuzzi's we sell, and same goes for my friend over at the Sundance dealership and I am assuming HS is getting the same.
  Some people really get it and understand the difference between the 2 spas some just see the lights,stereo and waterfall oh and the price.  They read about it and check the warranty's but they dont get the fact that when it breaks down there is no one around here anyway that will work on it under warranty, nor do they understand how they are built and what actually makes them tick.

  Jacuzzi is coming out with 2 new spa's not sure if Sundance is or not ,and not sure when they will be available Im thinking pretty soon by the sounds of it.

 I am not going to spill the beans just yet but they will have different options available, and stripped down should be around 5995 or less depending on the options the customer wants.  I think a lot of it has to do with attracting the buyer that wants a quality spa at lower price with the dealer to back it and the service and support that a big box store cant give to a spa owner.

[mattNY]

Hmm.  Some good points in this thread.  Ultimately, I agree that a quality spa is much more important than a glamorous one, but if you can get both... ?

I'm just a consumer, but one thing I've noticed is that many, many buyers (including myself when I started) are looking for a spa around the $4000 mark.  I know everyone in this forum has seen lots of newbies posting about spas that cost in that price range or stating up front that that is the most they can spend.  My question is, why don't more dealers try to cater to that instead of fighting it?  If the cost of entry even on basic models is too high (which I'd guess it is for most of the nicer brands), having at least 2 spas in the mid-5 range or selling/advertising used spas on the showroom floor is like a breath of fresh air for less affluent consumers.   It's an option for people that cannot double their price range and will simply walk out of your store if that's all you have.

I think Jim makes a solid point about inexpensive quality spas, and I'll follow it up with my own thoughts: Most consumers don't *want* that Costco tub. They already see the value of a quality spa with good service, but if all of the spa stores are hitting them over the head with 7, 8, and 9-thousand dollar spas and the "quality costs" mantra, it's pretty easy to get discouraged and feel like you are a poor bastard that will never be able to enjoy a hot tub unless you buy it from a discount store.  When I was looking, my Jacuzzi store was the only one with 2 nice tubs (that had prices *posted on them*) under 6 grand.

I don't know if it's an option for every dealer, but I really, really like hottub.pool_boy and East_Tx_Spa's approach of being up front with their used stock.  When I was looking, I would have jumped on this in an heartbeat.  I'll shill a little for poolboy, every tub on his used page is $4k or lower, and a bunch have quite a bit of life left in them ('98 Prodigy and Grandee).  http://www.scarritt.com/preowned.htm

And I'll bet dealers could make a *killing* on selling extended warranties on these, just like used cars.

Thoughts/counterpoints?

[anne]

I completely agree with you, Matt! I hoped to spend 4k when I started researching, and it seemed to me that that was where a spa price "should be." I dont know why, but I am certainly not the only one who ballparked that figure. When I learned more I realized I needed to be really patient on the used market, or spend more, As it is, I spent more.  

As for bells and whistles and hype-ish things that Gary addressed: I think it is a salespeople who are at fault for making those so "appealing." I did not even know that tubs came with waterfalls and lights and all, and I thought my friends' spa with a TV was the silliest waste of money ever........but what did 80% of the dealers I went to try to show me? Yep, the waterfalls and lights. By the 7th or 8th wet test, I almost WANTED that stuff, even though it was not even on my list when I walked through the door.

The tub that I bought was a floor model, with yes, a waterfall (which I only keep on drizzle to keep water flowing in it). I wanted the fancy light package, but could not justify the cost for something so unneeded. So I told myself that if I still missed it a year later, it would be my tub's anniversary gift to myself to add "Northern Lights." After about a week of tub ownership I was soooooooo glad that I had not bothered with fancy lights, and I still am.

I do have these $10 floating flower lights to entertain me, though.......