Oh, What a Show!

[Zep]

Always love Term's Texas State Fair reports!

re: "The Cotton Bowl is located there and has played host to the Texas-OU football game every year since 1929"

Here's my pics from last saturday at the Texas State Fair!


(L-R) A co-worker/friend & I eating very good, but very messy Belgium Waffles at the Texas State Fair.



(L-R) My nephew, me, and a co-worker friend @ the Texas/Oklahoma game during/at the Texas State Fair.                                                             Boomer Sooner!



(L-R) Co-worker/friend & me cheering on the Sooners!

Click below for short video:
http://s7.photobucket.com/albums/y273/ItsZep/Smu07_08/?action=view&current=Fall2007279111115.flv

[East_TX_Spa]

Looks like ya'll had a good time, Zep!

OK, this guy knows how to display his spas.  They are Aries, a local spa assembler:


Being indoors, the spas are easy to keep clean (a big problem for all of the folks displaying outside).  The lighting adds to the appearance of the product.  The spa enclosures really "up" the appeal.  On each spa is an itemization of what's included at an inflated price.  In the right hand column is the "fair discount" and the "good news" that includes the spa enclosure.  How anyone can sell a quality spa and gazebo for under $5000 probably does not even enter most shoppers' minds.  Each spa also has a framed customer testimonial posted on it...a very nice touch.

I didn't talk to anyone at this booth, but I had visited with the owner a couple of years ago.  His basic pitch is that "my spas are the same as HotSpring's, mine just cost $2000 less.  You won't see Marquis, Sundance, or HotSpring here...they know they can't compete with us".  Truthfully, they are the same cookie cutter spa that you see all over the internet and being sold out of storage buildings, but his marketing definitely puts him ahead of most of the generic spa crowd.

I would be willing to bet he sells a lot of spas at the fair.

Next stop, Morgan Spas.....

[East_TX_Spa]

I didn't take anymore pictures of booths as I do not want to embarass any of the sales reps.

I scooted on down to Spa Row where all of the other dealers were set up.  Morgan Spas had a bunch of spas sitting around out in the sun with no water in them (not a good practice).  They also had several gazebos, storage buildings, outhouses, pig troughs, and everything else Morgan sells.

As I stopped to look, a fella swooped upon me from the confines of a storage shed and went straight into his sales pitch.  He was nice enough, his shirt said "Jim Dandy- Factory Representative", he was well-groomed and had nice salt and peppa hair.  I really didn't want to spend much time there as Morgan's are frequent junkyard fodder that we deal with on a fairly regular basis around these parts.

About the only thing noteworthy he said was that "You see here, that's a 40-year warranty on that spa."  By cracky, it's TRUE!!!


I wished him well and headed around the corner to where I almost always get a good laugh....CalSpa!

[Zep]

somebody tried to convince me to look at Aeries Spas when I was shopping.

the guy said "Aeries is made locally so if something goes wrong you can go right to the factory"

then he said "Aeries don't have all those jets & fancy gizmos where something can go wrong"

now i know jet count after a certain number is basically fluff over-kill

but this guy strongly implied "try to buy the least amount of jets possible"

isn't morgan a storage shed company that also does decks & spas?

i bought a storage building from Morgan a dozen years ago and it was pretty nice

someday Term I want to tag along with you as you visit the spa booths....now that would be funny

[loosenupspas]

actually, i do know many of them.......i consider them as friends.  you do seem slightly bias in your ranting......good luck sellling

[East_TX_Spa]

Zep, I'd love to have you come along sometime!

As I was saying, the CalSpa booth is ALMOST always good for some laughs.  The year before last, this big ol' wild haired goomer from Western East Texas was their "factory rep" and he was full of factual information, such as....

CalSpa is the only spa company that hasn't lost their UL rating...
CalSpa's heaters never have to be replaced...
CalSpa is the only company that knows how to build spas the right way...
If you see a spa and it's over 20 years old, it's a CalSpa...etc...etc...

Last year, I made plans to meet Spaman at the fair and swap out some of my Monte Cristo cigars for a pair of size 13 Crocs he had gotten out in Arizona.  When I stopped by the CalSpa booth, their was a grumpy ol' fella in a baseball cap sitting amongst the spas.

"Howdy" says I, "I'm looking for George Spaman."

"DON'T KNOW HIM!" Ol' Grump grumbled.

"Well....thank you" as I kinda eased on down the road.  I talked to all of the spa and spa related people asking about Spaman, but no one knew him.  I found out later he didn't come to the fair and that he changed jobs, so I smoked those cigars in his memory.

Well, this year I stopped by the booth and the big ol' wild haired goomer was working the booth again alongside a younger rep.  They were engaging a comely young couple that was sitting in one of the dry spas.  The spa had a couple of steps leading down into footwell area of the spa.  I listened in.....

Comely Young Man: "So, you're saying you can excercise in this spa?"

Young Rep: "Yes.  By walking up and down these steps, you can do what is called 'hydrotherapy' and it'll give you a great workout."  Whilst spouting this impressive information, he was actually stepping up and down into and out of the spa.  I wish I would have shot video.  He was high steppin' like a Grambling drum major!

Comely Young Lass:  "Will it help with varicose veins?"

Young Rep:  "Absolutely.  Our spas will actually help get rid of varicose veins."

About this time, ol' Goomer saw me and mosied over.

"So, you ready to git a spa?"

"Oh, no thank you.  I'm just passin' through."

He turned and went back to enjoy the high steppin' and I mosied along because they were busy.  They had a giant swim spa on sale for $8,000.

Hey, there's Rec Warehouse.....

[txwillie]

 He was high steppin' like a Grambling drum major!

Nothing like halftime at the Al Lipscombe Classic, AKA Prairie View A&M vs Grambling (held at the Cotton Bowl one of the State Fair Weekends)

Man I miss State Fair. Ain't made it in a coupla years....

txwillie

[East_TX_Spa]

Rec Warehouse was set up in a tent right next to Master Spa.  They had the spas, pool tables, foosball, and other assorted accoutrements lined up in rows.  Every year, they have a little round spa that looks like fairgoers have been whizzing in sitting at the front of the tent.  I took a closer look and it said "Freeflow" on it.  It looked like it was pretty rugged.  I believe they are rotationally molded spas.

The salesman approached me and asked if he could help me.  I told him I was just looking around and that I have never seen spas with black shells before (they have some spas with black molded plastic shells...they looked very similiar to a bedliner of a pickup truck).  He told me they were polylysterine or something like that and that you could hit them with a baseball bat.  I believe you could, they looked indestructable but had a tendency to warp.

I asked him what brand they were and he replied "Leisure Bay.  We own the company and they are our private label.  We also carry the number 1 selling spa in the world, Caldera...they're made by HotSprings.  Leisure Bay is the number 3 selling spa behind Caldera and Jacuzzi."

Me:  "What's that spa over there under the gazebo?"

He:  "That's our top of the line Caldera.  It's the only one we bring out here.  Most people at the fair want cheaper spas, so we really concentrate on Leisure Bay."

I looked at the Caldera, it was very nice, a whole lot nicer than they were back in 2001 when we briefly sold them.  I was impressed.  The Leisure Bay spas were...eh.

It was getting dark and I wanted to hit a couple more places so I walked next door to Master Spa.  There were 3 young guys sitting in the booth: one was talking on the cell phone, one was playing on the computer, the other was sitting in the spa watching Lord of the Rings on the TV.  I just walked by, told him that the spa's more enjoyable with water in it, he laughed and went back to watching the movie and I headed over to see the Jacuzzi/Dimension 1 folks.

To be concluded after I eat my Papa John's pizza and have a couple of beers....

[Spatech_tuo]

To be concluded after I eat my Papa John's pizza and have a couple of beers....

I don't know how you put up with that job of yours. Too much stress for me!!

[East_TX_Spa]

Crud, I ate too much...a whole large Italian Meat Trio pizza.  I'm having to slum with Miller Lite as I'm out of Shiner Bock, now I'm sleepy.

I'm going to put a note on the door saying "Gone to deliver hot tub to the orphanage" or somehting alonhg those lines are rest a spell, then I'll tell you  what the Jacuzzi fella had dot say.

Term

[East_TX_Spa]

Jacuzzi and D-1 are sold by the same dealer in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex evidently.  Their booth was set up so you could walk through with the Jacuzzis on the left and D-1 on the right.  There were a couple of young reps working, and a short bald guy came up to me.

Term: "I know that HotSpring, Sundance, Jacuzzi, Marquis, and Dimension One makes the best spas and I've already seen everything at the fair, so you don't have to give me a big sales presentation."

Short Bald Rep: "You sure know your spas!  I'm the rep for Jacuzzi and D-1 and I just got into town.  I have to try and sell both brands because my dealer carries both, but let me just tell you this.....Jacuzzi's are therapy spas, D-1's are recreational."

Term: "Uh huh."

SBR: "You see, D-1 has a lot of jets that just basically move water around...they feel nice but they aren't going to give you the kind of therapy you're looking for.  Jacuzzi, on the other hand, uses a 50-50 ratio of water to air to give you a THERAPEUTIC massage.  No other brand of spa uses the 50/50 water-air ratio."

Term: "I talked to a Sundance spa rep one time who told me they use a 70/30 ratio of water to air or air to water, I can't remember, and he told me that any other ratio would make your back feel like you were laying on hot asphalt."

SBR:  <cutting his eyes and chortling> "You must've talked to Bo Diddley, our Sundance dealer.  Welllll, let me tell you...Jacuzzi actually owns Sundance.  They're made in the same factory but they're different brands and different technologies.  Jacuzzi's are our premium brand, Sundance is a good second choice.

As far as the air to water ratio....blah....blah.....blahhhhhhhh."

Term: "Huh.  I've really got to get going.  Can I get one of your brochures?"

SBR:  "Sure, let me just go through and highlight a few things for you.  Jacuzzi...the name says it all, doesn't it?  50 years of leading the industry.  Our circ pump blah...120 sq. ft. filtration blah....TriFusion shell blah....AND, you know all those other companies you mentioned?  Jacuzzi is the ONLY spa company in the world that has received the ISO 2001 certification for manufacturing quality.  NONE of those other companies are able to qualify.  It's the highest honor any manufacturer can receive."

I thanked him and headed out.

Now, this guy is so full of bullsquat and I guess maybe some customers get off on hearing about air to water ratios and ISO 9001.  Two reps I've talked to in my life made me just want to slit my wrists right in front of them to end my suffering: the Sundance rep from a couple of years ago and this guy.

I was very impressed with the appearance of the Jacuzzis.  They have more curb appeal than any other spas I've seen.  I imagine they are very tough to sell against nowadays.  The D-1's were very nice looking spas as well, very solid and visually appealing.  The only thing I didn't like about them was the cabinet, but I've seen worse looking ones.

Anyways, for better or worse, that was my impressions about the fair.

Oh crap, I forgot about Gulf Coast.  I'll follow up on them as soon as I get a chance.

Term

[D.P. Roberts]

Wow, that is a seriously nice mall. It makes Ohio's state fairgrounds look like a parking lot full of concession stand trailers (come to think of it, it IS a parking lot full of concession stand trailers).

I was very impressed with the appearance of the Jacuzzis.  They have more curb appeal than any other spas I've seen.  I imagine they are very tough to sell against nowadays.  

I agree, those 400 series Jacuzzis look really sharp. I usually don't care much for waterfalls, but the dual, raised waterfalls give the spa a very unique look.

[East_TX_Spa]

Mr. Roberts, the State Fair of Texas is truly amazing.  It is so much more than just a regular fair (I've been to ones in Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Arkansas and they are nothing more than overblown county fairs like you're describing).  The Texas Fair is held at Fair Park which contains year round attractions like the Dallas Aquarium, the Museum of Natural History, Revolutionary War Museum, a train museum, a planetarium, art museum, Discovery Science Center with IMAX theater, and so on.  The exhibit halls are enormous and the vendor booths are uniform and numerous.  Security is outstanding, maintenance is impeccable, you won't even see a cigarette butt laying on the ground.

I was on my way to watch the Vita-Mix demonstration.  Our family has owned and used Vita-Mixes for over 20 years.  They are one of the few products I have owned that absolutely exceeds expectations.  I happened to notice a few spas sitting amongst some massage chairs and pool tables.  When I looked closer, I saw that they were Gulf Coast Spas.  The young reps were talking to an older couple and I heard him saying "These are the first and only appliance grade spas in the world."

I had no idea what that meant, so I checked out their website the other day and this is what it said:

An Appliance-Grade Spa is

Durable, capable of withstanding wear and tear
Ergonomic, designed to optimize comfort
Reliable, dependable time after time
User friendly, easy to operate

 

Have a great weekend ya'll!

Terminator

[powernoodle]

Hey East_TX,
Thanks for the pics and story of the Texas State Fair.  I sold VitaSpas in Dallas/FT. Worth area for 6 years.  I was recently transferred to Florida.  The first year i missed the fair.  Your pics bring good memories.  How was Big Tex looking this year?
cheers

[D.P. Roberts]

The young reps were talking to an older couple and I heard him saying "These are the first and only appliance grade spas in the world."

An Appliance-Grade Spa is

Durable, capable of withstanding wear and tear
Ergonomic, designed to optimize comfort
Reliable, dependable time after time
User friendly, easy to operate

Sounds great. My tub doesn't arrive until Monday morning, so in the meantime I'm going to go for a soak in my dishwasher.