Prices around the country

[mowgli1]

hello! ! !

yeah..i agree.. 2000K is a BIG DIFFERENCE.. but... what if he has 2 times the amount of employees in order to service his spa customers 10 times better..what if the rent of the property is twice as much.. what if.. what if...
the SPA market could be different as well.. if the first dealer you addressed was in a market where there was 10 cheapo spa dealers within 10 miles.. it might be more difficult to compete.. and for competition reasons.. he might have to price his tubs with little or no margin..

but.. if the second dealer has a market with higher priced dealers.. it might be the "going thing" to have a higher priced tub .. IN ORDER TO COMPETE...


when's the last time you saw a company in the newspaper.. that went outta buisness .. cuz the prices were too high??! ;o)

Sounds like a great business model . Airlines, steel, and textiles to name a few are out of business because they couldn't compete

[poolboy34]

here's a few more variables:

What type of stores do they have???  Are they big 10K sq ft stores???  Large stores cost a lot of money to heat and cool.

what type of help do they have???  Good help is difficult to find, and even more difficult to keep around.

What kind of lift, steps or other accessories are being included in the price quote???  Not all steps and lifters are made the same, even though they all do the same thing.

Just some food for thought.  

[kvnlaw]

Kent ,this may start a problem, but, if a customer buys a tub from a different dealer in the same geographic area as my store he will not be getting service from me. Warranty work is not profitable. When we set the price for a tub we are not only factoring in cost of spa, shipping, etc. but the any possible future service calls. If a consumer moves a spa from a different locale and provides me with proof of purchase I will gladly service it. If you go 100 miles away to save $200.00 don't ask me to fix any problems under warranty. I would definitely be interseted to hear other dealers thoughts.

[alwaysperky]

Kent ,this may start a problem, but, if a customer buys a tub from a different dealer in the same geographic area as my store he will not be getting service from me. Warranty work is not profitable. When we set the price for a tub we are not only factoring in cost of spa, shipping, etc. but the any possible future service calls. If a consumer moves a spa from a different locale and provides me with proof of purchase I will gladly service it. If you go 100 miles away to save $200.00 don't ask me to fix any problems under warranty. I would definitely be interseted to hear other dealers thoughts.

To be clear............I know nothing about running a spa dealership and repair service.  I have however been in a service related industry for 20 years and this just seems a bit short sighted to me. Wouldn't you want to provide good service no matter where the spa was purchased?  Wouldn't that give you the chance to I don't know, sell some Chems, make new contacts with their friends, family and co-workers who are ready to buy, be next in line for the time they move and want to get something new?

I'm currious, how much would you build into the price of the spa for "possible" future service calls? It would seem to me a consumer might like to have the choice of whether they'd like to prepay for service they might need at some point.

[drprwnap]

Kent ,this may start a problem, but, if a customer buys a tub from a different dealer in the same geographic area as my store he will not be getting service from me. Warranty work is not profitable. When we set the price for a tub we are not only factoring in cost of spa, shipping, etc. but the any possible future service calls. If a consumer moves a spa from a different locale and provides me with proof of purchase I will gladly service it. If you go 100 miles away to save $200.00 don't ask me to fix any problems under warranty. I would definitely be interseted to hear other dealers thoughts.

Wow! I have a problem with that!  
Kvnlaw, how in the hell can you factor in "possible futrue service calls"    I am assuming that you at least "break even" on warranty service calls. That being said, say I buy a spa and have no warranty service calls. You factored in the "possible future service calls" into my price. Now, two years after the warranty expires, I have a service call that you charge me for (as well you should if the warranty expired). So, in essence, you have charged me TWICE for the service call!
Once on the"possible future service call" and once on the actual call when the tub is out of warranty. Please let me know if you are located in the NW PA/ NW Ohio area so I can AVOID buying a spa from you!!! This "possible future service call" sounds like a rip-off to me!!

drprwnap  

[Chris_H]

drprwnap,

You said, “Wouldn't you want to provide good service no matter where the spa was purchased? Wouldn't that give you the chance to I don't know, sell some Chems, make new contacts with their friends, family and co-workers who are ready to buy, be next in line for the time they move and want to get something new?”

If it were that easy it would be great, but if you are not a dealer for a specific brand it tends to be difficult to replace certain parts.  A perfect example would be the “Moto-Massage.”  Try to get that part from a non-Hotspring dealer.  That is why the majority of dealers do not service spas unless they are a dealer for that specific brand.  
Most dealers I think would love to be able to fix anyones spa, but it can be somewhat difficult getting parts for them.

Chris

[obi wan]

would have to agree with perky...
i i bought a brand x tub from you and a pump died with in a year, you would replace it and bill the manufacturer, wouldn't you? if i bought a brand x tub from a dealer 100 miles away to save $1000, and the pump breaks with in the year, as a brand x dealer, you can opt not to repair a warrantee issue? this is different than my biz. i am the ops manager for a security/ home automation/ CCTV installation company. we use specific lines of equipment, but often pick up service work on equip we did not install (i.e. home/buisness owner had sytems installed thru a builder when home was new, already there when purchased,etc...) we do charge trip charge and/or labor if makers warrantee is still in effect. but as a dealer of certain equipment, we often get referals from manufacturer to repair/replace things we didnt install.
in my biz we sell service contracts that range from $5-25 a month.(depending on the type, size, and cost of the system)  for that, we will fix or repair anything defective or even NORMAL wear and tear, as long as they pay the monthly fee. does anything like this exist in the spa industry? i think you would find many people interested in some thing like that.....
and you would get a higher satisfaction rating in the long run.....

[mowgli1]

Kent,
When I was going to buy a master spa  from a factory rep at a show in Mi,  I was told it would be delivered and serviced by the local MS dealer in Tucson. When I called the Tucson dealer he told me he would not deliver or service it since I didn't buy it from him. I would have get service from a  contract repair service that master spa corp. refered me to. So I guess a dealer can refuse to do warranty work

[zzaphod42]

I am assuming that you at least "break even" on warranty service calls.

When you assume you make an... (teasing)

The reality is that quite often a dealer does not break even on warranty work, mainly due to the expense and time of getting a service tech out to a customers home (sometimes more than once).

Now if somebody wanted to bring their hot tub to the store tol be worked on, that's a different story  

[obi wan]

drprwnap,

You said, “Wouldn't you want to provide good service no matter where the spa was purchased? Wouldn't that give you the chance to I don't know, sell some Chems, make new contacts with their friends, family and co-workers who are ready to buy, be next in line for the time they move and want to get something new?”

If it were that easy it would be great, but if you are not a dealer for a specific brand it tends to be difficult to replace certain parts.  A perfect example would be the “Moto-Massage.”  Try to get that part from a non-Hotspring dealer.  That is why the majority of dealers do not service spas unless they are a dealer for that specific brand.  
Most dealers I think would love to be able to fix anyones spa, but it can be somewhat difficult getting parts for them.

Chris

i dont know about the other posts, but i meant brand specific. if i have a HS spa and you are an HS dealer, and i have a valid warantee claim or problem (pump failure for example) how can a HS dealer say no, i wont work on your HS spa,  as you didnt buy it from me? what if i bought it from another dealer who is now closed and you are the only dealer left in the area?
is the spa biz that much different that any other? if your paid for doing warrantee work by the manufacturer, what difference could it make where i bought it from???
i myself just bought a caldera, only had it for a week, and just found out i may be moving to delaware. i doudt i can recoup full price to include it with the house when its sold, so i was planning on moving it with me. i guess i better check on the caldera dealers up there to see what their policy is....

[mowgli1]

If you read the warranty on most tubs it states that warranty work will be done by an authorized service agent designated by the manufacturer, not the dealer of your choice.

[empolgation]

Wow! I have a problem with that!  
Kvnlaw, how in the hell can you factor in "possible futrue service calls"    

That's how I understand it from what I've heard dealers say. They generally do not profit nor "break even" for warranty work and therefore their margin includes "cost" of warranty work. (Many dealers also will charge a "trip charge" for warranty calls.)

think of it as an obligatory insurance premium


Here's a thought...

Wouldn't it be nifty if dealers gave you the option?...
Price of the spa is $xxxxx.
You can choose the unlimited warranty service for an additional $yyy or pay $zzzz for each warranty service call.

any dealer offer such an option?

[East_TX_Spa]

i myself just bought a caldera, only had it for a week, and just found out i may be moving to delaware. i doudt i can recoup full price to include it with the house when its sold, so i was planning on moving it with me. i guess i better check on the caldera dealers up there to see what their policy is....

I imagine their policy is the same as ours.  If someone drives 2 hours to buy a HotSpring Spa in Dallas, that is their prerogative.  It is our prerogative not to service it as we would expect the Dallas dealer to do so.

If someone lives in Dallas, bought a HotSpring Spa up there, and moved here, we would happily service that spa.

Do you see the difference?

Terminator

[zzaphod42]

I imagine their policy is the same as ours.  If someone drives 2 hours to buy a HotSpring Spa in Dallas, that is their prerogative.  It is our prerogative not to service it as we would expect the Dallas dealer to do so.

If someone lives in Dallas, bought a HotSpring Spa up there, and moved here, we would happily service that spa.

Do you see the difference?

Terminator

Nicely put!

[Vinny]

Warranty work was discussed on Doc's board about 6 months ago. Basically ALL dealers have the right to refuse service - unlike a warranty from a car manufacturer.

That is why you need to weigh the savings that your getting with possibility of local service. I bought at a dealer who told me their customers take priority over other calls. I'm hoping that they will be around for many years ... just in case.

I actually have a local dealer by me that closes up shop whenever he feels like it and goes on vacation without backup. I called the manufacturer and they said most repairs can wait until the dealer gets back. That put a red flag out to me and thought of the scenario of -40 F winter and tub dies and my dealer is off skiing and having a good time - I quickly decided that the dealer and manufacturer were off my list.

After reading the thread on Doc's board, I have to say that the dealers are right. If they don't get paid what the tech makes they won't be there in the future. Doing warranty work is a necessary evil for the dealers. They have to be there for their customers.

As a consumer, you have the right to go elsewhere to purchase a tub, as a dealer they have the right to say no. It is 2 sided!