How can I get a hot tub when ...

[rfraboni]

My wife and I have been looking for a hot tub for about 2 years, and actually called to finalize an order for a marquis last year when the deal fell through from district rep interference.

The issues faced by my wife and I are there is only 1 local dealer and until about 2 weeks ago only carried HotSprings,TR.  Granted these are nicely built spas, but the dealer seems to think they are made of platinum and was charging almost 30% more than other HS dealers about 80-100 miles away.  In addition this dealer only will give wet tests in the models he has up for display, not the models we would even be interested in, we do not want a lounge in the tub.


The tub that my wife and I realyl fell in love with was the Marquis Euphoria but the closest dealer, about 35 miles from my house was dropping the line at the time I contacted him and would not order the marquis for me.  I was concerned about support after the sale if he was no longer going to be a dealer where would that leave me?  The closest dealer for Marquis is now 60 miles away and will only sell on a Cash and Carry basis without any support.

Any advice would be helpful for the local dealer my choices appear to be the HS Grandee at 9500+ without lift/steps/etc or the Coleman 480 basic model for almost 7000 without anything either.  One other drawback for the local dealer is he is pushing Baqua really hard and the two wet tests we had where Baqua was used we didn't like it, it made us cough.

Wife and I want a hot tub other than the local dealer we are concerned about service and support after the sale.

I am currently in Eastern North Carolina only 15 miles from a 50k city and that is where the HS dealer is.  we did have a D1 for a while but he was an order taker only, and didn't have anything instock to test at all.

Thank you for your time and advice.

[Chris_H]

rfraboni:

Don’t take offense to this, but do you know how much of a pain in the butt it is to fill one tub just for you?  I don’t know if I would do that for you, and I don’t think most dealers would.  Most dealers will have their most popular units on display with water and I generally will say that those units will give you a general idea of what your spa will feel like.  

Secondly, the Grandee is not 30% higher than what others purchase price.  Many dealers sell that spa for that price without any options.  I know dealers here in Philadelphia that sell the Grandee for over $10,000 with FWIII ozone, a Hotspring Cover Cradle, and Steps.

If he is pushing Baqua Spa that isn’t a problem because you can tell him you want to use di-chlor.  That really isn’t that hard to tell the salesperson.

Edited to note: if your local dealer was selling the Grandee at 30% more than the dealer 80 – 100 miles away , that dealer 80 –100 miles away would be selling the Grandee for $7307.69.  Is that what he is selling it for?  If that was the price, I would buy it and worry about service later.

[Chas]

I agree with Chris: if you can get a 2005.5 Grandee for less than $8K I would get it. You mentioned $9500+ which is not out of line for that tub. Again - be sure we are talking the 2005.5 and not a left over 2005 model.

And the Baqua is a non-issue. If the dealer will not supply anything else, tell them to deduct the cost of a startup kit from the final price and go to a local pool store, or shop www.rhtubs.com, www.poolandspa.com etc.

[stuart]

rfraboni,
PM me with your zip code and I will see what I can do to help find you a Marquis and the support to take care of it if that's what you would like.

[rfraboni]

My appologies the the price was not a full 30% , actually only 22%, higher but it was under 8k for a grandee with steps/lift. verses 9500+ the costs of steps and lift.

I understand it is a pain in the butt to have to fill a tub for a potential customer, he has two tubs with water at the moment an envoy and a solana at this time.  I do have trouble with the idea of spending well over 10,000 for a tub that I cannot wet test since I have test a couple including the envoy(last year) that dry were fine and wet they were not a good fit.  The reason I didn't get a grandee in the past was that the old moto-massage didn't feel quite right to us, but the new version looks like it may be a much better feel.

There isn't a satisfaction clause that allows me to try the tub at home and return it if it is not a good fit so I would expect the dealer to have more options for testing a tub.

I am sorry if I sound like a pain in the butt to deal with but this is a large investment and want to make sure that I am getting the right piece of equipment.

Other than the above mentioned local dealer, I have a couple other dealers that are willing to service me but they are all more than 80 miles away and I am scared that if I have issues since I am so far away I will not get the response times I would expect.  In the long distance category I have master and there is a marquis dealer but he is 150+ miles away.

I guess I did not know what to expect while posting and was doing so out of frustration and as an outlet.


As far as price I guess i just get frustrated I see alot of people getting what I consider far better pricing on the boards than what I can get here.  I know there are local differences but when it is only 80 miles is still so much different in price.


The dealer 80 miles away will not service or deliver to me so it makes it a mute point I was just pointing out the cost difference that frustrates me.

[East_TX_Spa]

If the dealer was really serious about wanting your business, he would make arrangements for you to wet  test the spa you are interested in.  I still do not understand why some dealers act like a customer is a burden to them.



Terminator

[nicker]

sorry to some of you but I 110% agree with Terminator.   If I am going to be spending in the neighbourhood of $10,000 you better dam well fill the tub I want to test.  My dealer was more then willing to accomodate us 100%.   If the dealer doesn't want to help you out before the sale just picture what they would be like after you are out the door and they have your hard earned $$$$ in their hands.  Come on people get with it. If I was out buying a tub and came in one of your stores and was serious about a certain tub but you were not willing to fill it up for me Id tell ya to shove it up your #*&@^#@ and that I am taking my business to somone that actually cares.

I feel sorry for you rfraboni. Not sure what you should do other then maybe look a little further away or maybe someone on this board actually knows of a good dealer in your area.   I do know this I would't buy from either of those two dealers you spoke of.  They sound like a couple of smucks!

[jsimo7]

If the dealer was really serious about wanting your business, he would make arrangements for you to wet  test the spa you are interested in.  I still do not understand why some dealers act like a customer is a burden to them.



Terminator

WELL SAID East Tx...... There is another slogan that says "If we don't take of our customers someone else will"
In PROFESSIONAL sales (cars, real estate, furniture, appliances, Hot Tubs ect.) sometimes it is nessary to jump through hoops to excell , that is part of the job!!

[NE-Phil]

Here's a suggestion. Offer the dealer $20-$30 to fill the tub so you can wet test it.
I'm suggesting this for three reasons:

1. This lets the dealer know your serious.
2. It's a $10,000 (give or take) purchase. Even if the dealer is being a jerk about it, it should be worth it to you to pay a little now so you can make an informed decision. And, later on if you decide to purchase it, you can ask him to deduct the "wet test fee".
3. (and this should probably have been first on the list) If the dealer has any sense of what "customer satisfaction" means, he should feel embarrased about taking your money and fill it for you for free. Guilt can do wonders!

Phil

[Brewman]

Some dealers may only keep one or two tubs full, but they have pumps to transfer the water from one spa to another to accomodate customers, and to not have to keep a full set of spas filled and hot.

[rfraboni]

Thank you all for your advice and understanding.

I found out a little more from some other customers that have had good experiences and I called back.  Eventhough the one person thought they had a grandee in stock they do not and that is the reason then cannot wet test.  All they needed to do is let me know that and I would have been better off.

[c00ter]

If I was told I could not wet test a specific spa, especially a 10k spa, that dealer would never get any business from me nor would I ever recommend them.   Remember negative word of mouth travels a heck of a lot faster than positive...  I would probably even complain to the manufacturer about that dealer representing their line.  
Just my opinion..

Karl

[cappykat]

rfraboni...no need to apologize for your frustration.  We have all felt that way when going thru the process of purchasing a hot-tub.  

I agree 100% with Terminator--great post with that picture.  Sorry, Phil--I'm not going to pay a dealer anything to fill a tub.  I see your point, but I wouldn't even offer to do that.  A good dealer who is interested in customer service and sales will accommodate the buyer.  When we looked at Master they didn't have the model that we were interested in filled...but he offered to do so.

Again, Rfraboni, don't worry about your questions.  We were all first-time buyers and this forum has helped a lot of us.

[SpaMan]

Though we dont offer it at all of our stores, we do have an area set aside especially for this purpose. We will fill and set up a wettest for any model you'd like to try as long as the tub is readily available. I have personally sold several tubs this way. Our salesmen from every store can send their potential customers there to wettest.

[Wisoki]

I'm sorry, but there is NO WAY I am sending my customer to some other store for a wet test, so some other sales man can get his hands on them, not in this life time! I don't care if it is in the same company of stores, most of us have been in this business long enough to know what problems this can create. But I'm sure every sales person crusader has work with is far above reproach. What ever tub you want to wet test just say the word.

Though we dont offer it at all of our stores, we do have an area set aside especially for this purpose. We will fill and set up a wettest for any model you'd like to try as long as the tub is readily available. I have personally sold several tubs this way. Our salesmen from every store can send their potential customers there to wettest.