Price Fixing or What!!

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Ron Martin

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I have just searched every online shop I could find for a particular product. Every shop that offered this product was within ?1-5 of each other for each item offered. It's good kit but I think it's overpriced. My opinion, for what it's worth, is that there may be a price fixing arrangement between manufacturers, distributors and retail outlets.
What's the feeling among other anglers? Am I talking c**p or does anyone have any evidence to support my theory?
 
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Ron Troversial Clay

Guest
Of course there is price fixing.

From the maufacturer to the wholesaler and finally to the retailer, there are price lists which are generally adhered to.

This is life.

And woe betide any retailer in most circumstances, who starts price cutting.

Retail price maintenance is a major part of modern marketing.
 
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Ron Martin

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What do you mean by:
"And woe betide any retailer in most circumstances, who starts price cutting."
 
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jp

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The larger manufacturers will stop supplying them Ron.
 
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Ron Martin

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But doesn't that in itself encourage competition & fair trade?
They will look for good alternatives
 
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Carp Angler

Guest
when all the alternatives are fixing things at the same price?
 
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John Lock

Guest
Ron said. "What do you mean by":
"And woe betide any retailer in most circumstances, who starts price cutting."

Big retailers could get away with price cutting. Asda and Tesco had some success by selling things like perfume, medicines and brand-name clothing cheap - but there were a lot of protests by the manufacturers.
If a small retailer had tried this they'd have gone out of business because the manufacturers would have cut off their supplies of the goods. Same applies in the tackle industry, but I doubt that even the biggest tackle retailers have anything like the clout of Tesco so prices are generally what the manufacturers want them to be.
Things will only change if people stop buying overpriced tackle but, to give one example, the supply of poles costing over ?1,000 each seems never-ending, there's a new one featured nearly every week in the angling press. Somebody must be buying these things so don't hold your breath for the 'Anglers against overpricing' campaign to start.
 
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Ron Martin

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To all that responded, thanks. John says "don't hold your breath for the 'Anglers against overpricing' campaign to start" and of course he's right.
It is still a bloody shame that we as a group would rather brag about size of our bank balance rather than the size of our most prized catch.
How the hell can ordinary folk justify spending upwards of ?1000 on a pole. The world continues to go potty!
I'll shut up now.
 
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Chris Bishop

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The real shame is the two tier pricing which favours the big superstores and mail order outfits and stops Joe's Tackle on the street corner competing.

I delibrately buy as much as I can from "traditional" shops as they're a resource we'd all be a lot poorer without.

?1000 for a pole..? Doubt all my stuff put together's worth that.
 
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John Lock

Guest
I reckon that my tackle is worth ?500 tops. Mind you I'd buy a 16 metre pole if they were a lot cheaper. Hmmm! I've got a 4.5 metre whip, if I shoved a few viagra inside it, do you think that, overnight, it might ... Nah! Forget it.
 
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Chris Bishop

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Nice idea mate. Lends a whole new meaning to stiffy rigs.
 
Murray Rogers

Murray Rogers

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I'm amazed that anybody pays the retail price shown these days for any piece of kit which costs more than ?20. There are fantastic deals to be done if you only ask and shop around. The tackle shops make their real money on the small cost stuff.
 
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Wolfman Woody

Guest
I've have followed this thread with great interest since when I raised the subject of high fixed prices with the trade 3 years ago, they and the trade press slated me. Well I'm a big lad and I gave as good as I got.

RON - DON'T SHUT UP - speak your mind, never have a "humble" opinion. If you have an opinion be proud of it!

Chris Bishop mentioned the 2-tier pricing. This is how it sometimes works in order to keep one price.
Small dealer: "I'll take three rods at ?100 each."
Manufacturer "Thank you so much."

Mega dealer "I'll take 100 rods at ?100 each, what else do I get."
Manufacturer: "Thank you, we'll give you 50 more free of charge." (could be an extra 100 free)

Everyone pays the same price though. Your local dealer hasn't a hope in hell of keeping his customers with those offers.
 
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Deecy

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Some local dealers get together with a group of other local dealers and get for example 100 reels thereby getting the manufacturers discount.It is a pain in the butt to organise but can be done.
 
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Wolfman Woody

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David. - - - I don't know why more small dealers don't get together to form an association and press for these better offers. It happens in other trades and it strikes me that it's the way to go if they want to survive.
 
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Chris Bishop

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This is the story the angling press won't touch for obvious reasons.

Two things changed the trade overnight in the 70s.

Bennets started doing tick and Billy Knott started knocking out cut-price Mitchell Matches.

The more the trade evolves into faceless mail order/internet warehouses, the quicker Bert's Tackle is going to disappear.

We have a great tackle shop in King's Lynn, run by a one man band. Ditto where I live, there's a small independent tackle shop two mins' walk from my house.

I use both as much as I can because if they go all the advice they offer to beginners and visitors is going to vanish overnight.
 
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