BPS buys SW.

[Chris186]

On 12/23/2020 at 11:14 AM, Boomstick said:

Before the merger, it seems that it varied a little store to store. I have 2 Cabelas and one BPS in a three hour driving radius. I haven't been to the BPS in a good year so maybe this changed, but they were by far the best of the three, at least for fishing gear. They were also in a generally higher income area, for what it's worth.

 

The Cabela's in eastern MA was fairly small, unorganized and not well stocked before the merger. Considering this is a generally higher population and higher income area, this was surprising. I have no idea what it's like after the merger as I had no desire to go back to that store.

 

The Cabela's in E. Hartford CT, which is generally a lower income but higher population area used to be pretty good before the merger. After the merger, the fishing department has generally been picked clean everytime I'm in there, and various items either doubled in price if they had any left even or were discontinued, such as Roboworms for example.

They also did away with the Bargin Cave in the stores which sucks. I was just at the Cabelas in Hartford last weekend, the fishing section was a ghost town, except of course for the Bass Pro rods. I really hate that it’s all you see in Cabelas  now.

[Boomstick]

1 hour ago, Chris186 said:

They also did away with the Bargin Cave in the stores which sucks. I was just at the Cabelas in Hartford last weekend, the fishing section was a ghost town, except of course for the Bass Pro rods. I really hate that it’s all you see in Cabelas  now.

Yeah, it's sad. It's no longer really worth the drive for me anymore because that seems to be the norm there now, plus the BPS in Hookset NH is no more than a 30 minute longer drive because of all the traffic and construction and that store has always been well stocked and organized.

[Russ E]

1 hour ago, Chris186 said:

They also did away with the Bargin Cave in the stores which sucks. I was just at the Cabelas in Hartford last weekend, the fishing section was a ghost town, except of course for the Bass Pro rods. I really hate that it’s all you see in Cabelas  now.

Not all Cabelas are that way. In the Kansas city metro there are 2 bass pro shops and one Cabelas. They all usually have a decent stock of fishing gear. The Cabelas is only 5 minutes from my house. I spend more time there than the 2 bass pro's.  One thing I have noticed is Cabelas has a lot more hunting gear. Bass pro has a little more fishing gear.

[Fishnski48]

I understand all the concern over the "merging and expansion" of the big box stores, but we got here because we didn't support our local tackle shops.  When I began buying fishing stuff as a kid, I would go to a local tackle store and ask a bunch of questions (most kids did) before I spent my "allowance".

 

As I got older and began fly fishing I again went to local shops and purchased my rods, reel and assorted paraphernalia and asked questions.  Yes it cost me more than ordering through the big box stores, but I got real world feedback and information, not even considering hanging around and talking to the other guys in the store and mind you this was in NY and Virginia.  Wherever I fished I always went to the local shop even though I would pay a more (sometimes not just a little) but I felt the value was there for the asking.

It was nice to touch the rod, fishing net, foul weather gear.. you get my point.  Tough to do that today, which makes this site so valuable.  Reading everyone's opinion and getting their thoughts is almost like being the store with you (I love the Zoom idea and when I am able I would like to join that too).

 

Today local shops are far and few between and as this thread points out, we are now at the mercy of the big box mergers with very few options.  Lets hope for the best with this latest merger.

 

[OCdockskipper]

45 minutes ago, Fishnski48 said:

I understand all the concern over the "merging and expansion" of the big box stores, but we got here because we didn't support our local tackle shops...

 

 

I wouldn't place the responsibility on the consumer, most of it lays at the feet of the local tackle shops.  If those businesses don't provide value for their customers or fulfill a need, it is unreasonable to ask the customers to continue to patronize them just because they are a small business.

 

As the owner of a small business, I know I have advantages over larger competitors in some areas and they have advantages over me in other areas.  It is my job to make sure to exploit my advantages and maintain a company that provides customers with something they don't get at the larger competition, creating an experience they prefer.

 

Many small businesses fail when they are passed on to the next generation or are sold to 3rd parties.  Those proprietors usually lack the vision & passion the founder had and the end result is the slow death spiral of the business.

 

Don't forget that at one time, BPS was a small business, run out of the back of a hardware store.  At that time, Johnny Morris provided products & services that his customers wanted & needed, allowing him to survive against the larger tackle providers of that time.

[Fishnski48]

I don't want to start a big debate, but some small businesses can't compete with the pricing of the big box stores and small businesses don't always have the foot traffic of big box stores.

 

BPS was run out of his father's hardware store which gave him an advantage he was able to exploit and he grew slowly,  people came in for hardware and were able to browse fishing stuff too (BTW Tackle Warehouse might be the new BPS on the rise).

 

I agree next generation doesn't always want to continue the business or third party buyouts happen.

But I would venture a guess that most folks went to the local shop, got the information, touched the toys and then bought at the "other place" to save money.  I'm not faulting anyone for wanting to save money, I just believe that the little guy went out of business because no one bought from them after they provided value added information and service.

 

 

 

[OCdockskipper]

13 minutes ago, Fishnski48 said:

I don't want to start a big debate, but some small businesses can't compete with the pricing of the big box stores and small businesses don't always have the foot traffic of big box stores...

 

I just believe that the little guy went out of business because no one bought from them after they provided value added information and service...

 

 

No problem, it is just a conversation, not a debate.  I'm happy to hear your point of view & perspective.

 

You are correct that small businesses can't compete on the pricing or foot traffic front, those are the strengths of the big box stores.  Small business's must exploit what they can do better than the big stores.  Not unlike a fight between a 300lb dude and a 200lb guy, the smaller man needs to avoid letting the fisticuffs get into a situation where size is an advantage.

 

Think about it.  How bad must your business plan be if you get people to come into your store, check out your merchandise and then walk out & buy it elsewhere?  If it is due to pricing, then the item has become a commodity, where price & only price determines the point of purchase.  If a small business finds themselves in a position of selling commodities based on price, then they have just tried to tackle the 300lb brawler.

 

FYI, my perspective is that of the little guy, competing daily against Best Buy & Amazon.  If I can't give my customers a reason that makes them prefer to buy from me instead of those 300lbers, then I really don't deserve to be in business.

[jimmyjoe]

3 hours ago, OCdockskipper said:

.... then I really don't deserve to be in business.

 

   I'd prefer to say, " ....then I can't afford to be in business." Lots of things happen to people that they don't really deserve.      jj

  

[Stasher1]

I'm all for patronizing the local shops, but they have to give me a reason to do so, besides just being "the local shop"

 

I can understand that the smaller shops don't get the same deals from suppliers because they don't/can't buy as much as BPS and other larger retailers, which means they need to charge a bit more to make a profit...but I'm not paying 2x average retail. It's just not going to happen.

 

I'm also not going to patronize a local shop whose customer service sucks. I can get that anywhere. If they're not offering me something special to make up for the higher prices, why would I shop there instead of the big guys?

[TBAG]

On 12/22/2020 at 7:35 PM, Log Catcher said:

We will probably lose our Sportsmans Warehouse since there is a Cabelas store less than 2 miles away. Sportsmans had some high prices but they did carry some brands BPS wouldn't. I could get SPRO and 6th Sense baits and I'm sure there are others they have that BPS won't carry.

 

As soon as I heard the news of the purchase this came to my mind. Very unfortunate because Sportsmans is a lot better than Cabelas and like you I buy my 6th sense crankbaits and RK 55's there. I've also gotten some really good deals on clothes and various other stuff over the years. 

 

Also, it's closer to my work than Cabelas and I can swing by no problem on my lunch break. Pretty bummed. 

[Miabucman]

Come to think of it, I have been to the local BPS three times lately and have not purchased anything. It seems that the customer service has gotten worse and the shelves are full of their own products.  I used to come out of the store with a couple of bags worth of items.  I have been buying more tubes, jigs and hooks from a couple of local guys, sometimes to just shoot the bull with them.