***** buyers beware!

[beckzilla]

Just wanted everybody to know about a little scam ***** is doing on their pricing of products. I went there 2 nights ago to purchase a Magnum 350 Deluxe canister filter to carbon polish my water when needed which i had wanted to do for quite awhile and in using this filter on my FW for years knew this was a very good filter for doing that. Being in a hurry (which is normal for me) i grabbed one off the shelf and paid for it. On the way home i thought the price was a little higher then what i paid for my previous one. My price at ***** was $154.99. When i got home i checked their website and found to my surprise that the online price for this same exact item was $109.99 and noted at the bottom of the page that this price was only available online, not at retail stores. I SAID WHAT THE H...! Then i checked the Petsmart site ( which is where i should have gone to first) and found their everyday price on this very exact same item online or at the local store was $89.99!!! So who is screwing who!! Needless to say i will be going to Petsmart today and buying one and taking that one back to ***** for my money back and a good earful to the ***** manager on his absolutely ludicrous pricing schemes. How can they justify such a price difference from retail stores to online i will never know and cant wait to hear the story from *****. I am sure it will be amusing. I will update later when i come back from ***** if i dont get arrested for verbal abuse.

 

[nacl-man]

***** prices are insanely high. I am not sure how they get away with it either. I don't buy anything from them except dog food when i am in a bind.

 

[beckzilla]

Me too from now on. Only when i am in a bind.

 

[nas19320]

I believe it may be the same way with Petsmart. At least it was with IO salt at one time. A 200 gal. bucket of salt was $10 less online.

 

[bdhough]

well plain and simple there are alot of people out there who don't know better and will buy something full retail. they are a store and can make whatever prices they like but its up to the consumer to say thats expensive and not buy it. i used to work in a private fish store and the owner would mark everything that came through that door up 100% if not more. i had a few discussions with guys who had worked there for years who knew the same thing and have suggested to her she lower her prices to move product but some people are just set in their ways. i don't know why alot of people go to ***** in the first place. ive heard nothing but bad things about them why give them business?

 

[aandersen]

I buy most of my supplies at ***** and petsmart is usually lower, but if they are out of something, ***** will always do a pricematch....***** is usually much higher than most places

 

[broomer5]

caveat emptor - let the buyer beware

Sounds like you were able to save some money by shopping around Beckzilla.

 

[donmgicwon]

I just buy the stuff on sale and clearance. Its close by so I stop in when driving by to see what they are getting rid of (ALWAYS something). I've received two big bags of premium dog food and 10 cans during free promotions so they are not completely bad. BTW, I never buy anything without checking a few prices first.

 

[doodle1800]

PetSmart will honor online prices. Print the online price and bring to store. I buy salt this way - reg price.. $18.99 to $9.99.

 

[spun710]

most lieklythe reasen the price was much lower online was to make up for shipping charges..after shipping the price would probably be about the same as buying it in the store

 

[beckzilla]

$45.00 shipping charge. No way...i dont buy it. There is no justification for that much difference in price. They should be the same!! Plus their shipping is free.

 

[kittykitty]

Prices are different online than in retail stores in most cases. That's just how it works. Would a customer rather pay 100 dollars plus 40 dollars for shipping online, or the regular 140 dollars found in retail stores plus another 40 dollars for shipping? If that were the case, then nobody would shop online, they would just drive to ***** and save on the shipping. You're not really getting a deal online, because you still have to pay for shipping and handling.
Know what I mean?

 

[donmgicwon]

Originally posted by KittyKitty
You're not really getting a deal online, because you still have to pay for shipping and handling.
Know what I mean?

WHAT ARE YOU SMOKING!
Online prices are almost always better. They have to be because there is so much more competition, instead of driving from store to store (if you have more than one in your area) you just "click your mouse" to find the next deal, not to mention there is WAY less overhead for an online retailer than there is for a "brick and mortar" retailer. The only disadvantage to ordering online is the wait. As for shipping, the cost is almost always made up in sales tax savings.

 

[saltytom2]

my lfs will match any walmart style pet store. eg. *****,pet supplies plus, etc. if you can find a mom and pop lfs, you are much better off. i have to give a big hooray for ed's pet world in b'ham al. he is willing to match any online price, competitors price and the service is excellent and knowledgebale. their staff actually cares about their clients. one of their employees actually came to my house free of charge to help my wife and i with our new setup. kudos to ed and all of what he has to offer.
i have never been more satisfied with customer service in any realm. he will even order any fish upon request.
***** can chew a retail bone!

 

[doodle1800]

Originally posted by donmgicwon
WHAT ARE YOU SMOKING!


He's not smoking anything (maybe he is) - he means the prices online are lower but when you add the shipping the price is as much as in the store...
shopping online has its advantages too - as you stated..

 

[tizzo]

It's all about convenience. How bad do you need it, how FAST do you need it. You said you were in a hurry... seems like this "rush" buy is costing you your time, and your mileage, and especially your patience. Most people wouldn't research after they purchased the product already, and if they did some would say that it would be more of a hassle to start all over again with the purchase. My hats off to you though, stick to your guns, but be easy on the manager, he didn't make the prices what they are. Hopefully though, maybe he will price match, so you don't have to cruise around town to get another.

 

[barry cuda]

I'd just rather support a small business whenever I can, even if I pay a little more. Don't even get me started on Wal-Mart, the Great Satan of American Retail Stores. Just don't go there...

 

[gregvabch]

i'm all about supporting small businesses too but sometimes there's just too much of a difference in prices. i buy pretty much all of my equipment online, and even with shipping it's still cheaper. if, with shipping, the price is close between my lfs and an online company, i buy it from the lfs. most times, from what i've seen in my area, equipment is always much cheaper to buy online. livestock is a different story. usually it's a lot closer in prices since it's so expensive to overnight fish and corals. this site has a good deal on shipping but it seems like whenever i'm ready to buy at least 75 dollars worth of livestock they don't have half of what i'm looking for in stock.