Australian RC Forums banner

Better informed staff needed

4K views 11 replies 8 participants last post by  Sh1mmy 
#1 ·
I am after an 1/8 RC8BE ,i decided i would pay extra and get it from an Aussie shop. I rang RCHobbies yesterday and was told they will have stock coming in tuesday or wednesday, so i said i would ring today to confirm the kits would be in. When i rang up they said they could not give me a date when the kits would be in or if the kits that were coming in had not been already spoken for. So i had no choice but to order from OS, just be nice if they could give customers better information.

Cheers
Terry
 
#2 ·
Welcome to Aussie hobby shops.

Pretty much been my experience at all places I've been to.

I only go to the LHS for small bits they have on hand (still get ripped off but I can live with it).
 
#4 ·
RC8BE is new yeah? These things take time to populate into the local market, mostly it is dictated by the wholesaler and his relationship to the manufacturers. Being that Australia is a small market, we get left behind on a lot of things and just have to wait till they enter the country. Axiel Wraith and Spektrum DX3c are both examples of this, have been released months ago in the US, Europe and Asia, but still not available locally even tho they were dated to be released this week. Its lind of sad really because our LHS loose out on lots of business because of these very issues. I buy my tires from Honkers (because of price) and tossed on a DX3c last order rather than wait for one to be available locally even tho it was the same price after postage.
 
#6 ·
when you call rchobbies your better off speaking to micheal yih, hes probably the only one in there that i know of that knows about actual rc and knows whats goin on in the shop, ive known him for almost a good 10 years now and hes never steered me in the wrong direction, although he did not warn me that id get totaly addicted to a stupid baja LOL
 
#8 ·
The shops can only tell you what they have been told, the OS suppliers that feed our wholesalers regularly short ship orders so that they can fulfil the OS shops.
What we get is the left overs.
Buying from overseas just re-affirms what the wholesalers here believe...our market is shrinking, and demand is low, because the wholesalers here dont see the sales of the products here.
The onflow effect of buying overseas, the retailers dont sell many of the kits, so they dont order a lot of spare parts for them.
The kit you are after is a year or so old now, I saw one sell on the shelf only a couple of weeks ago, so they are definately still available locally.

Welcome to Aussie hobby shops.

Pretty much been my experience at all places I've been to.

I only go to the LHS for small bits they have on hand (still get ripped off but I can live with it).
you cant complain that shops dont stock the parts you want or at the price you want to pay, when you only patronize them occassionally, if you spent a little cash and made yourself known to your LHS, you would more than likely find you would receive better pricing, and they would stock the parts you wanted.
They are not going to stock every part available on the off chance you might come in to buy, especially when most people come instore these days quoting internet prices less shipping and expect the shops to be able to match those prices.

+1 on that
Refer previous...loyalty to a LHS will get you better pricing and more available spares to suit your model, as well as keeping the local industry alive.

Service and expertise dont come cheap, staff need to be paid, rents and taxes as well, I am damn sure no one here is prepared to work for the paultry wages the OS suppliers pay their staff.
 
#10 ·
The shops can only tell you what they have been told, the OS suppliers that feed our wholesalers regularly short ship orders so that they can fulfil the OS shops.
What we get is the left overs.
Buying from overseas just re-affirms what the wholesalers here believe...our market is shrinking, and demand is low, because the wholesalers here dont see the sales of the products here.
The onflow effect of buying overseas, the retailers dont sell many of the kits, so they dont order a lot of spare parts for them.
The kit you are after is a year or so old now, I saw one sell on the shelf only a couple of weeks ago, so they are definately still available
towie i was told they were in the warehouse and ready to ship on saturday by email from Fred. I have been in retail for a long time mate and know what goes on, its abit hard when you get conflicting infomation from three different staff. At the end of the day all i wanted to do was buy a car kit and would have waited if i could have gotten a clear answer to my questions.
 
#12 · (Edited)
you cant complain that shops dont stock the parts you want or at the price you want to pay, when you only patronize them occassionally, if you spent a little cash and made yourself known to your LHS, you would more than likely find you would receive better pricing, and they would stock the parts you wanted.
They are not going to stock every part available on the off chance you might come in to buy, especially when most people come instore these days quoting internet prices less shipping and expect the shops to be able to match those prices.
Well, I have spent quite a bit of money at my LHS's, and even on a first name basis with the owner of one.
I have asked for better pricings and have been told that they have such little leeway with prices that they could only afford a small discount.
I don't expect them to stock every part, it's far too much with a low chance of selling it all.
I do not go in a store and quote Internet prices, it's not only unfair but I know they have no chance of matching it (even including shipping).

In the end I got sick and tired of the prices and the LONG wait time, waiting 4+ months for a small part to come in is just not good enough (not to mention I can get 2 or 3 of the same item from online stores delivered for about the same price and roughly a 7-10 day wait).
I am willing to wait (and do, since I buy most of my stuff online) but only within reason.

I don't blame the LHS's, I blame the greed and Aussie distributors and the typical BS excuses and reasons why everything is more expensive in Aus.


EDIT:

On top of all this though, my LHS's are doing good business, expanding into different places and getting a heap of stock in (of kits/models) and have a few parts on the walls, they claim they sell it and say business is good (can't see how but they do).
 
#9 ·
Man, I had one place here call me 8 months after I ordered about $100 worth of spares. I've ordered at other places and never got call backs. I only go to LHS if I need an urgent part.
 
#11 ·
towie964 said:
if you spent a little cash and made yourself known to your LHS, you would more than likely find you would receive better pricing, and they would stock the parts you wanted.
This is very true, when i go to Oz RC at Geebung in Brisbane, i am greeted by name or by the type of car i drive. (your that guy with INSERT BRAND AND MODEL HERE). They bend over backwards to get or stock what you need and know most of the time what they are talking about. When you go there once every other week, even if its just for something small, you soon get known and build a repor with the guys.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top