Grand power
- Thread starter johnone
- Start date
- Status
Thanks for clarifying this,John, then it seems that Jaro had no valid reasons for backing out. I don’t know if this is an appropriate question to ask given the circumstances, if you prefer not to answer, it will be fully understandable, but could you give us a rough idea for how much you were planning on selling them. Thanks.
PS. I was actually planning on buying one from Marstar. I already have one and really love the pistol and wanted a second one at a good price. Too bad Marstar won’t get them.
- Location
- Kitchener,Ontario
I can just wait for the next great deal Marstar will bring us 
- Location
- Ontarioville
This is a suprisingly common retail practice... The manufacturer sets the MSRP and sells at a discount rate to vendors, and thats usually where it ends. Some manufacturers maintain clauses that products cannot be ADVERTISED below msrp (hence in store only specials, etc). One step beyond that however, would be you MUST sell the given product(s) at the price the manufacturer decides.
You might think why would a manufacturer do this? Answer is not easy or simple... Could be brand image... Could be manufacturer not wanting to deal with vendors getting all pissy with eachother because vendor A is selling a few percent lower and causing vendor B to not sell... blah, blah, blah. Turns into a drama after that. And believe me, you would be surprised how many people would go complain to a distributor about advartised pricing instead of trying to be competetive. Hope this helps... My statements are from my own expereince in a different industry.
ambishooter
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Southeastern Canuckstan
I hope this issue is resolved by the people behind Grand Power. We don't want to see supporting dealers dragged into this issue caused by the manufacturer turning his back from a contract in favor of another dealer. Integrity I would say is a virtue you cannot simply own.
Deckard
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Chumperistani Gulag
If price was a big deal you'd think GP would specify a minimum price.
- Location
- Center of the Universe, Ontario
I suggest in the future you avoid sending pre payments to any Slovic companies. The only thing worse than their business ethics is their legal system. Anyone thinking of buying a grand power gun should probably save their money and buy something that wasn't made from melted down old cold war era tanks.
- Location
- Ontarioville
Luckily there isn't a whole lot of metal in a GP pistol. LOL.
Just to be clear: No one in here is arguing the quality of their pistols, which really is excellent... They work very well, come out of the box ready for use and aren't in the least bit fussy about what you feed them or what environment you put them to work in... It really is a great product. What we ARE looking at however, is the seemingly unethical BEHAVIOUR of the company itself and treatment of its customer (marstar).
If this was the case WHY didn't Marstar sell the product at the price that the Manufacturer insisted? I've never met a businessman who was opposed to making money, actually the more the better is the norm. A smart businessman will however be acutely aware of where the market price point will no longer yield sales, this is the balancing act of a businessman. Price point of a product vs Profit vs Saturation/acceptance of the market (us) in comparison of the first two points. This firearm will clearly not yield sales (which equal profit) if the manufacturer demands that it be sold for $3000 per unit, but then John would have known this upon entering the contract????
We can wait to see what Blueline sell them for and hear John say that he would have beat the price had he been given the opportunity (which is what he's saying in his post) but then he had better be prepared to explain how much lower he would have sold them for and how. Example, what is his mark up % in comparison to Blueline's as reason for being able to sell for less...I don't believe this information will ever be disclosed to the market (again us) for obvious business reasoning. However without this disclosure the post sounds like sour grapes in the feed trough and should not be publicly displayed in my opinion. Its just unprofessional.
Now, I have purchased from both companies in the past and will continue to do so...'cause I'm a gunnut, but just because I'm a gunnut doesn't mean I want to know or care about business done behind doors that are normally closed to me.
PLINKER777;
"If this was the case WHY didn't Marstar sell the product at the price that the Manufacturer insisted?"
Well my friend that is easy to answer, we will not be dictated to by any manufacturer, simply not in our nature
"I've never met a businessman who was opposed to making money, actually the more the better is the norm. "
Now you have met one, have you ever compared Marstar pricing to other so called importers ?? I thnk we will all agree that we are better than most, and don't forget our no BS waranty
"but then John would have known this upon entering the contract????"
Many changes were made after the fact, not the ethical way to do business....
"in comparison to Blueline's as reason for being able to sell for less..."
Well I am not going to ask another company their mark up etc, etc.... None of my business.... Suffice to say that we normaly get better prices because we buy in large lots....
Allow me an example, last fiscal year we purchased more than 25 million rds of 7.62x39 for the Candian market, do you think we paid the same price as the person buying one container ?? Not likely.
Let me say this, over the week end I will go to the office and pull the file, I will publish the retail prices we were going to sell the Grand Power pistols, then you can be the judge.... Fair enough ??
John
"If this was the case WHY didn't Marstar sell the product at the price that the Manufacturer insisted?"
Well my friend that is easy to answer, we will not be dictated to by any manufacturer, simply not in our nature
"I've never met a businessman who was opposed to making money, actually the more the better is the norm. "
Now you have met one, have you ever compared Marstar pricing to other so called importers ?? I thnk we will all agree that we are better than most, and don't forget our no BS waranty
"but then John would have known this upon entering the contract????"
Many changes were made after the fact, not the ethical way to do business....
"in comparison to Blueline's as reason for being able to sell for less..."
Well I am not going to ask another company their mark up etc, etc.... None of my business.... Suffice to say that we normaly get better prices because we buy in large lots....
Allow me an example, last fiscal year we purchased more than 25 million rds of 7.62x39 for the Candian market, do you think we paid the same price as the person buying one container ?? Not likely.
Let me say this, over the week end I will go to the office and pull the file, I will publish the retail prices we were going to sell the Grand Power pistols, then you can be the judge.... Fair enough ??
John
- Location
- On or About the GTA
More than fair. Happy Thanksgiving, John.
- Location
- Ontarioville
This is a common case... Believe me. Speaking from the power sports industry perspective, we see it all the time. Arai for instance, who is a premium helmet manufacturer, does not permit open advertising below MSRP. Sure you can break that rule, but then they will cease supplying you with their product. Period. They can do it despite the very high price tag because they are known for an excellent product and people will buy it regardless of the price. Why exactly, probably to ensure equality between dealers and no get involved with quibbling... But its their product, and they set the rules. Sounds like a similar issue here, not saying it is for sure, but it sure sounds like it. The part where it gets unethical, is when you try to change policies, rules and requirements AFTER the contract is established. If GP made it clear to marstar ahead of time, then I'm sure John wouldn't be in this situation as he would have either signed the agreement or said no thanks and walked away.
Do I care about the details and nickles and dimes? No... But it certainly bothers me IF things went down the way John says they did. If GP doesn't honour a deal with a supplier spending far more money than I will on a single purchase, what chance do I have of being supported if/when I have an issue with my firearm? One day they may say send it over and we'll fix it up, then turn around and say sorry, its not our fault the firing pin broke, etc, etc.. I am speaking of manufacturer support in this case, not dealer.
That sir, is what bothers me.
Do I care about the details and nickles and dimes? No... But it certainly bothers me IF things went down the way John says they did. If GP doesn't honour a deal with a supplier spending far more money than I will on a single purchase, what chance do I have of being supported if/when I have an issue with my firearm? One day they may say send it over and we'll fix it up, then turn around and say sorry, its not our fault the firing pin broke, etc, etc.. I am speaking of manufacturer support in this case, not dealer.
That sir, is what bothers me.
evolture
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Langley, BC
hamermill
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Prince George, BC
bjs7293
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- B.C. Lower Mainland
Should be interesting to see what kind of prices Blue-Line comes up with.............Thanks John.
Maaaaan, these are good prices!
So how many were in the shipment? When did you sign the contract? When did you arrange for shipment? Did you pay for the first shipment and shipping up front or % as a deposit? These prices could have been 4 years old for all we know.
If you're going to give details, give us all the details please. How much was the manufacturer requiring you to sell per unit for?
If you're going to give details, give us all the details please. How much was the manufacturer requiring you to sell per unit for?
- Status
