Why does it seem that people opt to pay more??

[scapilot]

I hear a lot about Squadron.com, and Spruebrothers. And no doubt, I've ordered tons of aftermarket stuff from spruebrothers, and they have been great with shipping times, and customer service. But what I DON'T get, is why I see so many folks buying kits from these two places when they are out there...same kits.....same numbers for MUCH cheaper? I do all my kit shopping online through Scalehobbyist.com. Their shipping maxes out at 9.95. So if you order two kits up to a certain amount, you'll only pay ten bucks. But when I ordered 16 kits back in March. Guess what......ten bucks. Their shipping times have gotten much quicker since the first of the year, so I don't understand why I still constantly see or read about people buying kits for so much more. I just, by chance...saw a 1:35 DAP Black Hawk on Squadron for $62.00, and the very same kit number on SH was only 44 bucks. Someone clue me in.

[Kevan Vogler]

Could be a variety of reasons such as customer loyalty, good track record on the part of the retailer, after sales service quality.....

Squadron and Sprue Brothers are known quantities to e-shoppers. People speak highly of them and speak about them a lot, so word of mouth advertising is also a factor in why people would deal with them over another retailer they may not have heard so much about.

There's also still a lot of people who are very wary of shopping online in the first place, so they'll be willing to pay a higher price for the security of dealing with a retailer that has a well known track record of good dealings.

[scapilot]

I suppose. My loyalty will always be towards saving money in my pocket. I could understand people being wary if it was vague ebay items or some sketchy website with not much details. But scalehobbyist has a huge selection...shipping caps and solid support and it just seems like I never hear anyone else talk about them. Perhaps as you said...some people don't know much about them. When I first started shopping there I actually emailed them to ask what the catch was. They emailed me hack Tue same day and said no catch. I placed an order and it was solid. Their tools...paints...and kit selection are ridiculous as are the prices. I was just curious as to why I don't hear more from others shopping through there.

[Dave Williams]

I don't buy that much from Squadron as their normal discount is only about 10%. However,they do have a lot of sale items every month, plus the mystery items and special sales, where the price is much, much lower than either SB or SH. I'll buy from Squadron when they have something I want on sale. I've been using SH a bit more for kits lately because as you say, their kit prices tend to be cheaper than SB. However, while they have a good selection of kits, their aftermarket selection seems to be a lot less than SB. For aftermarket, SB is still the place for me to go. I also use Lucky Model a fair bit, since in many instances their price, even with shipping, is cheaper than getting it even from SH.

[loftycomfort]

Vendors don't always win their customers by price alone. They do so by a combination of customer service, shopping experience, prices, and a slew of other factors. All these factors can together contribute to improve customer loyalty that lower prices alone cannot.

Terry

[echolmberg]

On an interesting side note, I was listening to the radio a few weeks ago where they were talking about a study that was done around wine and its pricing. Different groups were given the same wine but each group was told that their wine cost different amounts. The more the "price" went up, the more people thought that wine tasted better in spite of the fact that it was the same wine. Maybe it's the same with model builders. I don't doubt that someone paying $150 for a P-51 will adamantly believe that it's superior to a $40 kit in the same scale.

Eric

[arnobiz]

It depends a lot on any particular kit too. I just checked the retailer you praise for a 1/72 Hasegawa Super Hornet and it's significantly more expensive there than at other online shops...

Arnaud

[Hawkeye's Hobbies]

Let me add this fact, many online retailers who offer "lowest" prices often don't last long. When you sell your products at cost, you have nothing to use to pay for your overhead. We've seen several such retailers come and go.

What you don't see with many online retailers is who and what they really are. This probably isn't too important to most just shopping for the best price, but it is a huge factor when you have a problem after the sale. Some of these retailers are just a presence on the internet with no physical contact information, just an email address or a contact form on their website. When an issue arises, you have no way to call or write them. If they don't respond to your emails you are out of luck unless you use the leverage of your credit card company or payment processor to settle a dispute.

When you do business with companies such as Sprue Brothers and Squadron, you are dealing with longevity both in sales and customer service. They are there physically when you have a problem. Most virtual retailers don't publish where or who they are, so finding them is difficult, but not impossible.

I will say that the industry is doing a better job of weeding out the inferior retailers, those who claim to be a legitimate retailer, virtual or physical who are nothing more than someone wanting to buy at wholesale so he/she can get kits cheaper and sell to a few close friends.

If just price is important, shop where you get the lowest cost. Hopefully, the transaction will go smooth. But what often happens is when word of lowest prices gets out, the surge in sales often triggers slower service and shipping. Or collapse as the workload is too much for the person who owns the business. It becomes a job and because of the small margins, it isn't worth the time and energy to continue. And should a credit card company start seeing disputes, they can shut off access to payment processing instantly. No sales, no income...no business.

[JesniF-16]

I personally believe in loyalty to a certain extent. When I place an order, I order a lot of tools, supplies, paint, aftermarket etc... I know SB has it all in stock and it saves me a lot of time and headaches... Then I get one package from one place and it gets to me safe and secure. My philosophy is that if I keep buying from the site with the best service and selection, then that business will STAY in business for years to come...

/Jesse

[nerdling]

I've ordered from Scalehobbyist once. For me it felt like it took way to long for them to ship the item and for me to get it. When I place an order with Spruebrothers I know it will probably get sent that same day and be at my door in 2-3 days. I have a difficult time waiting for 2-3 weeks for a package to show up. Also Scalehobbyist doesn't have much in the way of aftermarket stuff while Spruebrothers does. As for Squadron I usually only shop there when they have a great sale on books or decals. The mystery deal is very nice as well. But to be honest in the end most of my kits come from Ebay. Hard to pass up 53 dollars for a 1/48 Betty bomber, with Techmod decals, Eduard mask, and Moskit exhaust.

[Antonov]

Consistency, trust, known quantity, stability, ease of use. I've been ordering from Squadron since I was ten or so, and they've never ripped me off.

[Fishwelding]

Let me add this fact, many online retailers who offer "lowest" prices often don't last long. When you sell your products at cost, you have nothing to use to pay for your overhead. We've seen several such retailers come and go.

What you don't see with many online retailers is who and what they really are. This probably isn't too important to most just shopping for the best price, but it is a huge factor when you have a problem after the sale. Some of these retailers are just a presence on the internet with no physical contact information, just an email address or a contact form on their website. When an issue arises, you have no way to call or write them. If they don't respond to your emails you are out of luck unless you use the leverage of your credit card company or payment processor to settle a dispute.

When you do business with companies such as Sprue Brothers and Squadron, you are dealing with longevity both in sales and customer service. They are there physically when you have a problem. Most virtual retailers don't publish where or who they are, so finding them is difficult, but not impossible.

I will say that the industry is doing a better job of weeding out the inferior retailers, those who claim to be a legitimate retailer, virtual or physical who are nothing more than someone wanting to buy at wholesale so he/she can get kits cheaper and sell to a few close friends.

If just price is important, shop where you get the lowest cost. Hopefully, the transaction will go smooth. But what often happens is when word of lowest prices gets out, the surge in sales often triggers slower service and shipping. Or collapse as the workload is too much for the person who owns the business. It becomes a job and because of the small margins, it isn't worth the time and energy to continue. And should a credit card company start seeing disputes, they can shut off access to payment processing instantly. No sales, no income...no business.

This is increasingly my thinking when shopping for several things, hobby items included. In the long run, I'm willing to pay a few extra bucks to see someone stay in business responsibly on several levels. I like to get things below MSRP, but I increasingly believe that getting things at the lowest possible immediate price does not always benefit the consumer in the long run.

[mingwin]

I suppose. My loyalty will always be towards saving money in my pocket. I could understand people being wary if it was vague ebay items or some sketchy website with not much details. But scalehobbyist has a huge selection...shipping caps and solid support and it just seems like I never hear anyone else talk about them. Perhaps as you said...some people don't know much about them. When I first started shopping there I actually emailed them to ask what the catch was. They emailed me hack Tue same day and said no catch. I placed an order and it was solid. Their tools...paints...and kit selection are ridiculous as are the prices. I was just curious as to why I don't hear more from others shopping through there.

First, i would recommend you not to just rely only on scalehobbyist if your loyalty is toward saving money in your pocket... i've seen there, prices up to 20% higher than some other very good/reliable places...

when you wanted chinese or japanese kits, better look elsewhere... same for Czech or eastern ones... you'll get better prices... mostly if you don't buy 16 kits at once!(BTW i'm pretty sure you can get good deal everywhere if you buy 16 kits at once...)

also, they have a great selection... agree... but most item that would have interest me are, out of luck... out of stock...(there is a lot of stock, in stock... but not what would have make me buy...)

i'll certainly try them in time... when they'll stock what i'm looking for...

[Jennings]

I use Google/Shopping. Whoever comes up with the lowest bottom line price, including shipping, is who gets my business. Getting it the same day I order it really makes no difference to me. Waiting two weeks to get a kit that's just going to go in my stash anyway is irrelevant, especially if it's $10 cheaper than anybody else's price. If they totally hose things up, I probably won't use them again (the main culprit there is no longer in business), but otherwise I have price loyalty.

Edited October 7, 2012 by Jennings

[Shawn C.]

The local grocery store I frequent isn't terribly expensive but many competitors have better prices on most products. For me, I am willing to pay a bit of a premium for their outstanding customer service. Same with squadron, spruebrothers and A2Zeemodels!

[toadwbg]

I am willing to pay more for exceptional service.

[Geoff M]

I hear a lot about Squadron.com, and Spruebrothers. And no doubt, I've ordered tons of aftermarket stuff from spruebrothers, and they have been great with shipping times, and customer service. But what I DON'T get, is why I see so many folks buying kits from these two places when they are out there...same kits.....same numbers for MUCH cheaper? I do all my kit shopping online through Scalehobbyist.com. Their shipping maxes out at 9.95. So if you order two kits up to a certain amount, you'll only pay ten bucks. But when I ordered 16 kits back in March. Guess what......ten bucks. Their shipping times have gotten much quicker since the first of the year, so I don't understand why I still constantly see or read about people buying kits for so much more. I just, by chance...saw a 1:35 DAP Black Hawk on Squadron for $62.00, and the very same kit number on SH was only 44 bucks. Someone clue me in.

Most obvious answer: price isn't as important to some people as it is to you.

Geoff

[boom175]

I try to support my local hobby shop, but not that many other people did and it went out of business.

[Scooby]

I am willing to pay more for exceptional service.

I am willing to pay less for exceptional service.

I think the reason people buy for more is they do not do their homework, ebay is a prime example of that.

[scapilot]

I never said customer service wasn't important...but far as I could ever tell. These guys have offered nothing short. I'm not saying I would accept crap behavior in light of saving a few bucks..because then you're essentially telling people that it's okay to treat customers like that because they'll pay you to burn them repeatedly.

Just like elchomberg said...if me and a friend hold up two of the SAME EXACT KITS and tell you that you can have one for 19 dollars less than the other, and we'll treat you no different based on which one you choose....then some of you are kinda saying that you'd still pay the 19 bucks. Now if my friend said that you'll get it in two weeks after he kicks it down the hills of San Francisco, then yes...I get the loyalty there. But to pay 19 dollars more for the kit, and possibly 3-8 bucks more on the shipping for the same thing over wanting to get it in three days instead of seven baffles me. Which leads me to my next question that I've wondered since stumbling across this relatively new hobby this past year. I hear of people complain that somethings always out of stock...or that they'll pay 20 dollars more for extra shipping just so it can get there in the sit in the stash of the other 1,429 kits in their collection. Seriously???? What's the rush? Some people have rooms full of kits that have been sitting in the collection since the 50's and they're mad that an item won't be restocked until the end of the month. Hmm.. Back on topic, I get it that some people will pay more if the actual quality is better. I don't have an issue with paying for Tamiya over Revell if they both have the same subject matter that I'm after. But even then....I won't break the bank to facilitate it.

Arnaud...you said you saw one kit on there that was more expensive than you'd seen anywhere else. Well, in my experience...hence the reason for the post I've seen 95% of the kits on there more expensive everywhere else. I don't want this to me misunderstood as a big fan page for the site, I was simply trying to start a logical conversation for the sake of different views.

As far as loyalty...I didn't mean to sound like "only money talks". But to an extent, if I can get a great experience equally from seperate retailers, then it comes down to "common sense talks". Like Hawkeye said...some businesses don't last long at low prices, but if they have a good business solution, and are available to sell their goods at a low end and still cover their costs, then it works out. Some people (see Ebay) just try to sell everything in their house for as much as they can out of simple greed. That's not cost effective, because in the end they sit on their product while the guy who's selling it for pennies on the buck has moved all his good and is establishing a clientele.

Mingwin, you speak of seeing their prices jump. My friend, that's the world we live in these days. I too noticed an hike on some of the items that I had ordered just earlier this year from. Compared them to the prices at the times that I ordered and sent an email. I was promptly replied to, and it was explained that the companies themselves have hiked their percentage. Tamiya twice, and Italeri three times so far this year at the time. Simple business....you pay more from the vendor...you're going to charge more for the customer. However, I have also noticed the same increases on items likewise across the other online stores, so it's not like this is a new business approach. And yet....I still find those very same kits for cheaper there than I can anywhere else. Some are close!! But still cheaper. And I'm not sure I understand the statement about chinese or Japanese kits. Are you talking about model subjects or companies themselves??? I've not seen a chinese made kit yet that I'm even remotely interested in, and they stock everything I've ever needed from Hasegawa. So I didn't understand that point. As far as getting a great deal for shipping everywhere else, buy 16 kits from Luckymodel and tell me how well that shipping bill alone turns out.

Local hobby shops are a great thing. We just had a new HobbyTown open up here in Ft. Worth, saving me a 30 minute drive to the one in Arlington. Not as big. But for a rare paint that I may need, I don't have to wait for shipping times anymore. And yes, sometimes hobby shops have great deals. But if a kit sits on their shelves for two years, they typically will stell sell it for the same 90 bucks they did when it was first released....when you can find it anywhere else these days for 15. That's what I don't like about hobby shops. Other than that, I support them as much as I can.

GeoffMurphy....price is important to everyone. Loyalty might be a driving contributor, but I don't many us in this hobby who are billionaires. I make great money at what I do as a career, but I still think thrift minded because I don't understand logic in paying more for something I can have of equal value with the same exceptional quality for less. With that being said. YES...I do spend a ton of money over at Spruebrothers and Lucky. Yes, I think they've got amazing service, and awesome selection. And Yes, I will probably continue to serve all of the other companies out there if it's something I want/need and they have. I wasn't trying by any means to say that "the other guys" should go **** up a rope. I was simply curious as to why I read some people saying that they've bought kits somewhere when I just knew they could be had for less somewhere else. Perhaps also educate a couple of people who may not have been aware of the idea.

Some folks come into these forums, and they hear Spruebrother, Squadron, and Lucky the majority of the time. Again...ALL GREAT FOLKS!! But I know that it wasn't until I came in and asked the question in the forum as a newcomer that I was suggested to try SH. At that point, I was baffled at why more people didn't speak nearly as highly when there was such money to be saved. On a side note...I sent them an email tonight about a delivery for tomorrow. They replied within seven minutes....and it's after 11 central time. I'm sure someone will find something to say how that's just horrible customer service though. lol.

Bottom line, great discussion...and good shopping my friends!!

[GreyGhost]

How long have they been around and what's their reputation ?

If they're fairly new, it's about them getting established with good word of mouth ...

If they've been around for awhile yet you never hear or read about them, you gotta ask why ?

-Gregg

[scapilot]

Not too sure. I've been using them since March for paints, tools, and kits. The few times something hasn't been stocked, I've been notified within 6 weeks via email when it came in. I think the only two things I've even waited on were the Italeri V-22 and KC-135. Both of which are now stocked, and in my stash. :)

[UKPonchoMan]

What's even more amazing is the price people are willing to pay for things on eBay... The number of times i've seen people fight over something and pay more than something costs retail...

[Jay Chladek]

In my case, if a vendor has three or four items (even as little as two) and one might be a little higher in price than one I can find elsewhere online, I still typically go for the sale especially if the other items I want might be unique to that vendor. Reason being is the price and shipping might be cheaper elsewhere. But if I know I am going to get another item or two from this one vendor and the shipping rates seem to jive (or might be slightly higher, yet still within reason), for me it still makes more sense to get it all from one vendor than ordering for two and having to pay shipping for TWO packages (which might end up negating the savings). At this point, saving a few cents is not the ONLY factor I consider anymore. It is important somewhat, but if we are talking maybe two or three bucks at most price difference, it isn't really a bother in my case.

And in my case since I live one state away from Sprue Brothers, I can usually go for the less expensive shipping and STILL usually get it within a day or two.

[Diamondback Six]

My ABSOLUTE preference is Emil Minerich at Skyway Model Shop up here around Seattle when I can get to his shop... I pay quite a bit more than any e-tailer, yes, but Emil's taken very good care of me over the years both in finding kits of obscure, total-PITA-to-get subjects and in advice and assistance planning build. Plan A-Minus is other local independent hobby shops. Plan B is the Big Boxes like Michaels or Hobby Lobby IF it's something I think they carry. Plan C is Hobbytown USA (sorry, the local one ain't that great) or e-tail.

Maybe you see this as a rube getting fleeced--I prefer to keep my money supporting local jobs somewhat, especially taking care of people who've taken care of me and my needs for almost two decades so that I can KEEP going back and getting the benefit of expertise.