What about the lbs?
I've got a couple. They know when I walk in I'm cash able. I get what I can and they give me the deals and merchandise they can… There've been several times where they've said "we can do this on that item, but man, we can't compete with CRC, so hit them for that thing (or two) and we'll cover the rest….".
It is what it is - I try to always always always give my coin to the local cats. But sometimes they simply can't compete with the mass economies of scale that CRC offers; and hell, they even get stuff from them (but rarely mention this to the public). The following items have been purchased by some of my LBSs from CRC and resold on the floors or under the glass at the counters:
- brake pads
- clothing
- parts, cables, levers, gruppos
- TLD (for some reason specifically TLD) helmets of the higher ilk (FF CF DH, style buckets)
It's business. I do my part. But I like your attitude 100% and would love to keep my coin local. I really would.
"I'm addicted to surfing."