Just wondering how it was and how prices were.
Just wondering how it was and how prices were.
Boat seller I went Friday and guess I was lucky. Nasty weather hit that night and so much for going back. All in all it was same as years past. Prices were same some things a bit higher but all in all the same. Now I went but God know I don't need another rod and or reel. and I could open my own tackle shop. I did see some deals and due to the covid thing I saw Bizz bait didn't make it due to a negative but Deep Creek was there. Not sure yet but probably go to the Greensboro show even though I feel it will not be as good as the Raleigh show.
A little heavier custom influx than what I had seen in years past. not as many "high volume distributor" deals/inventory but plenty of "local" custom tackle makers in the house with some cool offerings. Didn't see any doorbuster deals but some very fair deals for custom baits, repaints, and rods. Boat side plenty of things to look at, falcon and Caymus had plenty to show. Crowds were thin enough you weren't bumping shoulders trying to browse. The vendors I talked to seem more pleased to be able to work the show and try to sell some stuff to folks, let ppl touch and feel their offerings given the limited interaction these past two years. Not the classic expo but all in all a good show. I'm not sure what they are charging for booths now but I bet that price came down some from couple years back when it was all the vendors could do to try and recoup the costs of the booth.
That always made no sense to me. People pay to get in these shows, only to find a large portion of the vendors not offering deals on their products. If I wanted to pay full price I can do it online without paying an entry fee. If a vendors profit margins are so slim that they can't afford to knock off 10-20% then they shouldn't be paying for a table.Originally Posted by jab0914d1
Same goes for gun shows. $10 to get in and, oh, look, the same Glock that's $550 in your store is $550 here on your table. Gee, thanks.
Last time I went as a "vendor" I actually took the CBC weigh in trailer to promote CATT and the CBC and they put us outside beside the enclosed tent people where people were entering the building. No one could see us. I even asked if they would announce over the PA where we were at...he said no. We talked to maybe 50 people in 3 days...maybe less...cost me around $4000. They didn't care and actually argued that we were trying to sell boats. Another tournament trail was there each year and never paid a dime. Just walked around and left flyers. I'll never go back.
Reminds me of the 2015 classic in Greenville. There were no signs, no announcements, nothing indicating that there were vendors down stairs from the main floor. On the 3rd day we happen to see people walking down some stairs and wondered what was going on. Went down and it was like a ghost town down there. Vendors were PISSED because there was basically zero foot traffic.
I agree I hadn't been to the show in about 10 years due to the lack of deals and dealers. I know the show promoters have jacked the booth prices up so much that dealers can't afford to have discounts. I went this year and it hadn't changed a lot. I did get to see a few items but not much available that I wanted to see.
We paid $2000 just to park the weigh-in trailer outside in the parking lot
Thanks for all the comments. That was the way it was right before I left the boat business. Most places can have a show at the dealership and invite vendors and come out much cheaper. I remember the last Richmond show we went to when I was with Anglers Choice in VA, we had over $50k invested even with some money from the boat manufacturers pitched in. Hope all has a great year.
I went to Raleigh Show only because I had nothing else to do and was heading to BPS to use my Christmas gift cards. I read someone's post that individual tackle stores in an area were going together to have their own customer appreciation event. I believe Dave's Tournament Tackle (K & J's Tackle) in Jamestown, NC does that. Then there is The Candy Store in Salisbury.
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