Unfair business practices

The local super-duper hardware store, the one with the pass-through door to the lumber yard next door, has crossed the line. I am often disturbed by business practices that are on the sketchy side of the line. Placing candy at kids' eye level is bad enough, but when they place a large assortment of Festool toys right by the cash register in a hardware store...well, that's just wrong.

People have mortgages and families and they should know better than to tempt people that way. On the other hand Festool makes stuff that feels good in the hand and is just pretty! Am I worth it...? Hmmmm.

Anyone looking for a second-hand mortgage and family with hardly any miles on them? ;)

R
Reply to
RicodJour
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According to an Ebay store the new Festool products MUST be sold at the suggested retail price, no matter the outlet. Gee, isn't that illegal, as in price fixing?

Mike D.

Reply to
Mike Dobony

Microsoft has been getting away with it forever.

Reply to
Dave in Houston

Mike,

No actually your United States Supreme Court has JUST ruled that this type of pricing is not illegal. Usually the manufacturer tells the retail outleft that if they want to sell the product, they have to maintain the price.

re:

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way to get any discount, is 1) avoiding sales tax - internet, mail catalog

2) discounts that the store might apply to a total purchase - "Today if you spend $40, you will save an additional $5!!". That's how I bought my Tormek sharpening system at Woodcraft - on my "birthday discount" card that I get once a year.

I've got a major b-day coming up and I'd like to get one of those new Festool screw guns. We will see.

MJ Wallace

Reply to
mjmwallace

Not necessarily.

It is my understanding that retail outlets displaying Festool products are actually "AGENTS" of Festool.

AS an example, my local hardware store has a display of Festool, but no inventory.

Orders are placed via phone to Festool in Nevada and shipped same day to here in SoCal(Yes, you pay CA sales tax)

IOW, the right of ownership transfers directly from Festool to the end purchaser and the retailer is then paid a commission.

Since Festool is the seller, they can set whatever price they like.

It is an old marketing trick that finds limited application these days.

Lew

Reply to
Lew Hodgett

Not true! Microsoft welcomes anyone to come up with an operating system and market it. Go ahead, here is your chance to become a billionaire! Gates is one hell of a marketing man, more of a salesman that a computer geek. You don't need to use Microsoft products! Greg

Reply to
Greg O

"birthday discount" card that I get >once a year.

Aren't you the lucky guy. The franchisee here will only give you a discount on non-electrical tools, and he reserves the right to hold back ANY tool he wants.

He does it, too.

Robert

Reply to
nailshooter41

Are you SERIOUS????

They purposely make sure that Caldera/DR-DOS 6 could not be used with their software. If you didn't have Windows 3.1, MS Word would not work.

Be (BeOS) failed when they tried to give away the OS for free because of threats by Microsoft against PC vendors who considered it.

There was netscape, Opera, and the browser wars. Sun's java versus MS's. The MS "extensions" to Kerberos. WordPerfect, Media players, firewalls, java vs. C#, Microsoft vs. Japan, Microsoft vs. Europe, and the Open Office XML. The battle goes on.

And there is a class action lawsuit for people who were forced to pay for Windows when they had no intention of buying/using it.

Only recently could you get a discount by buying a Dell with Linux.

Remember, the DOJ CONVICTED them of illegal practices.

They've been good recently, because of their conviction, but then they bring up the Linux patents.

Reply to
Maxwell Lol

It was illegal price fixing, since around 1911, until just recently (in the last couple weeks) when the US Supreme Court struck down those restrictions. Now the manufacturers can set a minimum selling price just like the minimum advertised prices that had been common practice.

-- JeffB remove no.spam. to email

Mike Dob>> The local super-duper hardware store, the one with the pass-through

Reply to
JeffB

Those Bastards!

Reply to
B A R R Y

There is always the Black & Decker 'method', like a $200.00 belt sander, on sale all day at $ 89.00......but worth less that $ 20.00.

For Festool to keep doing what they're doing, they need to do what they do. Apple does it. BMW does it. Quality costs money, and so does the integrity of their sales network.

I, for one, am glad to see the North American market finally 'getting it'. The European model works. Give the people what they came for.... and not some let's-see-what-the-hell-we-can-get-away-with marketing scheme.

My granma said it best: "I am too poor to buy cheap stuff."

Reply to
Robatoy

Robert,

Well, I think I got it during my birthday month. I could be wrong but there was a discount offering for all things (except Festool!) during which I got my Tormek. I would think that Woodcraft would have standardized the discount offerings across franchises. We only have two in our area of over 100 mile radius.

Perhaps you could talk to him and find out why he does this? Letting him know, you could be ordering via the Internet and cutting him out directly the next time you buy?

MJ Wallace

Reply to
mjmwallace

Microsoft is a monster I will agree. They have gotten so large, and so common place that we are pretty much stuck with them. As far as threatening computer manufacturers about using a different OS. I am sure they could, but them Microsoft just would not sell Windows to them. Nothing illegal about that! Crappy, but not illegal. I am not saying Microsoft is a saint, but not all they do is illegal. They have a stranglehold on the OS market, and know it. No one has any possibility of knocking M$ of their mountain!

Reply to
Greg O

Greg O wrote: ...

Remember somebody call DEC? :)

--

Reply to
dpb

There was a time when General Motors had almost 60% of the US market(Late 50s-Early 60s).

Their arrogance and 50 years seemed to have had an impact on those stats.

Lew

Reply to
Lew Hodgett

And now that Little Bill wants to import more of his geeks from India under an expanded H1b visa program I REALLY hope that MORE people move away from Microsh*t.

Reply to
Digger

It's sad that at one time B&D was the best until it was sold along with Dewalt etc, etc to a Canadian (I think) conglomerate and then it all became marketing crap for the most dollars. My choice of handtools now is Milwaukee. Heavier than I would like but lasts forever and I have been a major consumer of electric handtools.

>
Reply to
Digger

I see it on sale lots of times. I also see a great variety of prices for their products.

Reply to
Mike Dobony

Junst one more reason to impeach these anti-Constitution jerks.

Reply to
Mike Dobony

I wanted a Milwaukee drywall gun, but Lowes discontinued carrying them and took on some cheap junk that was already worn out brand new on the shelf! I didn't have time to run around and take off work to get the good stuff.

Reply to
Mike Dobony

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