• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Another GC Rant (SWR content)

Nev375

Nev375

Nov 2, 2010
10,569
18,045
Missouri
#1
I'm not sure where the proper forum for rallying against the corporate retail machines are, so I'll post this here since the subject of purchase was an amp. Mods please relocate as necessary with my apologies if I'm incorrect.

The amp I've been gassing over for a long time is an SWR Amplite. More of a mono power amp really and I'm hoping it will be a good pairing with my Kern IP-777 preamp. Historically, these are pricey little buggers, but since theres a lack of tiny class D half rack width amps... (the only other i know of is Demeter at a much higher price and wattage) Anyway, when I found a used one online for $299.99 at Guitar Center I figured I ought to pull the trigger as they are getting harder and harder to find.

So with such a fair price, what's my beef with GC you may ask?

Shipping. (from Ohio to Eastern Missouri...just a few skinny states away and over the river.)
  • Economy Ground (Approx 4-5 days)$58.07
  • Standard Ground (Approx 3-5 days)$63.06
  • 2 Day Express (2 business days)$122.47
  • Next Day Afternoon Delivery (1 business day)$157.17
This is for a 3lb. box you can slip in a gig bag. Naturally, I assumed someone somewhere had typed in a few extra digits while filling out the shipping estimator online and this would be a simple matter of phoning up the store and getting a reasonable more accurate shipping quote.

But no!

After talking to a nice lady who informed me it was beyond her powers to do anything, but she could transfer me to the actual store who she was sure could help me out.

But NO!

Turns out Columbus GC is equally powerless to reduce the shipping charges. (By now they had figured out this was the only one in the world for sale and I was salivating over it) But the guy told me he could make me a deal. He could knock 10% off the price which should get my total item and shipping down to around $320 or so.

Fine. I started handing out my credit card info then he came back with a total of $381.xx WAIT WHAT??? Taxes. He explained. Taxes? but I don't live in Ohio... He said Well, still there's taxes, what's the tax rate in Missouri then?

I said there's no way in hell i'm getting this for under $350 is there? He said wait a minute... let me check with my manager. Then he came back with "Okay $345 total then!" (I guess he figured 349.99 would be just too obvious.)

--------- end story.

Anyhow... I paid it. It was total utter bullcrap, but I went ahead and paid it, but this is no way to treat a customer. I know some GC employees sometimes post on this board and I'd love to get their opinion on this. I'd also like to tell them that because of the nature of this sale, I'll be buying my new Shallow 2U SKB rack to house my new amp and preamp in from Sweetwater (who will ship it to me free even though it weighs 3 times as much as the amp it will house). I'm also on the lookout for a 1/2 rack compressor to round out my new little rack rig. Guess where I won't be buying it from?

All you really had to do, was negate the ludicrous shipping quotes and I might have even sprung for 2 day delivery if it were under $30. That and not tax me. No other stores do that to me unless its in my state. Oh, but you got me this time. You really got me this ONE time.
 
#3
Time to chill. Your ranting over paying state sales taxes? Sorry to tell you; but, so long as they have a brick and mortar store in your state, they are required to collect the state sales tax. That's the state law. That's a misguided rant. They lowered the price to help you with an apparent overprice on shipping. I'd say he was trying to help. You a getting the amp you want at a decent price. Smile and enjoy it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: tbz, Joedog, hdracer and 4 others
#8
OldPlucker said:
Time to chill. Your ranting over paying state sales taxes? Sorry to tell you; but, so long as they have a brick and mortar store in your state, they are required to collect the state sales tax. That's the state law. That's a misguided rant. They lowered the price to help you with an apparent overprice on shipping. I'd say he was trying to help. You a getting the amp you want at a decent price. Smile and enjoy it.
Click to expand...


I know i got a decent deal. It's not so much the taxes that bother me, it's the process. Throughout the process I felt I was being squeezed for more money. (first the shipping gouges, then the tax which was not mentioned before and then the adjustment of the tax to just under my "walk-away" price point.)

Stores like sweetwater tend to give me the opposite experience. I actually feel like they value me as a customer with little freebies and nice things they do. I'm actually wiling to pay a higher price there if I have to just because they make me feel better and If I have issues, they get solved.

I dunno, maybe i'm in the minority on this. Maybe you all don't mind those kinds of shipping fees and a stores reluctance to just fix them rather than dicker with you to see how much you'll pay.
 
#11
JehuJava said:
Shoulda asked who's sales tax was cheaper: Ohio or Missouri.
Click to expand...


Didn't matter. He just charged me 14.00 for tax which was coincidentally just $5 under the price I indicated I wasn't going to pay. It figures out like 4.6 percent and not related to either states tax rate.

If I had said I wouldn't pay a dime over #330.00 I'm quite sure he would have adjusted something to sell it for slightly under that or exactly that.

I've got no problem with paying taxes. It's just that this tax isn't a tax. If he had done all he could do then the tax is a non negotiable fee that he could not budge on. But he did, which means he is just eating the cost in the selling price of the bass but that is not reflected on he receipt.

Actually, never mind. I'm in the minority on this and no one is apparently understanding my stance on proper business etiquette. Suffice it to say, I'm an alien and things just aren't done this way on my planet. Cheerio.

Mods, please delete thread. I need to phone home.
 
Last edited:
#16
lowfreq33 said:
Can't you have stuff shipped to any other GC for free? If there's one near you it seems that would be an option. Nonetheless, $345 is a great price, and they did indeed work with you. Maybe you should be upset with the shipping company for charging such high rates.


Sent from my iPad using TalkBass
Click to expand...


Good question. That was my impression too, but when I asked about it, he said they would charge me a fee for shipping it that way as well. Since my nearest GC is over 100 miles away it seemed easier to just bite the bullet and pay the outrageous shipping charges. This is another reason I feel jerked around, but don't actually know if this was the truth or not.
 
#17
Nev375 said:
I know i got a decent deal. It's not so much the taxes that bother me, it's the process. Throughout the process I felt I was being squeezed for more money. (first the shipping gouges, then the tax which was not mentioned before and then the adjustment of the tax to just under my "walk-away" price point.)

Stores like Sweetwater tend to give me the opposite experience. I actually feel like they value me as a customer with little freebies and nice things they do. I'm actually wiling to pay a higher price there if I have to just because they make me feel better and If I have issues, they get solved.

I dunno, maybe i'm in the minority on this. Maybe you all don't mind those kinds of shipping fees and a stores reluctance to just fix them rather than dicker with you to see how much you'll pay.
Click to expand...

Sweetwater also does not have a Brick and Mortar store or presence in most states; therefore, they don't collect the sales tax for the receiving state. That is subject to change as the Democrats are pushing to have on-line retailers responsible for collecting all sales taxes.

Missouri's sales tax rate is 4.225. Based on a price of 299.99, the sales tax should have been $12.68 unless Missouri taxes shipping fees. Once you get the item, look at the receipt and see how they arrived at that rate. If it is higher then email the store manager and advise him you were overcharged for sales tax. They are supposed to adjust the rate for your state. Politely explain that you were contacting him rather that corporate.

You state "I'm actually wiling to pay a higher price there if I have to just because they make me feel better...". I understand, more foreplay usually leads to a more enjoyable experience.

lowfreq33 said:
Can't you have stuff shipped to any other GC for free? If there's one near you it seems that would be an option. Nonetheless, $345 is a great price, and they did indeed work with you. Maybe you should be upset with the shipping company for charging such high rates.


Sent from my iPad using TalkBass
Click to expand...

I believe shipping for free to another GC goes out the window with used gear. That is a point to negotiate with the receiving store if they get the credit for the sale. The OP got a good price and he negotiated reasonable shipping, he should celebrate a victory.
 
#18
Their "shipping rate" likely includes their handling charge. I wanted to purchase a pedal there once and their "shipping" was much more expensive than what other GC stores have charged me for shipping a pedal. I think I paid less than that when they shipped basses to me
All of the other GC's I have used have been very fair. I would imagine that they actually get a reduced corporate rate vs you or I shipping something
Now I just go to my local GC and have it shipped there....
 
#19
I always talk to managers when I call GC. I never purchase over the net with them either. I always deal direct with the store. Also, for the best pricing, deal direct with the manager. They are the ones who can make decisions. And YES, they can adjust shipping. They can and they have. In your story, they did work with you quite a bit and with taxes and shipping, you came out still with an ok deal for something you clearly wanted. I think that OldPlucker had it right. I think GC will send it to a closer store for free then you don't have to pay that shipping. You will wait longer for it, but it should be worth the wait if not the $35 shipping (or so??)
 
#20
iriegnome said:
...I think that OldPlucker had it right. I think GC will send it to a closer store for free then you don't have to pay that shipping. You will wait longer for it, but it should be worth the wait if not the $35 shipping (or so??)
Click to expand...

Negatory, sir.

As a guy who has purchased various types of items on the Used Gear section of Guitar Center, this is absolutely not the case. You could buy a used set of strings from them and they would still charge you shipping regardless. When I had my Traynor amp being shipped and they were supposed to waive shipping, I was told it paid for "handling, packing materials, and the actual packing itself." Since it isn't coming from a distribution center like new gear is, they don't have a shipment going to that store anyways, thus they need some amount of money to pay and get it there. A certain store might adjust the price in order to compensate for shipping costs, but they still have collect it one way or another.

Sad to hear it was like this for you, man. I usually call the store if I have condition questions or in your situation, where the shipping or something else comes off as a bit excessive. I'm thinking they have standard pricing set for "amps" (as this covers a huge gamut of sizes) and another for basses. I've noticed that the pricing has been pretty much identical on the purchases I've made, depending on what type of item it is. It's cool that they took care of you, but they certainly needed to be reasonable on how much it costs to ship that amp. I could understand that for a power amp, leadsled, or tube amp...but for a small SS one? Come on, that's BS
 
  • Like
Reactions: tbz

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back