bmcd308 0 #1 May 15, 2006 Sorry to vent, but here goes - I have been considering buying a Beretta 391 Sporting in 12 ga for several months now. I know how much the gun costs online and at other local outlets - just under $1,100 online to over $1,400 at the one store here where they just hope you don't know any better. The "good" gun shops here have it for just over $1,100 to just over $1,200 - although some will stick you for $1,300. Anyway, the local shops have never (to my knowledge) had a 30 inch barrel, so I have never bought one. Until Sunday. I went in to Sportsman's Warehouse here in MEM to buy shells, and per my usual habit, perused the guns on display. The guy at the counter asked what I was looking for, and I told him what I wanted. He told me he did not think they had one, but he told me he would look at the other nearby store. Lo and behold, the gun was available in Southaven, MS for $1,048. This was at the low end of the range of prices I had seen, and it would eliminate having to deal with having it shipped, so I was excited. Then he told me something even more exciting - according to the computer, they had one in stock. It was not on display, so he went to the back to look for it. He brought it out, and I looked it over. I verified with him that the price at his store was the same as the other store - $1,048. He told me that it was. He specifically told me that the price of the gun was $1,048. We were communicating quite clearly. I gave him my driver's license and began filling out Form 4473. They took my thumbprints and called it in. It took about 30 minutes before the State of Tennessee agreed that a new shotgun was something I absolutely needed, and we headed for the front of the store with my new gun and a little over $200 in shotgun shells. When we got up front, the cashier scanned the gun, and it rang up $1,299. I said, "Whoa, you said it would be $1,048." The guy from the gun counter then said he would have to check on that, and he disappeared for about 10 minutes. When he returned, he apologized, stating that he had read the price from "the wrong box" on his computer. Did I still want the gun? I protested that even automobile dealers no longer do that kind of stuff - having someone invest close to an hour in the buying process only to ambush them with a new price, but they still put it on me to decide whether I wanted to pay the new price. I did not. The gun counter guy left with the gun, and the cashier told me that she thought they should have honored the price, but that I needed to understand that they only made $25 on each gun they sold anyway, so it would not have been good for them to trim the price that much. As I drove the 25 minutes home, I got irritated, so I called, and asked to speak to the manager. I was very nice, and I told him what happened. He too, was very nice, and he apologized for the mixup. He offered that the $1,048 price was their cost on the gun, and they could not sell the gun for that. I pointed out that I had been told earlier that they only had $25 in the gun, and he admitted that what I was told earlier was not accurate, but that they had more like $100 in the gun. At that point, I told him that $1,048 plus $100 was still quite a ways from $1,299. In fact, it was closer to $1,048. His reply was that he was not sure how the pricing was calculated in the gun department because of "ATF regulations." Suddenly, I felt like I was getting BS'ed, and I told him so. He told me I should call the manager of the gun department, which I do not think I should have to do. I think that guy should call me. I think it sucks that they did not give me the price they said, particularly since they say that they would not have lost money on it - they would have just broken even. I think it sucks even worse that they tried to BS me about it later. As an aside, the teenagers who run the registers there and one of the guys from the gun department recognize me when I go in. Both my girlfriend and I shoot, and I have been too lazy to reload for months, so I buy tons of shells there. I also bought a gun there (another AL391) about six months ago. My guns tend to get dirty, so I buy cleaning supplies. I was worried about rust, so I bought a couple of big desi packs for my safe. No telling how much I have spent there, but I basically outfitted a new competitive shooter from that store over the last six months, plus it is where I buy all my stuff. Anyway, if you are thinking about buying a gun there, get the price in writing before you do the background check. Brent ---------------------------------- www.jumpelvis.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bmcd308 0 #2 May 16, 2006 Since I was quick to b!tch when things were not going my way, I figured the least I could do was let everyone know that Sportsman's made good with me. They are going to honor the price quoted (selling the shotgun at what they say is their cost) and will give me a $25 gift card. This was the result of a very sincere and kind apology by the manager who oversees several of their stores in this area. He called me at work today in response to an e-mail I sent him (at the address on the sporstman's warehouse website) about my experience. The guy had a great outlook and attitude, and to be frank, I might have bought some land in Florida from him had he hit me up on the phone. He referred to the whole thing as an opportunity for them to improve their customer service and their internal systems, and he said the incident would be a case study they could use to determine how to keep customers from having negative feelings about the store going forward. I was genuinely impressed with the sincerity of his desire to make this right and to fix any internal systems that allowed it to happen. Brent ---------------------------------- www.jumpelvis.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kid_Icarus 0 #3 May 16, 2006 I once worked there, and was fired for "making improper callouts on the PA," ie Automotives...line 1,...babywear line 3, "and farting..." Yes, farting behind the optics dept where I worked. They said a customer complained.... True story ________________________________________ "What What..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brains 2 #4 May 16, 2006 Nice! I love to hear about a company doing the right thing for customers. Especially when it is someone who you actually enjoy doing business with anyway. Now do your part and keep referring new shooters to them as well. Never look down on someone, unless they are going down on you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pdj6p 0 #5 May 17, 2006 The P.A. stuff is excusable but, after being on the plane with you I can see why they had to let you go. Death is so permanant, and I'm just not ready for that kind of committment. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
