HikeArizona.COM

Outdoor supply stores are in competition for customers. Where is customer service winning you over?

REI, Summit Hut, Campmore, Babbit's, Aspen Sports, Four Seasons, Peace Surplus, etc..

You never lose 1 customer at a time in my book!

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Having lived in a remote rural area for so long I got out of the habit of in-person shopping. Plus, due to budget issues, I mostly just used my old gear for years. It's hard to figure out what to get as far as new gear when there is no one around using it. The people who would tend to show up on my trips in the White Mtns. carried pretty standard gear. Recently I went on an ABC hike where several of the folks were carrying some really ultralight stuff. It was pretty impressive. That is why I posted I would like to see some of these local outfitters carry a full line of super-ultralight. Maybe a store in Flag already does. But I don't have time to go shopping right now, anyway. Too busy.

azbackpackr wrote:I would like to see some of these local outfitters carry a full line of super-ultralight

two reasons i can think of that you wont - cottage guys have their hands full. many of them list wait times on their websites. to produce in bulk would mean to hire extra help which raises overhead, and then to sell off gear to brick and mortar stores also forces them to sell for less.
a guy once offered to sell my product in store, but for him to make any profit i would have to lose the same on my end.
Even the larger of the cottage guys, like MLD and Gossamer dont sell in stores. ULA didnt, until Brian sold the company to the new owner- and even so his gear is only sold in 3 places- all of which are privately owned.

alas, BackcountryGear.com is another. Prolite gear is another. I had forgotten about them. CampSaver too!

Hey, Te-wa, thanks for the clarification.

One wonders if the big companies will ever do copy cat on ULA, etc.

Some gear renting place in the Valley carries ULA. Wanted me to advertise, I forget it's been a few months. I'm sure you pay a hefty premium over direct.

joe bartels wrote:Some gear renting place in the Valley carries ULA. Wanted me to advertise, I forget it's been a few months. I'm sure you pay a hefty premium over direct.

its LowerGear in Tempe. and the price is retail. ULA is offering them to LG at wholesale, and losing money like I described earlier. Seems interesting too, that based on quality and features the ULA would be more $$ - they are the lowest cost packs of the big cottage guys, for the design you can get.

azbackpackr wrote:One wonders if the big companies will ever do copy cat on ULA, etc.

they already have. ULA was the very first packs to have waist-belt mounted pockets. now, they are mainstream.

wow both of those comments are interesting!

I've taken advantage of REI's return policy quite a few times so they won me over that way. Their prices usually are not the best but occasionally they have some pretty good sales. There garage sales can be great too if you don't mind spending some time in line. The people are usually helpful but I wouldn't say as knowledgeable as some places. I usually am looking for something specific before I even go there though.

Lately, I've been using Backcountry.com just because they have a military discount good on a number of manufacturers. They even sent me $40 in giftcards over the holidays, I had "only" spent $200-300 mostly on new hiking clothes from them last year but was still surprised by it. They have a satisfaction guarantee as well but I haven't needed to use it on anything yet.

davis2001r6 wrote:The people are usually helpful but I wouldn't say as knowledgeable as some places.

True... I recently spoke to an REI employee that didn't know what the Mazatzals were . I browse when I'm looking for pants, shirts, jackets, etc. Usually when I'm buying anything else, I've researched and know what I want or come into the store to compare a couple things in person.

REI has its pros and cons for sure. I remember when it was just a small outfit. I've been a member since 1972. Used to be a catalog you got in the mail, full of climbing gear, cravasse-crossing equipment, the latest backpacking gadgets, etc. It was pretty neat.

So, I am going to research some of these other outfitters, cottage industries, and websites. This is all great info.

Incidentally Dave Baker is also in competition for your dollar with REI, which recently came to Tucson. So, to anyone living in AZ, he (Summit Hut) will give free shipping. I think I will try to support him and other smaller outfits, such as the ones here in Flag. I have to assume they sell a lot of tourist stuff because they can turn it over.

I heard yesterday that local outfitters have had a really bad winter here in Flag, due to no snow. I have to assume that most people are not like me, going backpacking in the desert. I have been down to the desert 4 times since December, and wish I could spend the better part of the winter in the desert, just backpacking, biking and kayaking. It has been a great winter for desert backpacking, for sure.

(Spoiler: Irish Setter Boots almost lost my business for good, but redeemed themselves when given the chance. Read on for details.)

I bought a pair of Irish Setter Tamarack hiking/hunting boots (9" tall, 800g insulated, Goretex, Scent-Lok) a while back, and was pleased with them until a couple rows of stitches started coming undone after relatively little wear, rendering the boots useless for all the reasons why I bought them (i.e. use in wet terrain). Many folks would jump ship on the manufacturer here, but due to my experience working in retail, I consider it polite to notify a business of any complaints and allow them an opportunity at redemption before blacklisting them.

When the stitching came undone, I called Irish Setter's customer service number, and was disappointed to only reach a voicemail -- no real person available. (Bad.) I then emailed them, and got a prompt reply (good) which was basically nothing more than a copy-and-paste of their warranty policy (disappointing), but invited me to send the boots back for inspection (expected) and possible warranty invocation. I shipped the boots back (without a receipt) with an explanation of my problem, and a notice that my patronage was basically on the line with this transaction. (I wear work boots most weekdays and hiking boots most weekends, so I wanted to be honest and let them know that they might lose a young customer with a lifetime of boot-buying ahead of him.) Then, I played the waiting game while trying to glue the soles back onto my old Danner boots, which had also fallen apart after very little wear.

11 days later, I came home to find a package on my doorstep containing a brand-new pair of comparable hiking boots. (Blacklist averted.)

Just gotta throw out there that I've had very good interactions with customer service at Big Agnes. I have a Fly Creek UL2 and I had an issue that was repaired promptly and with no charge, and I received a prompt response to a query over the weekend. In this day of anonymous webforms, BA assigns you a single CSR who will attend to your query from start to finish, and also provides an actual direct line telephone number so you can actually speak with that person if needed.

They might not make the least expensive gear, but they stand behind what they make, and that's worth the extra $ every time.

Next time I'm in Steamboat I might stop in just to say thanks.

Bose aviation headset dept. I had my noise cancellation start acting up on my set. They over nighted me a cord to my base the next day free ( under warranty) and that did the trick. Also, after 4.5 years 3500 + hours I noticed a wire was losing the protective cover. They told me to send it in. They then called me and said we see your warranty expires in 5 months so besides replacing the wire we have replaced and refurbed everything on the headset to bring it back to new for free.

On a camping side I have found Platypus very good to deal with. Whenever my bladders wear out I call them and mail them the worn out ones and they send me brand new bladders no questions.

Sierra Trading Post has excellent customer service as well.

MtnBart01 wrote:Sierra Trading Post has excellent customer service as well.

+1 on that

I had a really good interaction with Osprey...My bladder started leaking and I emailed them...They emailed me back and had me take pictures of the Bladder...Sent the pictures, they determined that it was a manufacturing defect and I had a new Bladder in 3 days...I didn't even have to send the old one in...

Salomon customer service and their warranty is outstanding. They sent me a new pair of Quest 4D boots to replace the ones I purchased through endless.com (now part of Amazon.com) where the soles tore, no questions asked. The boots were purchased in April of 2012 so over a year old.

Outdoor Lover wrote:I had a really good interaction with Osprey...My bladder started leaking and I emailed them...They emailed me back and had me take pictures of the Bladder...Sent the pictures, they determined that it was a manufacturing defect and I had a new Bladder in 3 days...I didn't even have to send the old one in...

Most of us don't have the option of return to sender when our parts stop working ...

You should have seen the picture....

My steripen failed after almost a year and a half of reliable use. I sent it back to the manufacturer for service since it has a three year warranty. I never registered it when I bought it and didn't have the original receipt so I was a little nervous. They were satisfied with a proof of purchase that I had REI print out for me from my membership records. They started email contact with me as soon as they received it and gave me a site I could log into and monitor their progress. I had a brand new steripen in my hands less than a week and half from the day I mailed it to them. That is above and beyond amazing customer service!