The absolute only reason dealers are not selling boats as they used to is dealers are not selling boats as they used to.
Also, the builders are not building and selling boats as they used to. Buiulders used to be guys who designed a boat and tested it and fell in love with it and tehn tried to tell everybody else, "Look what ' made!!!."
Dealers used to be guys who absolutely loved sailing and everything about it who decided to take their interest and knowledge and skills and enthusiasm and have a go at making money from that set of passions and skills. Laser dealers used to eb the guys screaming, "Look what I'm sailing!!!. Want one??!!! I'll help you rig it and show you how it worksand fix it when you break it and keep parts around for when you lose or bust parts and if anything new comes out I will test it myself and let you lknow if I love it enough to buy it."
Much like sailing associations, dealerships cannot be run like businesses by people who are looking at the bottom line. The Laser and every other small boat prospered in this world while dealers ( and sailboat association leaders) were just the folks who loved the game and wanted to do everything possible to drag others out to play.
Certainly a well run storefront ( or pretty class publication) is a nice thing but the reason people buy boats from places like APS, layline and other mail order houses is knowledge of teh salesmen as much as the the content of the store ( or publication). Those mail order houses are staffed with experts who know more and care more than those folks who are still manning local dealerships.
Sure, all of us would love to buy local, but when the local dealer doesn't even know which tiller is the very best one for me and what length a fellow who hikes like me needs, or which line is the very best for my application..I may as well order over the phone or internet with a person who at least knows what questions need to be asked of me before he can give me any decent advice.
Laser selling , dealership management and association mangement are each way more than selling things for the right price, keeping good books and appearing to be professional. The sailors will either feel a real welcoming extended hand backed by trustable knowledge sufficient to guide anyone who asks all the way to the Olympics or World Championship...or when failing to find that
Water Mitty fantasy, the may have been a laser sailor person will find that fantasy elsewhere.
Dinghy dealers and class mangers need to be absolute experts about those dinghies they promote and have the sense to keep a phone and computer handy such that no one who ever asks for information or product can possibly find that product or answer more easily than by asking that dealer or class manager.
When the answer is, "There are a dozen options" those go to experts must be fluent in most of those dozen and be prepared to discuss the pros and cons, or the curious sailor will go elsewhere...and likley to some other toy.
Rumor has it parts like dolly wheels are currently not in stock at the old North American Laser company. Last year the rumors had to do with a lack of sails, rudders, and centerboards.
The rumors OUGHT TO BE...Since those new guys took over, every part is always available and warranty service and customer service in general is better than it has ever been.
Why??
because anything less means the new guys suck by comparison to someone else and
guess what new guys??
Everybody who has even the slightest bad experience is going to tell everyone you suck and why you suck.
Businessmen know that.
ALL businessmen know that.
Most people who have never even run a business know things like "One bad customer experience negates the good will of a thousand happy customers."
As we know the new guys know all about how to run a business..
and as we know they aren't doing it very well at all.
The last rumor I heard was about 120+ customers who were totally pissed at teh fruitcakes who cannot even manage to keep a supply of dolly wheels?? WTF?? Do these clowns think Seitech dollies are supposed to be dragged around on their frames??
Their actions scream..."Drag your dollies suckers. We don't give hoot.".
They MUST want us to go to regattas, gather around, have a few beers to loosen up our inhibitions and ...
stand around cussing and complaining about what a bunch of sorry assed useless fools have bought the tooling and taken over occasional production of some sort of half assed line of not very well built and serviced sailboats...
What do I mean by implying the boats are poorly built??
Well guys,...if you fruitcakes don't even comrehend the necessity of something as obvious and visible as a wheel and tire...how can we believe you would notice a reinforcement where a cleat goes or care whether the hull and deck are properly bonded together??
OMG the thickness of the mast sections could not possibly be a concern of yous.
I suspect everything you do is done with the same don't give a damn about the customers who buy these toys.
We all know how they could have kept us from feeling this way and writing stuff like this...
They are businesmen and ...well ...what do you think??
