BassPro buying Cabela's?

W

wogpotter

New member
Somehow I don’t think this is going to be a good thing for the outdoor sports industry.
“Privately held outdoors retailer Bass Pro Shops is exploring an offer for Cabela's Inc (CAB.N), the U.S. hunting and fishing store chain targeted by activist investor Elliott Management, people familiar with the matter said.
Bass Pro is working with an investment bank on the potential offer, the people said this week. Cabela's has recently begun to explore its options and has also reached out to private equity firms to solicit interest, the people added.”
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/11/05/us-cabelas-m-a-basspro-idUSKCN0SU2JY20151105


What do you guys think, mega store or competition?
 
I think competition is good. However, Cabela's also laid off a bunch of mid-level managers and executives just recently. Will watch with interest and withhold judgement for now.
 
The last time I checked, there was not a single Cabela's in my home state of Florida. How much do their territories overlap? Might the merger be more motivated by territorial expansion than by anti-competitive business practices?
 
Have to think that as long as the satellites continue to stay up there, internet and mail order sales will dominate.
So, unless there's one of those stores in your neighborhood, it shouldn't have much of an effect.
 
They are building a brand new Cabela's in my area now . It is suppose to open in the spring of 2016 . We already have a Bass Pro here . The two stores will be about 15 miles apart and about 25 miles from me . I just wish they were building the Cabela's closer to me .
 
They are building a brand new Cabela's in my area now . It is suppose to open in the spring of 2016 . We already have a Bass Pro here . The two stores will be about 15 miles apart and about 25 miles from me . I just wish they were building the Cabela's closer to me .
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Nah.
Don't worry about it. Cabela's jacks the price up on nearly everything in the store. They're almost as bad as Gander Mountain.
 
Cabela's jacks the price up on nearly everything in the store. They're almost as bad as Gander Mountain.
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Cabela's does not seem to learn from others' mistakes: In 1995, Gander MOuntain raised it's prices and eliminated many discount items ..... and lost money to the point they had to sell a significant portion of their business (catalolg customer list and much of their inventory) to Cabela's for 35 Million in cash ..... and now Cabela's is in trouble, with a New York hedge fund having recently aquired 11% of it's stock ..... and clamoring for a better return on it's investment ..... it's a hostile takeover in the making, I believe .....
 
FrankenMauser said:
Cabela's jacks the price up on nearly everything in the store.
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Yes, BUT...
  • Cabela's Club Visa card holders get rewards points for charging stuff to the card, plus frequent and often generous coupons in the mail. Charge your utility bills and other daily minutia to the card, pay the entire balance every month, and you will earn several dollars in discounts monthly at essentially no cost. :) I don't remember the last time I paid full price for anything at Cabela's, and my most recent score was 1,000 Berry's plated bullets for about $10 less than the direct mail order price. :D
  • Some of their firearms sales are pretty good.
  • 3 words: The Bargain Cave. :)
I sound like an advertisement, don't I? ;)
 
The last time I checked, there was not a single Cabela's in my home state of Florida. How much do their territories overlap? Might the merger be more motivated by territorial expansion than by anti-competitive business practices?
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Supposedly one to open REAL soon near Wesley Chapel area by Tampa

I would rather see BASS Pro then the other guy who is a corporate raider that buys and then sells off everything afterwards for a quick profit and the hell with the employees, stockholders, etc.
 
For firearms I will support the local gun shops (plenty of them, with great pricing). For other items I might be inclined to look at in one of the "big box sporting goods stores", all I would do is look, and then look for the best price locally or on Amazon.

I will also support mail-order companies like Dillon, Midway, etc. and when I say mail-order, I actually mean mailing a hand written check!
 
Having shopped at both, Cabelas is a hundred times better from a shooter's perspective. I hope they don't get sold to Bass Pro; because Bass Pro doesn't seem to realize there is a large non-hunting market for firearms.
 
The first Bass Pro opened in Bristol, TN last year and it was the only one in our area. A Cabellas opened in Bristol, VA a couple of months ago and it is the first one in Virginia. They are 5 miles apart and a clear view from Interstate 81 . It would be foolish if they joined together.
 
Having shopped at both, Cabelas is a hundred times better from a shooter's perspective. I hope they don't get sold to Bass Pro; because Bass Pro doesn't seem to realize there is a large non-hunting market for firearms.
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Neither one (in our area) carries much in the way of bullets or powders .... the little strip mall LGS has better selection and prices ...... Cabela's DOES have a larger selection of used guns....
 
Yes, BUT...
Cabela's Club Visa card holders get rewards points for charging stuff to the card, plus frequent and often generous coupons in the mail. Charge your utility bills and other daily minutia to the card, pay the entire balance every month, and you will earn several dollars in discounts monthly at essentially no cost. I don't remember the last time I paid full price for anything at Cabela's, and my most recent score was 1,000 Berry's plated bullets for about $10 less than the direct mail order price.
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I get a better deal through my financial institution.
And...
If they didn't jack up the prices, to begin with, you wouldn't need the discounts.

My father does the same thing. He puts EVERYTHING on his Cabela's Visa.
He used to constantly talk about the discounts and how it works out to essentially a free gun every so many months. ...But even he eventually realized that he could get what works out to the same deal, in the form of a 'cash-back' reward program, through other institutions; and then he could spend the rewards anywhere - not just at Cabela's.
He never did change, though. The balance on the card was too high to be worth a balance transfer to another card.

Some of their firearms sales are pretty good.
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Sometimes.
Sometimes.
But not often.
...And you still have to deal with the usual: "take a number and wait 7 years, while the counter monkeys ignore the ticket holders and help their friends first."

3 words: The Bargain Cave.
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Meh...
Broken case trimmer with none of the accessory parts, for $15 off. Sounds great! Wait... No, that's not good. It'll cost me $8 to ship it in for warranty replacement, and $40 to replace the missing pieces. Plus, $15 off puts it on par with the competitor's pricing for an unmolested example.

But, wait! There's a box of bullets over here that's actually $2 below the competitor's pricing. ...Oh, that's because 58 of the 100 bullets are missing. :mad:

Ooh, how about the 1200 gram Thinsulate boots over there? About $20 off. That might be doable. Oh... The soles are melted, the insoles stink horribly, and the two boots aren't even the same size. Seriously, guys?

"Bargain" Cave...
The Bargain Cave is where they put the stuff that they can't send back to the manufacturer, because they never should have allowed it to be returned in the first place.
As-is.
No returns.
No refunds.
No exchanges.

No sale. ;)


(Sorry if there are any major typos. I'm short a finger, right now.)
 
Meh...
Broken case trimmer with none of the accessory parts, for $15 off. Sounds great! Wait... No, that's not good. It'll cost me $8 to ship it in for warranty replacement, and $40 to replace the missing pieces. Plus, $15 off puts it on par with the competitor's pricing for an unmolested example.

But, wait! There's a box of bullets over here that's actually $2 below the competitor's pricing. ...Oh, that's because 58 of the 100 bullets are missing.

Ooh, how about the 1200 gram Thinsulate boots over there? About $20 off. That might be doable. Oh... The soles are melted, the insoles stink horribly, and the two boots aren't even the same size. Seriously, guys?
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Seriously, FM?

Though I've not bought a lot of stuff in the bargain cave, I've never seen anything even remotely like what you wrote ...... most of the stuff has missing or torn and repaired packaging..... the merchandise itself is just fine.....
 
Never been to a Bass Pro, don't have them anywhere near me.

Cabelas, yes.

At to prices, with the Silver Club Card, I get 3% back. Then there is the 5% Veteran's discount. That's 8% right off the top.

Not counting sales, and promotions.
 
While both are overpriced vendors, the quality of Cabelas' clothing and footwear are far better than BassPro. Generally speaking, I find the Cabelas' sales person better informed than the BassPro person. When it comes to re-loading supplies, Cabelas is the more diverse of the two. I find that their prices approximate those of the LGS in my area.

I hope Cabelas rejects the bid.
 
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