LGS Ripoff!

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Hate to say this but when walmart has upped there federal 9mm only a buck since the madness happened and the lgs doubles the price it IS gouging IMO.

But if people buy the stuff at those prices I guess they don't agree. I am not buying at those prices. I will get it at WM when I can or wait for the madness to subside.
 
I've done much better on the ammo prices by watching Internet sources. Stopped by Cabela's on a run to Austin and there was quite a bit of 45 ACP much cheaper and lots of AR mags.

Just wait it out.

The glories of panic capitalism include fertilizing a crop of idiots.
 
I marvel how, when a dealer wants $1000 for an item that the buyer thinks is worth $500, it's a "ripoff" and "gouging" but that same buyer walks into the same store and the seller has a gun that the buyer thinks is worth $1000 and it's marked at $500, he seems to have no moral objection to paying a lot less than it's worth.
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As I've been told by several people, it works like this:

If the dealer raises the price on a rifle by 20% because his cost has gone up and supply has gone down, that's gouging. If the guy complaining buys the rifle, takes it to the gun show, and sells it at a 300% markup, that's just the free market. :rolleyes:
 
Brian Pfleuger said:
I marvel how, when a dealer wants $1000 for an item that the buyer thinks is worth $500, it's a "ripoff" and "gouging" but that same buyer walks into the same store and the seller has a gun that the buyer thinks is worth $1000 and it's marked at $500, he seems to have no moral objection to paying a lot less than it's worth.
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I marvel at how one of my LGS has raised prices by 60%, but two others have not. I also marvel when someone says the dealer can charge whatever he wants and if people dont want to pay that, then they can go somewhere else. I frequent the shops fairly often, and when a dealer has a Beretta Neos, or Ruger 22/45, and the price goes up $150 overnight, then they will never get my money EVER again. Its a simple as that. I dont forget. I will support the shop that didnt try to get as much money out of my pocket as they possibly think they can.
 
It's only gouging if you BUY IT at that price. Otherwise it's just advertising.


Would you rather find the following:

(1): a store with bare shelves, with an owner who sold all that he had at old prices, who can no longer get inventory, and who will be out of business soon because he still has to pay (rent, taxes, payroll, etc)?

or:

(2): a store that is still earning enough profit because there are willing buyers coming in at an adequate rate to let the owner sell what IRREPLACABLE inventory he has at prices that are high enough that he HOPES he can sell what he needs to sell to tide him thru this time until he can restock his store?


This is a time of pure survival-mode for these small businesses. A smart businessman with zero resupply will sell JUST ENOUGH every month during this time of no resupply to pay his bills... and not a single item more. The goal is to BREAK EVEN at the end of the month while RETAINING AS MUCH INVENTORY AS POSSIBLE so he can try to do the same thing next month. He's going to need to bet his business on the hope that he can get more supply before he runs out of existing inventory. NOBODY likes it but the one who has the most investment in the "issue" is the small business owner. He's not "ripping you off"...he's desperately trying to stay alive. If you do not "Get" this, you've never run a small business. Cash flow is king. The monthly march of bills across your desk NEVER ends... if you cannot get what you sell... you are screwed.


Willie


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I stopped in a south/eastern Tennessee gun store today and was completely disgusted with what I saw on their price gouging and lack of disregard for their customers. This was a well stocked small town store that seemed to have plenty of items that we all have been looking for. It appeared that their gouging was centered around just the popular pistol calibers and the AR platforms. I will never buy a thing from this store if this is how they do business. A few examples of the gouging below.
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It was very evident that they were taking full advantage of the crazynes going on. Large rifle primers were $32/1000. Medium and large caliber rifle powders were $29/1lb. Loaded factory rifle ammo was in line also.

I hope the locals remember how they were cheated when prices and availability start to improve.
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Question - Were the customers WILLINGLY paying their asking prices? There is NO such thing as gouging, please learn more about free market economics. They are not taking advantage - they are responding to the market forces of supply and demand, just like your local gas station does.

Do you KNOW what their costs were to be able to get inventory on those products at a time when most cannot get any? Do you KNOW what their new replacement costs will be for those items? If their replacement costs have gone up, then they need to raise their prices now in order to be able to buy replacement inventory. A store that does not raises according to the current supply/demand scenario will soon be out of business - a smart business man raises his prices to what the market will bear.

Try watching this video about so-called "gouging":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9QEkw6_O6w

According to your rant, he should sell so low that he gets cleaned out only to see his inventory being sold on gunbroker for the huge price increases by someone else? Sorry, you sound like someone who does not own a business or understand this unique situation we find ourselves in
 
Are they still teaching economics in high school, or are students just not understanding the material?

I struggled with some principles of economics, but supply and demand is about as simple as it gets.
 
^^^ You don't really understand until you run a business. Then it all becomes very clear.

The entrepraneurial readers get it, and the salarymen do not.


Willie


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This makes me really glad I found primers for $19 a 1000 from Natchez, $26 after Hazmat. I guess I should've bought more than 6K.

I do think that things will rebalance eventually at near pre-panic prices, but the lack of .22 LR is very frustrating.
 
Hate to say this but when walmart has upped there federal 9mm only a buck since the madness happened and the lgs doubles the price it IS gouging IMO.
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Wally World doesn't rely on guns and ammo to keep the doors open. They make their money selling socks and toilet paper (and the mundane items like them) for the most part.

The funny thing is none of the people that complain have a clue as to what the gun shops are paying for items on their shelves. One of my LGS was buying a lot of their stock from customers just to have something on the shelves. That included guns and ammo. And, they were paying more for those items than what they were paying their distributors.
 
The funny thing is none of the people that complain have a clue as to what the gun shops are paying for items on their shelves.
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Not true! Now, drop the "none", and there may be some truth to what you say. I believe that many of us who spend time at gun shops (and are friends with the owners) know approximately what is being paid for ammo. Sure, prices have gone up, but from what I've seen, some (many?) local gun shops are making more profit per box than before all of this nonsense started. I could be wrong.
 
Maybe there should be a "sticky"about gouging and econ 101, including the video I linked to (among others) so those who currently find themselves underfunded for the current pricing in the market will get an understanding before they come on here ranting about something that, it seems, they really do not understand.

Sorry if I hurt a feeling or two, but this constant whining and complaining about "gouging" and "rip offs" have NO place on this site, IMO - they rank right up there with the personal slurs against someone - an uneducated attack that borders on slander and libel towards a business doing their best to remain open and provide the goods and services that their customers demand and want in a time of scarcity.

Here is the simplest cure to those who want to rant about gouging and getting ripped off:

If you do not like their prices, don't buy the products from them.

But do not complain when your fellow shooter's find their prices agreeable because you don't have the cash on hand. I see way too many of these same folks coming on here bragging about how they scored selling something they bought cheap and was able to sell for the same prices they are now complaining about.

If you REALLY want to whine about high prices, try looking at what is happening to your medical insurance costs due to ObamaCare and the new payroll taxes.............
 
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I never understood the logic behind waiting for a panic to start worrying about how much ammo you have. It makes me wonder how many will no longer be concerned about having enough when prices get back closer to "normal".
 
BigDinFl,I'm the original OP. I have dealt with LGS,s in my hometown for 25yrs. They have not raised their prices to the point this Tennessee gun shop has. To suggest I don't understand business is plain foolish. I understand shops needing to make money and the struggles they and all of us are going thru. To suggest that we wait until its to late to restock our ammo requirements is just plain wrong. I have enough loaded ammo and reloading supplies to get me thru all this. I see your from Fla and so am I, originally. When a hurricane rolls thru and all water and power is knocked out, are you going to say to the guys selling water for $10 a gallon or gas stations charging $7 a gallon for gas, "Oh their just trying to make money". You suggest if you don't like the prices, don't buy there. Maybe if you read my thread completely, instead of going on the attack, you would have seen that I didn't. My point is that we all need to stick together and refuse to pay these crazy prices and remember the shops that are taking advantage. And support the shops that are treating their customers fair with all your business.
 
If there was a real free market you might be able to order a 1911 on Amazon and have it shipped to your house, and all sorts of stores would sell guns just like they sell pocket knives. The only reason dedicated guns and ammo stores can exist is because the government forces people to buy their guns from people with a special license.
 
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