I was told when it set up here in Port Macquarie that it was part of the Super Cheap Auto chain and if their fishing gear and service is anything like the auto side then they may not last long. The shelves look like they hold miles of duplication and not a lot of anything if you get my drift . Must agree with the lack of service ,it's difficult to find but that goes for anywhere that employs a heap of kids without any adult supervision, they seem to have turned avoiding the customers into an art formOriginally Posted by devocean
It IS a part of Super cheap....and for the lack of adult supervision, that just crap, get ya facts right before you start dribbling
depends on which bcf you go to, you can still get advice and service just as good and even better than the local tackle stores. when bcf open so many stores...you cannot expect every store to be filled with highly experienced and knowledgable staff...theres just not enough in the country.
Last edited by mad max; 08-07-2007 at 09:49 PM.
I went back to BCF today and I'm fairly embarassed about the previous post of mine.
I was just going to check out prices on a fishfinder and lecky motor but after speaking with the assistant manager Peter, who happened to be the first fella who asked if I needed a hand I ended up buying the bits.
See, he approached me in a personable yet business like manner with none of the super salesman bullshit and answered my questions directly without speil. He corrected my thinking in relation to batteries and gave me some good, proper, knowledgeable advice about the motors and fish finders. He made some inquiries in relation to some of the finer points of my questions and reported his findings to me along with some reccomendations that came from first hand knowledge of what he was talking about and what he himself uses when boating/fishing.
I could have bought the bits i needed cheaper on the internet but I was impressed with the service and advice and I figured a few bucks more for quality assurance, warranty and a local business who could get me the things I wanted now was worth it.
Thanks Peter. (Maroochydore BCF)
I'm off fishing on the weekend.
why dont you go and apply for a job there ??
They are after casuals and also a new assistant manager
Doesn't the sales person's manner mean just about everything?!
I bought a new car recently from a dealership that I swore that I would never enter for reasons that are now history. I only went there to get a second quote after having spoken to another dealer. It was late on a Friday afternoon and the youngish salesperson was just so polite and obliging. He still had to slightly beat the other dealer's price to get the sale but I gave him ample opportunity to do that after both the competing sales guys rang home on the following Monday chasing the sale and this young fella was so polite to my wife whereas the other guy acted a bit like I owed him the sale when speaking to my wife. I just went straight into the polite guy's dealership that afternoon and told him the price that I wanted. After a bit of haggling with his sales manager, I walked away happy and he got the sale.
All because of the courtesy and respect that he showed both me and my wife.
Last edited by charleville; 09-07-2007 at 06:48 PM.
Greetings all!
Found BCF for the first time this weekend at Labrador on the Gold Coast. A fair range of gear but the prices were not competitive. $215 for a standard item like a Penn 850 rather than $199 at my local bait shop in Ballina is not good value.
Won't be rushing back.
Regards, Rob.
pommy
what about the daiwa reels that are 129....5 mins down the road at your "local" are 199. go figure.
you cannot just base your opinion on looking at one "standard item"
Hey Kev,
Yeah the Coffs store is great, all you fellas know what you're on about and I for one always get good deals...
But then, I am a little biased.... (no I don't work there!)
I vote with my wallet at different stores. Research what i want first, go and scope the local stores. Then if they have what i want around the right price and treat me ok I buy it.
With the price of petrol how it is a 200 dollar reel on my doorstep beats a 180 reel half an hour away.
A rude or disinterested salesman also seals my wallet straight back up even if the price is right.
Vote with your cash I say.
Thats possibly the problem with Multi Nationals they don't seem to be able to hold onto the staff especially in the motor side ( Super Cheap ). If you can track down a manager or senior sales assistant then you may have a good show of getting ahead of the game but there aren't many at level available in each location.
When I put out big dollars for t fishing gear I go to my local tackle shop where I know if it stuffs up, my fault or not, they will exchange it there and then not want me to send it off to the interstate supplier at my expense only to be told weeks later that the tail light warranty has expired . When buying camping gear I go to a specialist camping store and so on.
Just like fishing rods there isn't an all rounder otherwise there would only be one rod in my shed rather than a collection . Each to their own game.
BCF can be great at times, it depends on who you talk to there.
I recently did the worst tradesman trick ever by buying 3m of wire (off a roll) before I measured how much I needed, so I took that back to BCF and got 5m instead. They were very helpful by taking that back, saying they will sell it as a 3m lot, and refund the money for when I purchased the 5m length.
I know for a fact if I got the "bitchy woman" she would have told me I couldnt return the 3m. At $8/m that could have prooved expensive.
Would he of still got the sale Charleville if he didn't haggle the price, regardless of how polite he was?
Matt
c'mon, take the bait....
No - but at least he got the chance. Once that I had a price that I was happy with, I did not give the other guy the opportunity to respond. All of their prices are BS anyway, what I did by going in cold to each of them was really to run an auction as to who would give me the lower price. The opening price from the guy who I bought the car from was something like $41 000 but I took delivery at $30 500 for a cash sale, no trade. What would have been left on the table for both sales guys to argue over would have been scraps - the other guy wanted to have another go at it but I was happy by that stage and it was the polite guy who walked away with the sale.
He has continued to kill me with after terrific sales service, always chasing referrals of course with a promise of $150 spotters' fees which are of no interest to me, and very keen to ensure that he received a good report when the market researchers called me to do their after sales customer satisfaction survey. (I gave him a terrific rating and indeed wrote a complimentary letter to his dealer principal.)
The boating industry has much to learn from the car industry in terms of their after sales service. I have always been happy with the Quintrex that I bought 5 1/2 years ago and the manufacturer's response on a warranty claim that I had several months later but there was zero after-sales care from the dealer to check that I was happy with everything. Considering that the purchase price was the same as a new car, there is much room for improvement in that industry.
Likewise with tackle. My natural inclination would be to shop at BCF but I have to say that I have been very pleased with the service and prices that I have received at Shane Boese's Watertower Bait & Tackle shop at Manly such that I am happy to refer his business to anyone also. Lest Shane get a big head about that, he has a lot to thank his wife for in the way that she helps customers with some pretty useful explanations at times, and quite good prices on items as diverse as Crab'N'Gear pop-up-pots through to Catseyes LED headlamps.
Certainly better prices than I could get at BCF.
Last edited by charleville; 10-07-2007 at 01:13 PM.
Really have not bought anything in BCF even though I have walked through the Labrador store a few times.
Most of my tackle purchases are for equipment that I use game fishing or light tackle sports fishing and I find Doug Burts to be unbeatable for variety, value and most importantly staff knowledge. If I am spending between $800 and $1200 on a rod or real I want to buy it from a store where the guy behind the counter knows his stuff and where I know the store will support me after I have spent my hard earned.
There is no way known am I buying a 50w Tiagra at BCF and I can't see myself asking the sales staff there what lures are working on small blacks or wahoo of the Gold Coast at the moment and getting the same in the know quality advice that I get from Doug Burts so for me I'll stay loyal to the guys that help me be one of the 10% that catch 90% of the fish
If you walked into the Labrador store you would find the blokes in there would just as easily rig you up and give you lure suggestions etc compared to dougs.....all at about $300 cheaper, bigger companies like BCF tend to just swap and go with faults etc just to keep the customer happy, i know a bloke who took a sounder back to dougs and 4 months later still hadnt recieved it...great service.
There is no way known am I buying a 50w Tiagra at BCF and I can't see myself asking the sales staff there what lures are working on small blacks or wahoo of the Gold Coast at the moment and getting the same in the know quality advice that I get from Doug Burts so for me I'll stay loyal to the guys that help me be one of the 10% that catch 90% of the fish
i suggest you walk in there and ask first...
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