Visit to Sears

[isufan11]

I went to Sears this weekend to look for a new canister vacuum. When I got there I was immediately greeted by a sales man who took me over to the Dyson area. He began to show me all the Dyson models and the features of each one. Then another sales man came over and introduced himself as a Sears employee. I though to myself who the @#$! was that other guy. The first salesman turned to me introduced himself and said he was a Dyson rep. I did not know Dyson had reps.

Now is when the fun began, as they literally started to battle for my business. Each one going back and fourth as to why there machine was better than the other, Sears guy would say stuff like consumer reports rated this number one, Dyson guy said things like 5 year warranty, no bags ect. Both were very Knowledgeable about there respective brands

After about a half hour of this I said I had to go home and think because I was suffering form information overload (truth is I was just sick of them). The Sears guy said if you buy this Kenmore today I will give you 15% off your purchase, plus throw in 5 packages of bags. I was sold, I mean I cant pass up a good deal right? But then the Dyson guy having heard this said he would throw in an Allergy and Asthma kit, and that he was authorized to take an additional 15% off of the already 20% off price. So needless to say I decided to buy the Dyson DC23 Turbine. I ended up paying only $291.10 after tax.

 

[vacman117]

Wow!!

That is a GREAT price for that! You are going to love it! Mine is absolutely amazing! And you should definitely look into buying the new articulating floor tool, it is VERY nice, and is great at getting into hard to reach place! Congrats!
Chase

 

[bagintheback]

Wow, that is a great price for the vacuum AND the Allergy and Asthma kit. I had no idea Dyson had sales reps. I would have gone with the Kenmore. I am done with bagless and the Kenmore would probably last longer.

 

[eurekaprince]

I'm shocked that Sears actually allowed a non-Sears salesperson to do what you described. Is Sears now giving commissions to Dyson representatives? Who was allowed to rack this up as a sale - the Sears employee or the Dyson employee?

If I were that Sears salesperson, I'd be steaming mad about this.....

 

[isufan11]

I actually went there with the intent of looking at a small straight suction machine just to use on my entry level tile and rugl which would fit in the closet below the coats. I already have a progressive canister, and love it.

The sears guy rang up the sale, but i have a feeling that the Dyson guy gets a cut of it, or a bonus or something,

 

[aeoliandave]

Ever since the Christmas/New Years holidays ended I have noticed more and more Dept Stores and Big Box Stores in Canada and the USA have Brand Representatives on the floor demoing and assisting with sales. I think it must be a new trend in marketing and clearly indicates a collusive desperation to generate sales.

Do I need to have both a Best Buy Boy and an Apple rep hovering over me at Best Buy?
Do I need to listen to a Hamilton Beach rep tell me about toasters at Canadian Tire?

And why else are all these retail businesses now getting into the Credit Card Business? Well, that's obvious, with the default rate at 24.9% after ONE missed payment for the life of the card agreement, which then can legally rise to 31% for the most obscure & arcane reasons. (Yes, I read the fine print before shredding.)

Spending is down and the market is saturated with excess product the public can no longer afford. So all the stops are out to encourage those impulse buys by the gullible.

Still, ether are some amazing bargains slipping through the cracks to be had and Jon just got one.
As did I when I got a 32 GB 4th gen Ipod Touch at Best Buy in Michigan for $50 off Apple's set price.

I've noticed too the grocery store chains giving massive discounts lately on food stuffs in containers that will soon be downsized in new packaging at the previous higher price. Be prepared people, the end of this depression is not in sight yet.

Dave. Living the dream dammit even if I do have to work with less.

 

[nick]

it used to be all the major brands had reps that would work a few days at various stores showing off and demonstrating the products of their company. this was usually when new models came out or big sale times like spring cleaning, christmas, etc

 

[normvac]

YES< NIck !

When I was a Eureka Rep back in 1979-1983. We were always in a vac shop, major Dept. store, Appliance where their was Hoover or other competition on the floor. We were gentlemen,
and considerate of the local sales person on the floor. Never
stepping in to take a sell. Then the Sales person on the floor
would always show our product if we were present. So we could be included in the sales pitch.
Now when it was all out Warehouse sales with Fedderated Dept. stores or a Discount Store back in the day. There was NO holding back, on the Hoover or Panasonic reps. but with in reson. Again, we were suit and tie gentlemen. NOT warriors. Let the customer get the facts, ask the questions and decide what is best for them.
Norm

http://

 

[gmerkt]

When I was in a Sears service center recently getting a part, I noticed that they had a flock of new vacs for sale out on their floor, highly discounted. I guess it would be fair to say these machines were reconditioned or something like that. They were returns and repossessions but all were spanking clean and carried a new vac warranty. All Kenmore, no non-house brands.

The Sears Service Centers are a bit disappointing these days. You'd expect a parts department where you could ask for a repair part and the counterman would go back into aisles of bins and pull the part. No longer. It's all on-line parts ordering now, which I could do from home without the bother of going to the service center. I was in the back of their building to use the men's room. There were acres of empty space, no parts bins or shelves, very few employees, just a few areas where they apparently did warranty work from time to time (like lawnmowers, etc) but nobody was doing it in the middle of the week when I was there.

I notice that these days Sears is carrying more stuff that isn't their own house brand. On the retail side, they are making an effort to stay competitive in the market. Of course Sears isn't what it used to be since being acquired by K-Mart. I've read that company management is now less interested in retail business and more interested in the investment side of owning companies.