Decline of Army / Navy Surplus stores
- Thread starter markie*mark0
- Start date
Didn't Anchor Supplies used to be owened (it may still be) by a family who basically collected army surplus kit. I seem to remember seeing something on the news about them YEARS ago, and that they had to open a shop or something to be allowed to keep going.
Shops are certainly in decline. Local to me, John's Army Surplus is down to one shop, and lots of it is Chinese repro kit, and the one in Croydon, which was an excellent source of German para boots, is long gone
Shops are certainly in decline. Local to me, John's Army Surplus is down to one shop, and lots of it is Chinese repro kit, and the one in Croydon, which was an excellent source of German para boots, is long gone
I talked to a big Dutch surplus owner recently and he had a story I also read on BCUK.
The found a full battalion of African Pirates with Dutch Surplus uniforms . All with the badges and Country flags on them.
So that shocked the Goverments in the EU.
He told me that all new stuff has to be stripped down all badges. The German sell there stuff with 5000 pounds extra deposit. When you send back the Badges and Flags the will return the 5000 pound to you.
All countrys in the EU are now doing this stuff. For a Surplus store who buys like 300 jackets its a big thing to get all the flags off.
They Dutch are destroying there stuff now. Ore just put some purple paint on them. A shame!
The found a full battalion of African Pirates with Dutch Surplus uniforms . All with the badges and Country flags on them.
So that shocked the Goverments in the EU.
He told me that all new stuff has to be stripped down all badges. The German sell there stuff with 5000 pounds extra deposit. When you send back the Badges and Flags the will return the 5000 pound to you.
All countrys in the EU are now doing this stuff. For a Surplus store who buys like 300 jackets its a big thing to get all the flags off.
They Dutch are destroying there stuff now. Ore just put some purple paint on them. A shame!
not somali pirates are they! i imagine that would be a shock to any dutch ships that get taken over lol
i remember back in the day seeing perfectly good jackets, webbing pouches etc being slashed with a stanley blade before being released for surplus sale. absolute waste if you ask me.
internet shops are ok but I do like a good old rummage around the stock looking for those fantastic bargins and must have bits of kit
I have a couple of good ones near me , Platoon in Bury and Nicks kit near Oldham both old fashioned proper shops , no connection by the way just a satisfied customer
I have a couple of good ones near me , Platoon in Bury and Nicks kit near Oldham both old fashioned proper shops , no connection by the way just a satisfied customer
then there is genuine army surpless that has that msuty smell and yes it sells new stuff but the old stuff is there if you want it and its ausome
There is (or was recently) a good one in Glasgow, at the far end of argyle st, and there is another good one in Lanark, just outside the railway station.
I remember as a lad, the surplus store in St Mary's, Southampton. A treasure trove and yess, THAT smell. Sadly the place has long gone.
There are a couple of good stores in Bournemouth. BASE in Charminster is fairly old school, not much repro stuff. Can be a bit iffy on pricing sometimes so it pays to do your research and walk away if the price is too high. I paid over the odds a few times before I cottoned on. But I've also picked up some bargains there.
Also Frontline at Landsdown, Bournemouth. Getting a lot better under new management. Used to be mainly repro stuff and still sells alot of repro trousers etc. But he's just down the road from both the college and university's town centre campus so I imagine the students like it. However Dave knows his surplus and is gradually stocking more genuine surplus. Less equipment than clothing sadly though.
I'll probably be making the drive to Exeter soon to visit Endicotts again. I keep drooling at their website.
There are a couple of good stores in Bournemouth. BASE in Charminster is fairly old school, not much repro stuff. Can be a bit iffy on pricing sometimes so it pays to do your research and walk away if the price is too high. I paid over the odds a few times before I cottoned on. But I've also picked up some bargains there.
Also Frontline at Landsdown, Bournemouth. Getting a lot better under new management. Used to be mainly repro stuff and still sells alot of repro trousers etc. But he's just down the road from both the college and university's town centre campus so I imagine the students like it. However Dave knows his surplus and is gradually stocking more genuine surplus. Less equipment than clothing sadly though.
I'll probably be making the drive to Exeter soon to visit Endicotts again. I keep drooling at their website.
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