pocket stove clones

[widu13]

Just in support of postage rates; I manage a sales team for a successful internet company that retails a lot of equipment and boots (amongst other large items) we charge £7.50 for a next working day service. Many, many people moan about the postage cost being extortionate. Does the actual courier cost us that? No it doesn't, but by the time it has been picked, QC'd and packaged it really does cost the full £7.50. Often when boots are returned for an exchange due to sizing etc, the same people then whinge about how much it has cost them to return the boots, which hovers around the £11 mark plus their time to package and return it.

We could reduce the postage by increasing prices but then we are not competitive, so have to increase prices anyway to remain in business. It really was an eye opener for me. People who think that postage is cheap in general or should be free for their order need to seriously think again.

 

[Podcast Bob]

Good point Julia, which I forgot to mention.

Petrol, parking and money spent driving to wherever.

And Widu13 I totally agree. It's even worse when they are offshore or out of courier area, but we try and look at it philosophically.

Most customers are realistic and balanced in their view thankfully. Sorry we have so much shiny gear, but a group purchase is always a winner

 

[Quixoticgeek]

Sorry we have so much shiny gear, but a group purchase is always a winner

Now if only you could get the exped Lightning 60 Womens in black...

Julia

 

[petrochemicals]

Post retant bob, it's how the post office started.

As for the Chinese rip offs, just ask Volkswagen, are you getting a designers fee 1p in the sale pound value? The other company's will stop any rip offs then.

 

[am5566]

Sorry bob, I didn't mean for it to come across like an attack on your postage prices. I'd be more than happy to pay £10 on a high value order i.e. £70+ I'd be spending a lot of money so I would be prepared to pay for a more expensive service.

To me because I am so used to free/cheap delivery from sites on the internet I have been conditioned in to not wanting to spend too much (relative to the product price) for delivery. I'm sure I'm not alone.

I was just trying to give an honest opinion (unfortunately I did a bad job of it).

You will be able to tell from your google analytics the bounce rate on your shopping cart page, you might even be able to match this up with referrers from lower value item pages and compare this to higher value item bounce rates to see if there is an increase caused by higher shipping costs relative to the products cost.

Would a different/cheaper service for lower value items boost sales?
Would the time and cost to use an additional service outweigh any customer profit gain?
What percentage do people think is acceptable for postage?

I look forward to using your site in the future, if you'll have me as a customer ;-)

Cheers,
Alan.

 

[Quixoticgeek]

Would a different/cheaper service for lower value items boost sales?
Would the time and cost to use an additional service outweigh any customer profit gain?
What percentage do people think is acceptable for postage?

Depends. Will that increase in sales also come with an increase in packages not arriving, that are then not insured, and thus no compensation for them is given?

If yes, then it's likely to not be worth it. I am weary about what courier is used by each company. I live very close to the royal mail depot, and I don't drive a car, so if I have to go get a package, it's a pain. City link have their depot in the next town, to collect a parcel is a 7 quid train journey and a 3 mile walk each way. Makes the delivery even more expensive then. Especially as City Link have a habit of not even trying to deliver but claiming to have done so, so you have to go collect the package. Fedex on the other hand have the advantage over pretty much every other courier out there, in that they can find my house. So at that point, a fiver for postage is worth the low hassel. I would rather everyone used royal mail, but their quality has been dropping a lot lately so they aren't as trustworthy as they were unfortunately.

Oh, and don't forget, the P&P is post & PACKING. The box etc... that the item is posted out in costs money. This is exacerbated by RM's weird package size catagories, as you end up having to have padded envelopes, large letter boxes, and small parcel boxes, increasing stock etc... It all adds up...

Just some thoughts.

Julia

 

[Nice65]

I recently wanted to buy the hive expansion but the postage price put me off. First thing I did was went off to look for a second hand one or a copy.

A lot of people will try a copy if its a good enough saving just look at all the woodgas stove threads on here.

This is a very significant point. For every couple of people that remain faithful to the original, there will always be someone who buys the fake copy. Adding links to these copies is aiding and abetting the charlatans. If people want to search out a fake off their own bat, then fine, but we make it very easy by publishing the sites to obtain them. Zero oxygen from BCUK can only be a positive action?

Be clear about fake and copy though. An unbranded lookalike is just a copy, it may have some slight design changes, not much the designer can do about it. A copy carries logos and intends to fool the buyer or observer. For anyone who is importing branded fakes, it's illegal. So that cheapo Spyderco from DX etc, illegal. Just the RM staff don't really know what's fake and what's not.

 

[Blaidd]

Also, if I buy something from you, you will probably spend that money in the UK, keeping the money here and helping people here earn a living and not funding more lookalikes/clones/fakes/etc. On this forum I may not be able to add anything about human rights so I won't.

 

[Andy BB]

Interesting discussion. And I feel for an inventor and manufacturer getting blatantly ripped off.

However, I couldn't help but notice that the general shape and connectors of the pocket stove are remarkably similar (although scaled down) to the Emberlit stoves - both Ti and SS - that I bought in the US several years ago and have been using ever since. They also did a "mini" version that I haven't tried.

Was this just a case of parallel development (after all, there's only limited ways to develop an efficient woodburner that flat-packs), or was one design "used" in the development of the other? Or even based on a yet older design?

 

[ebt.]

I think its easier than that andy, having gone down the whole stove/shield design process (albeit mine are a lot more scrappy)... "form follows function". Eg, its a natural thought process.

 

[Andy BB]

I think its easier than that andy, having gone down the whole stove/shield design process (albeit mine are a lot more scrappy)... "form follows function". Eg, its a natural thought process.

Yes - thats what I meant by parallel development!

 

[Quixoticgeek]

Sorry Bob, this doesn't get you a direct sale, but it is one of your products. There is a 2nd hand Titanium Pocket stove (sans tin) in the classifieds section currently for [thread=123248]25 quid[/thread]. This may be of interest to the OP.

Julia

 

[EdPhelan]

Also, if I buy something from you, you will probably spend that money in the UK, keeping the money here and helping people here earn a living and not funding more lookalikes/clones/fakes/etc. On this forum I may not be able to add anything about human rights so I won't.

EXCELLENT post

 

[dave89]

At the end of the day you have to pay for service, if you buy a clone/copy you go into it knowing that should a problem arise you will struggle to get your money back.