Bass Pro..King of the Hill

[hogpatrol]

I guess I better spend my Cabela's points now! I hope they are still good.

Roger that!

 

[billlarson]

This^^^ Prices at our local Bass Pro are retail plus a bunch. I aviod the place at all costs. At least Cabela's has or well had decent deals some times. Now there's 2 stores I won't waste my time in.
Looks like Scheel's is the only good one around now.

+2

 

[timeout]

On the news this AM it sounded like Cabela's was in financial decline. That could be for many reasons. Often boils down to "do I want to drive 1 1/2 hour each way, or go on the net and buy it for less money"? If I need it right away, then off to Cabela's. If not, I order online. I went to a Cabela's grand opening last year and it is easy to see why prices must be somewhat bloated. The overhead must be staggering. Cabela's is definitely my favorite of the big three. I always look at a decrease in competition as unfavorable to the consumer. I'm sad to see Cabela's go, but of course there isn't anything we can do about it!

 

[Larryh128]

I have dealt /deal with all three , Cabelas, Scheels, Bass Pro. Scheels is by FAR is easiest /best to do business with. Cabelas was the same before they went public, no more. They now modeled themselves after Bass Pro and DEMAND certain terms and want you to carry insurance on them. Neither are worth the effort to deal with and I cut both Bass Pro & Cabelas out of direct sales. Scheels is EXTREMELY easy to deal with, they fax/email their orders, it gets shipped, they pay their bill on time. What more do you want? I already have a stack of purchase orders on my desk for Scheels to be shipped at various dates in 2017. They are on the ball.

One of the items that Cabelas carries of ours has a Cabelas retail of $41.99, a local store sells the same item for $29.99 and they pay the same $ for it. Oh, also Cabelas went to China and had our product knocked off and sold under the Cabelas label. A trend that has not endeared them to manufacturers. They sell their product for $39.99 and it is the typical Chinese POS. People are always trying to return them to us because they have the impression that it's our product and it doesn't work properly. This also sheds a bad light on us although we aren't to blame.
When you know what they pay for an item & look at their pricing, it's not had to see why people aren't buying from them. Yes, I would use your points very quickly, who knows what will happen there.

Luckily we have good companies to deal with such as Midsouth, Wideners, Midway, Grafs etc. Sorry if I left you out but these are companies that I'm very familiar with and give great service.

 

[madmixerman]

Cabelas reports a decline in profits. Maybe they should stop sending out so many catalogs. I get 2 to 3 small catalogs a week. The cost of this has to be astronomical.

 

[timeout]

I probably misspoke on the big 3. I was including Gander Mountain, not Scheel's. I don't believe that there is a Scheel's in my area, so I have no exposure to them.

 

[LHSmith]

Just goes to show you how offering "free stuff" eventually ends when you run out of I have received thousands of dollars of free merchandise You can bitch about their prices ...but when you consider nearly everyone applies their points at checkout and their "brick and mortar" creates a pleasant shopping atmosphere, I can't say anything bad about them.

 

[Larryh128]

FYIY Gander went bankrupt once and was bought out, at that time they owed Remmy 7 million. They got shaky again a while ago but looks like their game has changed now, much better inventory that before. They had buyers that I would question their reasoning. I dumped them too, too much PITA for the $. I find that there are always good stores that you can sell to without becoming something you don't care to be.

 

[Hopkins]

Double knit polyester yuppie commando quartermasters. Cabelas has been sinking to this level for a long while.

 

[hogpatrol]

Double knit polyester yuppie commando quartermasters. Cabelas has been sinking to this level for a long while.

You forgot "TACTICAL".

 

[CharlieNC]

I was excited when Charlotte Bass Pro opened in 1999, as it was the first big outdoor store in the area. Fast forward to 2005 for my first trip to a Cabelas near Ann Arbor; I was blown away by the extensive stock. If it was in the catalog, it was on the shelf. Now Bass Pro is poorly stocked and has become a family shoping attraction, and unfortunately the new Cabelas in SC is about the same. I rarely bother to shop there any more because its not often I find what I need and I'd rather order online rather than try to ignore the screaming kids. Also the quality of the store brands has deteriorated, but that is mainly what they stock. But that's their new business model and their MBAs don't understand brand quality and loyalty.

 

[284winner]

Let's face it, Cabelas is and always will be "King of the Hill" in terms of outdoor, hunting, and fishing equipment. Those that don't like Cabelas never have or will. All I know is I've purchased many clothing and footwear items from BPS and none of it was even close in quality or fit as cabelas. Plus Cabelas sell much more name brand items and guns. BPS sell mostly Red Head and Bone Dry along with BPS brand stuff. Sure Cabelas is pricey but still cheaper than Bass Pro Shops goods. Dick Cabela made an empire in outdoor products marketing. His passing I'm sure caused most of its sale to BPS. It's been rumored for years that Johnny Morris wanted to buy Cabelas. It's no coincidence he finally purchased it after Dick Cabelas death. I can only hope that he leaves it exactly as is and does not reorganize the entire Cabelas store or catalog. Nobody I've spoke to looks at this as a good day for Cabelas shoppers. Only for the guy who just put another notch in his entrepreneur belt...Johnny Morris.

 

[hogpatrol]

re: the merger, The market for Chinese made, four hundred dollar hunting coveralls has collapsed. I'm starting to get that Sears-Kmart merger feeling.

 

[SShooterZ]

If you're a shooter in needs of firearm related goods including reloading supplies, Scheels is the KING. They usually have decent prices and a nice used gun selection, again, with decent prices and the occasional bargain waiting to be snagged. They also seem to carry the best real outdoor stuff, not the Under Armor camo boots that last 2 seasons.

Gander Mountain USED to be a great option as well with a easily perused used gun section and a decent selection of reloading components. For whatever reason in the last 5 years or so, they moved more into clothing and more outdoor activity focus and their used gun, new gun and reloading product prices shot through the roof.

Bass Pro basically says EFF YOU to the shooter. Their prices on everything firearm related are absurd. Their "sales" bring the prices down to what you can find at any of the other 3 at normal price. I've also run into too many mistakes with them where they say they have something and they don't or it's not what you asked for. Just poorly run for the shooter.

Cabelas was also a nice option. Their sales on firearms were typically some of the best, especially if you had one local. Decent reloading options, not great, but a pretty nice used firearm selection too again, at decent prices. They recently had a nice Remington 700 Varmint sale that would have netted you a new rifle for under $400.

The fact that Bass Pro is buying Cabelas just tells me that prices are going to climb and service will probably suffer. The biggest disadvantage we have here in IL is that Cabelas is in Cook County so there are a boatload of firearm "taxes" you have to pay when you buy one there. Thus, they don't get my coin. That said, they definitely have more firearm related items than either the Bass Pro or Gander Mountain. The Scheels I visit in Eau Claire is far and away the best though. It's like toy shopping for shooters. They even carry Cooper rifles.

 

[JohnnyJohnson]

Anytime you reduce competition the consumer (hunter/shooter) is going to come out the loser.

 

[JRS]

With Goldman-Sachs involved in the buyout, you can bet the stores will be overflowing with Asian made goods

 

[hogpatrol]

If you're a shooter in needs of firearm related goods including reloading supplies, Scheels is the KING. They usually have decent prices and a nice used gun selection, again, with decent prices and the occasional bargain waiting to be snagged. They also seem to carry the best real outdoor stuff, not the Under Armor camo boots that last 2 seasons.

Unfortunately, the closest Scheel's is 832 miles from home. Gas costs would kill me.

 

[dickn52]

For me it was all about access. Scheels (?), never heard of them in Florida. Same with Cabela's. Bass Pro is in Orlando and now Gainesville. The Gainesville store in 38 miles from my house. So like it or not it is Bass Pro. We do have a Gander Mountain, but I avoid it like a plague due to their prices on everything. Sometimes I feel like dropping a dollar on the floor when I leave for the air I breathed while shopping.

 

[JimT]

Just goes to show you how offering "free stuff" eventually ends when you run out of other peoples money. I have received thousands of dollars of free merchandise from Cabelas on the backs of millennial's who are budget ignorant. You can bitch about their prices ...but when you consider nearly everyone applies their points at checkout and their "brick and mortar" creates a pleasant shopping atmosphere, I can't say anything bad about them.

Could you explain how you got "free stuff" on the "backs of millennial's?"

 

[LHSmith]

Could you explain how you got "free stuff" on the "backs of millennial's?"

Cabelas points earned by using a Cabelas Visa card on all my purchases (incl. business related goods) and making sure I pay off the card in full -on time- every month.