That is a good breakdown. One thing I've noticed, and I touched on this in my other post in this thread, is that so often I've seemed to encounter quite a few local gun shops who don't seem interested in trying to want to make a sale. They have little knowledge about their products and generally don't seem to want to go to any length to actually convince me to buy the product. I've even had one guy at a shop treat me as an annoyance when asking to look at guns and I was ready to buy that day.I'm not sure if it was because the salesman was an older guy and would rather chew the fat with customers his age or what but it left me with a really sour taste in my mouth and I haven't been back to that store since.them wrote:Two answers, one for the browsing question, one for the online side of the question.
First: I go into stores to browse all the time, and it has nothing to do with the internet. I was browsing before I had ever heard of the internet. I go into home depot to see if they have anything I can adapt to projects I am working on, to outdoor stores to see camping gear that might workfor upcoming trips, and so on. I definitely go to gun stores to see if they have anything I "absolutely need" ;). If approached by a store employee I will typically say, "Just browsing," which isn't code for, "I'm looking here but will buy online," but rather, "I don't need personal service at this time." When I find an item I am interested in I start making decisions about when and how to buy. At that point the store is definitely in the running to make a sale, but the sale was never guaranteed and I have no obligation to buy or buy from that store. I will find the best overall deal (taking into account cost, time, guarantees, and so on). I may go home to think about it and come back a week later to buy. I may find I can buy it online for a dramatically better price and buy that way. I think that is not only ethical, but good for the store.
Second answer: Regarding the specific case of seeing something online and wanting to touch/feel it before buying. I think this is now called "showrooming" rather than browsing. I think showrooming is to the merchan's benefit because people who become interested in a gun (any product) visit the merchant's store. If Joe Internet sees a 642 (or whatever) online, reads reviews, checks the prices on someonlinegunstore.com, there are two ways it can go from there:
1) They buy the gun right then and there, counting on return policies or the ability to sell to cover disappointments. The deal is done and local retailers lost the sale without ever knowing it was being considered. Some kitchen table FFL will get $20 and that's that.
2) Joe wants to touch and feel so he heads for a local shop. The shop has a prospect walk through their door interested in a particular gun and intending to buy. It is now up to the sales person to convince Joe that buying from that shop is better in some way than buying online...an opportunity the shop didn't have before.
Possibility #2 is something businesses pay for. They pay real money to get qualified customers in the door. Advertising, store decore, and so on...none of which was needed to get Joe to come in. I say it is not only ethical of Joe to visit a local retailer to touch/feel, but it is a positive benefit to the retailer and can be viewed as free money being given to the store. It is up to the store to recognize the opportunity and close the sale. If the store can't close it is just sour grapes and an indication of poor thinking to blame online retailers for their own missed opportunity.
That is my take anyway. :)
In summary, the only value I really see out of local gun shops is getting to get something that day, which I rarely need to do and getting a chance to see and hold a gun in person. I've purchased several guns online without having seen them in person. With an FFL very close to my home, it makes the process cheaper and quite easier.
On that note, how much more am I expected to pay to a local gun shop to be fair?