The Pro's Closet at it again

[fourflys]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

Some of us believe consumer protections should be in place to help keep people from being taken advantage of..

while I agree with consumer protections, I want to again stress that we are talking about luxury items here, not necessities... I say that because I've yet to see folks complain about things like the collector car market that has skyrocketed in prices... go and see what the price of a BMW Z8 or Honda S2000 costs at this point, they are ridiculous! But I don't see folks up in arms about protecting that market... and my thought is because those are things that are not everyday, practical, needed items, but things that are nice to have... kind of like a $5k bike, just sayin'...

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by witcombusa

Yes, there is price gouging going on in many markets now, not the least of which are housing, auto and moto. If you aren't willing to pay asking price then you won't be buying in many cases. House sale have been beyond crazy in my area. Even asking price isn't gonna do it. We're seeing offers 10-15k over asking price with NO inspection.
MSRP for car/moto sales are the exception too. I was fortunate to find a NH moto dealer who wasn't having any of that with a purchase I made in December. They put you in line with a deposit and as the motos trickled in you'd get a call and complete the sale. They don't see it changing for at least the next six months either.

Value as they say is what someone is willing to pay. Now more than ever!

Yup, what he said.

Followup with son..wanted a Civic SI, got an Accord Sport Hybrid. MUCH nicer interior than the Civics we looked at and about the same $.

Dealer..sold at MSRP, no add-ons, only one he had(had to be black, BTW).
PLUS, dealer searched for best loan rate, better than places son researched(USAA)...all around very pleased.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by RoosterCogset

What to understand is why there are buyers that'd be so desperate to own a specific model/brand bike that they'd spend same as new to get something that's been broken and repaired just to do so, that has no warranty, instead of finding and possibly waiting for an alternative.

As mentioned somewhere above, value is determined by what's willing to be paid. I don't understand why anyone would be willing to pay this amount.

I completely understand the seller-side of things and more power to them.

I don't understand why anybody would buy ANY trekspecializedgiantcannondale bike of any kind at any price.

fourflys above gets it. Retail market..it would be great if TPC was a not for profit, charity but, ya know, it isn't. It's retail and bicycle retail at that.

Quick edit...wandered thru the 'drinks for the holidays' thread and...

looking in the dictionary under 'overpriced' or 'price gouging' and see pictures of some wines, spirits and beers..yeegads, need some 'consumer protection' there...

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

Some of us believe consumer protections should be in place to help keep people from being taken advantage of..

There are some things TPC does that are bad for the sport and bad for the industry. Some of their listings rely on half-truths and casual omissions to get the item sold - on the hope that the buyer either won't know enough to raise a stink when they get it or won't want to deal with the return hurdle. Having a sour experience when getting your first bike can be enough to turn you off the sport, and that's a shame.

On the other hand, they sometimes have hard to find stuff at reasonable prices - and things that are out of stock elsewhere. They employ people. And they keep a pretty cool museum.

End of the day, I just wish they would do a better job of segregating what they have for sale so people really know what they are getting - an "as-is" section, a "refurbished" section, a "like new section", etc. I don't think their condition grading is as good as it could be, or as accurate.

Good luck with that, particularly with bicycles and during these 'challenging' times.
'Some' will say being taken advantage of, some others will say, GREAT deal'....
'Consumer protections', 'taken advantage of'...Subjective.

Tell ya what, buy something at TPC, don't like it, return it and get full refund..even shipping. Try that with hundreds of other places. Try that with some of the gray and black market bike part resellers in Europe..

Shop with complete confidence. Every product we sell is covered by a hassle-free 30-day satisfaction guarantee. If you need to return an item please contact our team within 30 days of receiving your order. We will gladly issue a full refund or store credit. If we made an error or the item you received is not as described we will cover return shipping.

Define "reasonable prices" for me?

[cinema]

Lol, consumer protection. Help, government, don’t let me buy this used surly pacer for $2000!

[Clancy]

Originally Posted by cinema

Lol, consumer protection. Help, government, don’t let me buy this used surly pacer for $2000!

Growing up my older brother explained things to me in very simple terms.

If someone sells you a car for $5,000 and it’s a piece of junk worth $500, everyone will tell the buyer “way to go!” And will tell you that you’re a fool.

In the most basic terms, that pretty much sums-up capitalism. The goal is to make money.

My brother explained this to me when he was in 11th grade, I was in 5th grade. We were regular attendees in church, going every Sunday. Trying to reconcile what I learned in church and what my brother explained was confusing and difficult for me.

Now, too many decades later, I’ve come to realize that many people, businesses, corporations, place money ahead of a sense of morality towards others, using the justification of making a “profit”. And as such, I believe strongly in restricting those base instincts through the use of government regulations and restrictions.

My bother also doesn’t have a problem with cutting down a 150 year old tree to build a house. Another belief that I find odd.

[mtechnica]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

I don't understand why anybody would buy ANY trekspecializedgiantcannondale bike of any kind at any price.
.

[e-RICHIE]

Originally Posted by Clancy

My bother also doesn’t have a problem with cutting down a 150 year old tree to build a house. Another belief that I find odd.

me too.

to quote michael kimmelman (from one of his middle 1990s opinion pieces), “capitalism has a way of absorbing the marginal into the mainstream.”

[rollinslow]

My favorite aspect of a good old Pro's Closet listing will be that every wheelset is a year and mileage unknown. They can find out what year a wheel is simply with papers from the person who sold it to them or using the internet for 5 mins. Small issue but annoying that they don't pay attention to detail.

[cinema]

Originally Posted by e-RICHIE

me too.

to quote michael kimmelman (from one of his middle 1990s opinion pieces), “capitalism has a way of absorbing the marginal into the mainstream.”

talebs minority rule. eg only less than 1% of people keep kosher yet companies often pay for kashrut

[tomato coupe]

Originally Posted by rollinslow

My favorite aspect of a good old Pro's Closet listing will be that every wheelset is a year and mileage unknown. They can find out what year a wheel is simply with papers from the person who sold it to them or using the internet for 5 mins. Small issue but annoying that they don't pay attention to detail.

What papers would those be?

[RoosterCogset]

Originally Posted by tomato coupe

What papers would those be?

I assume this would refer to a receipt, and/or maybe a work order if they're custom built?

[tomato coupe]

Originally Posted by RoosterCogset

I assume this would refer to a receipt, and/or maybe a work order if they're custom built?

TPC does not ask for receipts or work orders when you sell them a set of wheels, and I very much doubt they ever will.

[RoosterCogset]

Originally Posted by tomato coupe

TPC does not ask for receipts or work orders when you sell them a set of wheels, and I very much doubt they ever will.

Ok, but that was the complaint raised. That it wouldn't be that hard to establish model year of aftermarket wheels in order to improve the detail provided in their listings. They may not require a receipt, but would they accept a copy of one if the seller to them was willing to provide?

[zmalwo]

Another gem I found today:

https://www.theproscloset.com/produc...olnago-decor-l

I sold my Superissimo in better condition that that last year for $450. This is just disgusting at this point.