I was responding to the Fizik Arione post, and it occurred to me that I have never seen a Group Buy listed or offered on this forum. It's never even been discussed. Is this some sort of evil taboo, and I'm about to get run out of town on a rail, or is the sport too small to support such a thing?
For those unfamiliar, a group buy is where a bunch of people get together and negotiate a discounted price on a specific piece of equipment if they buy a minimum number of units.(In practice, it isn't that different from a tri club discount, the assumption there being that the members will buy more gear from the dealer over time because of the discount, except that a group buy is a one shot deal.) Granted, this could be difficult for equipment that is highly variable due to size or other specs, but I would think that for wheels, seats, or some other gear, it could be workable.
It is typically arranged through a dealer, although occasionally it is done direct through the manufacturer. Either way, the broker typically yields more profit based on quantity than they would selling the same number of individual units over time and attracts people who might otherwise not purchase that product. It typically requires a commitment by a certain number of buyers before it is approved.
Am I just a dirty heathen for mentioning this, or is this something that could be done?
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For those unfamiliar, a group buy is where a bunch of people get together and negotiate a discounted price on a specific piece of equipment if they buy a minimum number of units.(In practice, it isn't that different from a tri club discount, the assumption there being that the members will buy more gear from the dealer over time because of the discount, except that a group buy is a one shot deal.) Granted, this could be difficult for equipment that is highly variable due to size or other specs, but I would think that for wheels, seats, or some other gear, it could be workable.
It is typically arranged through a dealer, although occasionally it is done direct through the manufacturer. Either way, the broker typically yields more profit based on quantity than they would selling the same number of individual units over time and attracts people who might otherwise not purchase that product. It typically requires a commitment by a certain number of buyers before it is approved.
Am I just a dirty heathen for mentioning this, or is this something that could be done?
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