Go Outdoors

[freiston]

I'm another that found their discount card an issue. A real pain in the bum at the till as well, discovering that your card had expired (they never put the date on it) and going through the rigmarole of renewing it at the till. If you didn't make regular purchases, it was effectively a £5 fee for getting the discount price - which was always the eye-grabbing big print advertised price with the non-discounted price being in smaller print - I felt effectively hoodwinked into paying a fee to get the advertised price or paying a high price for not playing ball - the discounted prices were competitive but the "full prices" were often not a good deal.

[Jdsk]

Is it a way round the restrictions on claiming discount or sale prices... something about having been for sale at the higher price for some duration or other?

Jonathan

[simonineaston]

It just seemed to me to be a clumsy ittertion of a loyalty card, except that you had to pay for it and that if you didn't, their prices would be equal or greater than, the competitions'... all rather unsatisfactory somehow!

[Trigger]

I think we are on the brink of another big shift in retail, for those that the internet hasn't initially done for I think Covid will finish them off.

The model of a big store with all the costs that entails, is surely very quickly becoming a thing of the past.

I don't know anybody that buys any non food shopping in an actual shop. Even the venerable old "fork 'andles" hardware shop is filled with cheap Chinese tat these days, only at higher prices than you can buy the same tat from Ebay/Ali Express.

I think very small, niches shops offering some sort of premium service/products may prevail, but for general stuff most Brits just want cheap tat and that can be bought online. My old man is a prime example, he will search high and low online to find whatever it is he wants to literally only save a couple of pennies.

I only ever go to my High Street for the Post Office, the rest is just filled with endless charity shops, bookies and Greggs muck, not to mention about four or five individual barbers in the space of a couple hundred yards.

[richardfm]

I think we are on the brink of another big shift in retail, for those that the internet hasn't initially done for I think Covid will finish them off.

The model of a big store with all the costs that entails, is surely very quickly becoming a thing of the past.

I don't know anybody that buys any non food shopping in an actual shop. Even the venerable old "fork 'andles" hardware shop is filled with cheap Chinese tat these days, only at higher prices than you can buy the same tat from Ebay/Ali Express.

I think very small, niches shops offering some sort of premium service/products may prevail, but for general stuff most Brits just want cheap tat and that can be bought online. My old man is a prime example, he will search high and low online to find whatever it is he wants to literally only save a couple of pennies.

I only ever go to my High Street for the Post Office, the rest is just filled with endless charity shops, bookies and Greggs muck, not to mention about four or five individual barbers in the space of a couple hundred yards.

You missed the coffee shops, but many high streets are like this.

[Trigger]

I think we are on the brink of another big shift in retail, for those that the internet hasn't initially done for I think Covid will finish them off.

The model of a big store with all the costs that entails, is surely very quickly becoming a thing of the past.

I don't know anybody that buys any non food shopping in an actual shop. Even the venerable old "fork 'andles" hardware shop is filled with cheap Chinese tat these days, only at higher prices than you can buy the same tat from Ebay/Ali Express.

I think very small, niches shops offering some sort of premium service/products may prevail, but for general stuff most Brits just want cheap tat and that can be bought online. My old man is a prime example, he will search high and low online to find whatever it is he wants to literally only save a couple of pennies.

I only ever go to my High Street for the Post Office, the rest is just filled with endless charity shops, bookies and Greggs muck, not to mention about four or five individual barbers in the space of a couple hundred yards.

You missed the coffee shops, but many high streets are like this.

The boutique, Barista style coffee shops haven't made it here, it's too fancy, we do still have a couple of traditional style eat-in greasy spoon cafes though (cafe pronounced caff here) where you have to wade through a crowd of smokers ten deep at the door to get in.

[simonineaston]

This is just another example of the sea-change across retail - as noted. The new world suits some but not others. I'm confident that I can search for and purchase items successfully, backed up by decades of experience using search engines and outdoor kit of all sorts... lucky me! Not all folks are so placed. My good chum who's an expereienced and resourceful car-camper, without the same level of mechanical know-how I've got, likes to seek advice from folk on the ground, and prefers to visit a shop and have a face-to-face with sales staff. She does not like to buy online, so for her, disappearing real shops is a setback.

[rmurphy195]

Underlying it is the type pf products they sell - camping/caravanning gear and accessories (very little to no camping/caravanning this year) as well as outdoor and sports clothing, walking footwear etc. (for which there is plenty of competition). Even if they re-open today not many people would be buying I should think. (Me, for example - mothballed the caravan for this year, no point in occasionaing the servicing and maintenance costs for the use we are likely to get. Who wants to scramble for a campsite pitch, in an area where you probably won't be able to stroll down to the local pubs/teashops etc.?

[simonineaston]

and prefers to visit a shop and have a face-to-face with sales staff.

...actually, she's just been in touch with me & has been quite critical of the standard of service she's received during a couple of recent vists to GO - maybe there's a clue to the nature of their issues! If folk don't find their face-to-face service that helpful, and are eyign up cheaper prices online, from a menu of products that is virtually limitless, then mix in lockdown, and perhaps its no surprise they're in a spot of bother. Shame, though...

[pete75]

I use the local store quite frequently. They seem to have staff with knowledge of the specific area they work in and are very helpful.

Be sad to lose them.

I agree.

[pete75]

Any retailer with a business model that depends on size, high turn-over and relatively low margins is only on the brink of profit at the best of times.

Chances are someone will buy some of the chain but many will go, but not outdoors.

Used to visit and buy a few things, mainly walking stuff about every other year.

Yep - that'll be why Karl Albrect Jr, inheritor of Aldi Sud and his cousin Theo Albrect Jr, inheritor of Aldo Nord are the richest and fifth richest people in Germany and Michel Leclercq owner of Decathlon is among the wealthiest people in France.

[Paulatic]

I use the local store quite frequently. They seem to have staff with knowledge of the specific area they work in and are very helpful.

Be sad to lose them.

I agree.

That must depend on stores.
I’ve only experience of Penrith over around the last 10 years. I’ve talked to staff who were enthusiastic about the outdoors. I’ve talked to staff who couldn’t wait until they got away to uni. Not once have I talked to anyone with good product knowledge or have the inclination to offer similar products
My OH worked for EWM and if Philip Day had ever walked into Penrith GO I think some management guys would be hauled over the coals.

[99.9%certain]

I use the local store quite frequently. They seem to have staff with knowledge of the specific area they work in and are very helpful.

Be sad to lose them.

I agree.

That must depend on stores.
I’ve only experience of Penrith over around the last 10 years. I’ve talked to staff who were enthusiastic about the outdoors. I’ve talked to staff who couldn’t wait until they got away to uni. Not once have I talked to anyone with good product knowledge or have the inclination to offer similar products
My OH worked for EWM and if Philip Day had ever walked into Penrith GO I think some management guys would be hauled over the coals.

When it was CCC Outdoors I think the staff were much better.
I've shopped at the Sheffield,Leeds and Hathersage branches and they all seem to employ staff who would rather not be there.Probably on zero hours contracts?I think GO and SD are along a similar vein and the staff use it as a stop-gap.
I've had the discount card for well over a decade so have made some good savings.I still have the very first one which was dated but after that they stopped putting the date on them.

[Syd]

I use the local store quite frequently. They seem to have staff with knowledge of the specific area they work in and are very helpful.

Be sad to lose them.

I agree.

That must depend on stores.
I’ve only experience of Penrith over around the last 10 years. I’ve talked to staff who were enthusiastic about the outdoors. I’ve talked to staff who couldn’t wait until they got away to uni. Not once have I talked to anyone with good product knowledge or have the inclination to offer similar products
My OH worked for EWM and if Philip Day had ever walked into Penrith GO I think some management guys would be hauled over the coals.

No doubt if does. My most recent experiences have been in their Edinburgh store.

[pete75]

I agree.

That must depend on stores.
I’ve only experience of Penrith over around the last 10 years. I’ve talked to staff who were enthusiastic about the outdoors. I’ve talked to staff who couldn’t wait until they got away to uni. Not once have I talked to anyone with good product knowledge or have the inclination to offer similar products
My OH worked for EWM and if Philip Day had ever walked into Penrith GO I think some management guys would be hauled over the coals.

When it was CCC Outdoors I think the staff were much better.
I've shopped at the Sheffield,Leeds and Hathersage branches and they all seem to employ staff who would rather not be there.Probably on zero hours contracts?I think GO and SD are along a similar vein and the staff use it as a stop-gap.
I've had the discount card for well over a decade so have made some good savings.I still have the very first one which was dated but after that they stopped putting the date on them.

A friend's son worked part time there as a student. Taken on because of his knowledge of climbing gear and camping equipment. One thing that was attractive about working there was the level of staff discount. Not a fixed amount but dependent on the the item - for example when I wanted some blue Camping Gaz cartridges for a blow lamp he got me them for £1.50 each and 2.5 litres of Nixwax Solarproof with pump £7.50.

The majority of people would prefer to be doing what they want to do rather than be at work - I bet you'd rather be out on your bike. Why do expect Go employees to be any different?