..if Planet X is struggling, or just has a permanent sale?

[PH]

I guess it's similar to the marketing model which all the kitchen cabinet retailers use ..... "we have a 50% sale on so you need to get your kitchen from us".

And every Del Boy market trader in history. It's also favoured by the likes of Aldi and Lidl in their centre isle stock. There are bargains to be had, but buying stuff you wouldn't otherwise is often not the way to get best value. I'm not immune, it easy to get drawn in, I've bought something from PX I would have otherwise, then added a couple of "cheap" items I wouldn't have and didn't need. It is clever marketing, it isn't always in the consumers interest.

don't most of us decide how much we think the item is worth, or are many influenced by 'how much are we saving' nonsense?

In many cases if something looks a bargain we assume it is. I used to work for a retailer who had regular "Manager's Sales" a pallet of goods by the entrance, with the packaging slightly roughed up and a handwritten price offer and of course they'd claim to be limited stock, though how limited wouldn't be specified - whatever it was they'd sell better than putting the same product on the shelf at the same price.

[AndyK]

I guess it's similar to the marketing model which all the kitchen cabinet retailers use ..... "we have a 50% sale on so you need to get your kitchen from us".

And every Del Boy market trader in history. It's also favoured by the likes of Aldi and Lidl in their centre isle stock. There are bargains to be had, but buying stuff you wouldn't otherwise is often not the way to get best value. I'm not immune, it easy to get drawn in, I've bought something from PX I would have otherwise, then added a couple of "cheap" items I wouldn't have and didn't need. It is clever marketing, it isn't always in the consumers interest.

don't most of us decide how much we think the item is worth, or are many influenced by 'how much are we saving' nonsense?

In many cases if something looks a bargain we assume it is. I used to work for a retailer who had regular "Manager's Sales" a pallet of goods by the entrance, with the packaging slightly roughed up and a handwritten price offer and of course they'd claim to be limited stock, though how limited wouldn't be specified - whatever it was they'd sell better than putting the same product on the shelf at the same price.

PX push you towards adding a few extra things you didn't need by not offering free delivery. You think, "Well, If I'm paying £6.99 for delivery I might as well chuck in a few more bits."
With PX I view it as a game. The actual prices go up and down and if you know what you want but aren't in a hurry to get it, you can often catch a great deal. As I mentioned here recently, I was very happy with the PX bibtights I'd bought for £15, so when a combination of sales and special offers briefly brought them down to £7.50 I stocked up on a couple more pairs for future use.

It's 20% off everything just now. The bike that I've had my eye on isn't any cheaper than it was when it was specifically discounted last month

Yeah - I've been keeping half an eye on the Kaffenback frameset as a possible new frame for my winter road bike.* For many months it's been £549, even when at one stage you could get a complete Apex-equipped Kaffenback bike for just £100 more. Then recently it went from £549 straight to "£599 REDUCED TO £549" without ever (as far as I noticed) being £599 in between. Then this week, at the same time as the "20% OFF EVERYTHING!" offer went out, the frameset's listed price went up to £604.99. Now admittedly the 20% offer means it can currently be had for £483.99, which is the lowest it's been for a long time, but it isn't 20% cheaper than it was before the 20% offer started. Pretty sure there are at least two possible breaches of consumer legislation there.

When it comes to the bikes, clothes, parts and accessories sold under PX's assorted own brands - Planet X, On One, Selcof, Holdsworth, Carnac, Jobsworth, Phaart etc. - there are a couple of valid reasons why they might be able to offer such good prices without going bust. Firstly they're probably ordering a lot of it direct, in bulk, straight from the manufacturers in the far east. That'll be the same manufacturers the big brands and distributors/wholesalers are ordering from, but by avoiding the normal distribution channels PX can cut out the middleman.

Secondly, Planet X is an employee-owned company. Unlike many big online sellers <cough>Wiggle<cough>, there is no chain of holding companies and private equity fund investors with overheads to charge, big dividends to pay out and leveraged debt interest charges to service.




* Of course I'm not getting another new bike, I'm just getting a new frame for the old one. And new wheels. And new brakes. But it'll be the same bike...

[Sweep]

With PX I view it as a game. The actual prices go up and down and if you know what you want but aren't in a hurry to get it, you can often catch a great deal. As I mentioned here recently, I was very happy with the PX bibtights I'd bought for £15, so when a combination of sales and special offers briefly brought them down to £7.50 I stocked up on a couple more pairs for future use.
hout ever (as far as I noticed) being £599 in between. Then this week, at the same time as the "20% OFF EVERYTHING!" offer went out, the frameset's listed price went up to £604.99. Now admittedly the 20% offer means it can currently be had for £483.99, which is the lowest it's been for a long time, but it isn't 20% cheaper than it was before the 20% offer started. Pretty sure there are at least two possible breaches of consumer legislation there.

exactly - I keep a simple doc record of stuff I'm interested in, though I had to splash out £8 recently on those bibs.
Pretty sure I once got three of their 3/4 padded bibs for about £50 - you could easily spend that amount for a single pair of something not too different. At those prices the postage can be borne, and their delivery service is pretty good.

[TrevA]

They’ve currently got 11 speed SRAM chains on sale for £13, so I’ve snagged a couple of them, along with a few other bits and bobs.

[PH]

They’ve currently got 11 speed SRAM chains on sale for £13, so I’ve snagged a couple of them, along with a few other bits and bobs.

Would you have bought those anyway? Maybe you would, but I think the business model relies on customers adding stuff they wouldn't have bought otherwise. Or maybe stuff they might have bought at some point, but not necessarily from PX.

[TrevA]

I like to keep a stock of chains in, so I would have bought some at some point. My son in law was ordering a load of stuff from them, so I just piggybacked on his order, so don’t have to pay postage. They were having a bundle deal on shorts, so bought a couple of pairs of those too, along with some chain cleaner.