Only half way through?

[eriksat1]

We are only about 1/2 way through the ice fishing season here and the stores are already pulling the ice fishing stuff? I went to my favorite store today to find that they have already removed about half the ice fishing stuff. The only good thing is that they are already reducing prices. I never understood the mentality of stocking up and selling stuff for 3 to 4 months away, instead of trying to sell stuff that people want right now in mid season?

[perch chacer]

We are only about 1/2 way through the ice fishing season here and the stores are already pulling the ice fishing stuff? I went to my favorite store today to find that they have already removed about half the ice fishing stuff. The only good thing is that they are already reducing prices. I never understood the mentality of stocking up and selling stuff for 3 to 4 months away, instead of trying to sell stuff that people want right now in mid season?

But remember you bought ice fishing stuff in the Fall, when other people said the same thing at that time, "I can't understand why they are selling ice fishing stuff when there isn't any snow".  That's the marketing process.

[Fisherman 1]

Marketing is strange at the best of times, mid October the Christmas stuff comes out,  January, bikini swimsuits are hanging on the hooks, WTH.  I tried to find a float coat in December, nope, all sold out already no more stock until next year. 

[eriksat1]

The spur of the moment people always screwed. By the end of July all the good open water fishing stuff is pulled and hunting stuff fills the shelves. Hello, most fisherman I know fish well into October and still need to buy stuff.
Thank god for the internet and amazon prime free 2 day shipping.

[hunts2long]

Don't forget your local bait shop. You keep him busy enough he won't have time to put stuff away....h2l

[eriksat1]

Yea but even the local bait shops run out of inventory and don’t want to restock much past mid season. I guess the moral of the story is buy your stuff early. I think they are missing out on a lot of possible sales by doing this kind of marketing mentality.

[ice dawg]

Consider yourself lucky. A friend who owned the last mom and pop bait shop here passed away this fall and his wife closed the shop.

[fishermantim]

We usually buy ice gear in the fall because the stores put it out long before the season ever starts.
Yet when winter has us in its grip what do the stores have on display?

BASEBALL and SOCCER gear!

Major sports retailers follow suit with the clothing retailers, and strive to "get a jump" on the next season....even if it's 3-6 months away!

I can't tell you how many times I've gone to Dick's or Sport Authority in January to find they had ZERO ice gear.
Oh, they had shelves and shelves of baseball and soccer gear, but little to none for winter sports.

Then they wonder why I stopped going there.....

[JOHN044]

I truly hope we are only half way done...But something tells me Mother Nature is thinking otherwise here on Lake Erie.  Its not looking good at all!

[rdhammah]

big box stores buy for the season. get it in and get it out. Minimize left over stock so that they don't have to clearance it out. the more that have to clearance, the less money they make. they get bigger discounts from the distributors with bigger orders. if it was your business, you would want to maximize profits. one of our sponsors, Kittery Trading Post used to restock their ice gear mid season and the had a ton of stuff that they had to mark down. under new management now. they make the single preseason order. it is unk when or if they will have a clearance sale according to store manager

[eriksat1]

That doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. Why sell stuff at a loss on clearance when it could just be less you will need to order in 6 months. And they wonder why these online stores are stealing all there business.

[RyanW]

That doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. Why sell stuff at a loss on clearance when it could just be less you will need to order in 6 months. And they wonder why these online stores are stealing all there business.

Because they have to move old stock before they get new stock. If they have left over stock this year, then demand wasn’t as high as they expected and that overhead needs to be cleared. They are losing money if they don’t sell it at a clearance. New old stock is usually discounted anyways. It’s a risk to hold onto it. If it didn’t sell this year what makes you think it will sell next year? They are not selling anything at a loss. Holding product isn’t really a good business practice. The idea is cycle product, not store it. Nothing really to do with online sales. Online sales are rising due to supply and most brick and mortar can’t keep up with the demand. Online retailers can.

[rdhammah]

Ryan is right. also, it costs them money to carry it over. they would rather put the revenue towards something that they can sell now rather than wait 6 months. They don't want their money tied up in inventory. Also. warehousing costs.

[eriksat1]

Ok that is why I buy most of my stuff online with free 2 day shipping. I don’t even need to waste gas money. It does suck though when you need something right now today and nobody has it. 2 days ago drove 20 miles to buy some 2 Lb test mono, nope sold out will have in next year.

[wyogator]

A few years ago, I  was out of town on a road trip when we had a late March/ early April snow storm.  My wiper fluid light on the dash came on, so I stopped at wally world for new wiper fluid. All they had was "summer formula" or "bug wash" fluid. When I  asked the sales guy where the winter formula was, he said they had to clear out their winter stock for summer. So, in a hurry, I  bought the summer formula and... You guessed it... It froze solid in the fluid reservoir.

[rdhammah]

What does any of what you had to say about "NO" clothing stores in Saginaw Michigan, not having a spring jacket, in the spring?  We were shopping in April for a "Spring" jacket, something light!  We didn't need a winter coat.  Or the fact that Meijers had doe piss in the middle of February, taking up shelf space, but "NO" tear drops?  I understand about overhead and the need to clear the shelves for new inventory but I'm talking about the lack of inventory for the season you are in.  Doesn't do me, as a customer, any good to be able to buy a swim suit in December and a ice fishing pole in July!!!!  At least not in Michigan.

I'd say that that buyer needs a talking to

[wefishandflop]

The season shuts down quick. Inventory out to transition to open water fishing. Can't blame them but it is irritating when looking for something specific this time of year.

[Jiggerdoodle]

In my area you better buy before Christmas or you won't fine any ice equipment.  As for the mom and pop shops they may carry equipment but the prices are through the roof. 

[captain54]

You guys are lucky in the far north. lol Here in Pa. some sporting goods stores don't even order any or only carry a little left over from last year. Online shopping for me. I drove 2 hours to WV Cabelas and was disappointed.

[Iceassin]

Cabelas in Grandville, Mi. was pulling a lot of their ice fishing stuff over a month ago  , but a local hardware store in the town I live in is still going strong and usually have their stuff out till the end of March as long as the weather/ice holds out...good bunch of guys too and prices not too bad with good selection. .

[tentwiststhick]

I'd love to be out in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota or  upper Michigan, there would still be ice  to drill. Back here in Eastern Pennsylvania it's over and probably not going to return. It's gonna be in the mid 70's this coming week.  blah blah