Re: [at-l] Re: Local vs. mail order

[Ken Bennett <bennettk@wfu.edu>]

>I have to agree with this.  Mom and I are buying almost all of our gear from
>one place - and in return for that, we get great prices and very personal
>service, not to mention that we learn something new every time we talk to "our
>guy" at the outfitters <g> since he does extensive backpacking and has field
>tested just about everything.  We tried mail order, with a good company - LL
>Bean.  But the whole thing about "in stock" and waiting forever, and then the
>hassles of sending stuff back that doesn't fit - just wasn't worth it.


Well, I live in an area with several good local outfitters, two here in
town (one run by a friend) and two or three in the next town over. They
have a pretty good selection, and I'm happy to spend my dollars locally. My
boots, our family tent, our packs, stoves, sleeping pads, etc., all came
from local shops. We buy fuel and food locally for every trip.

But I'm trying to buy a certain tent model, and I've called all 5
outfitters, and not only do none of them stock it, most haven't even heard
of it. Yes, they're all willing to do a special order, but that will take
4-6 weeks. I called Campmor, and it's in stock, and can be here in 2 days.
What would you do?

I have had nothing but good results with LL Bean -- I wear a lot of their
brand of clothing, and it is well made, well-designed, and about 1/3
cheaper than 'national' brands.

As with anything else, YMMV.

Cheers,

Ken


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