Future Boaters, salesmens attitudes!?

K

kgh

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Location
UK West Sussex
www.permateek.com
My son was let loose around the boat show at the weekend. He visted all the usual stands and went to look at a boat I fancy on the Princess Pontoons. Came back to me with a bit of a flea in his ear. Apparantly he'd been told off for sitting at the helm and 'playing' with the TV up/down button. Heres the thing, he said no matter what, don't buy a Princess the salesman was really rude.

Just in case you think how irresponsible it was of me to let a 'littleun' go wandering around playing on the boats, he was with his wife and also he's a policeman!! When will these salesman reaise that the future of boating is dependant on them not being so up themselves!!!! I thought the days of this kind of attitude had gone, but no I don't think so.

See you on stand FO25, Permateek, if you feel the need for a new deck.
KGH
 
In my experience , the salesmen are just that - salesmen who have taken a couple of weeks off from selling used cars.

The main interest of some seems to be to get through the day with as few interruptions as possible to keep up their strength to work on the "hostie" in the hotel bar later that evening.
 
l'escargot said:
In my experience , the salesmen are just that - salesmen who have taken a couple of weeks off from selling used cars.

The main interest of some seems to be to get through the day with as few interruptions as possible to keep up their strength to work on the "hostie" in the hotel bar later that evening.
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Blimey! You've had some poor experiences then. There are some salesmen out there who bend over backwards to help you in the process of buying/trading in your boat. Who keep you in touch with the builder's plans and new models and deals available, and help with logistics, VAT planning, whatever. And can still be entertaining in the bar afterwards. Sure, they're out to make profit, and good luck to them. It would be a bit rich of us to run businesses/use capitalism to make a stash of £££ to buy a boat, then decry others who are merely doing the same in their businesses

Try Essex Boatyards next time :-)
 
Apparantly he'd been told off for sitting at the helm and 'playing' with the TV up/down button. Heres the thing, he said no matter what, don't buy a Princess the salesman was really rude.



So he spent his £350K elsewhere then... Fairline perhaps or Sunseekeer ...surely he was not just one of hundreds of "lookers and touchers" only out for a days jolly.

However rubbish a salesman,virtually all will be able to tell a buyer from a looker and this tired old tosh about it could be Bill Gates with a bad haircut hiding under those scruffy jeans, anti-foul splattered jumper and pound shop watch is just an old wives tale put about by people like me in order to have a poke about on something shiney I could never afford in a million years.
Never ever been told not to do anything on a boat ever.Do you think its the knock off ROLEX that does it ? :)
 
We went on nearly all the princess boats both on the water and the stand, we were treated very well this year and I was in jeans and a nice shirt, id left my Rolex on the boat as I thought id get mugged on the bus travelling to the show!

Fairline in years have been very bad at allowing you around, but this year no problem, id say they do read sites like this and have listened this time.
 
kgh said:
My son was let loose around the boat show at the weekend. Just in case you think how irresponsible it was of me to let a 'littleun' go wandering around playing on the boats, he was with his wife and also he's a policeman!!
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It has been my experience that most of the big stuff are customers boats that the manufacturer have asked to use at the show, hence the need in most cases to remove shoes or wear overshoe covers, the name on the transom is a clue.

As for being a policeman, can't see the relevance, other than the salesman should count himself lucky he wasn't beaten up and arrested, if the story's in the news of late are good examples of police behaviour :D
 
I sell boats for a living and, believe me, you can't afford to discriminate on the basis of appearance. I've seen salespeople make very costly mistakes by making judgement calls on the basis of appearance and it's a pretty stupid and very short sighted thing to do.

I treat everyone in the same way. Maybe they're a a buyer (or seller) - maybe they're not. Maybe they won't buy from you this time, but next year? Who knows? And what will they say to others if you treat them badly? Their next door neighbour? Their boss? The guy in the marina on the neighbouring berth with the 56' Sunseeker?

Having said all that, I think this sort of attitude is dying out and these guys are now in the minority. I'd like to think so, anyway.

One day, that Princess salesman will turn away what he thinks is a 'scruffy oik' who's got his £2.5m City bonus burning a hole in his back pocket. His loss, my gain. Hopefully ;-)
 
jfm said:
Try Essex Boatyards next time :-)
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Huh!

I would never go near the place again.

Went there to buy my first boat. After being left to wander around by myself for an hour, with no one interested in opening or selling a boat, despite numerous requests, I went to LIBS and bought one there.
 
Boatshed London said:
I treat everyone in the same way. Maybe they're a a buyer (or seller) - maybe they're not. Maybe they won't buy from you this time, but next year? Who knows? And what will they say to others if you treat them badly? Their next door neighbour? Their boss? The guy in the marina on the neighbouring berth with the 56' Sunseeker?
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Exactly!

Selling boats is not like selling toasters. If you sell something expensive you have to play the long game. Maybe they will not buy today but one day they will and they will remember the guy who was nice to them even though they did not buy anything from him and for sure they will remember the guy and his company that looked down his nose at him or was rude.
 
Good and bad everywhere, no doubt. I've had mixed experiences of which these are a selection:

Berthon - I spent ages looking at a gorgeous Dale Nelson, involving several visits. Nothing was too much trouble for the broker, who knew the boat inside out. In the end I didn't buy it. A few weeks later I was walking along the pontoon at SIBS when the same broker came up to me and asked me what I had bought instead and then took time to show me round a Linssen which I had admired but which he knew I was not going to buy. But next time...

Chap from Jersey (forget the name) - sold me my current boat - What a terrier. He wouldn't take no for an answer even when the vendor and I were miles apart.

EBY - Very helpful. I'd buy from them again for sure if the right boat and deal came along.

Chap at LIBS a few years ago - Lost interest in me in the middle of a sentence and disappeared to the back of the stand, never to be seen again.
 
benjenbav said:
Chap at LIBS a few years ago - Lost interest in me in the middle of a sentence and disappeared to the back of the stand, never to be seen again.
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Had you just told him what you did for a living? :)

Just want to add my name to those who've had a good experience buying via Ancaster. Their sales guy was assiduous and helpful and it was only a twenty-five grand deal.

I say only, but that's a shedload of money to me........
 
Major Catastrophe said:
After being left to wander around by myself for an hour, with no one interested in opening or selling a boat, despite numerous requests, I went to LIBS and bought one there.
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Funny you mention, being left to wander around freely and for as long as I wished was what I appreciated most, the only time I've been there. But they were kind and available also in all other respects.
Have you been there pre or post financial meltdown?
That's something which changed the attitude of more than one boat dealer, I reckon. Among those who survived, that is.
 
MapisM said:
Funny you mention, being left to wander around freely and for as long as I wished was what I appreciated most, the only time I've been there. But they were kind and available also in all other respects.
Have you been there pre or post financial meltdown?
That's something which changed the attitude of more than one boat dealer, I reckon. Among those who survived, that is.
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Nothing wrong with being left to wander around freely, but all the boats were locked or couldn't be accessed as they were on high stands and I was told five to six times, someone will come and help you and unlock anything you want to look at.

I had travelled down from Cheshire so I was not happy so I went to Burnham-on-Crouch instead.

Nothing much there, but I spoke to a very interesting chap who wanted to sell me saily things.
 
Originally Posted by benjenbav
Chap at LIBS a few years ago - Lost interest in me in the middle of a sentence and disappeared to the back of the stand, never to be seen again.

Had you just told him what you did for a living?
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No, to be honest, I'd barely started to articulate my views on the Nestorian schism of the fifth century AD and there was plenty more I wanted to say on that subject, I can tell you! :D
 
It's not just boat sales people that can shoot themselves in the foot. We were looking for a house to move to a new area and were mainly looking at new houses. These were often on muddy building sites so I did not wear a suit(!). In one sales office on a new estate I enquired about the five bedroom houses; the lady looked me up and down then said "are you sure, they are very expensive you know".
We bought on another estate.
 
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