Do you shop around for best prices?

[fairydarmer]

Hi All,
Interested to know if you all shop around for best prices for things like vet medicines, wormers, fuel, feed etc?

Do you prefer to stay loyal to one company despite the price or would you be happy to go elsewhere to cut costs/save money?

 

[PSQ]

Sorry to say that loyalty is generally rewarded with being treated like a "pet customer", with little incentive for the dealer to sharpen their pencil. I upset a lot of salesmen when I took up the reins in '96, and also upset my dad who had "built up a working relationship" with many salesmen.
- Especially when his fertiliser salesman was 5th place out of 5 quotes, with £10/tonne difference to the 4th placed quote. The salesman sounded completely offended when I told him, so I added "well if that's how you reward 4 generations of loyalty...", which didn't improve his mood.

Get 3 quotes for everything, and you'll soon find out who's taking the pee. Just dont forget that it's not up to you to keep lazy salesmen in a job, and what sounds like 'friendship' in reality is anything but.

Edit - I have good friends who are salesmen and who are my 'go to' suppliers, but they still have to quote like everyone else

 

[Al R]

Sorry to say that loyalty is generally rewarded with being treated like a "pet customer", with little incentive for the dealer to sharpen their pencil. I upset a lot of salesmen when I took up the reins in '96, and also upset my dad who had "built up a working relationship" with many salesmen.
- Especially when his fertiliser salesman was 5th place out of 5 quotes, with £10/tonne difference to the 4th placed quote. The salesman sounded completely offended when I told him, so I added "well if that's how you reward 4 generations of loyalty...", which didn't improve his mood.

Get 3 quotes for everything, and you'll soon find out who's taking the pee

Very similar to my situation less the fert.
I try and get 2 prices as a minimum on anything purchased like Minerals/seed etc, as it happens the ones who are cheapest for certain things each year tend to be the lowest on each item anyway.

my local co-op Used to deliver anything ordered once a week, saved leaving the farm for months on end and they had the majority of anything bought as it was so easy. Since they’ve gone to only delivering large items due to covid it’s the same time to go to another 3 farm stores so now the co-op that had 95% of purchases are now down to 50%.

 

[PSQ]

Very similar to my situation less the fert.
I try and get 2 prices as a minimum on anything purchased like Minerals/seed etc, as it happens the ones who are cheapest for certain things each year tend to be the lowest on each item anyway.

my local co-op Used to deliver anything ordered once a week, saved leaving the farm for months on end and they had the majority of anything bought as it was so easy. Since they’ve gone to only delivering large items due to covid it’s the same time to go to another 3 farm stores so now the co-op that had 95% of purchases are now down to 50%.

It was a friend of my Dads who sold me on the idea of getting 3 quotes for everything. He ran a motorsports team, and decided one day that the office costs were getting out of hand, thus implementing a '3 quote' policy. "What do you know, in the first year we saved £10k, on everything from loo roll to lightbulbs".

 

[Anymulewilldo]

The age of loyalty is dead I'm afraid. Everything has to get through the 3 quote system now!

 

[DB67]

Got three of the bigger suppliers within 25 mins of the farm So can utilise all 3 if needed for meds etc. Feeding - stick to what we know and does well, unless it was to go through the roof.

 

[An ancient git]

2 local suppliers , plus Vets for meds etc . I play a bit , but also factor in cost of picking stuff up in my gas-guzzler !! Cheapest doesn't always win therefore ........ And I luv the gas-guzzler ; f'it , you only live once ?

 

[som farmer]

our policy is to pay by debit card, on most 'sundries', it stops you, thinking, that will be useful, and put it in the basket, as you walk around your local farm store, it all adds up, A lot of 'stuff' can be ordered off the 'net' for a lot less money, including free delivery, water fittings, can be less than 1/2 price, nuts and bolts, can be up to 60% cheaper, try tool station, free next day delivery, if you spend £10 or more, look on line, most things can be bought cheaper. Ag stores rely on farmers/wives, coming in, walking round, and adding bits to the bill, paid monthly, never realising, how those odd bits add up ! Ring up and ask, for a pay now price, and say you can get it cheaper elsewhere, you may well be shocked. Builders merchants, by asking, you can get massive discounts, learnt that when we built a bungalow, merchant suggested leaving £5,000 'behind' the counter, so the builder could pick up bits he needed as and when, having negotiated a very good discount, on all the major bits, thought that's a good idea, except what the builder picked up, marked price, anything from 40 to 80% dearer ! The smaller ag merchants, love being paid on the day, with discounts to match. Don't worry about upsetting your regular rep, who's been 'looking after' you, he's been looking after his commission. A good rep, who we do buy off, once said, their 'cream' was the farms they went on, and were asked, 'how much did we have last time ?' and on being told, 'better send the same again, then', never asking the price!

 

[Derrick Hughes]

Shopping around is ok until you get a shortage of a product , you have no loyalty chips to cash in , the last penny is not everything is it , but agree you cant be dealing with someone who's taking the pee on price

 

[Woolless]

I use the local independent ag store for most stuff. A year or two ago a friend of mine did a pricing exercise and found they were cheapest for most things, so I've just stuck with them. Was getting dog food online but they're cheaper for that too. Also means they're only four miles away if you run short mid job, which has happened once or twice. Must cost them against Mole Valley website and see how they compete now.

Don't underestimate the convenience of a local store and the customer service you get at a good one. Might be a different story if there was one of the big chains in the same location.

 

[som farmer]

Shopping around is ok until you get a shortage of a product , you have no loyalty chips to cash in , the last penny is not everything is it , but agree you cant be dealing with someone who's taking the pee on price

trouble is, most of them are taking the pee, with their 'loyal' customers, that pay on time, they have little option, the loyal, have to carry the bad payers. Fair enough, some things are best kept loyal, most are not,, think, you could still buy ppe stuff, on the net, and that was meant to be like hens teeth.

 

[Northeastfarmer]

Familiarity breeds contempt...

 

[som farmer]

I use the local independent ag store for most stuff. A year or two ago a friend of mine did a pricing exercise and found they were cheapest for most things, so I've just stuck with them. Was getting dog food online but they're cheaper for that too. Also means they're only four miles away if you run short mid job, which has happened once or twice. Must cost them against Mole Valley website and see how they compete now.

Don't underestimate the convenience of a local store and the customer service you get at a good one. Might be a different story if there was one of the big chains in the same location.

we don't, but an ever increasing amount of 'sundries', water pipe and fittings, nuts bolts hinges etc, calf feeding kit, plastic troughs, elec fencing, paint etc, the list goes on, and on, bought and free delivery, usually very quick, tool station, next day,

 

[Woolless]

Familiarity breeds contempt...

That seems to be the way of the world now. My sister lives on Isle of Man and was up to £1200/year for the insurance on her 10 year old Focus before she woke up and got a new quote (£300?).

I had this out with an insurance company over the phone. I had an old Skoda Octavia to tax. I was very busy and would have been more than happy to renew but their quote was so outrageous that I had to chase around for other quotes. I made this point at cancellation but they weren't bothered

 

[Northeastfarmer]

That seems to be the way of the world now. My sister lives on Isle of Man and was up to £1200/year for the insurance on her 10 year old Focus before she woke up and got a new quote (£300?).

I had this out with an insurance company over the phone. I had an old Skoda Octavia to tax. I was very busy and would have been more than happy to renew but their quote was so outrageous that I had to chase around for other quotes. I made this point at cancellation but they weren't bothered

Insurance is the worst...they work on you being too lazy to move...we get 3 quotes for everything, from diesel to lamb wormers...I know some people who don’t even get quotes just get it off the same company every time

 

[som farmer]

Insurance is the worst...they work on you being too lazy to move...we get 3 quotes for everything, from diesel to lamb wormers...I know some people who don’t even get quotes just get it off the same company every time

I will admit sticking to 1 firm for diesel, their price is always thereabouts, and cant be arsed to phone round, for 1 or 2p saving, on 1200 litres.

 

[Northeastfarmer]

I will admit sticking to 1 firm for diesel, their price is always thereabouts, and cant be arsed to phone round, for 1 or 2p saving, on 1200 litres.

£10-£20 is better in your pocket than theirs

 

[spin cycle]

i check prices on here normally before phoning

 

[S J H]

I do with most things, but speaking to an independent Ag merchant the other day, they can't get the same offers that the national firms get.

I'd rather pay more with them now, than lose them and end up paying more to some national firm who will not deliver or leave something out when I'm in desperate need for something.

 

[Davy_g]

If I buy something regularly I like to find what works and don’t mind paying for a good product that is delivered or always in stock when I need it.
For one offs I price around but don’t always buy the cheapest, be it steel, sheds, tin, etc