Dave, Desiree, Beer & Wine

High Gravity Homebrewing & Winemaking Supplies

I would like to talk to you today about supporting your local homebrew shop.  A few things have happened recently and because of them I feel it is important to discuss why this is such an important topic.  Not just because I own a homebrew store.  If that were the case I wouldn’t be telling you to support you local homebrew store.  I would be telling you to buy everything from me.

First, let’s talk about relationships.  Having a local homebrew store builds relationships.  As an owner, I meet and make new friends that enrich my life.  As a brewer and or winemaking customer, you meet others with the same interests and in return, you make new friends that enrich your life.  Having a store where you get to interact with others is a great benefit that those being forced to order through the internet don’t have.  It is a source of happiness and I really mean that.

Second, let’s talk about keeping it local.  Supporting your LHBS keeps the money local.  Sales tax goes to the city, county and state.  Wages go to the employees who then spend their earnings, helping with the local economy again.  Purchasing from your local homebrew store hopefully gives them the revenue to grow and continue to carry all the things you want to be able to buy on short notice.

Third, let’s talk about service.  I know that there are items you can buy on the internet that are less expensive.  I know that everyone wants to get the best deal they can get but having a local homebrew store needs to have to support if you want it to be there next year.  Honestly, homebrew store owners aren’t making a fortune doing this.  We are doing it because we truly love the hobby.  So when a customer says he found a conical fermenter for $15 dollars cheaper and wants us to match the price, it is a frustration.  It is a frustration because we provide so much more than just product.  We provide service.  The same person that demands we meet the price of some eBay store or he/she will purchase from them is the same person that will come into their local homebrew store two weeks later and take up an hour of their time discussing the benefits/disadvantages of making a yeast starter or why Hallertau hops should be used instead of Saaz. You get the picture.

Sometimes we just can’t match the price of the online competition. Now if it is a massive amount of savings I can’t blame a customer from making that purchase.  We all have pocketbooks that we have to balance.  But if the difference is small, please consider purchasing it from your LHBS and not threaten to take your business elsewhere.  Take a moment and think about what it would be like not having them nearby to service and take care of you. It is what we live for and enjoy doing more than anything.  It would be just as devastating to us to not to be able to serve you as it would be for you not having us there. Also, in the end, the LHBS that is small and doesn’t have everything you need just might be able to grow and change that. Wouldn’t that be cool.

Cheers,
Desiree Knott
desiree@highgravitybrew.com
High Gravity Homebrewing & Winemaking Supplies
Tulsa Homebrew Examiner
High Gravity’s Facebook Fan Page

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This entry was posted by Desiree Knott on Monday, December 13th, 2010 at 8:01 pm and is filed under Random Thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.