How fo you feel about gun shops selling on gunbroker instead of in their store.

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It's a two way street. Customers come in to fondle the guns and then buy on Gun Broker or from Bud's and then have their buddy with the FFL do the transfer for $10. Dealers need to make a living, but you raise a valid point. I try to buy (or did before I got an FFL) from local gun stores to support them.

On the other hand, during a crazy feeding frenzy like we have now, how do you expect gun stores to turn away from the sorts of prices they can get at auction?
 
Not enough info to make a decision. If he sells locally at a fair price then cannot restock his inventory what good does that do the owner, employees, and customers? If he closes down in 2 months where does that leave the customer?
 
It's called staying in business . Most stores that sell on Gunbroker offer the gun in house as well, until there is a bid on the item .

Some guns sell better in different parts of the country and the Internet has worked its way into the business profile of not just gun shops. You sell where you can, and sell to get the best money you can.
 
I don't see anything wrong with it. A retailer is going to go where he can get the most exposure and the best price for his merchandise. A gun sitting on a store shelf may be looked at a few times and listed for a given price waiting for that one person. The online auction exposes that gun to thousands of potential buyers and usually results in a higher sales price from bidders who are actually looking for it and want it.
 
I feel like it's none of my business.
This.

I have a bigger problem with people uisng the local store to ogle and fondle then buy on line saving just enough to be offset by the shipping and handling. If we continue this behavior we won't have to worry about what the local gun store does because there won't be any local gun stores.
 
Actually, very good business sense. Expanding your customer base far beyond the walkin level is bound to increase sales. Now , if you're the guy waiting for the oddball whatever to be discounted so you can score a bargain, it's not so good.
 
Before this potus induced panic came along a lot of dealers might have gone under without resources such as GB to sell their wares.
And a lot of them were selling their available firearms at just a hair above costs.
Here's an example.
In August of 2011 I bought a NIB Ruger LCP from a small dealer in nowhere Minnesota for $239.00.
After looking at this small town on my Atlas I had to wonder just how many customers a guy like this could reliably generate.
Thus he uses GB to help sell his guns.
 
I see this as perfectly valid and true:
Due to current market conditions we cannot accurately price some of our inventory. Until the situation stabilizes we will be listing that inventory on gunbroker and letting our customers set the fair price. Thank you for your understanding.

(No I have not actually seen that somewhere)
 
The market for firearms has become a nationwide market, especially for collector grade and limited interest firearms. A gunshop may have a limited market due to location and advertising or offering to sell via the internet contacts is smart business.

Selling online is a double edged practice. But I think a net positve for the customer and business. Books are a good example of internet marketing. Rare books placed on the shelf of your typical antique dealer have poor exposure to potential buyers. And the national market access actually has driven prices down on such items. As I said, it is a double edged issue with pros and cons.

I also think that selling ammunition online exclusively is a poor business decision if they have a brick and mortar shop open to the public.
 
I do not "feel" about free enterprise: I do "think" about it. Therein lies the problem underlying so many issues today. We feel rather than think.

I would ask the OP the same question I've posed before: if it were your business and you wanted to save it or maximize its profitability by whatever legal and ethical means, would you not do so? If you can point to something unethical in the practice, and provide a reasoned rationale regarding why it's unethical, I'll listen.
 
What caught my attention regarding this practice was the website for this dealer. Plainly stated on the site was all ammo will now be sold on gunbroker or another gun auction site and not in their store.
Offer $2 per round for M855 and I bet they'd sell it to you.

We do a mix of sales with customers versus auction sites. We have some regulars and we know what they like to collect, so when a consignment comes in that we think will interest them we call them first. If we don't get a quick sale that way then the gun goes up on GB to whoever wants it.
 
The people on Gunbroker are just as much their customers as the people walking in their door.

Heck I've always been a proponent of gun buyers buying at their best price rather than "Supporting the LGS.". Whatever is in your best interests you should do. I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't afford the LGS the same options when it came to selling their wares as I have when I'm buying.
 
"How fo you feel about gun shops selling on gunbroker instead of in their store."

I have an internet connection. Posting ads on line saves me a trip to the store to see what they have for sale. The guns are for sale in their stores, too.
 
If it helps them stay in business so they can remain open as your local gun shop then I think it makes sense for them to sell online. It's a profit driven enterprise so they do what they have to do to keep it that way.
 
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