Relevance of the Scottish Store?

[Cawdorian]

Gil,

Thanks, I did edit my post to correct my tap of the wrong key.

I am not familiar with the shop in Gainesville, someone told me about "The British Shoppe" in Norcross, but I have never been able to locate it. Some shops are strictly online operations and have no "storefront".

[KiltedKnight]

It's always best to shop around and check prices. You can always find something at a much cheaper price somewhere else. One Scottish store has a particular sporran for sale at $700.00 that is sold at another Scottish store for $450.00, I asked the store owner if his price was a mistake but he never answered me, I consider that very snooty and therefore I will not deal with him.

I think that everyone could find some kind of problem with their local Scottish shop if they look hard enough. We have one here in Long Beach, California that just can't seem to get it right 100% of the time but I don't think they're trying since they know that they're the only one within a stone's throw of Los Angeles.

The good thing about it is that I don't have to frequent it and I don't anymore because of longer than promised wait periods and snooty salespeople. I even tell others to be careful when dealing with any stores that I have had bad experiences with and I doubt that I'm not alone. Perhaps these store keepers don't realize that they lose so much by word of mouth?


Chris.

[Joe Gondek]

I agree that prices are high for most things in my local scottish shop
But I think that their major money comes from rentals rather than kilt sales
I would hate to not be able to browse local scottish shops

You have to remember that the members of this board are NOTthe general public.We wear the kilt,research our options and comunicate with other kilt wearers.

The Scottish shops are catering to the average person just looking for something to show off his Scottish ancestry

[Panache]

...The Scottish shops are catering to the average person just looking for something to show off his Scottish ancestry

The problem is that if the average person decides to make the plunge and get the complete highland outfit it is so expensive that they are only going to use this for special occassions. The thought of buying additional goodies to turn this into something they can enjoy more often won't occur to them because of the fabulously high cost. The higher the price, the less people will buy it, making the shop owner increase prices to make a better profit on those that do, etc. etc. I think it's interesting that most Scottish Shops don't seem to offer any alternative to the full 8 yard tank. It would probably attract a lot more buyers who would then get sucked in to what Southern Breeze sums up by saying "Welcome to the addiction". Heck they would wind up selling more tanks rather than less.

Just my two cents

[cessna152towser]

Panache wrote:-

I think it's interesting that most Scottish Shops don't seem to offer any alternative to the full 8 yard tank

.
Good point; I ordered an 8 yard Spirit of Scotland from my local store on a Thursday in February, then on the Saturday I met a chap wearing a Dark Island which looked so good I decided I must have a kilt in that tartan too, but having just ordered one kilt I decided to economise and go for a 5 yarder. As my local shop refuses to do 5 yard kilts I ordered over the internet from Scotweb, so my local shop lost a sale. I now have the Dark Island, which fits fine despite having taken my own measurements, but still waiting for the Spirit of Scotland. Not much difference in price though - £263 for the 8 yard 13 oz from my local shop as against £220 for the 5 yard 13oz. via the internet.

[Joe Gondek]

Out of curiousity, how many people have a Scottish shop that sells Highland wear near by? I have one within 15 minutes, one downtown Vancouver, and a few others locally.

My nearest Scottish is only 175 miles away in Salt Lake City
traveling the other way its in Denver only 330 miles
such is life in the Rocky Mtns.

[BLAZN]

My nearest Scottish is only 175 miles away in Salt Lake City
traveling the other way its in Denver only 330 miles
such is life in the Rocky Mtns.

Gotcha beat... I've got 3000 miles of OCEAN and unknown amounts of land between myself and the nearest Scottish shop.

The only way I can get a kilt is to buy it online, sight unseen and using measurements taken NOT by a professional.


Frankly... for something like a sporran, I might be inclined to buy one at a store before I bought one online. I lack patience in a huge way, so I much prefer "instant gratification" over "hurry up and wait." Given that the mark up isn't too rediculous, the brick and mortar store gets my cash.
For something custom made, though, the online shop gets my money. Even with a professional taking my measurements, the mark up discourages me from the brick and mortar... especially when I can come someplace like X Marks the Scot and ask "how's this online purveyor of kilts rate?" which would prevent me from purchasing a low quality product.

[Andrew Breecher]

My local Scottish shop will make a handsewn 4 yard kilt for US$295, an 8 yard for US$445. That's an excellent deal, no matter what (those prices may be for 13oz, but that's still a great deal). I wonder why theirs are cheaper, given that rents in their area must be through the roof.

Andrew.

[Colin]

I would hate to not be able to browse local scottish shops

So would I. I just wonder how they can charge the prices they are given the increase in competition.

[IEScotsman]

As someone who just bought their first kilt, here's my take on it. Oh yeah - I probably bought it from the Scottish shop Colin referenced in the first post.

Yes, their prices are much higher than anything else I've seen. Fortunately for them, I was in a hurry and needed this kilt for my wedding. But I've received some things that give me the value for what I paid. The staff was incredibly knowledgeable and walked this rookie through every item and procedure of his first kilt. Secondly, my kilt has a lifetime warranty. For the rest of my life, cleanings and alterations of any kind are free. Not bad. And I can drop it off instead of mailing it to a far away place.

If you value customer service, a great atmosphere and top-quality products, I absolutely recommend this particular store. That is (or at least should be) the value of a "mom an' pop" store. But if your main concern is price, eBay away! I don't know if I'll get my next kilt from the store, but I'm at least considering it for the service alone.