Chris
11-28-2008, 08:29 PM
So anyway Cris and Myself decided to brave the black Friday crowd and take a maiden voyage to Gander Mountain West Palm.
This will be a short overview and review of the store and the products I saw today.
Palm Beach Gardens, FL
100 Gander Way
Palm Beach Gardens , FL 33403
561-627-5642
At the hieght of the morning rush is when we decided to go so we were expecting a nasty experiance but to my surprise we experianced no lines or insane shoppers.First I would like to say I honestly cant recall EVER shopping at a store with more floor workers. Overall the shopper to representative ratio was incredible. I don't know if this is normal operation or they were overstaffed for the black friday crowds.
The overall exterior appearance of the store was appealing as a new location should be. The parking lot layout was organized as such to prevent any of the parking from being extremely far from the entrance. A lesson Basspro could learn from IMHO. Upon entering the store Cris and I were greeted by 2 employees in a very friendly manner. Before were had made it 30 feet into the store we were also greeted by 2 more employees and the staff had given us the sales papers and made mention of the doorbuster sales and the highlight items they were trying to move. I had to ask a few different associates for directions etc while on this trip and found all of them willing to help though not always informed. I asked one associate where the range bags were located and got the deer in the headlights look but he was helpful none the less. Overall the service of the store was extremely favorable and they have earned a coustomer in me in that regard.
Next we can move onto the GUNS.
The firearms section was fairly well stocked though somewhat cramped for the amount of inventory on display. The decor of this area was top notch and made for a very nice show area. They have the rifles displayed standing vertically in shelves around the perimeter of the firearms area. Im not personally a big fan of vertical display because it makes identification of the firearms difficult at times. They did however have several manufacturers represented and the ability to remove guns from the racks and handle them without associate assistance is great and a big plus for me. I was personally eyeing shotguns today and the store had offerings from Benelli, Mossberg, and the other big players. The representation of the manufacturers lines was limited to middle to low end offerings but this is to be expected in a big box store.
One of the hardest things for a store to do for me is impress with the prices. Gander mountain unfortunately carries a high mark-up on firearms. I asked about a particular shotgun that I have personal knowledge of the dealer cost as well as nominal retail. Ganders price was 20% above what I would consider fair retail pricing. I would not consider Gander high on my list of retailers to buy a firearm from.
As a gunsmith I payed particular attention to the gunsmithing area. Though I didnt speak to any of the smiths the area they had to work in was of ample size and seemed well organized and well equipped. I also enjoyed browsing the fine gun room which has some very fine examples of collector grade firearms, simply a must see for the enthusiast.
The store has a myriad of parts you dont see at other large retailers. They had a dedicated section devoted to AR parts which was refreshing. Another huge positive was the way in which they display the scopes. They have the majority of the scopes on display and sale mounted on faux stocks which allow you to shoulder the assembly and look through the scope....I thought that was fantastic.....big A+++++ there. That was a great idea and should be commended.
I purchased a Red Ryder BB gun for my son as well as a range bag and a few other items on this trip. The range bag was labeled at 99.99 but with the BF sale I picked it up for 39 dollars. I will write a seperate review on the bag but I am confident I scored a deal on it. The BB gun was 32 dollars which is fair market value.
To wrap up our trip we needed to retrieve a large box item. On our way to the register to ask for help an associate saw us and inquired if we needed assistance. Once requested the associate immediately went to the back of the store and grabbed the boxed item we needed and brought it to the front of the store for us.......IN LESS THAN 2 MINUTES. After we secured a place in the checkout line another associate asked us to come to another register that had no line........WOW. At the conclusion of checkout the register worker also informed us that since we had spent more than 200 dollars we could take our reciept to the restaraunt next door and recieve 20% off our total bill for lunch. Though we didnt take advantage of this offer it was a nice touch.
Overall the shopping experiance was wonderful. Though the firearm prices are unrealistic they carry enough inventory to justify a trip out there for other items and the service was exceptional. I have rarely had an experiance were the staff was as helpful in any shopping environment.
I recommend the store highly.
This will be a short overview and review of the store and the products I saw today.
Palm Beach Gardens, FL
100 Gander Way
Palm Beach Gardens , FL 33403
561-627-5642
At the hieght of the morning rush is when we decided to go so we were expecting a nasty experiance but to my surprise we experianced no lines or insane shoppers.First I would like to say I honestly cant recall EVER shopping at a store with more floor workers. Overall the shopper to representative ratio was incredible. I don't know if this is normal operation or they were overstaffed for the black friday crowds.
The overall exterior appearance of the store was appealing as a new location should be. The parking lot layout was organized as such to prevent any of the parking from being extremely far from the entrance. A lesson Basspro could learn from IMHO. Upon entering the store Cris and I were greeted by 2 employees in a very friendly manner. Before were had made it 30 feet into the store we were also greeted by 2 more employees and the staff had given us the sales papers and made mention of the doorbuster sales and the highlight items they were trying to move. I had to ask a few different associates for directions etc while on this trip and found all of them willing to help though not always informed. I asked one associate where the range bags were located and got the deer in the headlights look but he was helpful none the less. Overall the service of the store was extremely favorable and they have earned a coustomer in me in that regard.
Next we can move onto the GUNS.
The firearms section was fairly well stocked though somewhat cramped for the amount of inventory on display. The decor of this area was top notch and made for a very nice show area. They have the rifles displayed standing vertically in shelves around the perimeter of the firearms area. Im not personally a big fan of vertical display because it makes identification of the firearms difficult at times. They did however have several manufacturers represented and the ability to remove guns from the racks and handle them without associate assistance is great and a big plus for me. I was personally eyeing shotguns today and the store had offerings from Benelli, Mossberg, and the other big players. The representation of the manufacturers lines was limited to middle to low end offerings but this is to be expected in a big box store.
One of the hardest things for a store to do for me is impress with the prices. Gander mountain unfortunately carries a high mark-up on firearms. I asked about a particular shotgun that I have personal knowledge of the dealer cost as well as nominal retail. Ganders price was 20% above what I would consider fair retail pricing. I would not consider Gander high on my list of retailers to buy a firearm from.
As a gunsmith I payed particular attention to the gunsmithing area. Though I didnt speak to any of the smiths the area they had to work in was of ample size and seemed well organized and well equipped. I also enjoyed browsing the fine gun room which has some very fine examples of collector grade firearms, simply a must see for the enthusiast.
The store has a myriad of parts you dont see at other large retailers. They had a dedicated section devoted to AR parts which was refreshing. Another huge positive was the way in which they display the scopes. They have the majority of the scopes on display and sale mounted on faux stocks which allow you to shoulder the assembly and look through the scope....I thought that was fantastic.....big A+++++ there. That was a great idea and should be commended.
I purchased a Red Ryder BB gun for my son as well as a range bag and a few other items on this trip. The range bag was labeled at 99.99 but with the BF sale I picked it up for 39 dollars. I will write a seperate review on the bag but I am confident I scored a deal on it. The BB gun was 32 dollars which is fair market value.
To wrap up our trip we needed to retrieve a large box item. On our way to the register to ask for help an associate saw us and inquired if we needed assistance. Once requested the associate immediately went to the back of the store and grabbed the boxed item we needed and brought it to the front of the store for us.......IN LESS THAN 2 MINUTES. After we secured a place in the checkout line another associate asked us to come to another register that had no line........WOW. At the conclusion of checkout the register worker also informed us that since we had spent more than 200 dollars we could take our reciept to the restaraunt next door and recieve 20% off our total bill for lunch. Though we didnt take advantage of this offer it was a nice touch.
Overall the shopping experiance was wonderful. Though the firearm prices are unrealistic they carry enough inventory to justify a trip out there for other items and the service was exceptional. I have rarely had an experiance were the staff was as helpful in any shopping environment.
I recommend the store highly.