No Sierra Bullets in My Rifle!!!
- Thread starter Danja
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Fiftydriver
Official LRH Sponsor
I can call up Sierra right now and order a single box of any bullets they offer. No requirement at all to order a certain amount.
That is, UNLESS YOU EXPECT THE BIG PRICE BREAK!!!
I am not defending Sierra at all, simply stating that the more you buy, usually, the more you save and then can turn that into more profit down the road.
Yes, it would be nice if everyone got the same price on every order. Again, I will clearly state, the reason you get a break on the big orders is because it costs Sierra less to make that single order then it does to fill 1000 small orders.
Say it takes $20 in man hour labor to take a single order from receipt on the phone until it leaves on a shippers truck. It would take that same $20 weither its an order for 100,000 bullets or a box of 100 bullets. Does it not make sense from Sierras stand point to try to make their sells as efficent as possible, pass on the savings to the wholesalers and let them deal with the small order customers.
I order bullets all the time and get them from wholesalers much cheaper then local retail stores. Now when you figure in shipping you better make a big order to make it worth while.
Bullet sells are not going to make you rich, there is just a very small profit margin in bullets, especially with raw materials going up in price like they have been over the past few years. You make 50 cents to $1 on each box of bullets your probably doing pretty well. Its a volume thing.
Same thing from Sierras stand point, if they can make X amount of profit in one big order of bullets to a wholesaler, why would they want to cut that profit down 100 times or actually come close to breaking even with the small orders. Does not make much business sense and I am sure that is all Sierra is trying to do, get a better bottom line and still make their bullets available to anyone that wants to shoot them.
If your unhappy with their business policies, by all means order from another bullet maker. With todays prices I would hate to be trying to make a living selling commerical bullets because you would have to sell a load of them to make alot of money.
That is, UNLESS YOU EXPECT THE BIG PRICE BREAK!!!
I am not defending Sierra at all, simply stating that the more you buy, usually, the more you save and then can turn that into more profit down the road.
Yes, it would be nice if everyone got the same price on every order. Again, I will clearly state, the reason you get a break on the big orders is because it costs Sierra less to make that single order then it does to fill 1000 small orders.
Say it takes $20 in man hour labor to take a single order from receipt on the phone until it leaves on a shippers truck. It would take that same $20 weither its an order for 100,000 bullets or a box of 100 bullets. Does it not make sense from Sierras stand point to try to make their sells as efficent as possible, pass on the savings to the wholesalers and let them deal with the small order customers.
I order bullets all the time and get them from wholesalers much cheaper then local retail stores. Now when you figure in shipping you better make a big order to make it worth while.
Bullet sells are not going to make you rich, there is just a very small profit margin in bullets, especially with raw materials going up in price like they have been over the past few years. You make 50 cents to $1 on each box of bullets your probably doing pretty well. Its a volume thing.
Same thing from Sierras stand point, if they can make X amount of profit in one big order of bullets to a wholesaler, why would they want to cut that profit down 100 times or actually come close to breaking even with the small orders. Does not make much business sense and I am sure that is all Sierra is trying to do, get a better bottom line and still make their bullets available to anyone that wants to shoot them.
If your unhappy with their business policies, by all means order from another bullet maker. With todays prices I would hate to be trying to make a living selling commerical bullets because you would have to sell a load of them to make alot of money.
Fiftydriver
Official LRH Sponsor
Just looked up some whole sale prices for Sierra bullets. If I order a single box of 175 gr SMK in 7mm, they cost me, from a wholesaler to a licensed dealer, $29.08 per box. Shipping not included in any of these numbers.
If I order 5 boxes, I get them for $27.23 per box, that is a hell of a price break.
If I go to say MidwayUSA and look up the same bullet for standard retail price, the price anyone would have to pay, they charge $35.49 per box. Now I see this and think, ****, I can order 10 boxes of bullets, Devide the shipping into 10 and add that to the cost of each box of bullets and that would come out to around $29.50 per box of bullets. Now I can put a $35 price on them, sell them for less then the online dealers and have them on the shelf ready to buy so the customers do not have to worry about shipping costs or waiting for them to arrive.
Thats a $5.05 profit on each box of bullets or $50.50 total profit on 10 boxes of bullets. Pretty good to be honest.
Even the wholesale distributors do the same thing Sierra does, promote and reward large orders.... Just not sure why you are so upset not being able to order direct from Sierra when the wholesalers are much faster to deal with and generally, still offer bullets much cheaper then you can order from Sierra directly anyway. I really do not see your problem but I guess to each their own.
If I order 5 boxes, I get them for $27.23 per box, that is a hell of a price break.
If I go to say MidwayUSA and look up the same bullet for standard retail price, the price anyone would have to pay, they charge $35.49 per box. Now I see this and think, ****, I can order 10 boxes of bullets, Devide the shipping into 10 and add that to the cost of each box of bullets and that would come out to around $29.50 per box of bullets. Now I can put a $35 price on them, sell them for less then the online dealers and have them on the shelf ready to buy so the customers do not have to worry about shipping costs or waiting for them to arrive.
Thats a $5.05 profit on each box of bullets or $50.50 total profit on 10 boxes of bullets. Pretty good to be honest.
Even the wholesale distributors do the same thing Sierra does, promote and reward large orders.... Just not sure why you are so upset not being able to order direct from Sierra when the wholesalers are much faster to deal with and generally, still offer bullets much cheaper then you can order from Sierra directly anyway. I really do not see your problem but I guess to each their own.
jcoop
Well-Known Member
Great points!
The manufacture I work for does sale direct to dealers but the price is a bit more than you will usually pay if you buy them from a distributor. Dealers often ask "why can get them cheaper from a distributor?" It is because it is not worth our time to invoice, pull orders, collect payment, package, and ship, for the amount most small dealers are willing to buy, as we have pretty tight margins to start with. Plus if a dealer is smart they will buy from a distributor they have a relationship with and will combine orders with other products so shipping will not eat up the profits. It does not make sense for most dealers now days to buy direct from the factory ( with today's shipping prices). We will usually try and direct them to a distributor they already deal with, although we often get the dealer that puffs his chest out and says "Oh no I ONLY deal direct with the factory's". We just smile and say "OK let me take your order" knowing his pride is costing him money. If we take a larger margin on him it is worth our time.
Weather a small dealer knows it or not he will never pay the same as a big dealer, it is just an illusion. If he is able to sale product for the same price as the big box he is just taking a smaller margin.
This May not be the case with your company and is not meant as a slam in any way it is just a glimpse of what it looks like from the other side.
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shortgrass
Well-Known Member
More good points, jcoop! I don't keep a big varity of bullets on the shelf, just what I know my customers shoot. It's for their convenience, don't care if I make 10 cents a box or not. Loyal customers are the ones ya' take care of, 'cause they're spendin' on work and components that make my living. Those shopping for a bargain pay the shipping from Midway and trade a rifle off at the pawn shop instead of re-barreling it. Sellin' bullets ain't my 'bread & butter', nor do I want it to be. Being a small business means you have to be supplying something or providing a service that the big business can't or won't! Step into 'their' territory and , chances are, you'll get 'stepped on'.
