New Ideas

[ray-M]

I have the day off work today it looks like because of the wind in cold lake ( i do metal roofs and wind likes to snatch those sheets right out of your hands) so i started thinking.

I always want new hunting, fishing, and camping gear, and it always seems like you buy it and then find someone who has a used one that you couldve bought if only you knew they had it.

Now i know classified ads and kijiji do a really good job of this but what would a business/storefront look like if it had a small selection of new outdoors gear, and the option to sell/buy used gear in the same place. As far as i know there isnt a place like this where everything is welcome, from fishing lures to rifles, and glacier climbing gear to simple hiking boots.

my question is, Do the people on this forum (the best place to get multiple opinions from the people that use this stuff) think that something like this would be successful in the edmonton area.

[duffy4]

There was a spot in Red Deer called "All Sports Replay" I think it no longer exists or at least is not in the same location. No guns but fishing&camping and some bow stuff and all kinds of other used sports equip.

[catnthehat]

There used to be a fella up here that had a store called Affordable Sports.
he sold all kinds of used sporting goods equipment , as well as new and used guns and ammo, parts, etc.
it was a great store, coffee was always on, but he could not make a go of it, due to several reasons - I always accused him of taking the best used guns home instead of selling them!
Regardless, it was a great idea and a good store, and he would go out of his way to bring stuff in....
Cat

[dumoulin]

I think if you combined both the excellent quality old gear and new gear at affordable prices it would work, but it would have to be a very diverse store...like the big chains. To this effect, the big chains simply aren't that competitive especialy in Canada! I thought that when Cabela's/SIR and Bass Pro came along that the prices at Wholesale Sports would drop. It had the opposit effect due to several reasons. Allbeit, this may means that consumer goods purchased at wholsale prices simply aren't that great which drives to higher prices or lower margins. However if you have used equipement, I think you could control your margins better and that would make it interesting. There's a store in Bentley Alberta called the Bentley Cycle & Trading Post. He builds pedal bikes and will take just about anything on trade. He once took cattle ! That's cool. Imagine going to a store where you could trade in a couple a fishing rods, a sleeping bag and a set of quad tires for an SKS!

[ray-M]

im throwing this idea around my head and more and more it seems like it would be something to do, i think that the sports replay, and play it again, type stores do well enough that if you had something that was a little more specific you could do well.

i would def start with a decent selection of new gear for both hunting fishing and camping, but have the option to bring in whatever i didnt have on spot, slowly building the stock of used items, and taking just about anything that could fit in my stores scope of things to sell/trade.

thanks for the comments guys keep em coming, and maybe sometime in the near future something like this could be had in the edmonton area.

[drake]

I commend your entrepreneurial spirit but with cabelas moving in in the next 9 months I predict an epic fail. That being said....I would probally stop by