Best Electronics - problem with ordering

[+Larry]

BEST is not unreasonable unless they think you are wasting their time. I've been doing business with Brad since the 80's and never had a problem, nor found him to be unreasonable. He has policies that keep his business going when other have faded into obscurity.

 

I look in the catalog or online to see if it is likely that that have what I'm looking for.

Then I send an email asking for a quote and confirmation that they have the items and the shipping costs.

Brad confirms the info the next day by email.

Now here is the really crucial part... I send him an order.

A week later (here in the U.S., Midwest), the postman brings my order.

 

It must be magic -- it works so well.

 

-Larry

[atarian1]

BEST is not unreasonable unless they think you are wasting their time. I've been doing business with Brad since the 80's and never had a problem, nor found him to be unreasonable. He has policies that keep his business going when other have faded into obscurity.

 

I look in the catalog or online to see if it is likely that that have what I'm looking for.

Then I send an email asking for a quote and confirmation that they have the items and the shipping costs.

Brad confirms the info the next day by email.

Now here is the really crucial part... I send him an order.

A week later (here in the U.S., Midwest), the postman brings my order.

 

It must be magic -- it works so well.

 

-Larry

 

Maybe if he would clean up his web site by listing what he has, people would not have to ask (oh wait, bother) him with questions. Even a simple HTML text listing like B&C has works well. I could not even find where to order the catalog until I searched for it. Did Brad ever tell him after the first couple questions, "In the future, order the Best Catalog to find out the price of xxxx. You can order the catalog here." Nope.

 

Sorry, I disagree. He is just being arrogant because he knows he is the only source for lots of Atari parts. No normal businessperson would turn customers away just because they are asking how much something costs. You would think he would get the hint that something is wrong when all these people keep asking for multiple quotes. The fix: list it on the website! Sheesh.

 

In terms of ordering, not everyone realizes how much (or expensive) Atari parts can be. If it's not listed on the website, how is anyone suppose to know? If I could not afford a part, I would not order it. WTF is wrong with that?

 

Even I am weary of ordering from him again. I only live a couple miles from Best too, and I've bought tons of stuff from him too.

[Bryan]

I think the best word for some of these Atari old timers is "eccentric."

[Mclaneinc]

I think the best word for some of these Atari old timers is "eccentric."

 

Why thank you, I've been called much worse

 

As ex retail in a big way I look at the way Brad does business and think 'what a mess' & 'people skills' but at the end of the day its his business and he runs it how he feels. Having met him in London at one of the big shows I thought he was a nice friendly guy but it seems with age he has turned a tad 'crabby'.

 

However I can understand if a person sends 4 asks for 4 different quotes and orders nothing being a tad annoying but as said, if the site was better laid out with clear pricing for items and their weights and shipping costs based upon weights etc then he should only have to deal with taking the cash and sending.

[BillC]

To summarize, use someone who actually cares; i.e. Brad at B&C or Lance at Video61.

You are getting some of the names mixed up, Brad@Best Electronics is the one being complained about.

 

It is Bruce at B&C/myatari.com

[Tickled_Pink]

 

Why thank you, I've been called much worse

 

As ex retail in a big way I look at the way Brad does business and think 'what a mess' & 'people skills' but at the end of the day its his business and he runs it how he feels. Having met him in London at one of the big shows I thought he was a nice friendly guy but it seems with age he has turned a tad 'crabby'.

 

However I can understand if a person sends 4 asks for 4 different quotes and orders nothing being a tad annoying but as said, if the site was better laid out with clear pricing for items and their weights and shipping costs based upon weights etc then he should only have to deal with taking the cash and sending.

 

I think his problem might be that he doesn't feel he has the time to enter all his stock into an eCommerce site and it could disrupt the system he currently has. I'm sure someone here would be only too happy to donate some time in return for some goods and the chance to sleep in the warehouse amongst all the Atari goodies. If I had the money, I'd pay for myself to fly over there for a chance to spend a few days rummaging through it all ... and I hate flying!

 

Having said that, none of the other Atari sellers I know of have moved up to producing an eCommerce site, so Brad isn't alone in this.

[ThomSW]

Maybe it's time to tell him to quit this business and give all the stuff to some more reliable person(s).

Edited June 23, 2013 by ThomSW

[GadgetUK]

His favourite line is 'Sorry, it's not cost effective to send what you want to the UK'... Yet I can buy the same or larger products from tens of thousands of sellers on EBAY and receive it without a problem...

 

And he said that recently when I asked to order 5 or 10 4160 STe badges.... Quite how something so small cannot be cost effective to post is beyond me. If it had cost me £50 to order that I would have but he tried to force my order up to over £100 in value.

[GadgetUK]

And.... Get this, he said that exact same thing when I first tried to order 2 x Lynx 2 Flex Ribbons.... LOL They are so small and light etc. Sure there's going to be $20 or $30 shipping but he shoots you down before he gives you the options. I eventually increased a $30 - $40 order for those ribbons to well over $140 in order to get him to post the ribbons.

[snicklin]

Never done business with him, and from what I read here, I won't be doing so either.

 

My suspicion is that he doesn't want too much business as the items will get more valuable with time. He seems to want just enough money to keep going for now.

[Mclaneinc]

Makes me wonder how he survives from the business, he seems to want to do as little as possible to complete a sale. Also seems like he just wants local custom, in this day and age you have to be willing to go the extra mile for the customer but it looks like he relies on being one if not the only place you get get the item.

 

And then refuses to send it to you???

 

Odd......

 

I feel the need to use my lock picking skills on his warehouses back door while he's on holiday

 

Some might say stealing, other might say I would be freeing his stock from prison

Edited June 23, 2013 by Mclaneinc

[GadgetUK]

He seems like a nice guy but clearly hasn't got a clue when it comes to getting more sales.

 

His approach is to bump up the price on every order which ends up in many people not ordering for a period of time, then they come back for a newer quote with more on the order etc and he then says he won't provided any more quotes. If he simply had a proper postage cost chart based on weight and size, and didnt have stupid minimum order size then I would have ordered from him dozens of times by now.

[Blues76]

A while back I posted about the same problem: http://atariage.com/forums/topic/177957-best-atari-dealer-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/

 

Look, he has stuff, therefore, he doesn't care to be nasty. But I think is probably more than being nasty... I think he may have other issues that we may not know about it, so I hope he is able to sort those out.

 

I don't think he cares about the sales. Probably, he makes enough with the sales he has and who knows, maybe he has another income.

 

The bottom line is that I purchase with him a couple of times. Then, I asked him for some quotes, but he didn't have some items, so I changed the quote. He then was really mad about it. He talks about his "shipping department" and his "accounting department" and it is probably all him doing the job.

 

Look, there is nothing to do if he wants to be nasty. That's his problem. I decided not to buy from him. That's all. He is not going to be affected by a few purchases and I'm not going to die because I cannot get something he has...

 

He will keep selling because he has inventory.

 

I have to say, that his catalog is really nice, but then you find out he doesn't have the item.

 

Like some other people are saying. If you don't want to have a problem with him, ask for the items and purchase whatever he says...

 

I prefer not to deal with him. I think it was not reasonable.

 

Of course, when I pass by by San Jose, California one of this days, I will pass by his "Massive" warehouse to take a look at things!!!

 

I'm going to California soon, but I will not be near San Jose.... Some other time!!!!

 

The good news is that he is the only one like this... There are great people here doing business!!!! This is a great community.

[w1k]

webpages looks like from 1996 (BE or atarimax.com) - never buy from there..

0% support, missing pages, etc..

[Atari8bitCarts]

You are getting some of the names mixed up, Brad@Best Electronics is the one being complained about.

 

It is Bruce at B&C/myatari.com

good catch. B&C Bruce and Cathy (but I guess there hasn't been a Cathy for a while though).

 

I think most of these retailers that have continued to exist with revenue from other sources, so it's like a hobby on steroids for them. Because if it were a business, you'd treat it as a business.

 

It kills, literally kills, me when you talk to one of these guys and they tell you that they have skids, and skids of inventory in which they haven't even gone through. Nor have any desire to go through.

I say do something with it, or give it to someone that will.

[+sm3]

I've been ordering Atari items from both of these guys for a while. The only issue I've run into, and this is really with Best only, is that his shipping department has more shipping quotes to get out than time. When I buy, it's usually at least $100 or $200 worth of items as well! So he has to turn away money.

 

With B&C, he tells you up front, you need to pay and get into the queue, and he will assemble your order in like 2 or 3 weeks, depending on what it is. That is if you purchase something like a floppy drive or something that needs to be assembled from parts.

 

A couple of things I believe helps with Best, is to look at the addendum on his website, he keeps this *somewhat* up-to-date. The 2nd thing, if you ask for a shipping quote, you should then purchase the items. I often ask if an item is still in stock and the price and when I'm really sure it's what I want, I ask for a shipping quote. Then I send the payment for the items. I haven't really had an issue, other than him turning away my money because shipping is booked solid for a week or two.

[+Firedawg]

Marcin is a good guy, and Brad is a good guy. Just an unfortunate case of circumstance.

[Blues76]

that his shipping department has more shipping quotes to get out than time

I don't think he has a shipping department.

He had nice parts. Whoever can buy from him, better yet.

He has no incentive to sell fast. He probably needs some income to flow while keeping more parts for longer period of time now... That way, they can go up in prices in the future.

Besides, I think he has some emotional problem.

The way he bans people from ordering, it is just crazy. There could be other ways of doing it. And the lying... "Accounting Department" told me .. or the "Shipping Department" told me... it is you... just say it...

Anyways, I think at this point it doesn't matter anymore... we are dealing with vintage items, that their users will go down in numbers as time goes on... and the prices will go up

 

sad but true.

[+sm3]

I don't think he has a shipping department.

 

That may be the case, I just give him the benefit of the doubt. Both B&C and Best have been good to me, I suppose in a way they have saved me money by not taking it every time I get the urge to spend it on these items

[+wood_jl]

My dealings with Best Electronics and Brad have probably been 3-4 orders in the past few years, perhaps 1 per year at best. In each instance, I knew exactly what I wanted before I called, and when I did, just placed that order. I had emailed him with a couple of questions before hand, and he replied kindly. He was also polite on the phone. I suppose peoples' experiences vary. I don't doubt a thing I've read, but only submit that I have had good service. If you catch me on a bad day, I can be a bit short, too. I'd say not to worry about it too much, come up with an order, and order.

[+Larry]

To paraphrase several replies... "the way to a businessman's heart is through his wallet."

 

-Larry

[morelenmir]

This is REALLY, really disappointing. I had actually come upon this 'Best Electronics' page independently after running a Google search just this Saturday-morning gone! While I was not immediately going to make an order, I did take the site's simple existence as encouraging and a sign that it truly is possible to still buy Atari parts - if/when affordable.

 

All this though... No thanks. Just reading through these posts has made my blood boil! Anyone who acts like this chap is not interested in doing business. He is NOT doing me a favour by agreeing to take my money! Even if he really is the Charlton Heston of Atari suppliers, I would rather pay more or just plain do without that reward such arrogance and needless confrontation. 'Only two estimates per customer, per year'??? WTF??? What is perhaps more annoying still is that people are excusing his attitude and making allowances... WHY? You deal with people decently and you get the same back... You don't deliberately pick fights and you don't go looking for an argument. However cliché, that is how I try to deal with the world. Clearly this individual does not.

 

And then there is the seizure-inducing web-page...

[+Firedawg]

Bradley with Best Electronics is a very cool person, but he does not take the repetitive request for shipping quotes to well. Trust me he does not make money on the shipping, some handling, but not shipping. If you are serious about the items to purchase, then place your order, wait for the final price, then question the shipping charge if need be. Put yourself in Brad shoes with limited staff chasing shipping quotes is not productive. I would (if Best Electronics) personally set up an online calculator for shipping, but as you can see from his website (which has not changed in years) that is not going to happen soon. I know someone already offered Marcin assistance in getting an order, I will also extend the same offer. This is just an unfortunate situation between two very good people. It will blow over.

[GadgetUK]

I still think that if he renewed his website, came up with a list of shipping costs per kg etc, then his orders would go through the roof. Sometimes people get stuck in a rut and continue trading like they always did. The talk of all these palettes / skids of stock which is simply not shifting like it could.

[+save2600]

I've had great luck e-mailing my order or what I'm looking for and asking if he'd simply invoice me through PayPal. Same with B&C.

 

Have never experienced anything like the quote nightmares off-shore people are talking about. Only thought I keep coming back to is perhaps he gets an awful lot of time wasters that way. People in this hobby *should* have a ballpark idea of what to expect when it comes to international shipping, but it's unfortunate that maybe there are some good people being punished due to past experiences.