HF pulled a dirty sale!

[Stytooner]

Basically sometimes they will honor coupons on discounted items or rather sale items and sometimes they won't. Prior to last week, the most recent two times they would not give the 20% on sale items.
They did last week though. I had to but a 6" x 48" belt sander.
It was $250 normal price, but was on sale for $200.
I handed her a 20% coupon expecting her to apply it to a lower cost item, but she applied it to the sander and the total was $160.00. Thats about a 36% discount I think.
She also handed me another 25% coupon for today's use only. Didn't go today.

[LCHIEN]

I dunno, the HF sale coupons that come in email every few days all have expiry dates on the coupons. The catalog items, well, most places have disclaimers says that they can raise prices any time they want, without notice. HF is still pretty cheap, you always have the choice of not buying.

The ads are pretty clear that the 20 or 25% off any item cannot be combined with other sale prices and coupons and on certain items. Sorta normal for businesses altho it always seems to exclude what you want. If you do manage to get both applied then good for you.

There's no real telling how much margin HF is making but I always presume that a company is entitled to a fair profit. If the don't make it then they will go out of business and then you'll have to shop at sears, HD or lowes.

[leehljp]

The ads are pretty clear that the 20 or 25% off any item cannot be combined with other sale prices and coupons and on certain items.

NOooo Not exactly totally true by the fact that their working policy is that the 20% and 25% coupons have been applying to sale items in the past and even now in most stores.

Two years ago, I went to the Memphis HF (when they had only one store) on New Years Day to buy a 14 inch bandsaw. It was on sale, (contrary to the way that these sale items ceased at midnight last night.) I had the 25% coupon for that one day. I took a card from the pouch on the 14" BS that was on the floor, took it to the cashier, paid for it. Then they discovered that they were out. "No Rain Checks" even though I had paid for it. Would not let me have the floor model either. (That is another story). But they did take the 25% coupon on top of the "sale" price which did not end at midnight the night before. It really perturbed me that they took my money (credit card) and then would not even give me a rain check. Besides that, they said it would take 24 hours to re-imburse my card - 10 minutes after charging it! With an event like this, I remember the details of what was on sale, the use of the 25% on top of the sale that did not end at midnight the night before.

The coupon does not preclude "sale" items, but it does preclude "Discount", and "coupon" sale items, rendering "Discount" vs "Sale" as different meanings.

(But, Good things come to those who wait, I bought a Grizzly Polar series.)

There's no real telling how much margin HF is making but I always presume that a company is entitled to a fair profit.

What exactly does this have to do with anything in this thread? OF Course they have to make a profit. I, nor anyone else said anything contrary to that. THEY are the ones that offer the coupons, sales and whatever. It is not like we are wishing them to go broke at our expense. Your statement insinuates that others don't presume . . .

[Charlie R]

I bought their portable metal cutting bandsaw several years ago (at $69 on sale) with a package of spare blades. As soon as I turned it on for the first time the blade broke in several places. It was brittle. Am still using the first of the spare blades. Glad I bought them.

[JimD]

I would have to say that HF sales are unusually confusing to me. They often have the same item at different prices advertised in different places. Their prices are good enough it does not stop me from picking things up in their stores but I also find it difficult to feel I know for sure what will happen when I go there. I do not order over the internet from them, however, because they have been repeatedly so SLOW in deliverying product. By far the worst I have ever experienced (including oders fulfilled from China).

Jim

[Cubsfan]

I think that this is pretty common at most stores that do the "xx% off everything" sales. I know I've seen the exact same thing at REI and at Eddie Bauer.

I guess it seems ok to me. They're replacing one set of sales with another. Seems like rarely are they actively trying to give things away so bad that they'll give you 25% off of a sale price.

I'd say that they should be more clear on it, but I don't particularly see it as being sneaky or underhanded. (That is, as long as they move things from sale price up to regular price. If they move what was previously advertised as regular price up, then that's more sneaky)

[RAV2]

... So after reading your post, I just called him to see what his receipt said. Sure enough, his before tax sum was $101.24.... but get this: It said the price was "$169.99" and that he saved something like $74 (with the free measuring tape coupon) ...

Shucks! I should have dropped by the store and seen what the price of the ladder was running in the store and on the system.

Lesson here - even with all our research, the system pricing may be different - though you got the expected net price.

My friend recommended I check out the ?Werner? version at Lowes as he said the hinges might be better. I'm on the fence as I will only use it for limited homeowner use.

How is it working for you guys?

[cwsmith]

I'll have to ask my son, I don't think he's even unwrapped it yet though as he was back at work yesterday.

One surprise though, was that the HF ladder is a "Vulcan" with a 2-year warranty. The website says the warranty is only 90-days.

I looked at the Costco ladder that Walmart sells and also the ladder at Home Depot (don't remember that brand name) and they are all just alike. I think that I shall buy the HF ladder sometime in the very near future though, now that I know the warranty is more than 90-days.

I have a huge 25 ft Werner extension which I bought more than 30 years ago. Nice, but just too big for anything other than climbing to the second floor area outside... I don't like doing that much anymore.

I also have a Werner 7ft fiberglass step ladder, but it's a bit too big to for some things and yet my "step-stool" like five foot is too small... none of these can do the stairs and they can't get me up onto the garage roof or into one of smaller trees for pruning.

The HF ladder is adjustable in one-foot increments from 4 ft to 17 ft., or at least that's what it appears and it is rated to 300 lbs.

CWS

[sweensdv]

I will say upfront that I don't own one but I've read on more than one occasion that some of the lesser expensive folding ladders can be real finger pinchers if one isn't real careful when opening and closing them. The locking and unlocking mechanisms on some can be rather difficult to operate. If at all possible, I'd play with one at the store before buying to verify that using one isn't just as dangerous as falling off of one.