Efinger Sporting Goods:

[phil]

Originally Posted by bassnblues

That really stinks. They were expensive, but that always had what I needed. Spent a ton of money there. Especially the old store.

First Rays, now Effingers.

yea me too, what can we do, if anything with all those rewards points?

[Andrushkin33]

Now that's some sad news to hear.

Always helpful when I was shopping there and willing to share all the tips. One issue I had that I actually mentioned here was quickly resolved and even though I do agree that prices were on a higher level than others, the fact that they went out of their way to help me with an issue stayed with me and made me come back over and over again. Sad news indeed.

Andre

[catsmeow]

Bought my 22 and shotgun from them when they were a liitle mom & pop store in downtown bound brook
That was the early sixties you could just walk in and get your gun
You could bring your gun to school store it in the office and go hunting right after school
To me the old days were the good days.

[Chrisper4694]

these places should start internet order sites to go with their store sites i would think that would save them or at least give them a chance...

[Humanzee]

I just got the email from Effingers confirming store closing, so its certainly not speculation.

Love em or hate em, still stinks to see an independent, family owned business closing their doors.

Not only Rays and Effingers (as someone mentioned) but Meltzer's also closed down recently.

By the way, beginning tomorrow all stuff at Effingers will be 20-40% off per the email.

[SaltLife1980]

Even know it sucks they are closing. Are they putting everything on sale?? Get some good gear for cheap!

[Gerry Zagorski]

Seems like a lot of these small Mom and Pop places are going under. Hard for them to compete with the big box and interweb companies. They have a lot less buying power, can only spend so much on advertising, need to have and maintain a storefront, economies of scale favor larger companies etc.

Bottom line is most have to charge more to make a decent living so the only thing they can compete on is their knowledge and service.... Not sure about the rest of you but that's worth something to me...

Think about it this way....... Lets say you're going to spend $20 more on a $200 reel at your favorite local tackle place. Instead you decide to buy it from BigBox Company X or nostorefront.com and save the $20. Now you're on your way fishing driving down the road at 6:00 AM and need to stop for bait or have a last minute rod tip put on and the place has a sign on it, OUT OF BUSINESS.

Sucks right??

If we want them to be there for small repairs, bait, personalized service and local knowledge, we need to support them on our other purchases as well albeit for a few dollars more...

Shop local, shop small business and especially shop our sponsors when you can. Don't let a few dollars be your deciding factor because at the end of the day it's not worth the trade off.

[Jigman13]

Originally Posted by Gerry Zagorski

Seems like a lot of these small Mom and Pop places are going under. Hard for them to compete with the big box and interweb companies. They have a lot less buying power, can only spend so much on advertising, need to have and maintain a storefront, economies of scale favor larger companies etc.

Bottom line is most have to charge more to make a decent living so the only thing they can compete on is their knowledge and service.... Not sure about the rest of you but that's worth something to me...

Think about it this way....... Lets say your going to spend $20 more on a $200 reel at your favorite local tackle place. Instead you decide to buy it from BigBox Company X or nostorefront.com and save the $20. Now you on your way fishing driving down the road at 6:00 AM and need to stop for bait or have a last minute rod tip put on and the place has a sign on it, out of business.

Sucks right??

If we want them to be there for small repairs, bait, personalized service and local knowledge, we need to support them on our other purchases as well albeit for a few dollars more...

Shop local, shop small business and especially shop our sponsors when you can. Don't let a few dollars be your deciding factor.

Brilliantly put, Gerry! I also say to myself, where are my kids going to get bait when they're taking their kids fishing in the future? Obviously something WELL into the future but it's a reality. 123tackle.com ain't shipping you herring or shiners...

[tycomps]

was there yesterday, bought waders and boots. no sign of a sale but the guy in shoes had to ask someone about returns and the answer was 60 days if that's an indication.

price for boots and waders was same as online.

went there because as mentioned previously I wanted to see them before buying them.

I've lived two blocks behind where Ray's used to be for 30 years and was sad when that went too.

[bassnblues]

In addition to competition from online retailers, I think people are just not spending as much as they used to. I know I'm not. Plus outdoor sports like fishing and hunting have had a decline in popularity.