The Reality Of Trying To Buy A Dolmar...

[sgotkin]

So, I jumped into a thread about Dolmar the other day and read both sides of the argument, for and against. I decided to take it upon myself to find out how easy it would be to locate a local Dolmar Dealer in my area, and here my friends are the scientific results of my search.
11:15am 2/24/06:
Went to Dolmar website to locate local dealer, on the website was referred to "800" number for dealer location. Called number and got Makita. After being transfered three times to three different people I finally got a customer service reps voice mail. Left her message to call me back with local dealer location.
11:45am:
Received call from Makita/Dolmar rep, she told me to call "Central Power" distributor in ohio to get my local dealer info and location.
11:47am:
Called "Central Power" in Ohio for dealer location, transfered twice, got in touch with customer service rep. She informed me that "Central Power" was not my local distributor and that she needed to check the Dolmar website to find my local dealer. I told her I had gone that route already and Domar's website only had a "800" number under the dealer locater tab. She said that she had to find more information for me and who my local distributor was and would call me back.
12:14pm:
Still no call back from "Central Power", went back to Dolmar website to do a little more searching, I found on my own my local distributor. Still never received a call back from "Central Power".
The point of all this is that I don't personally care how great a saw is, if I have to do this much digging to find out where to buy one in my area I would just give up and go with the next best/easiest dealer or "Box Store" I could drive ten minutes down the road and walk into. It's sad really that Dolmar has chosen to take the route of buisness that it has. Not knocking the saw itself, just all the beucratic B.S. that go's with trying to buy one. Have a nice day

 

[rmihalek]

And that's just the "fun" of trying to buy a new saw. Imagine trying to get replacement parts or warranty repair!

 

[Butch(OH)]

I needed some parts for my 112. Went to Dolmars site, found the distributor in my area which is Central Power, called them and they gave me the number of a stocking dealer about 15 minutes away, took about 5 minutes in all. Just shows it depends on who you get on the phone I guess. Dolmar got the parts out pronto too.

On another note I see that somebody in Ohio has listed a whole bunch of new Dolmars on Ebay after I read on here that such behavior will cause your dealership to get yanked.

 

[Fastcast]

I just bought the 5100 and it was not that difficult. Just click on the link at Dolmar that says "distributor info" Then you will see a color coded map for the distributor in your part of the country, it's pretty elementary. In my case, since I live in Ohio, I called Central Power and they gave me 4 dealers (names, address and numbers) in a 50 mile radius, couldn't of been any easier. With you being in VA, looks like your first call should of been Preferred Power and then maybe Sedco. Not Dolmar, then CP, then complain on the forum Sometimes I believe when people go into things with a bad attitude from the start, they end up with bad results.

 

[clearance]

Here we go again...................

 

[Hired Gun]

:sword: opcorn:

 

[sgotkin]

I just bought the 5100 and it was not that difficult. Just click on the link at Dolmar that says "distributor info" Then you will see a color coded map for the distributor in your part of the country, it's pretty elementary. In my case, since I live in Ohio, I called Central Power and they gave me 4 dealers (names, address and numbers) in a 50 mile radius, couldn't of been any easier. With you being in VA, looks like your first call should of been Preferred Power and then maybe Sedco. Not Dolmar, then CP, then complain on the forum Sometimes I believe when people go into things with a bad attitude from the start, they end up with bad results.

Fastcast, my friend, obviously you ether didn't read my post or you missed the point completely. First off, I didn't go into this situation with a bad attitude. I read both sides of the argument, thought about it and I beleave I went into this situation purley nutrual just from the stand point of seeing how easy it would be for your average consumer to find a Dolmar dealer in his area. Second, my post wasn't so much a slam of Domar and there products, it was more of a commentary of the recent trend of manufacturers who have sold out to larger corporations and in return the customer ends up with the short end of the stick. These company's, it seems are are more and more worried about lining there own pockets and less and less worried about satisfying there customer base and in the end standing by there own product. And third, I was not complaining my friend, just simply stating the facts. This trend is a dangerous one, less family owned buisness, more big corporations. That simple. If Domar/Makita really cared about customer service or expanding their customer base then why, why would they not put the location's of there dealers directly on their website like almost all other manufacturers do? Back at ya brother.

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

Just shows it depends on who you get on the phone I guess.

Why should it depend on who you get on the phone? What's so hard about having a dealer lookup on their website?


Answer: It's not hard at all.

 

[Bad E]

Why should it depend on who you get on the phone? What's so hard about having a dealer lookup on their website?


Answer: It's not hard at all.

In defense of this post, I will add my own expierience. A few months ago I was looking in to purchase a Dolmar P5100s. I went on the website,called the 800 number of some power equipment company that handled the NYS region. They gave me the number of two dealers one fairly close(that would order me one but stocked nothing) and another dealer some 2 1/2 hour drive away in Westchester County. I called that dealer he said he did not stock Dolmars but tried to sell me a Shindawas(sp) chainsaw.
I then found this website and came acrossed Fast Cutting Equip. in Capitol district. He was very friendly and stocked them and offered me a demo of the saw if I went up. Again over a two hour drive away.
I ended up with a Husky 365 special from a dealer 15 minutes away.
Dolmar dealer network did make buying a Dolmar too difficult for me, and I was not about to buy a saw without trying it out first.

 

[Butch(OH)]

Why should it depend on who you get on the phone? What's so hard about having a dealer lookup on their website?


Answer: It's not hard at all.

I didnt design the site, When I looked you couldnt get a local dealer, just the regional distributors. Better question to ask them, not me.

 

[John Bearley]

Okay, I've been lurking here for awhile and have to agree that I'm uncomfortable with the hoops involved in buying a Dolmar. I do not like speaking on the telephone and prefer to do my research via the web. The day I was going to buy one for a large oak log I needed to buck up (just an excuse to buy a new saw)TonyM posted his message. I was actually going to contact him on suggestions since everyone had a good experience with him. Well I got scared off of Dolmar and decided on the 372 and had given flyfishwilly a PM in regards to his used one. Obviously that deal few through, probably for the best.

Now I don't need a saw (the arborist trucked off the oak log without talking with me) but am sorta itching to buy a new one before summer (I do small time firewood, lumber cutting in Vermont during the summer for my Father-in-law). I'm still torn between tracking down a Dolmar dealer or buying a 372 from Bailey's before they're all gone.

 

[McC]

My local dealer , who sells them out of his basement, had a 5100 in stock from the new distributor. I laid the money down, and it's mine. Pretty simple. I'm happy as could be.
Scott

 

[Marco]

Would be nice if they got the dealer locater working. For those in east centeral Wisconsin I am here, had a guy find me that was 40 miles away. It can be done.

 

[Madsaw]

Hey Scott,
Could I get you to see if your dealer could order me some parts for a 112. Just got of the phone with district guy for dolmar and was basically told go fly a kite if I wanted to sell off the farm here. I would need a commercial building to sell out of. He told me this after I was informed I have no close dealers. John Dolmar (Mr. Fry) is about a 1 1/2 hrs from me. So it looks like I am ordering from somewhere else and hope I never have to work on another dolmar.
Later
Bob

 

[MikeInParadise]

It is frustrating and amazing to me how difficult it is trying to find a dealer for many things, not just Dolmar. I do not believe that we have any Dolmar dealers on the island.

I went through hoops trying to find the local orgeon dealer. After a day I got an email from the Canadian head office giving me the dealers name. Called them and they said they hadn't ordered anything from them in 2 years and didn't have any info to be able to place the order or even look up the part.

I also found this for many small engine, outdoor equipment manufacturors as well.

It just amazes me that finding a dealer is so difficult for some companies.

 

[clearance]

We are going again, send in the clowns.....................

 

[cord arrow]

OK, well......

........i've commented on this before, let me add....

car quest auto parts stores are carrying dolmar. you've read my posts demeaning this arrangement. HOWEVER, update to include, my local guy is getting kinda excited about his deal with them, and assures me he'll stock parts and learn a little about chainsaws.

i'll help him if at all possible. i spend a TON of money in his house maintaining a fleet. i've been leaning on him to get hip or get out.

 

[tonka]

Madsaw, "need a commercial building" . It's a shame that corporations are so against small operations. Especially in the case of Dolmar. They need to get their saws out there, in the hands of people to build some name recognition. They need to build it from the grass roots up. For some reason they expect new dealers to up in new 10,000 sq foot showrooms and sell saws that most people never heard of, let alone know anything about them. The idea of selling them out of auto parts stores, wonder who's the genius that came up with that? That's the first place I think to look for a chainsaw. Most of the people that work in those places, if they can't punch it up on a computer they've got no idea. I like my Dolmar 7900 real well, but if they don't get their marketing and dealer networking straightened around no one is going to buy their saws.

 

[Trinity Honoria]

my experience...

i wrote Dolmar Tech MGR on this list for help when i couldn't find what i needed on the Dolmar site. within 45 minutes, i had the name, address, phone number of the local dealer... i called them, and they had the saw i wanted on the shelf...

 

[hydro2]

So, I jumped into a thread about Dolmar the other day and read both sides of the argument, for and against. I decided to take it upon myself to find out how easy it would be to locate a local Dolmar Dealer in my area, and here my friends are the scientific results of my search.
11:15am 2/24/06:
Went to Dolmar website to locate local dealer, on the website was referred to "800" number for dealer location. Called number and got Makita. After being transfered three times to three different people I finally got a customer service reps voice mail. Left her message to call me back with local dealer location.
11:45am:
Received call from Makita/Dolmar rep, she told me to call "Central Power" distributor in ohio to get my local dealer info and location.
11:47am:
Called "Central Power" in Ohio for dealer location, transfered twice, got in touch with customer service rep. She informed me that "Central Power" was not my local distributor and that she needed to check the Dolmar website to find my local dealer. I told her I had gone that route already and Domar's website only had a "800" number under the dealer locater tab. She said that she had to find more information for me and who my local distributor was and would call me back.
12:14pm:
Still no call back from "Central Power", went back to Dolmar website to do a little more searching, I found on my own my local distributor. Still never received a call back from "Central Power".
The point of all this is that I don't personally care how great a saw is, if I have to do this much digging to find out where to buy one in my area I would just give up and go with the next best/easiest dealer or "Box Store" I could drive ten minutes down the road and walk into. It's sad really that Dolmar has chosen to take the route of buisness that it has. Not knocking the saw itself, just all the beucratic B.S. that go's with trying to buy one. Have a nice day

Makes me want to give it a try. LOL Maybe this weekend, if I get bored.