Question about Finishline or Finishline Discounts

[shiner45]

I don't usually post on here but this topic made me think about a few things. It was only a year or two ago Finishline attempted to buy Genesco, owner ofJourneys and Lids. This fell through because Finishline couldn't get the loan needed to purchase. They lease the registers/computers etc., recentlycouldn't pay Nike for x amount of shoes and those got shipped out to FTL stores. The reason they always have such great sales is because if they can'tcapitalize the first 2 weeks of a release, they're scrappin to get what they can. The majority of the sales associates at either place don't know muchabout technical running shoes/x-training etc. but some know they're stuff. Basically, I don't see either company closing any time soon......but FTLdominates finl.

 

[nomadicsole21]

Its really hard to tell who knows what, what store gives good service...because there are so many employees that its hard to have a constant feel at thesestores.
While some stores may be selling items like hot cakes, it doesnt show quality service...i been to stores that dont achieve much sales wise, but offer some ofthe best customer service.

Theres always just a select guy or female at the stores that knows their stuff...you cant really look at a Company from a few stores located in your mall.

 

[wren32]

Youare correct about FNL scrapping things that don't sell well or RTVing (return to vendor). WE have finished in the black for sales for quite some time nowwhile the FTL corporation has finished in the red because they keep things no matter what they sell like so a lot of times they end up losing money. Workingfor finishline is great. They recently put a FTL in our mall like 3 stores down and we kill them from a sales stand point and from what our customers tell usour service is a lot better then theirs. I think our service is better because we aren't paid commission so we don't feel the need to push ourcustomers to buy and we can take our time trying to make sure they get what they need instead of rushing them to buy so we can try to move on to the nextperson and try to get a 1% commission. When I used to go into footlockers I felt as though they thought they were shoe gods and they were just better then me,but 10 out of 10 they truly knew nothing about shoes except what was on their up coming release list. I don't feel finishline associates know everythingbut I think their attitudes are a lot better. Customer service is what is most and important and when you evaluate both companies Finishline is just better.and if you make a team spike sign me up

 

[toppshotta]

Originally Posted by Shiner45

I don't usually post on here but this topic made me think about a few things. It was only a year or two ago Finishline attempted to buy Genesco, owner of Journeys and Lids. This fell through because Finishline couldn't get the loan needed to purchase. They lease the registers/computers etc., recently couldn't pay Nike for x amount of shoes and those got shipped out to FTL stores. The reason they always have such great sales is because if they can't capitalize the first 2 weeks of a release, they're scrappin to get what they can. The majority of the sales associates at either place don't know much about technical running shoes/x-training etc. but some know they're stuff. Basically, I don't see either company closing any time soon......but FTL dominates finl.

Where'd you get that info from? I heard FNL opened their books and they were in the red. vol. bloods aint got nuthin on our colors

Anybody else down for a Team Spike?

 

[johnjkim15]

i remember a 30% off last year for the winning circle members or something
i think it was like a EA and i copped 2 AZF96 for less than $100
and i agree that FNL usually was better deals
but i have to say the service i get from sales rep are crap, you can't say either is worse because both are pretty bad
however FNL store (the 2 FNL i go to) managers seemed more open and nice

 

[d e beatup]

Originally Posted by wren32

You are correct about FNL scrapping things that don't sell well or RTVing (return to vendor). WE have finished in the black for sales for quite some time now while the FTL corporation has finished in the red because they keep things no matter what they sell like so a lot of times they end up losing money. Working for finishline is great. They recently put a FTL in our mall like 3 stores down and we kill them from a sales stand point and from what our customers tell us our service is a lot better then theirs. I think our service is better because we aren't paid commission so we don't feel the need to push our customers to buy and we can take our time trying to make sure they get what they need instead of rushing them to buy so we can try to move on to the next person and try to get a 1% commission. When I used to go into footlockers I felt as though they thought they were shoe gods and they were just better then me, but 10 out of 10 they truly knew nothing about shoes except what was on their up coming release list. I don't feel finishline associates know everything but I think their attitudes are a lot better. Customer service is what is most and important and when you evaluate both companies Finishline is just better. and if you make a team spike sign me up

This is extremely subjective because not every region will have stores run the same, let alone states or cities, and soon. To an extent, there are certain things that can be accurately put under an umbrella. FNL clearly has the better selection of running shoes and thatcan't be argued. Likewise, as far as big box retailers, FTA clearly has the best selection of urban basketball shoes. Champs clearly has the bestselection of licensed apparel. These are areas in which the the advantage is obvious because of how the retailer is structured. Now when you get to customerservice, to an extent you can say certain things about customer service based on your opinion, but even that is skewed. Personally, I've always thoughtFTA has had the worst customer service of any major retailer, primarily because they are the only one with an LS account so they will usually be, especially insmaller markets, the only retailer to carry an item. However, I haven't been to every FTA, let alone 1 in every state, let alone 1 from every region, somy opinion doesn't have much to back itself up.

Product offerings and customer service are extremely variable because of how allocation is related to 52 week sales,6-week running rates, comp sales, etc. Obviously, bigger stores get more product, but just as important, more payroll hours. Less hours available - lessopportunity to create/develop a customer oriented staff. Liken it to a 5A team vs. a 2A - it's not impossible for a 2A to have blue chip prospects, butfar less likely.

I would just caution to say retailer A is better overall than retailer B because you personally like that their items goon sale 2 weeks after RD or because they have more colorways of a shoe than everyone else. There are many, many factors that contribute to sales success, manyof which you'd never think are that important.

 

[chase cheese]

When a store puts a shoe on sale within weeks of the release, they are trying to put buying dollars in their register for future product. At FTL, Inc., they donot have to put a shoe on sale as quick because their future shipments are already paid for and they can sit on the product and wait for it to sell. Thisdoesn't mean FNL has better deals or customer service, it is just the way their business is set up. Someone did mention that FNL couldn't pay Nike fora shipment and that product got sent to another company.

 

[prettymack1989]

Originally Posted by xInVaSiAn661x

no, Finishline doesnt have any EA or F&F sale. According to my manager, finishline has the lowest everyday price compared to footlocker, champs, and footaction. the only sale i can think of that Finishline have are like end of the season sale( for example summer sale, back to school, thanksgiving - christmas sale) to get rid of old product for space for new things.

this right here is your best answer. i work at finishline and i was told the same exact thing

 

[cedric ceballos 1995 lakers]

Originally Posted by HOOPSboy

Working at Foot Locker, I can agree with most of what ajberna posted. I've been pt, ft, and asst manager, so I've seen different positions. We do not have good customer service, and managers can pretty much make up rules regarding returns, exchanges, discounts for customers, etc. I know my manager and most managers are only worried about selling the shoes and accessories as fast as they can so they can grab the next customer. They rarely concentrate of trying to gain repeat customers. We do not take the time to find the customer's needs usually, and most employees have little or no clue about the details of the shoes they are selling.

All that being said, we have one of the best discount policies for employees I have ever heard of. Always 30%, 50% almost everything about every 6 weeks, and extra bonuses such as $50 "gold coins" for good audits.

i've gone through this problem numerous times and they fold when i tell them the magic words print out a copy of your return exchangepolicy or print a receipt. once they realize i know what im entitled too they give up.

 

[abernja]

Originally Posted by Shiner45

I don't usually post on here but this topic made me think about a few things. It was only a year or two ago Finishline attempted to buy Genesco, owner of Journeys and Lids. This fell through because Finishline couldn't get the loan needed to purchase. They lease the registers/computers etc., recently couldn't pay Nike for x amount of shoes and those got shipped out to FTL stores. The reason they always have such great sales is because if they can't capitalize the first 2 weeks of a release, they're scrappin to get what they can. The majority of the sales associates at either place don't know much about technical running shoes/x-training etc. but some know they're stuff. Basically, I don't see either company closing any time soon......but FTL dominates finl.

WHAT!!! - They didn't follow through with the deal because Genesco lied about their stock statements/sales in thecontract presented to FINL. Had nothing to do with being approved/denied a loan.

PS - FINL is a debt free company with wads of money in the bank.

 

[nomadicsole21]

Originally Posted by d e beatup

Originally Posted by wren32

You are correct about FNL scrapping things that don't sell well or RTVing (return to vendor). WE have finished in the black for sales for quite some time now while the FTL corporation has finished in the red because they keep things no matter what they sell like so a lot of times they end up losing money. Working for finishline is great. They recently put a FTL in our mall like 3 stores down and we kill them from a sales stand point and from what our customers tell us our service is a lot better then theirs. I think our service is better because we aren't paid commission so we don't feel the need to push our customers to buy and we can take our time trying to make sure they get what they need instead of rushing them to buy so we can try to move on to the next person and try to get a 1% commission. When I used to go into footlockers I felt as though they thought they were shoe gods and they were just better then me, but 10 out of 10 they truly knew nothing about shoes except what was on their up coming release list. I don't feel finishline associates know everything but I think their attitudes are a lot better. Customer service is what is most and important and when you evaluate both companies Finishline is just better. and if you make a team spike sign me up

This is extremely subjective because not every region will have stores run the same, let alone states or cities, and so on. To an extent, there are certain things that can be accurately put under an umbrella. FNL clearly has the better selection of running shoes and that can't be argued. Likewise, as far as big box retailers, FTA clearly has the best selection of urban basketball shoes. Champs clearly has the best selection of licensed apparel. These are areas in which the the advantage is obvious because of how the retailer is structured. Now when you get to customer service, to an extent you can say certain things about customer service based on your opinion, but even that is skewed. Personally, I've always thought FTA has had the worst customer service of any major retailer, primarily because they are the only one with an LS account so they will usually be, especially in smaller markets, the only retailer to carry an item. However, I haven't been to every FTA, let alone 1 in every state, let alone 1 from every region, so my opinion doesn't have much to back itself up.

Product offerings and customer service are extremely variable because of how allocation is related to 52 week sales, 6-week running rates, comp sales, etc. Obviously, bigger stores get more product, but just as important, more payroll hours. Less hours available - less opportunity to create/develop a customer oriented staff. Liken it to a 5A team vs. a 2A - it's not impossible for a 2A to have blue chip prospects, but far less likely.

I would just caution to say retailer A is better overall than retailer B because you personally like that their items go on sale 2 weeks after RD or because they have more colorways of a shoe than everyone else. There are many, many factors that contribute to sales success, many of which you'd never think are that important.

/thread.

You cannot factor how a store is doing customer service wise, but just one trip, or just one store, or to one employee who treated you badly.
Just like females, they seem the same, but not everyone is the same.

Im not trying to be on Footlocker's tip, but you honestly can't say Finishline is any better. Theres soo many factors that come in to play, that noindividual person can say this store is better than that.

 

[crazy ebw]

I've NEVER had good customer service at ANY Foot Locker. They always standing at the register and don't even acknowledge when you walk in the store. Ilove their shoes but out of the 10 or so stores i've been to they're all pretty much the same.

 

[evobee]

Originally Posted by Cedric Ceballos 1995 Lakers

Originally Posted by HOOPSboy

Working at Foot Locker, I can agree with most of what ajberna posted. I've been pt, ft, and asst manager, so I've seen different positions. We do not have good customer service, and managers can pretty much make up rules regarding returns, exchanges, discounts for customers, etc. I know my manager and most managers are only worried about selling the shoes and accessories as fast as they can so they can grab the next customer. They rarely concentrate of trying to gain repeat customers. We do not take the time to find the customer's needs usually, and most employees have little or no clue about the details of the shoes they are selling.

All that being said, we have one of the best discount policies for employees I have ever heard of. Always 30%, 50% almost everything about every 6 weeks, and extra bonuses such as $50 "gold coins" for good audits.

i've gone through this problem numerous times and they fold when i tell them the magic words print out a copy of your return exchange policy or print a receipt. once they realize i know what im entitled too they give up.

I know this is off topic, but I agree with this also. I wanted to return a defective product, that a bought from another location. When I asked an associatefor their policy in writing, he said that they don't take returns, and that just the way they do it and I have to go back to the store where I got it from.I went back to the store and they said they wouldn't return it. I called their customer service and when I asked the lady about their return/exchangepolicy, she said it differs in every region. I did get to return my merchandise, but I had to mail it and wait for the check.