"direct Buy"??

[Joan S.]

Hi, Does anyone belong to "Direct Buy" and what is your opinion of this company and its purchasing power?? Thanks, Joan

 

[MK2thcleaner]

I don't belong, but a had a patient who recently joined. They were building a new house, so the savings was good for them. I think they were doing mostly high-end stuff. I nearly died, however, when she told me the cost to join was $4500 for the first year and then like $100 thereafter.

 

[princessreilly]

I am a member and so far haven't bought anything and find it not helpful. Before they got us to join, they were very friendly and seemed helpful. The times we have been after joining, no one would help us.

 

[mannasn]

It is very expensive to join and I've heard only so-so things about them on other forums I visit. I don't have any experience with them personally, but if you belong to any boards related to home repair/construction or remodeling, you might do a search there - or I can direct you to some boards I visit that have threads about this company. Good luck!

 

[mpls_mm]

There are lots of boards out there, some involve investigations and suits. I do know people that have joined and the prices are lower for some things, but the shipping can sometimes be high and make it not worthwhile. I had read a report in Wall Street Journal about their membership numbers and the average member only spends $150 per year. they had explained by saying they had so many new members that made huge purchases in the first year and little after and it threw off numbers, but I don't know if that makes sense. If you google, you can find that report.

 

[FSUDisneyGirl]

I always wondered about the company...it seemed a little iffy to me.

However, my aunt and uncle just added a HUGE addition onto their house. I believe that they said they purchased their bathroom cabinets, some tile (?), and bathroom fixtures through direct buy. it apparently saved them a lot of money. however, unless you are looking to spend a lot, i have a feeling it might not be worth it to join. i know that they spent almost one million dollars renovating (they're the ones with money in the family, not us! ) and they did not use direct buy for much of what they needed..not sure why.

hope you can find some more information! good luck on your search!

 

[CNYGuy]

There are pros and cons for sure, each store is an individual franchise, so your experience may vary from one to the other.

Couple negatives:

It is expensive up front, about $4k.
If you don't join at the end of their sales pitch, you can't join.
You have to order everything and it gets delivered to the store or your house.

Positives:
We joined before we finished our basement, and the savings paid for our membership.
Consistently lower prices than any discount store, Sam's Club, Costco, etc.
Pretty good variety of goods, furniture, electronics, appliances, and all are new. No reconditioned rejects.

We felt that the upfront costs would be paid for with our savings and they have been, but don't think about joining if you are just a casual shopper, it wouldn't be worth it.

 

[dbgardener]

We joined about 4 years ago when the cost was only around $2,000. We were doing a major remodeling, including a new kitchen. We saved a lot on the cabinets. I had a price quote from Lowe's on their low to medium end cabinets and got the high end cabinets at Direct Buy for the same price (including the shipping costs). We saved lots on a lot of other things too. If your going to be building a house or doing a major remodel it's worth it, otherwise forget it. The initial membership fee was for 3 years and we only had to pay $150 a year after that, but we didn't even continue the membership for that amount, because we knew we wouldn't be buying enough to make it worth it.

 

[LSchrow]

just wanted to add (we are members), the greatest savings are on the higher end items. DB bought his buffet from them for $10,000, versus the lowest he could find elsewhere: $24,000.
i paid $900 for my TV (not directly thru them, but thru a local electronic store with a contract with them), everywhere else was double that. the drop dead gorgeous shower/tub unit i want eventually is $14,000 everywhere, $6K thru them. leather coaches were $4000+ elsewhere, $1000 thru them.
definately worth it for higher end furniture, remodeling (friends had spent quite a few $100,000 on remodeling & furniture, & estimate that their membership has saves them at least 2/3. actually, they're often in the ads for direct buy! )
definate not for many other items ~ many housewares, jewelry, etc (you could do much better on the web or with store coupons).
btw, our location was not the "high pressure" that some refer to...do as you are doing prior tho: look into it, consider if you'll be buying enough "better" furniture, etc and/or remodeling to make it worthwhile. you are "shown" only once, so you would need to make a (hopefully informed ) decison then.
hth

 

[CarolA]

In a prior life I was a sales tax auditor.

I audited our local location. RUN!!!! I have NEVER heard such agressive sales techinquest to "sell" you the membership. It was horrid listening to this and hearing these JERKS deal with thier victims! One couple asked to go to the Cracker Barrel next door to think about it VERY RUDELY TOLD NO! These guys made timeshare salesmen seem gentle and nice!

Sorry, but IMHO if you have to abuse your potential customers you are trying to hide something!!!!!

 

[kbkids]

In a prior life I was a sales tax auditor.

I audited our local location. RUN!!!! I have NEVER heard such agressive sales techinquest to "sell" you the membership. It was horrid listening to this and hearing these JERKS deal with thier victims! One couple asked to go to the Cracker Barrel next door to think about it VERY RUDELY TOLD NO! These guys made timeshare salesmen seem gentle and nice!

Sorry, but IMHO if you have to abuse your potential customers you are trying to hide something!!!!!

Anyone that tells me I have to give them an immediate answer right then gets an automatic NO! I can't stand high pressure sales people.

We had a friend tell us about Direct Buy when we were building our house last year. We also needed to furnish the entire house with the exception of the bedrooms, so we looked into it. Even went so far as to make an appointment with them at the nearest location 5 hours away. But once I started reading up on them, we didn't go. I already knew if someone was going to be pushing me to buy something, I was going to tell them no anyway, so I wasn't going to waste my time. Those tactics just don't work with me.

 

[Joan S.]

Thank You to everyone that took the time to reply! We are going to be remolding our kitchen and also need to purchase furniture right now.(and I do like the higher end because I do not enjoy furniture shopping!) We also are looking toward purchasing a second home in Florida and I noticed that Direct Buy is also in the area we are looking in Florida. Thanks, Joan

 

[princessreilly]

Thank You to everyone that took the time to reply! We are going to be remolding our kitchen and also need to purchase furniture right now.(and I do like the higher end because I do not enjoy furniture shopping!) We also are looking toward purchasing a second home in Florida and I noticed that Direct Buy is also in the area we are looking in Florida. Thanks, Joan

Keep in mind that you have to order anything there in advance and "wait" for it to come in. This is very hard for us as we like to
'get it right when we need it".

 

[Joan S.]

It is very expensive to join and I've heard only so-so things about them on other forums I visit. I don't have any experience with them personally, but if you belong to any boards related to home repair/construction or remodeling, you might do a search there - or I can direct you to some boards I visit that have threads about this company. Good luck!

Hi I did GOOGLE Direct Buy and came across a complaint site that was VERY informative. I would be interested in any other sites that you could direct me to also!! Right now it seems like a "2 good to be true". Too many "hidden" (shipping)costs involved?? And not enough onsite help (which I usually need alot of!!) Bit I wonder HOW they have been so sccessful?? Thanks, Joan

 

[LSchrow]

i think a lot of the complaints (that i've seen) are b/c ppl are not informed.
they tend to buy lower grade furniture & renovation materials (which is fine, but personally, i would ~ and have ~ spend a few grand on a piece that will not only last for my family, but will still be around to "hand down).
i can also appreciate that many ppl like to change decor frequently (so why spend a lot each time?) or have little ones still in the stage where good furniture is not wise.
also, if one does not use it ~ it doesn't save money!! lol (a lot of ppl think it's a great idea initially, but don't think it thru enough. after you pay for the membership, there will still be the additional expense of purchasing items ). and if one isn't planning a renovation or large redecoating, the potential savings are lost.

as others have said, you do pay shipping (which most stores also charge), but we found the savings nonetheless significant. you do need to know your prices: most satified members find the item they want elsewhere (especially as you can see it in person then ~ most DB items are only listed in catalogs with an occassional picture), & then check the price at DB. btw, in addition to small electronic, we found american windows & blinds (online) to be less expensive on blinds. however, many items that i could get thru friends in certain trades (plumber, contractor, etc) were less expensive thru DB, very rarely less with the friends' discounts.

bottom line is that DB is definately not for everyone, but researching it thoroughly before you even make an appt will help you find out if it would be beneficial for you.

 

[mpls_mm]

I am an interior designer and have never bought anything low end. I don't think you can assume if people don't get Direct Buy they are uninformed. The reason Direct Buy is more expensive in shipping is that each DB is a franchise and therefore mostly independent. So if they offer at least 10 brands of everything at each location you can assume that there aren't enough orders to constitute truckload pricing and/or freight with every order. So your individual kitchen or carpet or dining set is coming by itself. When I order for clients, I pool orders together so a truck is full or some companies have their own trucking company. There is also more overhead for each location when you have smaller volumes and that needs to get passed on. The best way is to shop and find what you want in a big showroom with all of the choices, research on the internet and find the best price and take it back to the retailer and let them price match, so you get a local company that can warranty or replace it. If Direct Buy was such a great deal, they would not need the high pressure tactics and they would be open with what they sell for. And the thing they say about not being able to show cost is a lie, plenty of people do a cost plus deal, where I show you my invoice or cost book and you pay me that plus the percentage I collect. I offer a price match and have never had a client come back with a lower price from them and I have never had a builder or anyone that knows what they are doing tell me it's a good deal. I have only had people say they wished they hadn't.

 

[harleyquinn]

I am an interior designer and have never bought anything low end. I don't think you can assume if people don't get Direct Buy they are uninformed. The reason Direct Buy is more expensive in shipping is that each DB is a franchise and therefore mostly independent. So if they offer at least 10 brands of everything at each location you can assume that there aren't enough orders to constitute truckload pricing and/or freight with every order. So your individual kitchen or carpet or dining set is coming by itself. When I order for clients, I pool orders together so a truck is full or some companies have their own trucking company. There is also more overhead for each location when you have smaller volumes and that needs to get passed on. The best way is to shop and find what you want in a big showroom with all of the choices, research on the internet and find the best price and take it back to the retailer and let them price match, so you get a local company that can warranty or replace it. If Direct Buy was such a great deal, they would not need the high pressure tactics and they would be open with what they sell for. And the thing they say about not being able to show cost is a lie, plenty of people do a cost plus deal, where I show you my invoice or cost book and you pay me that plus the percentage I collect. I offer a price match and have never had a client come back with a lower price from them and I have never had a builder or anyone that knows what they are doing tell me it's a good deal. I have only had people say they wished they hadn't.

Great Post!

I got suckered into DB and never bought a thing due to the shipping prices. (which we tried unsuccessfully to get them to disclose). I consider the $$$ we dropped on that evil company the worst mistake I've ever made (which isn't too bad! )