saw dvd

[amanda]

i got the movie "SAW" in store at futureshop

$17.99 CND which would be like $14.40 USD

why is it so cheap? it was more from our supplier, which it always is, but this was dramatic.

has ne one heard the reasoning for this? or did they just do it for fun?

[tekfuel]

Retail stores like walmart or future shop up there in canada sell DVDs as "loss leaders". They don't make money on the DVD sales themselves (unless they really do have a deal with the studios). They make their money from whatever else their customers pick up when they go to buy that DVD... underwear, toilet paper... lawn furniture.

They only price it that low for the first week though. So, usually, by the next Tuesday, the "older" titles are back in the $19 range.

It's the same with sodas at grocery stores. You'd see sales for 24 cans of Coca-Cola for $6. You can't get that kind of deal even if you buy straight from Coca-Cola.  With tax and CRV (for california), they would come out to about $0.33 each. At best, if you go to a wholesale store like Jetro, they'll cost you about $0.44 a can +CRV. Soda sales usually coincide with holidays, so their customers are more likely to buy other things if they're throwing a party or whatever, making the "loss" worth it for the grocery store.

[tekfuel]

If you do buy something at Walmart, don't buy anything else other than their loss leaders. They're killing our business by taking away our customers and driving prices to the ground, so there's no reason to add money into their pockets.

Last year, they took Toys R Us out of business. I think this time, they've got their eyes set on Best Buy.  It used to be we would worry about Big retail stores gobbling up Mom-n-Pop stores. Now, its the biggest retail store gobbling up other big retail stores.

Who will bring Walmart down?

[videogeek]

It is kind of funny how every dollar spent there may eventually be used against us in the long run. I myself will not shop there unless Im in an emergency or a pinch...but we must keep in mind, Wal-Mart does not have a money printing press in back, it is consumers that choose to shop there that make Wal-Mart the largest retailer in the world. I dont think Wal-Mart gives their DVD's away at $14 or $15 a piece. Id be willing to bet they are still making a profit on it. They have the most buying power in the world. They sell over 40% of all the media sold. With power like that they can negotiate much better deals than any one of us could ever imagine. It's quite unfair that OUR distributers themsleves cant even get near that kind of price. So again Wal-Mart wins

[Hardcopy]

Yeah my Walmart keeps their money printing machine up front behind the McDonald's.  :blink2:

[sungifts]

If you don't shop at Walmart, where do you buy your household staples, like paper towels, toilet paper, beauty items, etc.  

Walmart is a little ways from where I live, so I have bought those items at a grocery store that is closer to me, but the prices are much higher!!

Last weekend, a family member told us that Walmart had theatre candy for 88 cents.  That is way cheaper than what I pay if I order it - especially if you factor in shipping.  So, we went and bought $200 worth of candy, marked it up to $1.49 and it's selling like hotcakes!!

[j4kp07]

I'm with sungifts.  I buy from Walmart for prices lower than any distributor in any industry, I mark it up and then sell it.  Ofcourse my town is 20 miles in any direction to a "local" Walmart, so paying extra in my store is the price of convenience.  This works with candy, memory sticks for games, CDRs, video tapes, wires/cables, etc.

[videogeek]

If you don't shop at Walmart, where do you buy your household staples, like paper towels, toilet paper, beauty items, etc.  

   I guess it's one thing if all you have available is Wal-Mart but another if you have several options to choose from. I try to shop at my local stores as much as possible...because I want to continue to have those options. I as a small business owner understand I may have to pay a little more at the local non Wal-Marts but that money will stay in the community instead of getting shipped to Wal-Marts HQ in Arkansas. Money works in circles. When I give the little guy my money I help him support his family, and in turn he has more money to spend at my store. Last time I checked I didnt see any of the Waltons shopping at my store or giving back a damn thing to the community. If anything all they want is to dominate the community and take over all my fellow small business owners stores..now why would I want to help them do that?
    Now obviously I cant go to the local store and spend $30(yes $30) for a DVD that Im going to rent out, so I must travel to the nearby larger city and buy from one of the big stores. But I have Target and Best Buy to choose from besides Wal-Mart. If every dollar I spend at Target or Best Buy is a dollar taken from Wal-Mart then Im all the happier to spend it there. The price difference is maybe 11 cents. I signed up for the reward zone at Best Buy and I have gotten hundreds of dollars back from my purchases there.
    I dont know other peoples situations, all I am saying that as a small business owner to just consider other options when possible. Besides when Wal-Mart is the only reasonable option, your choosing to shop there is the equivalent of your customers going to Blockbuster, all they would be doing would be giving more leverage to Blockbuster in its effort to shut YOU down. If people want an alternative to Blockbuster they need to make the effort to support you. Just like if you want an alternative to Wal-Mart you need to make an effort to support the other stores......Sorry if I sound like a Best Buy or Target shareholder Im just trying to get my point across. Our freedom of choice is what makes this country so great, when a company makes a predatory move to stop that I feel the need to fight back.

[amanda]

the reason that we go to a large chain store to buy our movies is because we dont get our movies from our distributor on time. I am still waiting for The Notebook. It was delayed a full week and Shark Tale was shipped, and never arrived. I dont mind paying extra from them, but when they dont come, what option do i have? We used to go to Walmart to get our New Releases, because they did a price guarentee on their New Releases, until they started not having them out on the shelves til WAY LATER. So we now go to Futureshop, when our supplier screws up, I wish we had a Best Buy here, but we dont

P.S. ... still looking for a better Canadian Distributor.. lol

[seanandsarah]

I love Lion's Gate movies.  They're always high concept, easily advertised "grabber" movies and the price is cheap too.  I got my Saws for $19.02 a piece which just prompted me to buy more.  They've already broken even after less than a week.

The Notebook had a shortage all over Canada.  It was a studio problem, not a distributor problem.  We received one on release date, one a week later.  No matter, a movie like that isn't a quickie, it runs on legs.  Shark Tale I would kick up a fuss about.  As long as you're getting your orders in before the preorder date, there's no reason why you shouldn't have had it.

I haven't had many problems with Video One in terms of release date.  I usually receive them on the Monday before the release date.  I also live in an area where the closest big box store is two hours and a ferry ride away, so running to get copies isn't a viable option.

Regards,
Sean

[Hardcopy]

Yeah but that also means it isn't a great option for your customers. My customers can go get the blasted things for $15 from Meijers (midwest big box), Target, Best Buy OR Walmart. They have all began to compete with one another like that.

Does sound though like you are in the middle of no where.

[videogeek]

I myself am prejudice towards Lions Gate. I think it's from when I myself was a rental customer. I would read the movie synopsis on the back of the cover maybe see a star I liked then Id get the movie. I started noticing that most of the movies I thought sounded good and rented and disliked were all made by Lions Gate, I paid more and more attention to it and eventually came to the conclusion that it wasnt a coincidence, it seemed to me they were making crappy low budget movies with bad scripts and getting a well known actor to star in them...or atleast make an appearance. The past year or so has been quite well for them with "The Punisher" and "Saw" and they are sticking more money into their movies but that nasty after taste I strongly remember just doesnt go away. The movie "Godsend" for example, cool idea for a movie but they pretty much destroyed it with bad writing, I was ashamed of Robert Deniro for lowering himself into that role. "Open Water"...give me a break. "Saw" was ok, and probably the best movie I have seen coming from them. I have come to the point where if I see their name on the cover I dont even look forward to seeing it. I have thrown the theory out to some hard core movie buffs and had a few agree with me and actually knew exactly what I was talking about...I know its an odd theory, nor would I expect anyone to agree with me, just sharing my feelings  

[amanda]

The Notebook had a shortage all over Canada.  It was a studio problem, not a distributor problem.  We received one on release date, one a week later.  No matter, a movie like that isn't a quickie, it runs on legs.  Shark Tale I would kick up a fuss about.  As long as you're getting your orders in before the preorder date, there's no reason why you shouldn't have had it.

how come when i went to futureshop they had hundreds of copies?? I understand that they get shorted movies, but what am i supposed to do, tell that to my customers as they are walking out the door to go somewhere else? The Notebook needed lots of copies, and Im glad that i went out and bought all of my copies, i really needed them. I couldnt wait 2 weeks later. Shark Tale Im glad we went and picked it up too, finally got to watch it yesterday, the first day it hasnt rented out solid.

btw... we make the preorder dates.. and i STILL havent got my Notebook or Shark Tale copies yet .. boo-urns to HIP

[seanandsarah]

Because stores like Futureshop, Wal-Mart, etc. have direct distribution deals with the studios, so they get their copies direct from the source, and often times before distributors do.  The Notebook mixup had to do with the fact that it was a New Line film, but distributed by Alliance in Canada, who received the material too late to run a full printing of the disc in time for the release.  They got them out as quick as they could.

[seanandsarah]

As to the problem with the cheap purchase price of Lion's Gate films, I think little revenue is lost by the pricing.  Many new titles will sell at big box stores in Canada for approx $24.99.  $17.99 for Saw is not that HUGE of a discount.  It doesn't suddenly make the DVD a "reasonable purchase" wheras it wasn't before.  There will be some people who will take advantage of the cheap pricing and just buy a title, but most people are still content to rent.  They just aren't intested in owning.

Regards,
Sean