While I totally disagree with this practice...
it wont work regardless, the amount of new retail customers could never make up for the loss of even 25% of thier wholesale clients.
I dont shop with them, but those that do, stick to your guns on this!
fellers has always sold directly to anyone who calls them. Its been like this for at least a few years. Nothing new here except now it is out of the closet.
And then, vinyl signs are almost dead. I was at a local supplier and they sold some vinyl to a new user. The 15 yd box had dust on it from sitting so long. And, they sold to this new cash sale user at wholesale. He was so new he didn't know know vinyl came in many colors other than red white and blue.
So we can have our war dances and grand mal hissy fits all we want. It's been going on for a long time with about half of the suppliers.
Wondering why it seemed like about five or so new people joined here a day. Thought it was strange to have that many new sign shops. Is it a retailing cowboy selling to an information hungry public flooding the industry or just lack of work in a job hungry nation that is now focused on price and not quality?
Feel free to create a group here to carry out your discussions or at Facebook etc. Just blowing off steam in a forum post won't be effective or even long remembered. You have at your disposal the power to turn gripes into favorable change.
That is actually exactly what is happening here. We're not simply blowing off steam. In a barrage of emails that were being sent out to wrap shops, I came across the OP who happens to be an active member here, he created a thread, I then added the thread to my email list going out to all Fellers certified wrap shops. Fellers is now officially in the know, they know about this thread already and all their sales reps are getting flooded with calls and emails, including their corporate offices.