And then there is the stupidity factor with the big box operations.
Stan posted:
Academy had boxes of 10, Rio Bismuth, 3", 1 1/4 oz., #4s, yesterday for $11.99/box, online.
I went to the Academy website last night and tried to place an order for these loads and for one other that was clearance priced. Their system would not let me check out because they won't ship to California (along with ten other locations, such as DC). So this morning I called Academy to find out why they won't ship duck loads to CA. Spent 2-1/2 hours on the phone, couldn't get past the first-level customer service reps, lots of time on hold while they consulted their supervisors. The answer that came back was that there are legal restrictions that prevent them from shipping ammo to CA. I know that is BS because I order ammo all the time from various vendors, and have five flats in transit right now from Cabela's. I was not allowed to actually speak with the CS supervisors, so I called back and tried again. Same drill, CS sups don't actually speak with customers. Could not get the call escalated. Called their corporate office and spent about a half hour trying to get a live person on the other end. Finally got a living person in their payroll department who forwarded my name and number to another CS supervisor, who is yet to call me back. Tried every option on their phone system, no dice. Academy is owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, apparently in their private equity retail group, so I called KKR in Houston, which referred me to New York, which told me there was no one to discuss this with and I should email Client Services. I am trying to buy perfectly legal duck loads. There are no legal restrictions on shipping these to me, and their competition does it all the time. Nobody is willing to take any ownership for the issue. Academy is closing off 38 million people in the state that harvests more waterfowl every year than any other state in the union. They are in business to sell this stuff, and KKR bought them to make money. They are ceding the market to their competition. It's just incredibly stupid and very frustrating.
