Gander

[ikeslayer]

so why did the gander post get LOCKED up???

ike

[Central Bassman]

I'm guessing they thought it was going to get out of hand!!! but who knows!!!!

[Deitz Dittrich]

wasnt me, but everything that needed to be said, was said! Really no reason to beat it into the ground.

[TroyMcClure]

Probably because they are not a sponsor.

[BassProAddict]

But nothing was confirmed authoritatively yet right?

[polarsusd81]

I have a good feeling that we are going to see a Gander site pop up pretty soon with everything on it. The old site has been down a couple days now, they are working on something.

Just now did a quick check, and their site is up just to show the old front page. You can click on the links on the left, but they just lead to a jumbled mess of a screen.

[Central Bassman]

It will be interesting to see there HSOforum. Hopefully there are some good deals for all of us outdoorsman!!!!

[ptkane]

I'll say one thing good about the Gander in Bemidji -- all of their employees are knowledgable. When I brought a treestand to the counter to buy, the teenage girl at the register said "That's a great deal, I bought two of them myself!"

[ocf1]

really? When im at the lakeville ganderive ive had to help people because the kids had no clue what they were doing i heard one say"look jim this one has scales painted on it!" its embarrassing for an 8th grader to outwork them and not get paid.

[poncho]

I think that's just the difference of a kid in Lakeville vs. a kid in Bemidji working in an outdoors store.

[gritsnham]

I used to work at a gander and they do seem to hire alot of people with a low amount of knowledge in their area, not all the employees but what seems like a larger amount then I have ever noticed at cabelas or basspro. But that si how they save some dough!

[Central Bassman]

i will agree that Gander doesn't really hire the best employees. The problem is everyone thinks they are worth top dollar and they aren't!!!! I worked for Gander for a little over a year, at 21 years of age I saw guys all the time that were older than me come in and think the were worth more money because of their age, they weren't because when I interviewed them they didn't know as much as they thought. I will agree that a kid in Bemidji would know more then a kid in Lakevillie, Look at their surroundings. Personally, I don't think you can compare the employees at Cabelas to Bass Pro shop. I haven't had good CS at Cabelas yet!!!! Not trying to defend Gander because I'm no longer an employee there, but just adding in on the post.

[NCLaker]

My personal experience - Forest Lake GM usually has good customer service and decent knowledge. All the other GM I've been to in the metro (Woodbury, Maplewood, Blaine) typically run into week customer service (if you can find em) and poor knowledge.

[TurnUpTheFishing]

I hate to see people complain about the knowledge at one store or another. Ive seen misinformed people working at every outdoor store Ive been to, oh well, you cant seriously expect these people to be experts on every rod, reel, and lure.

Ive worked in a fishing department and had to scratch my head as to why I was working along side some of the people I was, but if a store needs a position filled they will probably do their best to fill it with knowledgable staff but there isnt a line of pro fisherman waiting to work at these places.

[polarsusd81]

The only store I have ever been to that is staffed by a bunch of professionals is Thorne Bros. You will get the information you are looking for there.

I have had good and bad experiences in a lot of different stores. A lot of dumb looks, but there are a few places that excel.

[polarsusd81]

By the way, just checked the new HSOforum...

So far they have only added some selections to the overton's HSOforum, a few gander rods, reels, shimano reels, st. croix rods. They have some tackle kits listed, but nothing much yet. I can tell you one thing, it will take some serious work on the site before I spend a dime online at the site. For those who have dial-up, don't waste your time on it.

[ptkane]

...just sayin the kids in Bemidji are knowledgable.

[NCLaker]

You make a good point Turnup. After reading your post I agree that you have to be realistic about expectations with the knowledge of the staff at some of these places.

Maybe what can be more annoying is how often it is difficult to find someone to help you at some of these stores - just to ask where something is located. Drop by during lunch (way too often), seem to be more interested in stocking shelves & moving stuff around then trying to help people. When you only have a few minutes to run in and out, you don't want to waste a lot of time looking for stuff or a sales person to help you.

I almost never run into this at the FL store, they usually approach you to ask if you need help.

... sorry if this is taking this thread off topic. It will be nice to have another HSOforum option when they get things up and running.

[Grant Pearson]

Another place that is pretty bad is the store formerly know as Galyan's in Woodbury. I won't post their new name ciz it probably would get deleted anyway, but I think everyone knows what store I'm talking about. Every time I go in there, the staff in the fishing department will point customers to me if they have a question about pike/musky fishing. I stopped going there due to them directing the questions to me while shopping. Don't get me wrong, I love helping others out with catching some fish, but if I'm in a store shopping, I really don't want the staff directing questions to me instead of answering themselves.

[Craig Plummer]

Did you get a discount on the products your buying then?

BTW where do you usually fish around Woodbury?

[Grant Pearson]

I wish I got a discount on the products I was buying. They were getting paid 8.50 an hour, plus commission to send them to me for advice. I usually fish powers lake, or where ever Sandmannd is going!!!!