2/14/2008 6:30 PMJohn Stowe wrote:
Fastenal should be respected for what they have done and how they have built their business. They started small and built their business as all the competition stood around and watched them. Their new, clean and professionally designed showrooms, much like WW Grainger is doing well and will only stiffen the competition. I am afraid the cow is out of the barn and can not be put back it! Reply to this
2/16/2008 7:00 PM
mrbolt wrote:
Fastenal is a great choice to manage the maintenance needs of customers but should not be taken seriously when it comes to managing an OEM's production parts. Blue chip manufacturers are better off partnering with the Supply Technologies, Wurth Service Supply and Anixter Fastener's of the world for their production needs. Fastenal is outstanding at servicing the maintenance side. Reply to this
4/3/2008 11:50 AMJason M wrote:
I love them too. We take more business from them than anyone. There prices on most imported items make Home Depot look like a bargin. Now that the words out in Florida, the customers are coming every day. Reply to this
4/11/2008 6:34 PM
Max wrote:
WWWWAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYY overpriced. They must maintain a 50% profit margin which means if they pay $1 for something they sell it for $2 or even $3. They sell powertools near 5-10% profit, so guess where they make that up---on fasteners. Just do your homework before you buy from them. Reply to this
6/28/2008 9:43 PM
NCFAST REP wrote:
The reason that SOME of our prices may be a little higher than the big box stores is for one simple reason...SERVICE. When you put that into the equation our prices are not high, they are FAIR. You get what you pay for. Go to one of those other stores and ask what the pull out strength is on a certain size anchor, or the tensile strength of a particular fastener, or even the difference between 304, 316, or a 400 series grade of stainless. The look you'll get from them is priceless!!! Try it sometime. Fastenal invests a ton of time and money into their employees with intense training and testing so that the customer doesn't have to do their "homework." Reply to this
6/29/2008 8:21 AM
Traveling Salesman wrote:
NCFAST REP, I appreciate a comment from someone who appears to work for Fastenal. Your company certainly has a lot of strengths. As a whole your company is doing very well. I would like to mention a few points I hear about Fastenal as I am out in the field. One criticism your company gets is that there can be a lot of branch turnover of personnel. Other distributors might lose business to Fastenal but sometimes they get it back simply because the customers find that the person they worked with at Fastenal left the branch. Another interesting thing to me is that Fastenal seems to be a large customer to a majority of suppliers in the market. Whether a company sell directly to Winona or just through the branches, everybody seems to do good business with Fastenal. There is just a ton of you guys out there. Finally, I hear great things about the Fastenal Show that takes place in Florida. Most vendors say it is one of the best shows they attend each year because everyone is pretty much obligated to visit the vendor booths. On the flip side, it is rare to see Fastenal people at the national shows like Las Vegas. Sure, a few managers are there but the thousands of branch personnel are never there. I personally wish Fastenal employees would be more involved in local industry organizations but I suspect Fastenal management would prefer that they were not. Just a hunch. Reply to this
Love them; one of our best customers.
Reply to this
Fastenal should be respected for what they have done and how they have built their business. They started small and built their business as all the competition stood around and watched them. Their new, clean and professionally designed showrooms, much like WW Grainger is doing well and will only stiffen the competition. I am afraid the cow is out of the barn and can not be put back it!
Reply to this
Fastenal is a great choice to manage the maintenance needs of customers but should not be taken seriously when it comes to managing an OEM's production parts. Blue chip manufacturers are better off partnering with the Supply Technologies, Wurth Service Supply and Anixter Fastener's of the world for their production needs. Fastenal is outstanding at servicing the maintenance side.
Reply to this
I love them too. We take more business from them than anyone. There prices on most imported items make Home Depot look like a bargin. Now that the words out in Florida, the customers are coming every day.
Reply to this
WWWWAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYY overpriced. They must maintain a 50% profit margin which means if they pay $1 for something they sell it for $2 or even $3. They sell powertools near 5-10% profit, so guess where they make that up---on fasteners. Just do your homework before you buy from them.
Reply to this
The reason that SOME of our prices may be a little higher than the big box stores is for one simple reason...SERVICE. When you put that into the equation our prices are not high, they are FAIR. You get what you pay for. Go to one of those other stores and ask what the pull out strength is on a certain size anchor, or the tensile strength of a particular fastener, or even the difference between 304, 316, or a 400 series grade of stainless. The look you'll get from them is priceless!!! Try it sometime. Fastenal invests a ton of time and money into their employees with intense training and testing so that the customer doesn't have to do their "homework."
Reply to this
NCFAST REP, I appreciate a comment from someone who appears to work for Fastenal. Your company certainly has a lot of strengths. As a whole your company is doing very well. I would like to mention a few points I hear about Fastenal as I am out in the field. One criticism your company gets is that there can be a lot of branch turnover of personnel. Other distributors might lose business to Fastenal but sometimes they get it back simply because the customers find that the person they worked with at Fastenal left the branch. Another interesting thing to me is that Fastenal seems to be a large customer to a majority of suppliers in the market. Whether a company sell directly to Winona or just through the branches, everybody seems to do good business with Fastenal. There is just a ton of you guys out there. Finally, I hear great things about the Fastenal Show that takes place in Florida. Most vendors say it is one of the best shows they attend each year because everyone is pretty much obligated to visit the vendor booths. On the flip side, it is rare to see Fastenal people at the national shows like Las Vegas. Sure, a few managers are there but the thousands of branch personnel are never there. I personally wish Fastenal employees would be more involved in local industry organizations but I suspect Fastenal management would prefer that they were not. Just a hunch.
Reply to this