Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Scott, or anyone at Shogrens can answer this for me, and as a matter of fact, for alot of us here, especially FeverMike.

He says that if he buys a Fountain boat out of his area, that his local dealer refuses to do any kind of warranty woek on it, especially if he buys it from Shogrens. Why would that be???

If someone up here in Chicago buys a new Fountain from a dealer from out of the area, will you do the warranty work on it??? or will you refuse to, as in the case here in Fla. like FeverMike's talking about???

I already know what their answer will be,:rolleyes: I just want it to be heard on a public forum. That;s just not right, money for work is still money. Maybe some of the dealers oughta get off their high horse, and take the work that rolls in instead of being so choosy. Then we won't have to hear about how the dealers are starving. They don't WANT to work.
I'm done ranting.:rolleyes:

Thanks, Frank

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Frank, warranty work pays less than a customer paying for work. Fountain pays something like 75% of shop rate so if a Fountain dealer does your warranty work he makes a lot less money..actually loses money...then a paying customer. The dealer will do customer paid service work and there own customers warranty work way before they will touch warranty work on a boat they did not sell.

I was told point blank by my Fountain dealer that if I went and bought a Fountain from Shogren that they will not do warranty work on it....that would be Fountain and/or Merc warranty work.

Not just my Fountain dealer but a lot of dealers in my area just will not do warranty work (even the Merc power package) on a boat unless they sold it to you. Or they will put you so far in the back it will take months and months to get any warranty work done.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

hrmmm...are they legitimate fountain dealers or are they just selling boats?? Im not postivie, but I would think a condition of having a facotry authorized dealership would be doing warrentee work.... maybee it pays less, but I would think it would be required.. all things aside..I would rather have someone working on my boat that was willing to do it than somebody FORCED to do it..kinda like insulting a waiter/waitres..who knows whats gonna get done to your food in the back.....

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

I'd be shooting an email to Merc and fountain saying thats the last time i'm buying any of thier product if thier warranty coverage goes only as far as my selling dealer!!! :mad: i understand dealers get paid less by the factories but hell...

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Guys, you can't compare the boat industry to the car industry. These dealers do not have to do warranty work if you did not buy the boat from them.

Wally, it's not just Fountain...I had this same problem with a Scarab and Concept I bought new too. If you do not buy your boat from the servicing dealer they do not have to do warranty work or they will put you at the end of the line and it will be months upon months before you get your new boat fixed.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Mike, I just got off the phone with Shogrens office, and Scott called me on his way to do the finishing touches to the boats at the boat show. He will chime in on this later today, probably tonight as he's got a full day of work ahead of him at the show with all the last minute changes that come with the setups.:rolleyes:

I know from speaking to the secretary at Shogrens, that they DO warranty work on Fountains that are bought else where. She told me that right now, they are doing warranty work on a Fountain that was purchased in Califotnia. She says that they don't turn anyone away nomatter where they purchased the boat from. I guess that's just their policy. No wonder, that's why so many people come to Shogrens for their boats, they don't turn anyone away, or play that favortism $hit like alot of other dealers.

Let's wait to hear from Scott himself, we'll get the straight truth from him on this matter.:cool:

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

A local dealer I have dealt with has a shop policy about boats and service/warranty work I kinda agree with. (He doesn't sell performance boats at all). They will take any boat in for service however, the boats he sold new or used will take priority over the ones that were bought elsewhere. This is a "perk" that his customer base is entitled to and provides better customer loyalty. In the winter his guys are busy doing all the boat shows, in the summer they have a 5-6 week backlog (as does every dealer in the area) so he must decide who gets priority. Like it or not I think it's smart business.

and BTW: I've had them do service work on a boat I did NOT buy from them.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Man....what would it take to become certified to do warranty work for Merc? this may be something to look into if dealers are gonna be Bitc#$ about servicing boats!

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

That is good but how does that help me down here in Florida? I have a good Fountain dealer and the service is top notch BUT there prices are no where near as good as Shorgren. I do not trailer my boat so if I buy a Fountain from Shogren and I need something taken care of under warranty I'm screwed.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

hmmm....

I wonder how they feel in Decatur about putting an owner off indefinitely, or flat out denying to do warranty work just because you didn't but the product there, that in the bigger sense feeds them all?

That is such BS. I'm not saying you should be first in line but c'mon...why go out of their way to be pr!cks about it?

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Local Formula dealer, Baja dealer, Donzi dealer here are all the same way. If I bought a Cig..new and needed Merc warranty work good luck finding it fast...you will be on the end of the list months down the road.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

I can see both sides but in the end I think Fountain needs to step in and lay the law down. FeverMike, What if you lived in Cali bought a fountain there then moved to FL will that same dealer not do service on that boat?

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

the bottom line is simple. MERC has no compitition!!!! they can be a==es whats your alternitives. Buy ILMOR? seriously. I love my Merc's but we are just a bunch of monkeys in a zoo to them.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

If its a (BRAND) we sell Cobalt, Malibu or Fountain we take care of it like We sold It.. Had it done to me By my old Dealer When I bought My Last Fountain And Wont Do it to any Our Customers.
I do put them in line But With no Preferance..first come first serve (I think I was misquoted I ment Brand)

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

See everyone, this is how it's done. If I buy Shogrens 42EX and need warranty work in Tampa...I am SOL.

Why should the dealer here fix under warranty a boat they did not sell? They lose money BIG TIME on warranty work from boat manufactues and Merc.

My neighbor Driven1 bought a 47 Fountain from Shogren and the local Flountain dealer will not touch it. Now Driven1 has to go elsewhere or fix things himself.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

why? recipricocity.. if you are a direct dealer for product 'X' which comes with a warrenty, you sell product X because of its reputation, so does a dealer on the other side of the country, so your both marketing a product you believe in. no if your customer is on a journey in the other dealers world and has a problem, you and the owner of the product you sold would like to see the other dealer fix said problem because it keeps the customer happy, and he ( the other dealer) should expect the same from you. in return this customer whether it be yours or his is satisfied with "product X, even though it had a problem..it was promptly taken care of without hassle..so this happy customer tells his friends he is happy and this improves/reenforces the positive image of product X increasing the potential for sales. now as for the factory paying bad for warrenty work..that is a problem between the dealer and the factory and should be addressed when the dealer is in negotiations to carry product X. if all the dealers got together and stormed the factory saying this is b.s. ..we need to resolve this if you wish for us to sell your product X, if not we all will be more than happy to start selling products a,b, and c, instead of X. the problem here is NOT between the customer and any and all authorized dealers..it is between the dealer network and the factory..but the dealers choose to penalize the customers for the dealers networks lack of bargining. thats a good way to get customers to buy products a,b,and c next time there shopping, costing you money...personally, If I was the factory and heard of a dealer refusing to do legitimate warrenty work, he wouldnt be a dealer and I would pull my product off his shelves.. but then again I believe in treating people with respect and fairness..unfortunately not everyone thinks the same..

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

WOW, where do you start. We have never treated a customer differently if they bought a boat from us or not but we certainly put our customers to the front of the list when service is needed. We view things differently, if we did not get the customer the first time we will try like hell to get them the next time. We have sold many new and used boats and several new boats into what Fountain refers to as open territories. We have never had a problem in getting someone to service one of our customers boats. If the customer is willing to pay and there cash is green or there checks are good we treat them with respect and fix there boats. This BS about Mercury dealer not wanting to fix Mercury power under warranty should be addressed with Mercury, I don't think they would be very happy. 9.99 out of 10 times when we sub contract work out on high performance boats outside our territory the customer has a shop that they work with that in most caases does not even sell boats, only fix them. I wish I had the luxury or to much money to say no, I won't fx your boat. Maybe that's why our phone is always ringing. I know Fountain has some concerns that dealers do not stock boats but want to be treated like stocking dealers. It's my understanding that they are considering allowing dealers to sell into territories where they consider a dealer not to be a stocking dealer. I would like to know thru a PM who won't fix your boat or driven1 so I can call that dealer directly. In most cases a call is all it takes and then they want to fix the boat. If not, we will let them know where they can get it fixed and make the appointment for the customer. You don't have to be a Fountain dealer to fix a Fountain boat, LIVORSI Gauges, Merc Motors, Glass, Wire, Etc. All you have to do is have a good service shop with Merc certified staff and you can do about anything.

Regards,
Scott Shogren
www.chicagofountain.com

All I ask is that you respect my opinion and not bash me or compare me to ther dealers as we only get up in the morning and do the best job we can. Our philosophy, make a few bucks off alot of people not a home run off a few. We view every boat as coming back to us on trade.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

This is Fountains Law...Fountain does not want you to deal with a dealer out of your area. Each dealer charges what they want to for the product(Boat). If Scott wants to give you a better price than your local dealer, the sale has to be blessed by Fountain. Do you really think Shogren got to be the largest dealer by selling only in Chicago? That makes the local dealers upset, they in turn cry to Fountain. What they should be doing is matching Scotts numbers if they really wanted your business. When a boat is sold out of the local dealers area, I think some money goes back to the local dealer to cover any warrenty issues, from the selling dealer. :D :D

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

You are correct Fountain has a 5% hold back if you buy a boat outside your local dealers territory...however this 5% and the fact that Fountain only pays 75% of the shop rate will not cover the labor cost of warranty work. This is why my local Fountain dealer will not really do warranty work on Fountains that a local guy bought somewhere else.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

i would think that the dealer not wanting to do the warranty work is missing a golden opportunity, to show you why the next time you might want to consider purchasing a boat locally,

my .02

later

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

I know when I worked at the Malibu dealership in Dallas area we were not allowed to sell boats to a customer that was from another dealerships area. We would get in trouble from the factory and possibly lose our dealer rights. As far as warranty work we warrantied any Malibu that came into our shop whether it was bought from us or not. What are you going to do if you have somebody that moved into town and brought their boat with them, it wouldn't be right to refuse them. I know it is not the same as refusing service or delaying to someone that is local and bought thir boat out of town.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

"We view things differently, if we did not get the customer the first time we will try like hell to get them the next time" .Scott S.
If I where refused service from a dealer just because I didn't buy my boat from them ? Hell maybe I will be more selective where I break down next time .
S. Shogren you seem to have a good grip on how to run a business . Keep up the great work .
Paul

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

I was on vacation in Florida in November and had a senser buzzer going off. The dealership treated me like monster crap. Zero customer service!!! They did offer me a deal on a new boat just to be smug arses

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

#1 Formula has territorial protection money too. It's 5%

#2 but as stated it can only be demanded by the offended local dealer from the out-of-territory dealer through channels if they stock boats first of all, and second of all from the line you bought from. They can't cry about you viewing and buying a Fastech elsewhere if they haven't stocked anything but an SS or cruiser recently or regularly. This is how I understand it.

#3 I have had a couple merc warranty issues and have needed some limited service work as I do most of my own maintenence ect. My previous 5X selling dealer (Hutchinsons Boat Works in Alex Bay) where I keep my Formula, takes care of me, the staff is wonderful to me, and I don't get put at the back of the bus, quite the contrary.:cool: I'm quite sure that if I had a problem with a boat system that I didn't want to tackle myself, I would be treated much the same.

It's the realization that I buy boats regularly, have brought them other buyers in the past (several), and if I was going to do something different and needed a dayboat or a cruiser (SeaRay) I would be buying it there. :)

It's called a small investment in the future.
Tough concept for some I guess. :rolleyes:

#4 Shogren's got the right idea. :cool:

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Seems like it could be a wash. You buy from your dealer, someone else from thier dealer . You happen to be in his territory and need service. They do it.

The other guy happens to be in your area and needs service. he goes to your dealer.

Both dealers sold a boat, both dealers performed service work, but just not on one they sold personally.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

This is not the problem. Please go back and re-read my post's again. I am perfectly sure that if you were on vaction in St. Petersburg FL and your Fountain broke down under warranty my dealer would help you out in a pinch. However me being a local guy and go buy a Fountain from Shorgren...they will not help me out anylonger with warranty work and if they did I'd be way back months months on the list.

problem is Shogren is asking $229k for his 42EX and my dealer back in the fall wanted $275 for a 42EX and will not budge...he sold it too! Never got in another either and does not stock much Fountain performance boats. They have 1 35EX in stock which I do not fit in behind the helm..I'm much to tall for this little boat.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Not sure why the dealer is crying . They always say they are not making any money on the sale . They are just looking for a good customer . Make it up on the service .

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

I just want to make it very clear that I am not in any way bagging on Shogren or my local Fountain dealer. I am just presenting an issue.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

FeverMike, can you give Scott Shogren a PM??? I thought that it only applied to new boats. What about if you bought a boat from me??? Used, let's say. OK, I buy it from whomever you want,:rolleyes: the next day, I sell it to you. You just bought a USED boat. That way, you bought it from a private party, right? The warranty is transferable, right? Your local dealer sees that you purchased a used boat from a private party. Why should they refuse to do any workon it for you?? Don't make much sense to me at all.

Like I said earlier, if you need an address in Chicago, just let me know.

Frank

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

This is a very interesting thread I live in an area where the closest Fountain dealer is 6 hrs. from me. I bought my boat from Pier 57 (great ppl to deal with). It is the same distance to Shogren Marine and after reading this thread I have new found respect for Shogren marine. Lucky for me Lynns westside marine in Evansville in. gives me great service. When I get my next Fountain I will check out both Pier 57 and Shogren.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

If I was Scott Shogen i would not discuss this issue in the public. This is a very common sales tatic to keep customers in there selling area. This is nothing new. Some dealers run their business on volume. Others run it gross profit per unit.

As far as pricing per boat, most dealers will make that decsion on how long the have had the boat under there floor plan.

I am glad we have dealers like Shorgen that keep the market place priced aggressive.


This is nothing new.........

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

I did PM Shogren. My neighbor down the street bought a used 47 from Shogren.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Pretty much a true statement. those of you in Chicago or near have a great thing going...excellent service after the sale and the best prices going on Fountains...I have excellent service with my local dealer because I bought my Fountain from them. I got a fair deal on my trade and the purchase of my new boat because it is a Fountain fishing boat. My dealer does not stock high perf Fountains therefore I do not believe they can or will give out deals like Shogren does. If I get back into a hi-perf boat again I probably will not be able to do it with Fountain and get the deal I want.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

"Shogren Performance Marine, located in Waukegan, Illinois received the 'Dealer of the Year' Award for 2006 with sales of approximately $8.6 million. "

Gee I wonder how they earned that?...

Scott, will your Dealer service my boat? I bought it from Skipper Buds, right in your backyard on top of it.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

You just do not understand the main problem here do you...none of you seem to grasp the problem.

My dealer will do service (paid) on any boat..ok got that?!?! My dealer does not want to do WARRANTY WORK on Fountains that local guys go elsewhere and buy. UNDERSTAND THE PROBLEM?

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Mike,

Fountain warranties the boat for one year right? The power can be serviced by any Merc dealer so with the monster savings ( 50K on the 42X you quoted), why not just pay for anything the boat needs warranty or not? 50K goes a long way!

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

because he's still gonna get put waaaay in the back of the priority line there locally, where and when he needs it.

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

It sounds to me like his dealer much rather work on outboards vs Merc big Blocks

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

My $.02.....I think the guy that buys a new boat from them every 2-3 years and pays the extra $50K should get a certain amount of priority.

Boats bought elsewhere still must be serviced, but if I an busy and have to pick which boats aren't going to get touched for a few weeks, it isn't going to be the guy that buys new boats from me!

If he is refusing to do any work at all then that is absurd! The rest is simply providing the best customer service with the resources available. (limited mechanics, too many people breaking chit in the summer!)

Re: Shogren, got a serious question for you.
 

Mike...Understand your problem completly. Bought a 2000 32 Fever from Pier 57. Live in Md. Local dealer at the time was All Pro Marine, in Md. Had bought a 27 Fever new from him. When it was time to move up, he didnt have a 32 with power I wanted and didnt want to order a boat. Talked to David Woods and worked a deal. Called All Pro from the hotel in Pickwick Tenn, said this is the deal, match the price and get the boat and I will buy it from you. All Pro said that he couldnt sell the boat at that price. 6 Months later, lost a gimbal bearing, and a seam in the rear bench came apart. Yep, my boat sat at All Pro for a month. Fountain warrented the work on the seat. But it took way too long on the repair. Soooo, do you want to save money on the sale, or do you want to keep your local dealer happy? and take a chance on service? My thought, Call Scott or Greg at Shogren's. With the Chicago Boat show they may be a little busy, maybe they can work a deal through your local dealer and both will be happy. If it can be done, those guys will make it happen.:D :D :D