On Mon, 14 Jun 2004 15:39:34 -0400, "Daniel A. Mitchell" wrote:
The harbor freight retail stores are some kind of separate operation
from the mail order one. The stores do not necessarily carry the same
merchandise (though often do), and cannot order items from the catalog.
Store personnel say they have little or no connection to the mail order
operation, though the common merchandise and trademarks belies this.
They have separate mailings and advertising flyers. Pricing is all over
the place, with the mail order being cheaper on some items, and the
store on others. Each organization sets their own price, and sale items.

Yep, they operate at arm's length so the mailorder part won't be subject
to every state and local sales tax where they have a retail presence. The
state and local tax folks are squalling about this, but so far I've been able
to avoid the 6% sales tax by ordering from the catalog instead of driving
3 miles down the road and buying at HF's storefront.

With the current high gas prices, and HF's free freight, I save even more
by staying home and using their website. The only problem with that is you
don't get to eyeball and touch the tool before buying it. As a result, I've
received a few items which weren't quite what I expected. So I often do
drive down to the store, eyeball what I want, then go home and order it.
I only actually buy from the storefront when I *need it now*.

Having UPS drop a HF box on the porch is a bit like Christmas. Because
their shipping is usually so slow, I've often forgotten what orders I have
pending by the time the box shows up. So I get the fun of ripping open
the box to see what goodies I bought me this time.

Gary