John Lewis price match a con?

Dr._Shoe

I have bought three items from John Lewis: A Samsung backlit LED HD TV for only £299 as Richer Sounds were advertising it for that price (though they were sold out), their sticker price was £379. A few months beforehand I bought a fridge freezer for £229.99 because Curry's (who I'd never buy from in any case) were advertising it at that price. JL's sticker price was £259.99. I also bought an Apple Macbook pro for £999.99 (sticker price £1,029.99) because PCW were doing one for that price.

I saved a total of £160 on just three items and I get a free extended warranty too!

Their "Never knowingly undersold" pledge does not include sale prices, promotions or special offers but they will match on these.

John Lewis every time for me. Even Waitrose has started to get their act together to be competitive.

quoia

prowla wrote: »

Except that the transaction of the item at a lower price is performed on the EPOS system, and so is input to their computers.

Therefore, one person requesting the price match means that the company knows.

And how would JL know that the following day the price had gone UP at this competitor's store to £50 MORE than the regular JL price ?

prowla

quoia wrote: »

And how would JL know that the following day the price had gone UP at this competitor's store to £50 MORE than the regular JL price ?

http://www.johnlewis.com/inspiration-and-advice/never-knowingly-undersold-policy

SuperHan

Selfridges only have 4 stores in 3 cities, so their price match team may not even look at them when setting national prices, as in most locations they are not a competitor.

And never knowingly undersold is a conning slogan in my opinion. It implies they are the cheapest, but doesn't say it. You say yourself that JL offers better convenience, they generally offer better warranties and after sales care, and are known for better customer service. So even at a higher price, they may consider the package that they offer better value than their competitors, and so are not being undersold.

However, as many have said, if you challenge in store they will likely match. It's just the way it works.. Remember, everyone in the shop has an incentive to make as much profit as possible.

dacouch

enfield_freddy wrote: »

I like PC worlds price match thing , very very few of the computer related items are available from the other suppliers on the list

Or they get the manufacturer to change the last two digits of the model number so they can say the competitors is a different model

enfield_freddy

dacouch wrote: »

Or they get the manufacturer to change the last two digits of the model number so they can say the competitors is a different model

yes often the case , however PCCharm list very few companies that sell computer stuff as a check on there price match


Argos, Asda, John Lewis, Tesco or AO.com arn,t exactly big on computer parts or bits

peachyprice

Mr_Singleton wrote: »

Was in Selfridges Food Halls this afternoon so decided to check out a few items that I've been looking at for the house as there's a sale on.

To be honest I'd prefer to get everything from john lewis for the convenience of it.

Was fully expecting JL to be matching the advertised sale prices as they claim to do as Selfridges must be JL's biggest competitor on Oxford Street but NOPE!

28cm Classic round casserole dish Selfridges = £168 JL = £210
Dualit Architect kettle Selfridges = £63.20 JL =£79
LG 55" OLED TV Selfridges = £1999 JL = £2300

What a con!

You only have to ask, they'll match the price. Simple really.

But thanks for drawing my attention to the Architect Kettle, I need one to match the toaster I bought, and got money back on under the JL KNUS promise.

pendragon_arther

Mr_Singleton wrote: »

I don't think I'm getting my "knickers in a twist"

I'm broad-minded, but out of interest do you really wear knickers?

vyle

Mr_Singleton wrote: »

Was in Selfridges Food Halls this afternoon so decided to check out a few items that I've been looking at for the house as there's a sale on.

To be honest I'd prefer to get everything from john lewis for the convenience of it.

Was fully expecting JL to be matching the advertised sale prices as they claim to do as Selfridges must be JL's biggest competitor on Oxford Street but NOPE!

28cm Classic round casserole dish Selfridges = £168 JL = £210
Dualit Architect kettle Selfridges = £63.20 JL =£79
LG 55" OLED TV Selfridges = £1999 JL = £2300

What a con!

I don't know about the other two items, but the OLED TV -- selfridges is a different, older model.

I don't know if you're aware of this but "LG OLED TV" is a term that contains many different products. Just as Panasonic and other manufacturers all make more than one TV. It's the equivalent of saying "white womens' Tshirt" and expecting everything to be identical and the same price.

Are you sure that the other items you've listed are the same? It's not a con if you can't tell the difference between two very different items, is it?

prowla

vyle wrote: »

I don't know about the other two items, but the OLED TV -- selfridges is a different, older model.

I don't know if you're aware of this but "LG OLED TV" is a term that contains many different products. Just as Panasonic and other manufacturers all make more than one TV. It's the equivalent of saying "white womens' Tshirt" and expecting everything to be identical and the same price.

Are you sure that the other items you've listed are the same? It's not a con if you can't tell the difference between two very different items, is it?

Some stores get the manufacturer to make them a special model, usually with a different letter after the name; presumably it helps get around the price match question...