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My local camping emporium has closed...Camping Ecosse in East Lothian. It must have happened during the time I was in France, because I don`t recall seeing any ads or such in the local paper.

Now I`m upset about that. Camping Ecosse and I go back a long way. Hubby bought our first tent from them, when they were based out in the west of Edinburgh. I`ve been going to them in Tranent for the last thirteen years, since we moved here.  I practically never drove past the place without popping in...and hardly ever left without buying something. The staff were a fund of information and I learned a lot about tents and how to put them up from the sucession of young men that worked there over the tent display season. They were always happy to come up with some obscure pole piece, widgit or part, often for nothing if it came off one of the deader ex-display tents. They had a grand warehouse of stuff too....and in the summer months, the best tent display for miles. The only tent display, in fact....

Now where am I going to go to look at all the new models out, persuade myself I need a new table or sleeping bag or tent? Where`s all the new folk going to go to look at tents? I live next to the capital of Scotland, but there`s nowhere else around here, not really. Blacks and Tiso in the city, Mountain Warehouse...but not a decent shop anywhere that sells all the really interesting and useful stuff and has a good tent display. Fife, and over West. No-where local.

What killed them of course is their reluctance to extend into on-line sales. Little dabble on ebay a few years back (I bought a tent from them) and they started a modest web page this year. But they depended on shop sales (they ran the big caravan storage lot next door to the shop) and obviously, this was just not enough. They tried closing for the lean winter months last year, rented out the warehouse and moved the shop into a marquee in the parking area. They stopped stocking Vango tents...not sure why, given that Vango is ..or was...a Scottish company and the Vango brand popular up here.  Anyhow, it`s not worked for them and now they`ve shut.

Have to say, I`m upset about it. I made a point of always making them my first port of call and they did price match, so if I wanted something and they had it, I got it from them. I`ve bought (Stops to count fingers) four tents off them, and endless piles of kit. I was a pretty good customer, but obviously there weren`t enough of me.

So I`d just like to say...if you still have a camping shop near you, try and use it. Yup, it`s tempting to buy your tent online for £50 less....but if you`ve spent the last three weekends in their tent display deciding what to buy, at least give them the opportunity to price match. And even if they only split the difference think what your shop means to you in terms of after sales service, spares, advice and repairs for that tent. and use it for other things.. decent brand accessories and kit, instead of just going to Tesco or buy the same kit online. Because if you don`t, you`ll end up like me, with no-where left to go for advice or see my next tent up before I decide to buy it.

I totally agree with you!  I was sad to see them shut, they were the first place that I went to view tents this year.  I didn't buy a tent from them at that time but I did buy a few bits and pieces.

I must agree with you though, they were very helpful and spent a lot of time with me going over measurements and things and generally putting my mind at ease.  Teh only reason why I didn't buy my tent was that he didn't sell the one that I ended up going for first.

We we are based we are quite lucky, we can still access the one in Fife and also Wishaw without much problem.

I have just bought a new monty and after looking around the site decided that I should buy it from a local dealer incase of any problems.  Unfortunately I had to see it pitched in the UK as I couldn't find it pitched up here at the minute, anyway, I bought it local and feel that I got a great deal from it.  I also now have somewhere to go with any questions that I may have and know that I will get great help.

Quote: Originally posted by arthurdent on 27/8/2007

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. Why on earth would I use my local shop ?

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No, of course I wasn`t suggesting you buy from them if they were selling overpriced crap. These sort of businesses deserve to fail. But if they had had Coleman DCs for £26, say, would you have bought them locally?

Quote: Originally posted by Valk_scot on 27/8/2007

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if they had had Coleman DCs for £26, say, would you have bought them locally?

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Without any question. I'd have paid up to about £30 locally I'd say, mainly for the convenience of returns and no postage costs. But too many local shops are out to fleece with high prices in my experience.

Quote: Originally posted by gretchel on 27/8/2007Rumour has it that Outriggers in Dunfermline may also be closing .... If Outriggers goes, where else is there in Scotland? Nothing beats going to look at a tent in the flesh.

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Well there you go, I didn`t know about any of these shops. Not that I`ll use them as a day to day shopping venue (I live in Musselburgh) but I`m putting the last one on my list of online camping shops.

"Bricks and clicks" is the way modern retailing is going, no doubt of it.

Crossburn Caravan Park down in Peebles is probably my nearest accessory shop now. Mostly for caravans (though the site does take tents) but has a great selection of wee, fiddly bits for repairs to caravans and tents. Online? Nope......  And for gas and such I`ll now go to Drum Mhor campsite in Musselburgh....they have a tiny shop too.

Quote: Originally posted by gretchel on 27/8/2007

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Rumour has it that Outriggers in Dunfermline may also be closing - and, I would imagine, for similar reasons in that they haven't really embraced online sales.  .

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Summits Outdoors is listed as having a base in Dunfermline as well...do they have a business connection?

Don't think Summits and Outriggers are linked - Summits has a small shop in the town centre with no space to put up tents, so it's mainly hiking gear and some accesories.  They occasionally put up tents on the green area up the road but not very often!