Idiot competitor - Page 2

OP; you call the basement guy a competitor but it sounds like you are a supplier to your current 40 mile customer. A "wholesaler", so to speak. And you offered to supply the basement guy with inventory also? Inventory that he could re-sell at a profit? Why would he turn down the opportunity? Do you compete with him for retail sales? Or are you competing with him for the available used appliances? I'm having a hard time getting my head around this. What am I missing here?

Sounds like karma gonna take care of this one all on its own.

Couple things stood out right away. Used appliance store in a basement? Have fun with those stairs

As others stated get a lawyer.Going to meet him will not turn out well.Because you view him as the enemy already stay away from him.

if any thing post your craigslists adds at irregular times from normal make him chase you more and do more work on his part out posting you .

I am very possessive of my vehicles and I do not like strangers touching them so I would never put ads under windshield wipers for that same reason.

Alloy2- he did not yet have a store when I called him.

I invited him to my storage yard so he could see what I was doing.

I even offered free coffee and donuts if he wanted to stop by.

Originally Posted by bullion

Alloy2- he did not yet have a store when I called him.

I invited him to my storage yard so he could see what I was doing.

I even offered free coffee and donuts if he wanted to stop by.

Coffee and doughnuts always win me over. .

Focus on making your own business more efficient, concentrate on your existing customer base, increase your ability to service new customers, expand into those new markets, invest some of the new profits back into your company, add equipment, tooling, training and certifications to your company. Take care of your company and business, in time you will see this so called "competition" as just another event that you dealt with in growing your business.

I see competitors a little different, they make me stronger and if they are at my level, we become trade associates with common goals and interest. In reality, in business you need to be competitive, requiring "fair" competition and making us all competitors. Sorry, I think you have to re-think the "basement" competitor, but I would spend the energy on your own business.

Alloy2- what relevance does a picture of my ex sister in law have to do with my posting?

Diesel1-I have been doing this for 6 years including advertising on cl.

I am competing with him for the supply of appliances-the big difference is I collect them and re sell to a store out of town-I do not repair, resell to the public or pay people for the appliances.

This sock puppet came along a month and a half ago, sent me a nasty email and this stuff has been going on since.

He apparently thinks he's the new sheriff in town.

There are a few others in town in the appliance business that DON'T act like barn apes.

I just fail to see why someone that is new thinks they can push people around and act like this.

Go back to jail, martha!

And take your "helpful hints" with you!

Originally Posted by bullion

Go back to jail, martha!

And take your "helpful hints" with you!

It's a long ways to the bottom my friend there's still hope you'll find your station in life.

Now the idiot competitor turned foolishness up a notch. He posted on craigslist that "They" (posing as a private customer) gave me a stove which I posted the next day for sale on CL without a phone number-called me a rodeo clown too. I NEVER sell appliances on craigslist-they go into my back yard and when I get 10 or more the appliance store 30 miles north of me picks them up from my house. I do occasionally give away working units to needy people but I never sell them due to liability issues.

I know its the competitor because the map on their posting is the same place their store is at. Not too smart on their part. I fired off a warning email reply that my attorney was reviewing a hard copy I made of their post. I advised them to remove the posting immediately and I also notified craigslist about what they did. Any advise what I should do next?

Definitely not from Martha Stewart: "wrestling with a pig is futile because you're going to get dirty and the pig likes it." ANY engagement with that guy is going to get you dirty. The guy feels threatened by you and your business. And you feel threatened by him. You could try to talk to him about co-existing in the same town with one business complementing the other, but you need to lose the antagonistic attitude first. As others have suggested: best to take the high road and find ways to mind your own business. Customers should be able to figure out who the real "clown" is.