REGATTA GEAR

For most sailing gear companies out there, the finished sailing apparel does not go straight from the manufacturers to the clients; the clothing changes hands and gets sent off to retailers and or distributors, who sell the items to customers with a considerable mark-up. An average mark-up of 50% is common across most retailers, turning a product that costs $50 wholesale, into a product that costs $100 from retailers. This fact is not limited to yachting clothing, or sail gear—it is true for all clothing retailers.

Taking the perspective of a retailer, this scheme makes a lot of sense. However, from the eyes of a customer, this practice is far from fair. For a faintly easier shopping experience, customers are being asked to pay double (and often more) of the original costs.

Consequently, whenever we act as consumers ourselves, we always try to circumvent this by taking out the middle man—the retailers. Wherever possible, whether it is jewelry or books, we try to buy the items directly from the wholesalers. Although some wholesalers demand a certain order minimum, other wholesalers understand the predicament customers face and are willing to sell them individual items with no minimum, at the same wholesale price.

This is what we do at REGATTA GEAR.  Although we come from the seller side, we are customers too. We know what it is like to get sticker shock from the exorbitant prices retailers are asking for sailing gear. Furthermore, we know the people we are selling to. The sailing community is close-knit and inspiring for all who are a part of it, and we feel like our customers deserve to have the same high-quality gear, without any of the retailer interference.  This is exactly why we do not sell our products to retailers, therefore skipping the middle man and thus passing the savings on to you, the consumer.

So if you ever have feedback for us, let us know. Everything we do here, we do for you—the customers.