Why shouldn’t I buy coffee brewing equipment from an online store?

Buying coffee equipment can be cumbersome when purchasing online. Consider purchasing coffee equipment from your local authorized dealer, such as Reverie Coffee Roasters and Principal Coffee Equipment Solutions.

Are you shopping for coffee brewing equipment for your café, restaurant, office, or church? Have you been checking prices online and are about to pull the plug and make an order? Here’s four reasons why you shouldn’t buy coffee brewing equipment from an online retailer.

1.      Online retailers don’t install, service or manage warranties for your equipment. Though they may own the warranty, online retailers don’t manage the equipment. They simply place orders and have equipment drop shipped directly from the manufacturer. And most of the people working with the orders have never worked with the equipment you are purchasing. An experienced equipment dealer can be sure you are purchasing the right equipment for your project.

2.      Lead times may not be accurate. The best way to know the actual lead time is to ask a qualified dealer representative, who will contact the manufacturer and get the exact timeline for the piece of equipment you are interested in purchasing. It’s common practice for online retailers to place estimated or arbitrary timelines on the product description, only to find out after you have placed your order and paid that the timeline is often several weeks delayed. Don’t make this mistake; if you have a strict timeline, ask your local dealer to contact the manufacturer and get the actual timeline.

3.      Online retailers cannot conduct a site inspection. A critical step in the process of ordering equipment is to conduct a site inspection to check for several key factors. Electrical configuration, water supply, and physical dimensions are all considerations that can lead to sourcing the wrong equipment. If your local coffee equipment dealer makes a mistake, they can handle the return at no cost to you. If online retailers will accept returns, they generally charge restocking fees and pass on the shipping charges to the customer. Ordering wrong equipment also costs lost time.

4.      Supporting coffee equipment companies is supporting small businesses. It doesn’t take much explanation to show how working with a small distributor and/or local dealer keeps more money in your communities. Online retailers often are in large metropolitan communities far from its customers. Not only do you get great service from people you can know personally, your money helps support the families of those who serve you.

As you can see, there’s many great reasons for buying coffee equipment from your local coffee equipment dealer. If you are in the process of buying coffee equipment, don’t hesitate to reach out to Reverie Coffee Roasters or Principal Coffee Equipment Solutions. We’re here to help customers find the best equipment for their project. Simply send us an email at the button below.