LHBS or On Line Retailer

[beergolf]

I have a LHBS very close to me. I give him 90% of my business. His prices for grains, extract etc. is pretty normal, so I buy thrm there. Yeast is anothe rthing I always but ther because I can check the date. His hop prices are high so I but most of my hops online. The hops I use frequently I but online, but some hops I just but from him.

Having a LHBS nearby can save a brew day if you need something at the last minute, so I try my best to support him. If a couple of bucks of my business keeps him open then I will support that....

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

If I had a place like Northern, Midwest, Austin, Brew Gadgets, etc. within driving distance, I don't think I would bother with the internet much.

it is a nice perk. i still find myself ordering things like hops that the big guys run out of (simcoe, citra, etc.) from the inter webs. i received a Lb of whole hops last week from freshhops.com (highly recommend them) and there's some online stores that have kits i enjoy drinking, so i order from those places (homebrewheaven.com has a great IPA that's clone of a local brewpub's IPA. great beer, i order a few kits a year from them)
i think brewers who live in cities like Austin or Minneapolis/st. p. are pretty lucky to have a big internet retail warehouse(s) and a selection of LHBS to chose from.

 

[Monkey55]

....

BUT, as I always say, my money belongs in my daughter's belly, not the owner's of my LHBS. Therefore, when the value works in my favor, I place orders online......

This is exactly how I feel.

When people start telling me what I should or shouldn't buy, I tell them that when they start paying my bills, they can tell me how to spend my money. Until then, shut your pie-hole. (ok. I really don't say that last part.. U

E

 

[C-Rider]

I buy all my grain at the LHBS. He has a pretty good selection of malts. 2Row goes for $1.70/lb and all the other grains are $2.00/lb. I'd say he has at least 30 different malts to work with.

But I buy hops and yeast online. The price is low enough that even w/shipping to Hawai`i I can get more online than locally.

 

[ksb63]

My LHBS is about 60 miles away but we go to Austin at least twice a month. I just have to have my list ready.

 

[Marlowefire]

My LHBS is about 30-35 minutes from where I live. So, it's not usually worth it to me to make a trip out there. I'll drop by if I happen to be in that part of town but that rarely corresponds with when I need a big batch of ingredients. Otherwise, I order online.

However, a LHBS and beer store is opening just a few blocks from my house this upcoming Spring. If they have good selection and good prices then I'll likely get most of my supplies there (anyone who's been to Hop City in ATL, feel free to comment - they're opening a store in Birmingham).

Went by there this weekend in atl. They are revamping that store as well. They seemed to have very good prices but were out of a lot of stuff since they were renovating but the main guy seemed knowledgeable and cool. I told my friend whom I was visiting that he was lucky to have a place like that nearby.

 

[jiggs_casey]

I got into a bit of a debate a few weeks back about where to get supplies. When I got my starter kit from Christmas a year ago it came from Midwest Supplies. Because of that I started purchasing other items from them. I do have a LHBS store in the area (actually 2). They are nothing on the size of a Midwest or Austins, but they are local.

I asked my friend if he wanted to place an order sometime through Midwest. His basic response was he would rather support the Mom and Pop down the street. I get that and in fact I have made several purchase the last few weeks including equipment and ingredients at my LBHS. I tend to like to support the locals as well.

My issue is when I look at pricing and how much less expensive it is to get the same item on line and that includes shipping. If I'm smart about what I'm ordering and making sure maximize my what I'm ordering, it helps out even more on the shipping.

My LHBS seems to have a good supply of ingredients and they package their own extract kits which I have used. So they have available most of the basics. But as I said earlier no where near the inventory of someone like Midwest.

I guess my what I'm looking for is how people would look at this? Try to buy, at a higher expense, from the local store to help business and support them and the local brew market, buy from the good on-line retailers, or a combination of both?

Maybe I'm just over thinking this but have to think about something brew wise as my fermenters are full and won't be brewing another batch for a week or to. I guess I should feel lucky to have a store that is available where I live for those short notice type items...

I'm all for keeping it local but I think that support mantra should go both ways. Personally, I think the two shops in your neck of the woods are just plain high. I restrict my shopping at either shop for when I absolutely need something for an upcoming brewday and can't get it in time anywhere else.

 

[Grippe]

I buy at the lhbs

 

[gingerdawg]

living in mpls, Midwest and NB are technically LHBS for me, and i go to Midwest for most of my brewing purchases. i think i would mail order from them if i didn't live here, they're a great store. but i also have an actual LHBS about five minutes away from my house that i like a lot, great shop, reasonable prices, great people, so i try to give them some business even if i can get something from the big guys. i appreciate the small store, the guys who work there, and the convenience. i exchange all my co2 there, buy my bottle caps and cleaning supplies there, and try to bring the employees there some beer from time to time to thank them for being my LHBS. long story short, the big guys are great, so use 'em, but if you have a good LHBS, use them too.

Isn't it cool to live in a place where we have BOTH NB and Midwest as the LHBSs!?!?!
That said who is your other LHBS in Minneapolis??

 

[OlatheSurferDude]

Thanks everyone for all of the excellent feedback. I think at the end of the day one needs to do what they feel is best for there situation. I'm sure I'll continue to use both avenues of making purchases but would anticipate the bulk of my purchases will be made on-line.

 

[NorthBayBrewer]

I support the LHBS except when I DIY. It is good for the local brewing community & neighborhood economy.

 

[jmprdood]

I mostly shop online, always cheaper and I save a 1hr round trip to my lhbs.

 

[mjdonnelly68]

I agree that for price and selection, you can't beat the online HB sites. I loved the extract kits from Northern Brewer - top notch.

That being said, I make sure to throw a certain percentage of my hobby spend to my LHBS (mostly bottles and misc supplies).

Even though it costs me more and the quality is sometimes less than what I can get online, I write the difference off to ensuring that I have access to emergency brewing supplies (in case I can't wait four days to get it shipped).

I say use both!

 

[trigger]

My LHBS (Brewbrothers) is cheaper than NB or Austin, not by a little bit, but like 25-50% cheaper on grains, and slightly cheaper on hops and yeast. The other places in town are more expensive than the online retailers, and I've had terrible customer service experiences at them. So for me, if the one LHBS I use wasn't around I'd buy online in bulk. If my store wasn't around anymore I would actually go out of my way to buy online, that's how bad my experiences have been at the 4 other homebrew shops around here.

 

[Satisfaction]

Having lived in small town America and have family members that own their own stores. I buy everything I can from my LHBS, except when their price is way out of line and he cannot meet the difference. This has never happened... The other situation is when they do not carry the item, I will purchase from someone online.

Just have an open and honest conversation with your LHBS, once they know you are not one of the uninformed masses and not a prick picking apart their business. They will be willing to deal with you and funny enough appreciate your patronage.

 

[Firebat138]

We buy a lot from LHBS, a bag of 2 row for $50... Cant find that online... We get the little things also, carboys handles, hop bags, small malt ingredients, but hops we have started buying online of course... Local hops are $3.80 for Amarillo and online I can get for less than half. That being said the store is right around the corner from my house, so it is very convenient... And they add 6 visits up and give you 10% of the total off your order... Example, spent $450 in the last 6 visits and got a $45 coupon off...

 

[pm5k00]

I buy the vast majority of my supplies at my LHBS (homebrewparty.com) and sometimes austin homebrew supply (in store) but their prices are competive on most items. I do buy hops in bulk online, and occassional equipment online if my LHBS is more expensive. However if my LHBS was considerably more I would not think twice about buying online.

 

[PollardsVision]

I'm still pretty new. So far, I've only bought from the LHBS and I plan to always do the vast majority of my business there.
-It's 10 minutes away.
-The prices are right in line with the online retailers.
-Most importantly, the owner is incredibly helpful.

If any of the above wasn't true, I'm sure I'd shop online.

I'm not a "shop local nazi", but certainly, there's a benefit to doing so, when it makes sense.
On the other hand, it doesn't make sense to shop anywhere that doesn't provide the value or service you need.

 

[ReverseApacheMaster]

I buy some locally, some online. I prefer to buy locally but what is most important to me is the quality of the ingredients and then secondly price. Third is convenience. I'd rather not wait for shipping but if it's the better deal and I am not in a rush then sometimes online orders are more convenient.

One local shop has really cheap base grain but terrible prices on everything else and very little grain selection so I can only go there when I need the most basic grains or I already have the specialty grains on hand. Another shop sells even fewer grains slightly cheaper but requires bulk purchases. I haven't bought from them because I usually need more than what they have. There is another shop I used to frequent but they took down their website so I can't tell what they have in stock and certainly cannot price compare. They are too far of a drive to go there and leave without what I need. A new shop has opened in the area but they are more expensive. I will probably check them out just to see what the store is like but they have been closed around the holidays each time I wanted to go. There are a few other shops in the area even further away so by the time I factor in gas and time it is considerably more expensive than buying online.

I do my online purchases at BMW and hopsdirect (for hops only, of course). Great selection, very reasonable prices, great service. Everything I could hope for.

 

[kttx740]

It all comes down to convenience for me. If I know I will be near my LHBS I will stop in and get what I need. But if I don't plan to make that trip an online supplier will be getting my business. Nothing against the LHBS but like I said, its a convenience factor for me.

 

[smalliewader]

My LHBS was about 5 minutes from where I worked...very convenient for stocking up on my lunch break. Now that I'm not working there, I have a 30 minute drive each way, but still use them over online. The prices work out the same after shipping and I can actually go in the store and select my ingredients and poke around. It's an hour round trip drive, but at least I'm not waiting 2-3 days for my grains and hops. I usually brew on a whim. Make a starter and just go...I don't want to be waiting for that small ingredient I need for the style I want to make.

 

[JiltedEmu]

As many people have stated, getting the best value for my money is my biggest priority. Fortunately, there are four LHBS within 40 min of me and their prices are quite comparable to online retailers. I find that most of the time if I'm shopping online it's to find more exotic ingredients (like Falconer's Flight) or just to make sure I'm getting a good price.

If the price difference is negligible though, then I prefer to spend it at a LHBS. I like being able to taste the grains, smell the hops, or check the freshness of the yeast. Also, I like interacting with shop owners or their employees. Most of the time, they are personable, nice, and somewhat knowledgable about their products.

Also, one shop in particular usually has brews on tap that I can sample to get ideas or just to enjoy

 

[OpenContainer]

My Local store is only open on Friday's from 10 - 3 and is a side business for the proprietor. He has a very small selection of pretty much nothing, but takes email orders the week before for pick up the following week.

When I asked him to order me some Montrachet, he didn't do it since he already had K1-V1116 and in his mind it would be ok. Well.......that's not what I asked for. I'll likely spend a dollar or two there for some smaller equip items, but Northern will get the majority of my business from here on out.

 

[Tinga]

I live north of the twin cities but drive through them to go to my parents house. So after seeing my parents I try to swing by Midwest. My lhbs is a liquor store or a brew on premise wine place. neither have bulk grain, hops other than cascade or mt. hood and the yeast is routinely past date. however if I need an auto siphon or star san or a pound of grain I try to hit them up. other than that I like ordering from midwest.

 

[marmonduke]

I go to Homebrew Shop in olathe for yeast and grains if I'm wanting to brew that day. To be honest some stuff is alot cheaper there than ordering online and some is way overpriced. I do both oline and local..there's just somethings I can't get there..like Perlicks, acidulated malt, etc. bulk grain prices are a joke there also so I go to Bacchus & Barleycorn to get my $47 bag of 2-row and just buy specialty grains and yeast at LHBS. If I lived closer to Independence I'd check out apexbrewwares for bulk grain but I'd spend more in gas then it's worth. Hops I like to buy in bulk online.