I really dislike sales tax

[William]

I used my first purchase 5% discount.  I made it a big one, to save a lot and to get free shipping.  But it kind of slipped my mind that sales tax in CA is more than 5% (a lot more).  Does this make me a teapartier?  Am I a libertarian without knowing it?  

Whatever.  Be happy you non-Californians.  I do get to visit Riv HQ without much trouble, but I have to pay sales tax whenever I buy from them.  I guess I prefer things the way they are, but Sales Tax hurts sometimes. 

[Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery]

By law, in states that have sales tax, or at least in Minnesota, residents are required to claim their untaxed out-of-state mail order purchases (or for off-the-books local person-to-person transactions for used stuff) and pay sales/use tax on them. As far as I know, there is little/no enforcement on this for ordinary citizens who don't have a retail sales tax exemption.

[Tim McNamara]

Sales tax generally bothers me not at all and does not deter me from buying locally. I don't understand the excessive anger about such taxes, in the US we pay far less tax than in most of the rest of the developed world (and in the undeveloped world, things usually operate by bribes which will often cost you more than taxes would).

I but non-locally when I can't get what I want from local sources or unless there is a *huge* price difference after accounting for shipping charges. Given my preferences in bike equipment, I am able to get most things at Jim's shop since he stocks the kind of stuff I like (unlike almost every other bike shop in town, most of which are devoted to the Trek, Specialized and/or Cannondale product lines for bikes and accessories). But there are a few odd things I buy from sources Riv (e.g., clothing items, Phil hand cleaner, and some other bits and bobs).

[Garth]

I'm good with all sales taxes .... and I love living in the US. I can think of many worse places to be.

It's simply the cost being alive :)  .... hence it's called "cost of living" ..... which beats the cost being dead ... which is free, but nowhere near as fun !  LoL :)

Money is but one kind of energy .... and energy is the flow of life.  Viva life !

[William]

Yeah, I'm over it.  My temporary dislike for paying sales tax was over-ruled by my never-ending like of opening a box from Rivendell.  Nitto racks and Devold undies!  I'm set!

[Minh]

WEll you do get your packages faster then the 7 day wait for us on the
east coast!

[Tim McNamara]

Ha! It's true- and for me much of the entertainment is seeing how they got all that stuff into such a small box.

[William]

I'm with you on that.  But in that department, this particular packaging was way below standard.  The box was much larger than necessary.  Maybe I should have photographed it before I broke it down.  You know how all of us have gotten Riv packages and immediately assumed "It CANT all be in there!"  This time I was saying "They must have put something extra in there!"  Nope, just lots and lots of packing material.  Of course everything was fine, and it was free shipping, but it was positively un-Riv-ish in "fill fraction".  Maybe Robert is on vacation.  :)  

[EricP]

Well, they do have at least one new person in packing. (remember the
want ad on the site?)

Also don't mind the sales tax, but do realize that every area is
different,. While not an issue in the Twin Cities up in Duluth, MN
there are added taxes that do make me think once or twice before
buying something when I'm up there.

Only thing I don't like about modern sales taxes - can't figure them
easily in my head anymore. My mom worked retail and for years I could
figure out tax and give the sales person exact change before it was
rung up. A fun way to mess with folks back in the day.

Eric Platt
St. Paul, MN

On Nov 2, 6:13 pm, William <tapebu...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I'm with you on that.  But in that department, this particular packaging
> was way below standard.  The box was much larger than necessary.  Maybe I
> should have photographed it before I broke it down.  You know how all of us

> have gotten Riv packages and immediately assumed "It *CANT* all be in

[John Bennett]

Robert *is* on vacation, and Jenny, our new shipper, is doing a great
job of keeping up with the flow of orders after only a few weeks on
the job.

Monday, she packed and shipped 60 orders by herself. Apologies for the
too big box, but under the circumstances, I'd rather she get the boxes
out the door and off to our good customers.

Like you!

Fine tuning will come.

John at RBW HQ, WC, CA

On Nov 2, 4:13 pm, William <tapebu...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I'm with you on that.  But in that department, this particular packaging
> was way below standard.  The box was much larger than necessary.  Maybe I
> should have photographed it before I broke it down.  You know how all of us

> have gotten Riv packages and immediately assumed "It *CANT* all be in

[William]

60 orders in one day!  That's some serious throughput.  As much as I enjoy picking up my stuff in person, now I'm tempted to have you ship so I can see Jenny learn the art from the master.  What's the trickiest thing to ship?  A bullmoose bar?  

[John Bennett]

A bike stand, I reckon.

[islaysteve]

Well, the 12 RBW stickers you guys sent me didn't take up hardly any room at all in my order.  Thanks for honoring my request!  Hope you got a lot of orders from the 5% off deal and best wishes for a busy holiday season.  Steve

[Leslie]

60/day!  That's why there was a lack of box-art (I always look for sharpie sketches on boxes from Riv).  (Is that a new-bike-thing only?)

Yeah, when the tubes/tires/roll arrived the other day, I was expecting a box half the size, was surprised;  but I'm *not* complaining, it came quickly, w/ everything ordered, etc., no problems at all.  But, Jenny getting 60 out in a day, she's hustlin'! 

Go Jenny!

:)

[Marty]

In my recent experience, the team is getting so efficient that they actually sent me an order in advance of placing it! Well, actually I was surprised last week when a box showed up from Riv unexpectedly that contained the same items I had received the week before. (It's fun enough getting one you expect, but coming home to a surprise package really got my heart racing.) Both were very nicely packed! Box #2 is going back this weekend of course, after I alerted the team and was assured that it was not some glitch with the new site. BTW, it's a few last bits for my silver Bombadil, so stay tuned for more pics this weekend.

Marty

[Tim McNamara]

That's an order packed about every 8 minutes in an 8 hour day. Holy Smokes!

And YAY for Rivendell *having* 60 orders a day to send out!!!

[Pete Olson]

I hadn’t noticed before reading this thread that Rivendell carries
Devold; I didn’t think that this brand was imported. I have a Devold
wool top and a neck warmer from Norway that are very nice. It is the
centennial of the Amundsen South Pole expedition and here is a
translation of the role of Devold:

1911 - 2011 Amundsen and Devold at the South Pole 100 years ago.

December 14, 2011 is the 100th anniversary of Roald Amundsen and his
expedition reaching the North Pole. This feat made Amundsen one of
history's most famous polar explorers. ........ To survive in the
extreme climate, expedition members were also dependent on proper
clothing. In 1911, Devold had produced warm clothing made of wool for
over 50 years, and was a well-known supplier of durable wool. As
Nansen had done before him, for the crossing of Greenland, Amundsen
also chose wool from Devold for his expedition. We are proud to have
been part of this event.

[Bob]

Twenty percent VAT on just about everything here. Be happy.