21 replies to this topic

[samiamm]

I mean we all regularly buy nootropics, supplements, and vitamins on here, which can run up to 100s of $$ for 100 gs.


Why don't we all organize into one big community. I have a couple of sources that could get us stuff we buy now for a cheap price if we buy a large amount. On top of the wholesale prices, if everyone chipped in a little for testing, we could have all of our stuff verified, every group buy, to make sure the seller is staying up to standards.

Just send a small sample of each order every GB.

[mait]

Count me in!

[samiamm]

awesome, we would need to get a large community for this to work

[renfr]

I think the best way we could do that is to implement a feature within the forum to make the process more automatic and structured.
Proposals for several group buys would be listed then each interested user would book in and commit to buy and once the number is reached a trusted member (elderly user, moderator, admin, ...) would make the order and then send to each buyer what they bought.
We could also imagine to have regional group buys, it would be faster for everyone if we segment group buy listings between US&Canada/Europe/Rest of the world.

[samiamm]

Regional GBs would leave a lot of people out, I don't think it'd be fair. International shipping can be a pain, but, it's more than possible. Why don't we make this happen?

[UnknownSuitor]

I don't believe anyone would trust a group buy from a new user. In fact I just wouldn't risk it at all.

[PWAIN]

My experience with group buys on other forums.

1. Another guy collected everyones money and then dissapeared.

2. I ran a group buy, people agreed to buy a certain qty when it came in. After pending a small fortune on way more than I needed, everyone suddely backed out leaving me with a load of stuff I didn't need.

It might not turn out that way but I would be super cautious.

[UnknownSuitor]

Exactly as I was saying, think of simple business.

1) You risk a large sum of money in the hopes of saving a small/moderate sum, and since the probability of there being ramifications towards the group buy leader couldn't be higher then >3%
2) You don't risk your money, you purchase your supplements at a store that has a strong following and many legitimate reviews. You pay an extra 10%.

[samiamm]

Exactly as I was saying, think of simple business.

1) You risk a large sum of money in the hopes of saving a small/moderate sum, and since the probability of there being ramifications towards the group buy leader couldn't be higher then >3%
2) You don't risk your money, you purchase your supplements at a store that has a strong following and many legitimate reviews. You pay an extra 10%.

1) I wasn't asking anyone if they wanted to join a GB led by me, simply if they've ever thought of the idea.
2) your sentence made no sense
3) the concept of small business beneath your sentence, and the quantitative analysis of how bulk/wholesale prices compare to retail prices brought forth in your comment, made even less sense.


I'm not trying to be harsh, just being blunt

[bl4ck1ce]

I'm a member of another online community where group buys are done on a regular basis. The buys are executed by a well-known & respected forum mod, and people pledge & pay up front before the item(s) are ordered. That way there's virtually no risk of someone taking the money and running, or with the buyer being stuck with tons of stuff they can't use. I think an international buy could be problematic, depending on the substances involved. Some nootropics are legal in some places and banned in others, so some research would need to be done to ensure packages don't get seized by customs. Alternatively, it could be left up to the individual buyers to verify the legality of bringing each substance in, and not hold the group buyer liable if a package was seized. Package tracking would be highly beneficial as well..

[lifebuddy]

it could work, but it can also be a lot of work for the person running the operation. do they get compensated somehow?

[bl4ck1ce]

The example I mentioned was in a personal development community, so the materials purchased are videos, books, audio courses, etc that are shared with the group buy participants in an online archive. There's no monetary compensation for the organizer, but there's also a lot less work involved since they are usually digital files that just need to be uploaded. In this case, there would be packaging, shipping, etc to contend with, so compensation is more of an issue. Perhaps the organizer would get their share of the purchased product for free, or an amount could be added to each particpant's cost, to cover the buyer's time. It would be worth running the numbers to see if the cost savings justify the effort, I think.

[lifebuddy]

there is also the problem of testing the stuff. if it is bought from china, someone is going to have to pay for lab tests, which can be expensive. then what if the results come back showing a bad result, such as high levels of contamination? does everyone accept the risk of losing their money? i have no idea just how many chinese suppliers are offering bad products... how many retailers start business, search through suppliers, try ordering from them, only to find that a certain % of them are selling bunk material. eg. recently one vendor was selling bunk phenylpiracetam (someone on ebay i think), and another was selling sweet tasting 'piracetam' (elevated labs). neither of those vendors perform third party testing, so they are just as blind as we would be.

[bl4ck1ce]

That's a risk all of us face, buying individually or in a group. I suppose it could work to request a verifiable CoA, or maybe have the funds held in escrow until a 3rd party lab verified the purity. Or, the purchases could be restricted to pre-approved suppliers. I just wanted to say that group buys can be quite successful, I'm not too keen on orchestrating the logistics of one though.

[UnknownSuitor]

Exactly as I was saying, think of simple business.

1) You risk a large sum of money in the hopes of saving a small/moderate sum, and since the probability of there being ramifications towards the group buy leader couldn't be higher then >3%
2) You don't risk your money, you purchase your supplements at a store that has a strong following and many legitimate reviews. You pay an extra 10%.

1) I wasn't asking anyone if they wanted to join a GB led by me, simply if they've ever thought of the idea.
2) your sentence made no sense
3) the concept of small business beneath your sentence, and the quantitative analysis of how bulk/wholesale prices compare to retail prices brought forth in your comment, made even less sense.


I'm not trying to be harsh, just being blunt

Ugh, Internet arguing. =(

Edited by UnknownSuitor, 28 January 2013 - 12:45 AM.

[lifebuddy]

lol at the internet argument. They never really get anywhere do they? :-)

Group buys are cool, but I really don't know if it is worth the bother unless it was for a really rare compound. And even then, I think it would be better to offset the importing/capital expenditure/COA testing risk onto an established business. We just have to let the businesses know ---- hey, we want this, get it for us and we will buy! Eg. 100 of us contacted a retailer and asked for unifram. enough responses and bingo, there is your new product ready to buy.

i know that defeats the whole objective of working together though, and saving money in the process. Just with the way that the internet descends so easily into arguments and squabbles...

[samiamm]

Bl4ck1Ce, I feel like we are on the same forum that runs the GBs

[bl4ck1ce]

Bl4ck1Ce, I feel like we are on the same forum that runs the GBs

TP/TV?

[gray.bot]

I am putting my hand up to lead/support an AUSTRALIAN IMPORT RING (sounds way better than a 'group buy')

Us Aussies have to put up with annoying shipping costs and delays and we have all these beautiful beaches. I mean, everytime I go on overseas holidays I'm dissapointed because the beaches there are crap - I just drive 20 mins to the Gold Coast, Bribie Island, Stradbroke Island, Fraser Island National Park... I mean, come on!

So anyone who wants to do an aussie import ring PM me and we'll organise by phone/email.

Ugh, Internet arguing. =(

What else are forums for? Ok ok, making stupid jokes no one finds funny.. but other than that?

[samiamm]

Ok, so this is how the forum I'm in is handled (which i am NOT the leader of)

1) there is an interest thread started to generate interest in a product, with those who possibly want the product commenting.

2) the admin of the forum, who has numerous, trusted Chinese sources, buys a small sample of said product to test (we don't believe in the CoAs and all that other bullshit)

3) the admin then, according to the tests, chooses which supplier to go from (he usually chooses the source he trusts for that specific compound first, so it ends up being one test usually)

4) the actual group buy thread is started, with the price per g, 10g, 100g, or w.e the required minimum amount is. Everyone who then wants to purchase comments in the thread with their amount. ONCE YOU COMMENT, YOU ARE COMMITTING TO BUY THE PRODUCT. IF YOU BACK OUT, THAT IS AN INSTANT BAN, SO SLEEP ON IT FOR TEN DAYS IF YOU MUST BEFORE YOU COMMENT.

5) once the deadline is reached, the thread closes, and the orders go out.

6) This is an added step we never did before, but now believe is necessary. Admin gets his order first, which is then RETESTED TO ENSURE THE LAB ISN'T TRYING TO PULL A FAST ONE. We actually had a trusted lab send us SOMEONE ELSE'S BATCHA by mistake, and we only knew because admin decided to retest, you simply CAN'T JUST TRUST THESE LABS.

7) Once everything is verified, all the orders ship out


NOTE, THE TESTING COSTS ARE SPLIT BETWEEN ALL THE MEMBERS WHO ORDERED, SO THAT GOES INTO THE FINAL PRICE. USUALLY THE PRICE STILL ENDS UP REACHING BELOW OR AT THE PRICE OF OTHER SOURCES, BUT SOMETIMES, IT CAN BE HIGHER. THAT'S AN EXTRA PAYMENT I'M WILLING TO DEAL WITH TO ENSURE I GET WHAT I PAID FOR.

now, this forum originally started out as a forum to purchase black market hairloss drugs, CB, RU, SABA GEL, ETC. it then slowly drifted into bodybuilding also. now, the forum is pretty much a mecca for whatever you want as long as you can generate interest.

IT IS VERY PROFESSIONAL. WE HAVE COUNTLESS STUDIES AND PDFS OF EVERY COMPOUND WE BUY, WHICH ALSO COST MONEY. PARTICIPATION IS REQUIRED ONCE YOU BECOME A MEMBER, YOU CANNOT SIMPLY JOIN, AND WAIT TILL A GB COMES UP TO GET YOUR FIX, YOU MUST BE INVOLVED SOMEHOW.

Now, i am going to be making an interest thread about noots soon, and i am more than confident it will generate interest. I am willing to invite and vouch for ANYONE ON HERE WHO IS INTERESTED, AFTER I LOOK AT THEIR POST HISTORY TO ENSURE THEY ARE NOT TROLLS.

[Colour]

Any group buys going on for phenylpiracetam?

[igorpanarin]

IM INTERESTED IN A GROUP BY FOR PRL 8-53