hilld
Well-known member
I had to tell them I was an ITC member even though they put in my phone number.
Harbor Freight Coupon Thread
- Thread starter RbrtAWhyt
- Start date
Yes same problem. Didn't get it straightened out when I asked either. The cashier and person who was supervising said no you got the discount. Once I got home I realized I didn't. It was cheaper at Menard's later that day so I bought the stuff there and returned the HF stuff a few days later when I had more time. That was about 4 weeks ago and I haven't been back.
Happened to me during the last 30% off promo. Someone is tinkering with this months Inside Track Club Exclusives web page separating items into categories like auto vs lawn vs power tools etc and there are repeats of items that cross the categories. So change is coming and probably affecting how smoothly ITC used to function.
chaosracing
Well-known member
Part of the reason I will not join the ITC.....my information never pops up in their system no matter how many times they input it. Now that the coupons are gone, I hardly shop there anymore. Why do I have to pay to save money?
javyLSU
Well-known member
It takes a lot to get me in a Harbor Freight store now. I used to buy lots of stuff that was a good deal only when paired with a 20% off coupon. Now that they’ve replaced the 20% off coupon with the “Instant Savings” sales and left everything else at regular price, I buy the stuff I used to get there elsewhere on online, usually for less.
And it gets worse... You used to be able to sign up for ITC online and get a $10 gift card. They took that away about a week ago.
JRC3
Well-known member
Not to mention having to pay extra for the same warranty every other tool maker offers. Actually even after paying extra for the HF "extended warranty" it still falls short of most power tool and battery standard warranties.
whateg01
Well-known member
I've yet to buy their extended warranty. When the cost of the warranty is 20% of a new item, I'll take that chance. If it failed often enough to need to use the warranty multiple times I wouldn't want to be using that tool anyway.
muibubbles
Well-known member
Glad I'm not the only one. They sell you on "once youre ITC you dont need coupons and it will automatically give you the discount" I've been shopping at HF since 2008 when I first found out about them and would make the 45 min drive to the store. I now have one 6-7minutes away and can barely give myself and excuse to go there anymore. Really disappointed in the direction they're taking (And thats coming from someone who bought about 5 tool cabinets during dec-jan)
I don't understand why Harbor Freight doesn't make it easy and connect the accounts. I signed up online a couple of months ago when the $10.00 gift card was available. I usually visit the store when purchasing, but have ordered online 3 or 4 times now. Even today when I sign into my account online the Inside Track Club is separate from my standard online account. If I want to see the Inside Track Club discounts I have to enter my ITC number and email address, even though I'm already signed in. This is one of those cases where the data is already available, why not make it easy for the customer and ensure it's all tied together and easy to use?
whateg01
Well-known member
When I bought my toolboxes, I asked to make sure I was getting my discount and it was already applied and she showed me the screen where it said I was an ITC member. Maybe HF just doesn't like you! 
GForceJunky
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- Apr 18, 2011
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I wonder(ed) the same thing. It's so odd...
getbent4x4
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Maybe you should quit shopping at HF.
XJPat
Well-known member
I honestly wonder if they are doing it on purpose to drive up revenue. They get the money from the inside track fee. Then hope you don't notice the coupons are not applied and make an extra twentyish percentage more that way or whatever the discount was supposed to be.
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JRC3
Well-known member
Of course they do it on purpose. Huge companies do nothing like this by mistake, they have a team of people and outside consulting with tons of research and algorithms to get as much money out of your wallet as possible, all while saving the company itself 1/10th of a penny in the process.
HF has also figured out the exact price point to make people not realize their ****** 90 day warranty too. And for those customers who realize it they somehow make them feel all warm and fuzzy by selling them the "extended" warranty. All of it is very researched and well thought out. HF is a $5B company, they know exactly what they are doing.
HF has also figured out the exact price point to make people not realize their ****** 90 day warranty too. And for those customers who realize it they somehow make them feel all warm and fuzzy by selling them the "extended" warranty. All of it is very researched and well thought out. HF is a $5B company, they know exactly what they are doing.
I would hope you are correct but I worked in a company more than twice that size for over 20 years. They constantly screwed stuff up and often had no clue what they were doing. Watching them totally screw the pooch and having to do a 180 multiple times gives me no faith at all that any large company has it together.
AffableCurmudgeon
Well-known member
I went to get my COVID shot and saw that everyone was using HF nitrile gloves. I understand from their store displays that they are donating nitrile gloves to the cause.
Donations are tax write-offs, so I assume they are writing those gloves off.
At the same time, price of their nitrile gloves in the store is about 3 times higher than the pre-pandemic price.
Could it be that they are making up the cost of the donated gloves through higher glove prices and at the same time, getting tax credits using the higher cost amount?
Donations are tax write-offs, so I assume they are writing those gloves off.
At the same time, price of their nitrile gloves in the store is about 3 times higher than the pre-pandemic price.
Could it be that they are making up the cost of the donated gloves through higher glove prices and at the same time, getting tax credits using the higher cost amount?
HF actually reads this thread. Just today I saw this which addresses the previously discussed issue of not being able to use the ITC membership until you receive your card.
So HF, listen up. Bring back the coupons, at least the **% off no exclusions every now and then. Otherwise slowly but surely you will observe diminished sales.
All in favor?
So HF, listen up. Bring back the coupons, at least the **% off no exclusions every now and then. Otherwise slowly but surely you will observe diminished sales.
All in favor?
leftyz
Well-known member
HF wants diminished sales right now, otherwise their shelves would be even more bare than they currently are. With corona virus and the supply chain fallout that has followed they are doing all they can do to keep even just a little inventory on hand. If they were still doing all their coupons and discounts it would be much worse.
gpiggaz
Well-known member
I know this isn't about a coupon, but I think the reason the gloves are so much more expensive than before is not due to the donation/tax write off, it's due to the supply being overstretched and out of balance with demand - once demand and supply get balanced again, the prices will return to some lower point. Maybe not as low as originally, but lower than now. I believe HF even said that a few months ago when they actually didn't even have any gloves at all. I for one am glad they made the donations, and I have been able to buy gloves in the last few months for stuff I do around the house that requires them ( painting is the big one for me)
Glove price went up because malaysia makes the lion's share of them, and they use forced labor. US sanctioned those companies and it's time to pay up.
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thepipe
Well-known member
Based on the totality of recent corporate policies, I agree completely. BTW, how did it work out for Sears?
Sears is such a different animal altogether. It will be extremely difficult for another major retailer to **** at it as much as Sears did.
Buuuuuuuttt anything is possible.
thepipe
Well-known member
They might not be Sears yet, but they are well on their way. Take a look at HF's new policies and, even more importantly, the mindset that seems to be the genesis of them. It is not too late for them to recognize their errors and correct them. I hope they do - I have loved this store for years, but haven't been in one for quite a while. Lately, there is simply no reason to go.
They might not be Sears yet, but they are well on their way. Take a look at HF's new policies and, even more importantly, the mindset that seems to be the genesis of them. It is not too late for them to recognize their errors and correct them. I hope they do - I have loved this store for years, but haven't been in one for quite a while. Lately, there is simply no reason to go.
Excuse my ignorance but what specifically should I be looking for regarding HF's new policies?
I haven't yet read any of them, I'm just basing my assertion on their push for an "upscale" brand recognition, although the stores are totally lacking that experience.
I don't yet see how the two will find the same path.
leftyz
Well-known member
They have gone away from their coupon marketing strategy, and they are moving away from their "good tools at low prices" strategy.
thepipe
Well-known member
The corporate perspective seems to be undergoing a sea change. They used to have a very solid value strategy, but now seem to be attempting to enter a much more upscale price point. The tools are no better, the store is no more fancy, and the warranty is still downright pitiful. Only the price went up, even without figuring in what used to be the almost automatic coupon discount. Without this, it is a double price whammy.
Although they are heavily pushing the Inside Track Club, the customer is required to notify the cashier at each and every checkout to receive the discount. This, in spite of the fact that they KNOW you are an ITC customer because you provide your phone number at checkout.
These are embodiments of the mindset I began experiencing at Sears before I simply gave up on them. So did everyone else, it seems. I sincerely hope HF reconsiders this business model before it is too late.
Fusionman79
Well-known member
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- Apr 19, 2016
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- 57
Without the coupons, their tools cost as much or more than Dewalt, Milwaukee, etc. I will NEVER choose a Harbor Freight tool over name-brand unless the cost savings are significant. And all the “throwaway” Chinese tools and accessories they carry, can be bought on Amazon for half of Harbor Freight’s price. They made a mistake remaking and branding their tools and charging more for them. Hopefully they realize their mistake and bring back coupons, otherwise I expect they’ll go the way of Sears.
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getbent4x4
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If I can order tools cheaper from ebay what do I need harbor freight for?
danny_barkley
Well-known member
I just ordered a few tool boxes from them
I think their Daytona Jacks are nice...
How much longer do i have to think about it?
So does Snapon. If they are good enough to get sued over I'm OK with them.
brandonsmash
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- Sep 8, 2016
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Another flaw with their ITC push is that it's tied to your phone number.
I do not give my phone number to retail stores. Ever.
They may say that they'll not spam or contact me, but that's only applicable A) so far as the cashier knows, and B) until they change their privacy policy. It also doesn't stop them from giving or selling their phone number lists to marketers. Even if they refused to give or sell the lists, corporate security is as we know often porous. Look at the AmEx or Experian hacks, for instance, and know that those are huge financial institutions with tons of resources dedicated to security.
Harbor Freight? What, are they protecting their customers' data behind a Chicago Electric router?
HF has been expanding. Good for them! However, their pricing has been increasing and they've slowly been taking away a number of core reasons I've shopped there over the years and anymore I just tend to buy upmarket tools or, if I need something disposable, order it from Amazon rather than go to HF.
They've more or less lost me as a customer with their policy changes, and they won't get me to give them my phone number anyway so that avenue is not open either.
I do not give my phone number to retail stores. Ever.
They may say that they'll not spam or contact me, but that's only applicable A) so far as the cashier knows, and B) until they change their privacy policy. It also doesn't stop them from giving or selling their phone number lists to marketers. Even if they refused to give or sell the lists, corporate security is as we know often porous. Look at the AmEx or Experian hacks, for instance, and know that those are huge financial institutions with tons of resources dedicated to security.
Harbor Freight? What, are they protecting their customers' data behind a Chicago Electric router?
HF has been expanding. Good for them! However, their pricing has been increasing and they've slowly been taking away a number of core reasons I've shopped there over the years and anymore I just tend to buy upmarket tools or, if I need something disposable, order it from Amazon rather than go to HF.
They've more or less lost me as a customer with their policy changes, and they won't get me to give them my phone number anyway so that avenue is not open either.
oflannabhra
Well-known member
HF’s prices have been increasing, as lots of others have noticed. I think the primary driving factor in that has been tariffs. If you look at equivalent products, you’re also going to find a ton of price inflation. Just look at tool chests as a sector, and prices from 2 years ago are gone.
HF doesn’t have as much margin as other companies to ride out pressures like that.
From what I can tell from the timing, their decisions have less to do with greed and a lot more to do with survival.
HF doesn’t have as much margin as other companies to ride out pressures like that.
From what I can tell from the timing, their decisions have less to do with greed and a lot more to do with survival.
Unless you order something that isn't in stock, they don't call you ever. So what I've done in the past (until I ordered a toolbox) was take my cell phone number and add one digit to the last number. I actually do that for all stores/websites/whatever. Makes it easy to remember for receipt purposes, and you don't have to worry about the spam.
Bogie1632
Well-known member
So some poor sap may be getting all your spam calls. Nice. By chance have you called that number? Just curious. I had a NCO do this as we were required to have a contact number in a force wide notification system and he (along with many others) was tired of getting notifications at O-dark:30. We called that number and a gentleman answered. We asked if he was getting weird notification texts and calls and he was...and he was pissed. As humorous as that was I sorta felt bad for him too.
V/R
Bogie