Matchless Homebrew Launch New Online Shop

[Jonnyv]

Hey guys,

Matchless Homebrew (based in Coalville, Leics) today launched their new online shop: http://www.matchlesshomebrewing.co.uk/

Please go and have a look and let us know what you think of the site, prices, delivery costs etc. We'd love to get some early feedback from homebrewers about the new shop. We've got lots planned for the next few months, including promotions, a product review blog, and of course extending the range of products available online.

To launch the shop Matchless are offering John Bull beer kits for only £8.00 and Mondego 6-bottle wine kits for only £5.50!

Delivery details are:
- Free for orders over £65.00
- Free for surrounding 15 miles of Coalville (click here for details)
- £5.99 up to 24kg for next-day courier service

Any questions about the shop, either reply here, email [email protected] or phone Matchless on 01530 813800.

Jonny

 

[EskiBrew]

Looks great :clap:

 

[corby_brewer]

had a look last night, very impressive.

:

 

[Vossy1]

Looks great JV :thumb:

I assume you've changed the addy JV as the one that was already present in the 'list' was pointing at a different site :hmm:
I've edited in the new site addy now

 

[Wez]

Looks great - good work :thumb:

 

[A T]

Very nice looking site

 

[Moley]

Sorry, but as a totally impartial punter, and as JV seems to be looking for feedback, I'm not impressed.

Site is fairly easy to navigate but stock range seems limited and prices seem above average.

All of the Young's chemicals (Pectolase, Campdens, Tannin, Sorbate etc.) I can get cheaper in Wilko or my LHBS.

Wherry at £18.49 - it's £14.99 in Wilko.

Munton's spraymalts at £3.75, I can get them for £2.99

Pale Malt at £1.49/kg, fair enough, but why are the Crystal / Black / Chocolate etc. almost double?

Hops, all at £6.99 for 100g: go take a running jump.

Beer yeasts - my LHBS doesn't stock Danstar Windsor / Nottingham and they seem very good prices compared to what I've been paying for S-04, but it looks like that's about all I would buy from them.

No disrespect, I do hope this forum allows freedom of speech, that's entirely my personal opinion and I'm sorry if you don't like it but if you want my custom you must try harder.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KE4HGlmtOcg

 

[A T]

Moley, your opinion is always welcome on this forum. Personally as i'm in Ireland the prices don't matter to me but Matchless is only coming online now and as you know demand=price so maybe give these guys a chance to get competitive I have only heard glowing feedback about them so have a heart :lol:

 

[Vossy1]

No disrespect, I do hope this forum allows freedom of speech, that's entirely my personal opinion and I'm sorry if you don't like it but if you want my custom you must try harder

Moley, on this forum we always try to encourage free speech, and as a member of admin I am first and foremost a brewer. JV asked for feedback regards the new Matchless site and that's what they're/he's getting, for better or worse. Either way it will make HB internet shopping a better experience :thumb:

All of the Young's chemicals (Pectolase, Campdens, Tannin, Sorbate etc.) I can get cheaper in Wilko or my LHBS.Wherry at £18.49 - it's £14.99 in Wilko.

What you must remember Moley is that Wilko's have far greater buying power than any local HBS. What larger retail outlets tend to do, is to out compete local competition as a loss leader, and then when their competition has gone out of business, they reduce the range available based on their most popular sales..inevitably leading to less choice :thumb:

Hops, all at £6.99 for 100g: go take a running jump.

I can't say that based on searches of other HB sites that they offer competitive prices :hmm:

Munton's spraymalts at £3.75, I can get them for £2.99

£2.99 is very cheap M. Again, on a general search they are cheaper via HBS in general £3.60 ish, but is 15p worth splitting hairs over :hmm: ....you could make the difference up in C&D :hmm:

Please go and have a look and let us know what you think of the site, prices, delivery costs etc. We'd love to get some early feedback from homebrewers

Looks like the feedback is coming, please let us know what you think of it :thumb:

 

[corby_brewer]

i've used matchless once to get myself started in AG and the advice and service was second to none. Ian and Anne are two of the nicest people you could ever meet. Im in regular contact with both Ian and Anne through E - Mail. And as for the WEB SITE i think it fantastic. If you want something which isnt in stock they will get it for you. I for one will definatly be using the on line shop to order the ingrediants for my next brew.

keep up the good work,

From a verry happy and satisfied customer.

Dave Siviter :thumb: :

 

[Jonnyv]

Thanks guys for all the great feedback - glad you're all honest and while positive feedback is great to receive, the negative feedback is what helps to move things forward so it's all appreciated.

I'll pass on the comments to Anne & Ian at Matchless - they are trying to be competitive with their pricing and their service really is second to none.

We'll be expanding the product range over the next few weeks so that there's the majority of what homebrewers need on a regular basis. They can get in anything from the major homebrew manufacturers so if you don't see something you need, give them a call or email them.

Jonny

 

[Moley]

Oh good, I haven't been struck off yet and there's no hate mail in my inbox from Jonny.

Although I concede the point about Wilkinson having superior buying power, their product range is limited to a very few basics and their prices aren't necessarily all that keen on everything.

My LHBS is Harris in Gornal near Dudley, manufacturer of the Vinbrite filter. Their EDME kits are slightly more expensive than Wilko, the Woodforde's are similar but their Cooper's are actually cheaper. Most of their additives and adjuncts are cheaper too.

However, I do have an issue with Harris, who also offer an online service. Why is the Vinbrite £14.50 in the shop but £17.25 online? Why are the foilpack Spraymalts £2.99 instore but £3.67 online? Why are Cooper's £9.50 instore but £10.76 online? I could go on. Carriage is charged extra, so why?

The thing about “support your LHBS, use it or lose it” is all well and good but that shop is only really going to be visited by homebrewers who live or work within a 5 mile radius. It is probably very useful to forum members living in the Coalville area that Matchless have a shop there, but frankly I couldn't care less, I'm 50 miles away, I will probably never visit it. Although Anne & Ian seem to be very well thought of and I wish them every success, I will probably never meet them.

Leaving aside manufacturing the filters and supplying other retailers, I would be very interested to know how much of Harris's homebrew trade comes through the shop and how much is now mail order. I've been in that shop mid-week and have been told I was only the 3rd customer that day. I know it can get busier on a Friday afternoon or on Saturdays but I fail to see how that shop can be a viable concern. Surely the whole point of e-commerce is that you don't have to employ a shop assistant to sit and twiddle her thumbs and only serve 3 customers on a Wednesday, you don't have to heat and light that shop or keep shelves fully stocked, and as a result prices can be kept competitive.

For better or worse, times have changed, attitudes have changed, shopping patterns have changed, the world has shrunk and as long as I can get what I need at the right price within 2 or 3 days I couldn't give a stuff whether I'm spending my hard-earned in Northampton or at the North Pole.

You want it? Meet those 3 criteria. Simples.

PS: Despite appearances to the contrary I will be using Matchless, if only for yeasts. :thumb:

 

[Aleman]

First off 'Freedom of Speech' . . .Most retailers and wholesalers are very happy to get feedback, positive or negative, regarding their services . . . however I can think of one of each that get very litigious the minute any criticism gets levelled in their direction (No Names, No Pack Drill), and to that end we as moderators and admin must protect ourselves and the site. . . . The same applies really regarding personal insults, racist or offensive remarks etc . . .If you wouldn't say it in a pub full of the Nationality/ Football fans/Family then don't say it here.

Onto the site . . . its a delight to navigate, very clean and well laid out, quick to load, and simple to understand . . . Probably the best homebrew retailer website out there in that regard . . . well done!

Not a vast range, but then without a demand I wouldn't stock everything, and I would imagine that more things will be added to the site over the next few weeks as time goes on. Warminster Pale malt for 29 quid a sack is a damned good deal. Hops are always difficult to price as they are selling them at the minimum suggested price from the wholesaler, which makes it difficult to discount . . . Trying to get an account with a hop merchant at the moment is exceptionally difficult verging on impossible . . . and even if you do get one you are looking at buying a minimum of 5Kg of each variety which you then have to bag down and store. Last wholesale price I saw for Cascade (18 months ago) was 30 quid a kilo (plus VAT) . . . so you are looking at a raw price of 3 quid a hundred grams + delivery to the retailer + VAT. . . . Someone in the supply chain has a mark up, but I am not willing to guess at who :whistle: . . . . but it does make it bizarrely cheaper to buy British hops from Australia, than from a LHBS in the UK .

Another Issue is that the Wholesalers will only supply a retailer if

1) they actually have a physical shop
2) there isn't someone else nearby that they already supply

I'll keep an eye on the site, and if there are a few more malts added I'll certainly consider changing allegiance for some things . . . simply because I love the site layout

 

[pjbiker]

I know, old post but I just stumbled across it.

I'm only about 10 miles away from Matchless and bought my stuff from there when I set up a couple of years ago. I still buy my sacks of malt there, and packets of yeast. Everything else I get from hopandgrape online.
Reason, more choice and better quality hops. I've tried the Young's hops sold at Matchless and find them dry, papery and less aromatic than the 'brupaks' vacuum packed foil ones from hopandgrape (I'm favouring aurora and motueka at the moment). Hops should be stored out of sunlight so should not be in clear packaging.
I do want to support my LHBS so still, roughly half of my consumables come from Anne and Ian, If they stocked better hops I'd probably get all from them even if they were slightly more expensive TBH. Oh and they never seem to have any CRS which I use habitually.