Thinking of not ordering any accessories.

[Mr. Vacuum]

I have an essentials list for bed security and hauling, plus wraps that I will order with my Slate, and an organized list of accessories that I will order in 3 stages later on.

I did this because I got a little hung up on financing costs...I know it only adds about $12-$15 to your payment for every $1k financed, but it is just hard for me to consider financing and paying 6 years of interest on anything that I could just buy later for 60 bucks. This gets even harder if I would have to finance the shipping charges now, too (I also thought at first that my accessories would be sent in the bed of the truck).

Four batches of accessories spaced out over time helps me pace myself with install, too. As it is, my ass never touches a chair on my days off. I am so overextended all the time ...

As excitement builds, we will see how disciplined I stay, though...

we also gotta look at the possible cost of accessories rising 6-12 months after vehicle launch. i like the idea of "locking in" the price of some stuff when the truck launches.

 

[FlyHappy]

we also gotta look at the possible cost of accessories rising 6-12 months after vehicle launch. i like the idea of "locking in" the price of some stuff when the truck launches.

true.
buuuuut... also counterbalanced against the possiblity of 3rd party accessories which may be more interesting, and historically, less expensive; so there's that.

argh, there's soooooo much we don't know...

 

[EV Trek]

fwiw, Amazon logistics and fulfillment for 3rd parties has substantial cost (ie, "Amazons cut").
It's possible that accessories have not been priced with this in mind (IMO), and would/could lead to price increase. Maybe the smaller, lighter items (plastics, t rails) which clearly already have large margins could be Amazon fulfilled at the already published prices, but I think many other items aren't suitable.

Its also not out of the question to sell an item directly from Slate for one price and a higher price on Amazon as a Prime item. I've seen this before, and though I don't know the commercial considerations, I get the sense that it isn't usually desirable.

Not sure this is always the case, I have bought many things on Amazon cheaper or for the the same price as the company’s own website sells them for with either no cost or cheaper shipping for the item also.

Here is the Amazon price for a dashboard cover from Coverlay for a 89 Toyota pickup

With $10 shipping

Here is the same one from Coverlays Website

Plus $32 shipping to my house

 

[FlyHappy]

Not sure this is always the case, I have bought many things on Amazon cheaper or for the the same price as the company’s own website sells them for either no cost or cheaper shipping for the item also.

Here is the Amazon price for a dashboard cover from Coverlay for a 89 Toyota pickup

With $10 shipping

Here is the same one from Coverlays Website

Plus $32 shipping to my house

Of course. I'm not negating the reverse. I'm a huge Amazon Business buyer.
But this is usually because the vendors have explicitly chosen to leverage Amazon as primary marketplace, for fairly obvious reasons; no one does ecommerce quite like AMZ. The point is that Coverlay has likely priced their product knowing the cost of using Amazon upfront. We have no idea if Slate would have (maybe, maybe not, blah, blah).

 

[EV Trek]

Of course. I'm not negating the reverse. I'm a huge Amazon Business buyer.
But this is usually because the vendors have explicitly chosen to leverage Amazon as primary marketplace, for fairly obvious reasons; no one does ecommerce quite like AMZ. The point is that Coverlay has likely priced their product knowing the cost of using Amazon upfront. We have no idea if Slate would have (maybe, maybe not, blah, blah).

I just think with their connections with Amazon already they might have slight advantage in pricing and selling through them. Just something I have considered.

 

[Luxrage]

The blank-er the better is my philosphy. Just like others have said, I need the bare minimum for using it as a pickup (bed mat) and a few other things and that's it. Buy it as you need it is def the best approach.

 

[E90400K]

If none of the accessories (excl. body style conversions) are installed at the factory, why would Slate want to manage that inventory and do fulfillment from there? Managing the inventory you need for production is hard enough. The last thing you want is a mountain of door bolsters in a dozen different colors taking up valuable factory space and forcing you to hire additional receiving and material handling staff.

Slate isn't injection molding center consoles or assembling speaker kits at the Warsaw plant. Essentially, all the accessories are 3rd party. Slate branding is just a marketing choice by the supplier. Many of them are automotive OEMs that haven't built a consumer brand, so using the Slate name gives buyers confidence that they're actually getting Slate-quality parts.

As for shipping cost for the heavy/bulky items ... I think/hope you'll find that much of the shipping cost is baked into the price. There may still be some nominal shipping/handling cost, but probably not as bad as you think. Smaller accessories could end up nickel-and-diming you on shipping, but I think the reason we haven't seen any shipping details is because Slate is well aware of this and actively working solutions.

I think it is better said that the accessories are Slate Supplier rather than 3rd-party. 3rd-party infers the product was not designed and engineered by Slate. In my mind at least. But you are correct the Slate suppliers are going to ship to Slate's logistics partner, who will hold the inventory for numerous reasons, one being business tax liability.

 

[E90400K]

Of course. I'm not negating the reverse. I'm a huge Amazon Business buyer.
But this is usually because the vendors have explicitly chosen to leverage Amazon as primary marketplace, for fairly obvious reasons; no one does ecommerce quite like AMZ. The point is that Coverlay has likely priced their product knowing the cost of using Amazon upfront. We have no idea if Slate would have (maybe, maybe not, blah, blah).

I'm thinking Amazon just may be Slate's accessories logistics partner. It has the warehousing capacity and the e-commerce frontend and backend to handle the accessories business. Wouldn't even be a decimal point on the balance sheet. Zero Capex to absorb the increase in business.

 

[sodamo]

Biggest downside to using Amazon will be opening the floodgates to the anti Bezo crowd. You know, those ignorant AH’s with an unfounded opinion they are eager to share.

 

[NJBob]

Good way to do it.

 

[EV Trek]

Biggest downside to using Amazon will be opening the floodgates to the anti Bezo crowd. You know, those ignorant AH’s with an unfounded opinion they are eager to share.

If they hate him that much why would they buy a Bezos backed Slate in the first place?

 

[jobrated.man]

I think you are inline with most people's thinking..

 

[sodamo]

If they hate him that much why would they buy a Bezos backed Slate in the first place?

Agree, but I’m willing to bet most of those already negatively commenting on Bezo/Slate didn’t buy either, but they saw an opportunity for an oral bowel movement.

 

[danielt1263]

When it comes to the SUV kit...

Jeremy said that they will not ship in the bed of the truck. Frankly I don't think they will ship anything in the bed under any circumstances.

He also said:

The best value is to have your SUV kit installed before delivery.

That implies to me that you will get some sort of shipping/installation discount that would beat having it shipped separately to you and installing it yourself.

For the other stuff? Who knows. I'm getting the trailer hitch and all-weather floor mats for towing my boat on beach runs... It's the whole reason I'm getting the truck. It's the cheapest thing that can tow my boat.
That said, I'm shooting for a $30k OTD price which leaves me room for about $2k of accessories... A wrap would eat half of that (including instal).

 

[Imhotep]

Blank Slate + wrap.

I don’t want the panels to be exposed, and find out too late that they don’t weather well.

Anything else I’ll do later.