It's Sunday. It's raining. A typical Hamburg summer evening. The boating season is in full swing, and then you suddenly remember: There were one or two things you wanted to order. You open your laptop and search the internet for the items you still need for the rest of the season. The selection of online retailers in the boat accessories sector in Germany is relatively limited, so the big names immediately catch the eye. But which is the best online shop? Which one delivers the fastest? And of course - who offers the best price? We have tested it for you.
In order to keep the test results as neutral and fair as possible, five identical items were ordered privately, which were available from all suppliers: a fender, an anchor ball, an anchor, a lifejacket and a shaker pump.
With the exception of Amazon, the structure of the shops of the respective providers is relatively the same. Although the "Add to basket" function is a little more complicated with some than with others. In the Toplicht shop, for example, you first have to select the number of products you want before you can add them to your basket.
Compass24 claims to be the largest online shop for boat accessories in Europe. With over 35,000 items on offer, the shop also scored with the lowest total price of all orders. And this despite the fact that the shipping costs were the most expensive at €8.99 (excluding Amazon due to the large number of parcels). The only small negative point? The choice of payment options. Compared to the other providers, Compass24 is at the bottom of the list here. The packaging material was also not up to scratch. Due to the lack of filling material, all items ordered could fly around freely in the box and possibly damage other goods or the box.
According to the website, shipping is only possible within Europe. In contrast to other retailers, however, there are various different shipping options.
It was also the parcel that was delivered the fastest. A return label was already included in the parcel for items that you may not like or not need after all.
The Hamburg-based company A.W. Niemeyer, in short AWN advertises its "holiday service: delivery directly on board worldwide". If you order by phone by 1 p.m., items in stock are also supposed to be delivered by express delivery, even within 48 hours for an additional charge of 25 euros. Our order was delivered in less than 72 hours, without express delivery. Here too, however, there was a lack of packaging material inside the box. The anchor, which at four kilograms is not actually particularly heavy, appears to have smashed through one side of the box during transport, as there was a large gaping hole. AWN offers the most payment options of the providers tested.
Top light also based in Hamburg, shows directly for all items (around 15,000 according to the website) whether they are in stock or how long delivery would take if the desired item were not in stock. For analogue shoppers, a catalogue is also sent free of charge on request, but can be viewed digitally on the website at the same time. For international shoppers, the website can also be switched to English. Shipping is also possible worldwide and therefore also very interesting for skippers on long-term trips.
The global player Amazon which is actually known for its fast deliveries, was the worst performer in our test. However, the items on offer are often not offered and dispatched directly by Amazon, but by other retailers. The quality of the item description also varies depending on the supplier. From very detailed to more or less non-existent or a maximum of one word, everything was included. The price of the lifejacket changed at least three times during the research period, within several hours.
The search on Amazon was also much more time-consuming, as a unique search term was followed by many often very different results. The dispatch time of the parcels also varied greatly. The shaker hose, which was sent directly from Amazon, arrived after just two days. The shipping time for the other accessories ordered took up to eight days. As Amazon or the respective retailer selling on the platform sends ordered items with various shipping service providers, you never really know who will deliver the parcel until you receive the consignment number. The return costs were also the most expensive in the test. As each product was sent by a different provider, several return labels had to be printed out and paid for.
Conclusion on the world's largest online mail order company: Ordering from Amazon was more complicated than from the other shops, the most expensive due to the various providers and the associated shipping costs, and the delivery time was the longest. Another negative aspect is the lack of payment options. However, the significantly longer exchange and return times at Amazon must be emphasised as a positive aspect.
Gründl Bootsimport, based in Bönningstedt near Hamburg, offers an extensive range of accessories in addition to various motorboats. The online shop is relatively simple; there are neither data sheets nor instructions for the ordered items to download. There is no option to add items to the wish list, nor are there any rating options for the respective product. The delivery time also took a little longer than the competition. However, the delivered goods were very well packaged, with extra packaging around the anchor and additional filling material. Gründl also offers free shipping for orders over 250 euros.
The Bremen water sports retailer SVB SVB has been supplying its customers since 1989. According to SVB, orders placed by telephone by 3 p.m. or online by 2 p.m. are delivered the next day by express delivery for 19.95 euros. In addition, as with Toplicht and AWN, shipments can be dispatched worldwide. Often for an unbeatably favourable price of 24.95 euros plus tax. The different shipping methods are described in great detail and are easy to understand. Our order arrived after three days and was the best packaged of all those tested. Returns were also easy to register with just a few clicks via the profile on the homepage.
In conclusion, it can be summarised that all suppliers delivered the ordered items without errors, the delivery times were consistently okay and the prices were relatively similar.
Our conclusion: It doesn't always have to be the big online shops. Interestingly, Amazon came off worst in our case; if we had any questions about the product, we would probably have run into a wall of silence here too. The significantly better service provided by water sports retailers based in Germany, with their respective contact persons and specialist advisors, should therefore be given preference when buying accessories online.
You will find the online shop comparison in BOOTE issue 09/2022 from 17 August 2022 at newsstands - and already here.
