Importing APR products from the US

[Tim]

13k per golf R for ADR compliance? That's a lot

its pretty cheap if you include re-engineering it for the steering wheel to fit on the other side though

[Ideo]

The point is not overcharging.

The point is prohibiting companies from shipping to Australia.

[Guy_H]

TomC,

I think the OP implied (even though he completely had the information wrong & was corrected) that everything should be the same price in Australia as it is in the rest of the world.

It has also been beaten to death over the past 8 pages that it's pretty normal for things NOT to cost the same as overseas (including a Golf R which is made in Germany & exported to other countries around the world).

Last trip APR made here (it was a calibration trip to Melbourne), they were shocked at the cost of EVERYTHING, from hotel accommodation, car-parking (apparently almost 3 times more than parking in Times Square in New York), rent, wages, superannuation, fuel, income tax, medical levies.

I think the cost of a vehicle (which is also under the luxury car tax threshold) is a valid comparison personally (and no, not being sarcastic).

Did you know that Australia has 4 cities in the worlds top 20 "most expensive cities in the world" to live in?

I'm happy to take any criticism, but I know (as I have visited a lot of tuning companies & dealers in a lot of countries) that the US prices do not add up to a retail price in ANY other country outside the US.

Simple fact & arguing page after page of it is not going to change anything. Simply, if you want US prices, US wages, US cost of living, US cheap cars - move to the US. Australia is a low volume nation when it comes to a lot of things.

Happy to give Australians jobs & keep exports flowing too, collectively the APR dealer network has around 130 employee's here & the associated manufacturers (in Australia) add around another 130.

---------- Post added at 06:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:58 PM ----------

The point is not overcharging.

The point is prohibiting companies from shipping to Australia.

Why?

We have to service & support every product we import. Its APR's decision (WORLDWIDE) to put all products through distributors so there is seamless warranty (direct replacement of hardware, most kept in stock in Australia), support & technical assistance.

I think somewhere in this thread, someone purchased an APR exhaust OS & it may be faulty & he can not get warranty or support for it - do you think that is in APR's interest? If it was locally purchased, it would be warranted, replaced (including labor) and the customer would be on their way. Instead the customer is stuck, and faces having to send it back to the US. I know which way APR wants it handled & they wont pay for warranty on products unless returned to the source of purchase.

[gareth_oau]

I think to some extent, we are all victims of circumstance.

real estate in Oz is a lot more expensive than many overseas locations, add in minimum wage rates, compulsory workers comp etc etc, plus import duty and GST, then it really isnt appropriate to suggest that, without a level playing field that APR Oz might be still ripping us off.

and to top that off, the oz market is far smaller than say the US, so fixed busineess overheads need to amortised over a far smaller sales base.

I'm certainly not happy that I seem to pay more than our yankee cousins for many things, and will quite happily shop overseas wjen appropriate. But i don't automatically go blaming local suppliers, and in most instances accept they are not just trying to rip us off.

the reality is that if I import something privately there is a good chance that I can legally avoid duty and GST that a retailer MUST incur and charge their customers - already they are behind the eight-ball even if they dont value-add to the process

[TomC]

Guy I have respect for you and the business you run and know that many customers rave about your service. My comment was not aimed at your business. It was in response to the article posted which talked about the need to maintain competitive pricing in a worldwide market and I stand by my comment that retailers in Australia in general need to think about restructuring their businesses to stay competitive in a worldwide online shopping market. I spend a lot of time with Gen Z in my job and I can tell you with absolute certainty that in 10 years time, when they are working and earning money, they will conduct most of their lives in an online world.

[whiteVR6]

Guy I have respect for you and the business you run and know that many customers rave about your service. My comment was not aimed at your business. It was in response to the article posted which talked about the need to maintain competitive pricing in a worldwide market and I stand by my comment that retailers in Australia in general need to think about restructuring their businesses to stay competitive in a worldwide online shopping market. I spend a lot of time with Gen Z in my job and I can tell you with absolute certainty that in 10 years time, when they are working and earning money, they will conduct most of their lives in an online world.

I guess retailers here are screwed then.
We pay higher rent,electricity,insurance,fuel,water,council rates/licensing,taxes etc than pretty much any other country in the world. How can you be competitive if the government doesnt help you, the importers where you get your parts from give you minimum discount and when your done working at the end of the week you have to do a bucket load of paperwork for the GST and BAS?

[entice]

in my experience the retailer is the end link of teh chain.

It's more of an issue that distributors have exclusive deals that create price hikes. Not suggesting that is the case in point.

I understand both sides of the argument. Unfortunately in bigger companies it's the local arms that are responsible for marketing and advertising (greater cost per item here compared to a larger market in say, the USA).

unfortunately the grey imports don't have to pay for said marketing, but definitely reap the rewards.

it would be a far more level playing field if the manufacturer was responsible for the promotion of the product, as opposed to the local market...

[TomC]

I guess retailers here are screwed then.
We pay higher rent,electricity,insurance,fuel,water,council rates/licensing,taxes etc than pretty much any other country in the world. How can you be competitive if the government doesnt help you, the importers where you get your parts from give you minimum discount and when your done working at the end of the week you have to do a bucket load of paperwork for the GST and BAS?

Agree entirely. I think the federal and state governments have done very little to assist retailers in being competitive. And, if you refer to my previous post, I pointed out that small business retailers are in a very tough situation as they are now operating in a global market.

[Bug_racer]

in my experience the retailer is the end link of teh chain.

It's more of an issue that distributors have exclusive deals that create price hikes. Not suggesting that is the case in point.

I understand both sides of the argument. Unfortunately in bigger companies it's the local arms that are responsible for marketing and advertising (greater cost per item here compared to a larger market in say, the USA).

unfortunately the grey imports don't have to pay for said marketing, but definitely reap the rewards.

it would be a far more level playing field if the manufacturer was responsible for the promotion of the product, as opposed to the local market...

It would be a fair level playing field if there was GST on everything imported & insurance on said item as well .
Until that happens local retailers are 2 steps behind !
I wont go on too much about the local price of electricity , water etc but a 5 person workshop with dyno is cheaper to run in USA than my 1 man operation in terms of overheads ...

[gareth_oau]

the aim is to assist the consumer - the level playing field you talk about is only going to increase prices across the board, and not provide any competition for local retailers to sharpen their pencils against.

I doubt that is the solution we are looking for