Prices again

[pmcgee]

I love oilstones for what they are ... but have been wanting to also check out some other options.

The Wandi Carvers Guild use smallish diamond plates, so I was interested in looking at them.

I've had it in the back of my mind to checkout Bunnings etc and see what they've got.
I didn't have any available "attention space" to devote to this, and to researching the best buys etc ... so one day recently I pulled into the green shed and went for a look-see.

I was prepared to be bitten on the bum for price and choice.
I found they have an Ezilap 61F (fine) 2"x6" for $76.
I used my phone to do 1 minute of online research and bought it.
I had heard Ezilap mentioned as a good brand, so what the hell, suck it and see.

I liked it ... but my 1 minute research in-store had revealed that the US Amazon price for the same thing was US$22.

So after deciding the size was ok for me, and it seemed like a reasonable product, I ordered the Course, Medium and Super Fine from Amazon for AU$120 total delivered. They aren't here yet.

Hmmm.

Cheers,
Paul

[Master Splinter]

Well, you have to be fair to importers - when sea freight costs are adding as much as $50 per tonne to the wholesale price of your product, you've really got to bump your margins up to cover that sort of huge freight cost!

[Mobyturns]

It would be interesting to see the real economics of retailing, how pricing is derived, the fixed costs of "brick & mortar" vs e-commerce, and postage / shipping etc. I think much of the add on costs we see from small retailers are from the middle men along the supply chain & merchandising. The big players are big enough to control the whole supply chain.

The one thing that bothers me though is how many purchasers of products over the internet still want the convenience & to be able to see, feel & even try the product in store before they purchase over the internet from another company! A local retailer carries the stock inventory, staff, display fixtures, premises, rent etc and carries the costs for your convenience & then you say oh its cheaper on the internet ....... eventually the locals will go broke, with impacts to the local economy, and then there will be no local stores for you to view product.

If only a few purchase over the internet, no great impact but with the volumes of transactions now it is impacting local economies & jobs. I much prefer to support local jobs and will purchase locally if at all possible, however I acknowledge that there are times when the difference is far to tempting.

[aldav]

Point taken Mobyturns, but I don't think we have to worry about the big green shed going broke! I'm currently renovating an ensuite; 15l of paint on waterproofing membrane at the big green shed $219; 15l online from Just Waterproofing $138 delivered to my door! I loathe Bunnings, they have driven every other hardware store in Albury out of business so now you can only buy what they want to sell at the price they want to charge, virtually no competition here. Has anybody else noticed that Parfix products that used to be half the price of the big brand names are now only marginally cheaper?

If I want to buy tools I generally support Gasweld. If you want a quality one handed bar clamp they stock a Taiwanese made product that is only 60% of the price of Irwin. At Bunnings all you can buy in comparison is Irwin or junk! Coles and Woolworths should never have been allowed to get as big as they are. I hate 'em both. They bastardise every market they come in contact with.

[derekcohen]

.... I found they have an Ezilap 61F (fine) 2"x6" for $76.
I used my phone to do 1 minute of online research and bought it.
I had heard Ezilap mentioned as a good brand, so what the hell, suck it and see.

I liked it ... but my 1 minute research in-store had revealed that the US Amazon price for the same thing was US$22.

So after deciding the size was ok for me, and it seemed like a reasonable product, I ordered the Course, Medium and Super Fine from Amazon for AU$120 total delivered. They aren't here yet.

Hmmm.

Cheers,
Paul

Hi Paul

The good news about the Bunnings Ezilap is that I have that exact diamond stone, and it is the finest diamond stone I have yet used. It is now 10+ years and still going strong. The bad news is that it took a few years to break in. It no longer works like a 600 grit. It is closer to a 3000 grit.

I also ordered and have the coarse and fine in 8 x 3", but they have only been in use 6 months.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Sebastiaan56]

Like manufacturing, retailing is dying. What will the Aussie economy look like in 50 years? I agree the Ezilap plates are great value and work really well.

[John.G]

So the other week I take one of my chainsaws into local dealer for some love. One look at this thing and they know it's an import job - the full wrap handle is a dead give away because they won't (won't, not can't mind you) do that version in this country.

My dealer is cool with that, he knows that I bring my own saws into Australia all the time, and he knows that (a) he doesn't have that much margin on selling new saws anyway and (b) I only bring them in for myself, and (c) he still gets to sell me parts and servicing which is where he makes his money on chainsaws anyway.
BUT
the dealer rep happens to be in store and he starts going off about it. Who sold it to me ( cause they have agreements that dealers aren't supposed to sell outside their local area just to stop this kinda thing). Why my local guy... my other local guy... my local guy just down the road from my wifes other house in the USA.
Beaten on that avenue he then starts to talk about the cost of freight, yada yada yada.

My response - This saw was shipped from the manufacturing plant in Europe to the USA. Then it went through the USA distributor network, where everyone made a profit along the way. Then it was picked up in store by my wife, and shipped to Australia. I paid my GST on it. And it still was $1200 cheaper then buying it in store here. Please explain to me why I can ship it twice as far, pay full retail price in store, pay GST, and still buy the bloody thing at half your suggested retail price?

No conclusive answer was forthcoming.

I get it. It costs money to hold stuff in inventory, it costs money to operate a business. And we all need to make a profit to stay in business. But I dont get why in Australia this costs twice as much as the rest of the world. Someone, somewhere, is making an obscene amount of profit on things in this country. And it's the big green shed guys - backed by their parent company - who are the ones who profit most.

Support your little local guys? Sure. I do that as much as I can afford to. It's the big green shed, and their parent company, and their direct "between us we have a duopoly" competitors (competitors- now theres a joke) that are stuffing the economy of this country with their business practices. I buy local, or buy offshore, and avoid those guys like the plague.

[Jeffen]

I've been through the same process - looked at eze-lap stones locally, but baulked at $125 for the double sided version.

So bought two double sided stones (250, 400, 600 & 1200 grits) 2" x 6" from Amazon. $116 AUD shipped versus $250 + postage in Australia.
That's just nuts - and it isn't the big stores this time, it is the local distributor of eze-lap stones.

Oh, and I'm happy with the stones - they were just what I needed to learn to sharpen.

Jeff

[BobL]

Hi Paul

The good news about the Bunnings Ezilap is that I have that exact diamond stone, and it is the finest diamond stone I have yet used. It is now 10+ years and still going strong. The bad news is that it took a few years to break in. It no longer works like a 600 grit. It is closer to a 3000 grit.

I wonder if the diamond plates could be broken in quicker by working them against each other.?

[ian]

between us we have a duopoly" competitors [/I](competitors- now theres a joke) that are stuffing the economy of this country with their business practices. I buy local, or buy offshore, and avoid those guys like the plague.

Hi John

are you prepared to take a 60-70% pay cut?
are you prepared to have your house revalued DOWN to perhaps 20-30% of what the bank thinks it's worth

in broad terms that is the core difference between the US and Australia
AUS wages, land and housing prices are way out of wack with the rest of the world -- which means high retail prices as well.

like you I don't like it, but it's a viscous circle.
If I want to be paid 2-3 times what the equivalent worker in the US is paid, then what I buy will reflect that difference in wages.

and it's all the legacy of the Sunshine Harvester Case and tariff protection which only started to be wound back in the 80s.


and don't get me started on why the Australian car industry has all but disappeared.
Up till the late 90s, Australian cars were a protected species -- provided it ran, any piece of rubbish could be sold as a car.

[Heavansabove]

Hi John
like you I don't like it, but it's a viscous circle.

Ian, sounds like you have been getting stuck in the hide glue as it gells up

Cheers
Peter

[Fuzzie]

Working out how retailers price their goods is a black art. Most without a high volume clearly think it is better to find the highest price point the market will bear and sell fewer items, while others think the best approach is to sell more at a lower margin. Who is right?

My pool pump just died after an apparently typical average 6 year life. Although it was just the motor it does not appear easy or economical to simply replace the motor.

The pump is of Australian origin (Onga). I bought the last pump at my local pool shop, it was only a few dollars more expensive than cheaper online sellers at the time at $440. The same shop today is asking $690 for a replacement, $650 best price. A quick search shows many online shops (all part of actual physical shops as well) still sell around the $400 mark. I can't even be bothered trying to haggle the price at the local shop when I can order it online delivered in a couple of days for $395 from Adelaide, I can't see they will drop $200-300. The shop clearly decided to substantially increase margins on a product that has not increased in cost over the last 6 years and indeed due to exchange rate changes is probably cheaper now than 6 years ago. Who can tell why?

I will however still use the local pool shop for water tests etc and pay for their highly marked up chems (Average about 2x Bunnies prices), because I see that as paying for the service and advice as well.

[Big Shed]

Fuzzie, I don't have a pool (thank God!) but our local Bunnies offers pool water testing, doesn't yours?

[Fuzzie]

Fuzzie, I don't have a pool (thank God!) but our local Bunnies offers pool water testing, doesn't yours?

Yes, but, In the old Bunnies store (We now have a brand new one nearby, but it is the most poorly designed and poorly accessible Bunnies that I have ever encountered) there was a self service machine that was usually in disarray from clods breaking it and opening all sorts of packages and chems around it. The local Pool shop is clean, knowledgeable, and tests more things.

I regularly fantasize about filling in the pool and turning it into a vegetable garden.

[pmcgee]

I regularly fantasize about filling in the pool and turning it into a vegetable garden.

I think every pool owner does.
Paul