Canadian Outdoor Suppliers?
chet said:
its almost always cheaper to buy stuff from the states. For some reason CDN retailers want ransom prices for stuff I can easily get from the states way cheaper. when you tell them that they get all pissy with you.:Wow1:
As a Canadian retailer of expedition gear for some three years now, I think I can provide you with some insights as to why prices here are sometimes higher...
When we import a Hannibal tent from South Africa we pay the Canadian government an 18% duty - they're duty free into the US. Additionally, the container cost from South Africa to Canada is 50% higher than to the US. Check out the math on that...
Canada | US
Cost of Tent 1000 | 1000
Freight 150 | 100
Customs Duties 180 | 0
---------------------------------
Total 1350 | 1100
Selling Price 1521 | 1510
Dealer Profit 191 | 410
And that doesn't take into consideration the other variables of currency exchange (suppliers price in US$, UK£, or Euros, not CDN$), employment laws, employment taxes, overheads, etc.
And could someone, anyone, please tell me where the Canadian cotton industry is that's being protected by the durty? But that's an aside
We sell our products for the same (or near) price as the US vendors because we know that the average cross-border shopper has no issue with illegally importing items without paying duties. Which means we make less money per item than our southern cousins. Which makes it harder to stay in business.
When we buy certain products through distributors (like ARB USA) we pay ARB USA's freight costs to Seattle and US Customs Clearance (they pass them on in pricing), then we pay to ship it to Canada, and pay the 6.5% Customs Duties, and clearance fees. Your US reseller doesn't. Plus, for some odd reason we see US retailers advertising the product for less than ARB USA charges Canadian dealers - which leads one to believe there are two price lists in effect.
And, because Canada is such a small market and our volumes are lower, we get rather crap service from our US suppliers. ARB USA has never replied to any of our queries about becoming a reseller - in two years!! Ameriican Expedition Vehicles never responded to our requests to BUY their products!
We tried talking to ARB in Australia, but they think that Canada and the US are the same country and won't deal directly with anyone up north.
So now we have a policy of only dealing with manufacturer's directly - but that involves big upfront investments. I have a CDn$100k container sitting in South Africa right now, another CDN$50k in Oz, CDN$25k in Israel, and nearly CDN$50k in Rotterdam - that's a $225,000 investment. And we'll drop another $175,000 in July. When you consider that we are after all a "hobby business", like most off-road shops, that's a lot of money to put out. But it does mean we can price our products more fairly for our market, get better services, and deliver better service to our customers.
For instance, Scepter Military Fuel Cans sell for about US$49.95 on average - we sell them for CDN$49.95. Our Black Rat high lift jack (from OZ) will be cheaper than the US based Hi-Lift and Jackall products - but is an arguably superior product. Similarly with our National Luna Refrigerator\Freezers; better product than ARB, less money than comparable US-based prices.
And I do lose sleep over the fact that someone will come into my shop, let me show them through the products, answer all of their questions, give them the pros and cons, provide them with advice based on my years of experience, and then they'll go buy the item from some web site in the US because after they cheat the import system they save $10. And you know what, sometimes it does make you a bit pissy - especially when they come in six months later and say "I ripped my tent fly. Can you GIVE me a new one, that place in the US where I bought it won't". I'll give you two guesses what the response to that one might be? I wish I could be a hard *ssed b*st*rd, but I usually give it to them anyway
Fortunately, most of our customers are honest and hard-working folks who appreciate dealing with the same - and are happy to support us even if it means dropping an extra $10 once in a while. :luxhello: After all, on an expedition, the life you save with that particular piece of kit, knowledge, or advice that you picked up from your local supplier could be your own... And isn't that worth $10?
