State-specific distributors of foreign product - preventing price competition

mshanann on 17/08/2016 - 15:22
Last edited 17/08/2016 - 16:04

Hi All

I'm trying to help a not-for-profit kids swim club attempt to purchase some swimming timing systems.

It seems each of the main states in Australia has a monopoly/sole distributor, and there is a arrangement between the various state distributors to not sell/quote for equipment to customers from another state.

Consequently, the sole state distributor concerned can in theory set any type of markup and there appears to be little you can do about it.

I'm getting a quote roughly twice the price of purchasing the identical equipment from the US factoring in currency and sales tax etc.

Is there any competition law to prevent this occurring? For the saving in cost concerned, we could send two people to the US for a free holiday/airfares, and put the units in hand luggage. Crazy.

General Discussion

Comments

  • hashtagbargain on 17/08/2016 - 15:28
    +1

    Which state? How much do they quote for the Dolphin wireless stopwatch? It shows 184 usd on your link from the usa.

    Maybe you can try shipping it here through a 3rd party shipper? Surely that must cost you less than a plane fare.

    • mshanann on 17/08/2016 - 15:38
      +1

      compare to $440 for QLD. (184 USD = 240 AUD). Once you factor in starter systems and all the rest of it, cost is roughly doubled. I understand Australian business etc pays GST, import fees, etc.

      WA, NSW, etc all have a single distributor from what I can tell, and each refer you to the local (in my case QLD one). Even though they could all very easily ship the equipment in a small box and ship. So you cannot get a better price.

      11K AUD versus 5K AUD if purchased in the US (not including freight).

      • spackbace on 17/08/2016 - 15:52

        A niche thing like this, it's no wonder there's only 1 main distributor selling in Australia

        So it's just 1 of many cases where Australia pays more.

        I get that you're after the cheapest price, but for a swim club setup, wouldn't you also want the fall-back of having local warranty? A local rep you can call on if there's issues as well?

        • mshanann on 17/08/2016 - 15:54
          +1

          1 distributor per state; and no state distributor willing to deal with other state customer.

        • spackbace on 17/08/2016 - 15:56
          +1

          @mshannon:

          Yeah I edited

          But all that means is they likely all have the same RRP. Don't worry that another state wont sell to you, because it'd likely be the same price anyway

        • mshanann on 17/08/2016 - 16:00
          +1

          Agree too the item is Niche. At double the cost though, we could buy a spare system :)

  • [Deactivated] on 17/08/2016 - 15:50
    +1

    https://www.reship.com

    • mshanann on 17/08/2016 - 15:56
      +2

      Thanks. Just found a store in the US that will ship/sell here.
      thelifeguardstore.com

  • aussieprepper on 17/08/2016 - 15:57
    +3

    Ask them if they will sponsor the club and give it to you for free? Or at a discount? Most people are willing to help a charity.

    Or start crowd funding. Swimming is an important skill in Australia!

    • mshanann on 17/08/2016 - 15:59
      +1

      I think lots of suburban kids swim clubs are not for profit. There was no movement in price offered when quizzed. The price is the price, and you can only buy from us was the general gist of the conversation.

  • mshanann on 17/08/2016 - 16:05
    +1

    I've edited the main forum topic to remove the links to the manufacturer etc concerned. They may not want to sell to us at all after my rant :)
    I'm just thinking about all the extra raffle tickets and cra# we need to sell / hit parents up to get the extra money.

  • RockyRaccoon on 17/08/2016 - 17:28
    +1

    Why not raffle a trip to the USA and make some money - tickets can be bought for $900, then one condition of the prize is that the winner needs to bring the unit back. Paying the GST on the item is also necessary, you will need to do that. But you are already thousands ahead.

  • [Deactivated] on 17/08/2016 - 20:32
    +1

    Not sure what product you are after, but allamericanswim is a very good store with generally competitive prices and reasonable post to australia.

  • Findo on 17/08/2016 - 20:47
    +1

    What are you trying to get? Touchpads and automatic officiating equipment? Can you get second hand push buttons and the associated hardware from the swimming organisations? Swimming NSW were trying to offload some old and crappy starting blocks last year, and they do hire out touchpads and stuff, they might be able to sell a set if you name a good price.

    • mshanann on 18/08/2016 - 09:11
      +1

      We were after a semi automatic timing system - essentially starter gun which triggers wireless stop watches. Timer must press stop. Data can be recorded/uploaded in to meet manager etc. So trying to eliminate lots of the data entry tasks, and also to provide somewhat more accurate timing.

  • Findo on 17/08/2016 - 20:54
    +1

    Why not just get the tried and tested SAT systems available? It's probably unlikely you'll have the number of officials needed to run a proper meet every week, so the results can't be used for championship events anyway. When you do have the staff needed to run a meet, you can hire all the gear you need from the state swimming organisations.

    • mshanann on 18/08/2016 - 09:08
      +1

      Semi-Automatic is what we are aiming for. A quote of over 11k returned for 14 watches, and starter gun. We had been looking at the following Australian company https://wylas-timing.com ; whilst their price was great (2.5k), none of the equipment they manufacture, and we are concerned about long term durability.

      • Findo on 18/08/2016 - 14:41

        Would the results generated at a club night suffice for entering championship events with a qualifying time? It's unlikely you'll have the full set of officials needed to run a meet every time you race, unless it was a big one.

      • L0rd0din on 20/08/2016 - 20:55

        As chief time keeper for a swim club that has been running with Wylas now for several years, I can confirm that the quality and durability of the equipment that we have been provided with has been absolutely amazing. In the entire time that we have been using the system we have not had any problems with anything that we have used.

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