I want to buy in Australia

[lk978]

I really do want to buy my uniform and equipment in Australia. But why should I pay $39.95 for pilot shirts when I can buy the exact same shirt for $17.99 from the USA with free shipping?

I even gave them a call and said I was happy to pay up to about $27 per shirt and order 10 but they best they could do was $35...

suppose they source them from the same store I do... (lets make this simple with no tax) $27 X 10 = $270 minus the cost ($17.99 X 10 = $179.90) equals $90.10 for processing an order. They said no to this proposal... So I keep my $90.10 and buy some Australian made and brewed beer (Coopers) that is transported by a local company (assuming Linfox) sold by an australian bottle shop (dodgy guy at the bottle) instead.

As consumers have become more aware... retailers have not innovated enough to provide any sort of benefit to the consumer other than; the warm fuzzy feeling of buying a shirt made in china, transported by a multinational, from an online store that is hosted in the USA the payment gateway is from the USA.

What is the premium of buying from Australia?

[Berealgetreal]

Just get them in Bali my friend. They'll be better quality as well. $5.

[LeadSled]

ik978,
With the choice in the US you can get cotton and "cotton rich" shirts, which are far more comfortable to wear than the cotton/polyester type materials in most uniform shirts I have seen here.
The quality of the US shirts is also generally good (ain't competition wonderful) , and the nominal sizes are "real", not based on emaciated Indians ---- as in the new sizes in may Australian stores, where the old 3XL is now 7XL.
Tootle pip!!

[The Green Goblin]

Or you can fill out a uniform order form and your company will supply at no expense to you, or reimburse you for buying them :hmm:

[TBM-Legend]

iPads/iPhones/cars/housing/food/beer all dearer here!

Think over inflated real estate and rents, high wages, high taxes, high cost of compliance, too many public holidays etc etc all adding to the bill.

[neville_nobody]

I really do want to buy my uniform and equipment in Australia. But why should I pay $39.95 for pilot shirts when I can buy the exact same shirt for $17.99 from the USA with free shipping?

Well why should your employer pay you 2x what you would get in the US?

It's a double edge sword. You can't get paid high salaries on a world standard then want to pay 3rd World Prices for consumables.

Yes Australia pays more for alot things but we also get paid alot more than then rest of the world for the same job.

[ad-astra]

I think Neville has a good point.

Be careful for what you wish for as you could very well have the 7 days annual leave and a salary of half of what you get here with the prospect of regular furloughs and shutdowns.

Or alternatively have the T&C of the Asian carriers.

I am pretty sure that particular business does not want to see a customer walk out the door but if it is the difference between selling at a loss or not selling at all then a lot of businesses will take the later stance.

It is unfortunate that we can't compete internationally but it is NOT a level playing field and we will ultimately pay the price for not supporting our home grown industry.

Thats not a personal attack, as I like everyone else shop overseas, but we should all be aware of where this road is leading.

[Andy_RR]

If we cannot compete internationally, it means we are inefficient at something - likely many things.

TBM has it right. There are so many cost inefficiencies to our real-estate ponzi as well as our so-called "workplace conditions", which are meaningless if you don't have a job. You can try to hang on to them as long as you can, but eventually they'll be taken from you.

[Wally Mk2]

The two recent posts #6&7 sum it up well, trouble is we have had it good for some time now, well apart from Labors destroying of our country for the last 6 years or so (personal opinion there guys so relax!).

I'd be happy to take 30% less wages no probs as long as long as fuel as just one Eg costs 30% less to buy so it's all relevant really.
We do have some great living conditions in this country but they are fast being eroded away hence a lot of people now are going offshore to buy & for good reasons 'cause as the grocery prices rise almost daily & our wages don't then something has to give. Homeless, jobless & just down & out folks are growing in this so called lucky country, we ought to be ashamed of ourselves at times.

I used to own a hobby shop some years ago now & it flourished at first but when the Net really took off & the whole world became a 'shop-front' via the PC then I was doomed, we are now all 'paying' for that in one way or another.
I do my bit where I can & buy Aussie ( I still buy OS stuff in certain area's) but it's almost futile other than being just a personal tiny achievement.
We as a society have dug ourselves a hole so large that we shall never be able to climb back out of it to see again prosperity in the retail world.

Wmk2

[lk978]

I understand we have many benefits of being in Australia but all I am say is... why should I reward someone who is more than likely just ordering from the same place as I can.

Kind of like washing my own car and giving the car wash the money as a donation...

We could just save the hassle and just all chip in and pay owner of the online store his $75K per year salary, close it down and order it from the USA.

If anyone would like some good quality pilot shirts I am happy to announce I can provide these at $30 + GST per shirt.... Any takers?

[Romulus]

Yes 978, you've nailed it.

I assume you don't mind Joyce, Borghetti et al ordering pilots from overseas for $30K plus change?

[Cactusjack]

Lucky country?? I think not. We are ripped off more than most. Everything from food, fuel, airline tickets, new cars, ****ty old cars, electricity, K-Mart shirts or a bloody hammer from Bunnings. This country has turned into an unaffordable disaster. Even the Governments figures two years ago showed we are one of the most expensive places to live. Higher wages my ass? Try feeding a family of 5, paying off a basic $300k mortgage, combine food and fuel and earn $140k per year and you are struggling. It's all bull****. Even a night out at the movies will set you back over $100. F#ck this place, sorry :*

[lk978]

Romulus, They don't need to go overseas for that, plenty of kids willing to get out of a baron and into a shiny jet for way less.

[lk978]

Cactus Jack, My point is less of the we are all screwed and more "who do you think you are"...

There is no need to charge such high margins, who remembers when it was cool to pay $50 for a Billabong tshirt? when fashion changed to more basic styles like plain shirts they could not provide any sort of benefit other than the fact that the consumer knew they were wearing a Billabong tshirt.

My point is charge a margin, but don't try and charge a 100% margin... you'll become the Billabong of tomorrow.

Check out their share price...

Billabong International Limited: ASX:BBG quotes & news - Google Finance (http://www.google.com/finance?q=ASX%3ABBG&ei=D1pNUrC9EI_YlQWjhwE)

Yes there were other factors like large buyouts before 2008 but the fundamentals killed them... too cool for school.

[DancingDog]

How much is a product worth?
As much as people are willing to pay.

[Ex FSO GRIFFO]

In this 'Global Village' where we are trying unsuccessfully to compete with S E Asia etc, in reality it's called The Race To The Bottom....and our kids / grandies will be the losers....
:ugh: :{

[Avgas172]

Amen to that Griffo .... And sooner than our Grandkids, the current generation is 80% there. I often wonder if the Malaysian or Chinese govt's will pay welfare to the single parent and unemployed when we the taxpayer run out of funds!

[500N]

Griffo

Agree, Race to the bottom seems to be the. Everybody knows price
but few can recognise quality or value, especially long term.

[parabellum]

I wanted a Davis weather station, in Australia A$636.00.

From the USA,post and package paid, same warranty, US$369.00 - no contest, but there is something radically wrong somewhere.

Oh yes, and for those that say here in Australia the wages are much higher, not so for the self funded retiree who saw a third of their Super just disappear in 2008 then had to live on capital for over two years while the market was stagnant.:{

[Metro man]

I get my uniform shirts in Bangkok for around AU$45 but that's for top grade 100% Egyptian cotton, made to measure in exactly the style I specify. I can choose the type of pocket, collar style etc and they fit perfectly. For AU$7 I can get the collar replaced and it's good for another year.

[lk978]

500N,

My question is... what quality are you talking about when it is the same Van H shirt that is made in China. Does it matter what store it is from?

Tell me an Australian made pilot **** 60% cotton and I'd be happy to pay top dollar.

[Andy_RR]

For those of you who believe we are all racing to the bottom, please consider our current account. What this should be telling you is that we are borrowing like there is no tomorrow to avoid the bottom which, save for willing overseas lenders, is where we really belong!

http://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/965674_10151534511637804_1479447721_o.jpg

[500N]

Andy

IMHO, it is not so much a problem as long as we have OS income coming in as well, which ATM we do with the resources. The problem is going to be when
we stop shipping the resources in such quantity.


IK978
Understand. But as a rule, in the past and now, people can't tell
quality and value. Even from China, you get good and bad, you
just need to be able to tell the difference.

Our costs are just higher here.

[Howard Hughes]

Our costs are just higher here.
I don't accept that our costs are 200, sometimes 300% higher.

[LeadSled]

I don't accept that our costs are 200, sometimes 300% higher.

HH,
And the rest --- for markups.
I had a brother, now long gone, who had some involvement in the Indian rag trade. He had detailed information on a number of imports into Australia by big chains.
Believe me, the difference between the Australian landed price, all duties and, in those days sales tax,paid, and the retail was simply amazing. One example I remember well, so called Mens Fashion Shorts had a landed price of just under AUD$5.
The pre-Christmas shelf price was AUD$89.99, and the after Christmas sales --- "reduced" to AUD$49.99!!
Many moons ago, I looked after insurance payouts for a trucking company that carried a lot of stuff for the Melbourne rag trade chains. The "values" for insurance, which is what we paid out on, and the retail prices, based on the tags on the garments retrieved from crash sites, was an eyeopener for me.
Tootle pip!!

[Andy_RR]

Andy

IMHO, it is not so much a problem as long as we have OS income coming in as well, which ATM we do with the resources. The problem is going to be when
we stop shipping the resources in such quantity.


Just to be clear, our current account is our national net position. The overseas income is already included in this.

Also our income is quantity x price. If either drops significantly, we're quickly in the poo.

[Timocracy]

I recently spent 18 months travelling around the world and came to the conclusion. There's no better country in the world that I've been too that a "average Joe" is better off then Australia.

When I was stacking shelves at Kmart they were paying me $23/hour unlimited hours as a second job. Same job in the States at Walmart pays $6/hour, casual come in whenever they feel like it. I worked as a casual Croupier in Darwin casino(5 years ago) and was getting $32/hour, worked the same job in Vancouver for $10.75(+$7/hour tips). Cost of living ain't alot cheaper in Vancouver ether.

Sure, our shirts are expensive but I'd rather pay a bit extra and know the workers can feed themselves unlike the guy in the US who approached me in his work uniform and asked for a dollar so he could take a "cheap" $1 menu burger home for his kid. Yep we pay $2-3 for the exact same burger but the maccas worker goes home and can feed his kids in Australia unlike his US counterpart.

Finally about our debt, there's two types of debt. Good debt and bad debt. Same for your household, same for the country. If the debt is for a appreciating asset that will provide an income higher then the cost of debt, it's a good debt. Think your homeloan, broadband network, infrastructure.

If it's a depreciating asset that losses money than it's bad debt. Think car loan, baby bonus and charter flights to aboriginal communities.

All the government needs to do is make sure that we're not borrowing to pay for bad debt items. Other than that who cares how much "in debt" we are. I have a massive investment property loan yet I sleep well, so should our government.

[500N]

I was going to post about "tipping" in the US.

I think Tim summed it up in the above post when talking about wages.

[Metro man]

If I had to be poor Australia is the country I'd choose to live in. Once you are out of the government safety hammock you realize socialism has it's price. The confiscatory tax levels and padded prices aren't so great once you're standing on your own feet.

Living in Asia I can eat out every day if I want to, stay in 5* hotels for A$120 a night, have my clothes made to measure, get my teeth fixed for 1/3 of what it would cost in Australia, employ a full time maid and generally enjoy a vastly higher standard of living. I can holiday abroad every month if I feel like it, often flying full fare business class.

My standard of living would plunge if I returned to Australia even if I came back to the left seat of the same type of aircraft. Once the ATO had gouged 35% of my pay the remainder wouldn't go nearly as far as it does here.

Of course it's not so great here if you're in a low skilled job or unemployed, much better off washing dishes or stacking shelves back in Australia.

[500N]

Metro

"Once the ATO had gouged 35% of my pay the remainder
wouldn't go nearly as far as it does here."

Depending on the lifestyle someone wants to live, I feel at a basic
level that the opportunity to decrease tax in Aus but increase what
you own - wealth via houses etc is better in Aus than other countries.

I have a mate in Darwin, just retired at 52 or so, has 5 or 6 houses
around Aus and lives off the income. He was never a high flyer in
terms of jobs, almost always worked for Gov't in the Environment
field and just spent wisely.

Not sure what the opportunities for Negative gearing etc are overseas
but it is a boon to those in Aus who can use it.

[Metro man]

Actually I do use it on my properties in Australia, which I probably couldn't have afforded to buy if I had stayed there. Tax on Australian income for non residents is about 29% from the first dollar BUT it doesn't go up after that to the 45% level which locals can easily end up paying. Also I'm not liable for tax on worldwide income.

I've thought about buying a business back in Australia which would make sense provided I don't fall into the residence trap.

[500N]

Anyone who pays 45% tax or even over 35% has the wrong strategy
and the wrong accountant. IMHO of course.

[Dark Knight]

Ford Lower Front End Control Arms

Ford Aust price $1661 + Fitting $390 = AU$2051

eBay from USA U$140 + U$110 transport + Fitting $300 = AU$650 approx

US Ford Service & Parts Sydney $451 + Fitting AU$300 = AU$ 751

Guess where I am buying from?

[Andy_RR]

If the debt is for a appreciating asset that will provide an income higher then the cost of debt, it's a good debt. Think your homeloan, broadband network, infrastructure.


This is the biggest con-job played on the majority of Australians. There is virtually no such thing as an appreciating asset. All assets will depreciate at some rate and if they don't appear to, then it's only because you're seeking a greater fool to pass it on to. This is the very characteristic of a ponzi scheme and Australia is full of them, especially in real estate.

The only thing worth borrowing money for is a productive asset and then only if it can produce more than the interest cost. A proper capitalist market economy would only allow this to happen for a very short time, so don't borrow too much!

Of course, if the government gives you some kind of market distortion, tax break or monopoly privilege, then undoubtedly you're onto a winner, personally, but the nation is the loser.

Sigh...

[Pass-A-Frozzo]

I think what Timocracy actually really is trying to refer to is if a project have a positive net present value.

You can borrow for a project and increase wealth.