Importing gear

[Danger]

you want to be able to ride harrisville, it is supported by the local industry
you want to go on the mr motorcycles trail ride on sunday, same as above,
when was the last time btosports helped a motorcycle club , or ride here in nz,
Scott

Good points.
And Xtreme Wholesale is sponsoring Ken Fells MX race this weekend for those that are riding there and the extra money provided by this sponsorship must go some way towards providing Ken with the funds for the 3 x water trucks to water the track that he will have there. I've raced there when there have been no water trucks and it was enough to turn me away from racing there again in a hurry. But with the water trucks it should be a good day for you guys that are racing. Thank industry sponsorship for that. Without sales, less sponsorship and dusty dangerous tracks.

[telliman]

i would say though that without the water trucks he would have been copping some flack from surrounding propertys,you could hardly see the road at the last round,it go's to show though that wat started as a small club day on a guys farm has now turned into a fairly big series that gets advertised on the radio even!they must generate some coin up there dude.

[notch]

Do you guys think $50 is a bit steep for a Heavy duty innertube?
I was a little flabbergasted when the local shop charged me $100 for two...

[Danger]

Yeah I can do them for about $20.00 each.

[charles23]

Yeah I can do them for about $20.00 each.

and there you go another prime example, $50 vs $20.................

[Danger]

Thats not really an example of the pro's and cons of sourcing your product from overseas. Thats just shopping around locally and I can't believe the difference is just in price for the same tubes. I know Continental tubes are more expensive than IRC. Some tubes are thicker ie heavier than others. I would find out why the tubes he has brought are so expensive? What brand are they and then call another shop for a price for the same tubes. Same as the difference in helmets, shirts and pants, different prices for different products. It is hard to imagine $50.00 per tube but who knows?
The example would be if he can save a few dollars by buying them from overseas and wait for a week or more for them to arrive. Possibly worth it for 2 x $50.00 tubes, probably not for $20.00 tubes.

[notch]

Yeah, it's not an example of overseas being cheaper, just the local shop charging like a wounded bull. I won't be going back!

Danger, your prices are always very compeditive - I don't think you have to give a crap about the purchase of items from overseas, especially since you give such good service in addition to great prices...

[Taz]

That's just it..... A very few NZ bike shops offer reasonable service. The rest think service is not really a word in the english language. Auckland I think has the highest proportion of shops that are owned by or employ people that just don't care. Luckily hamilton is only a stones throw away.

[warewolf]

Tubes... Continental CHC ultra heavy duty, try around $70 each, not! Got a pair of Vee Rubber for less than that (both items at LBS). Yes I expect the Contis are better quality, but not that much better. But I'm not surprised at their pricing, I refuse to buy Conti TKC80s as they are way over-priced and under-perfoming.

Importing; whilst I understand and agree with the reasons to support the local business, you have to wonder who is getting all that extra cash you have to part with: wholesalers, distributors, the government? It certainly isn't the poor retailer, rarely is, just like petrol. We aren't talking minor differences, I would pay a small premium to buy locally but at times we are talking more than twice the price. I support my LBS's but I hear from lots of people that don't at all. Worse, I know people that get their advice from the LBS then buy the recommended item offshore... that stinks.

Stock is a problem as much as price. Many a time the LBS won't have stock, can't get it promptly, then has to charge like a wounded bull for stuff when it finally does arrive weeks to months later. Ordering on-line gets it here within a week and a helluva lot cheaper. Yes holding stock costs money but it needs to be readily accessible up the chain.

Additionally, customers can research and know more about the specific products than the retailer. So the LBS loses the advantages of cost, availability and knowledge, ie the value-add.

Governments are notoriously slow to change. A lot of the pricing difference is due to government constraints that a private importer does not cop.

[wildcat_lgf]

thanks. i am a dreamer. i dream of a stong local economy and bringing money into this country, not letting it go offshore.

I run my own business and work dam hard for my money also. But i get looked after well with good discounts at the LBS that i shop at. they provide value that i can not get elsewhere, are also dam hard working people that have to spend their money somewhere also. hopefully with it in some way returning back to my business. if i shop overseas, there is no way that the cash i spent is going to come full circle back into my pocket.......

I realise I'm a bit late to join in the conversation, and I hate to flame you, but was interested to note the posts about supporting local economy, especially seeing as you are looking at importing a number of bikes from Japan. (http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...ad.php?t=70638)

Surely if you believed what you are posting you would buy your bikes from a local dealer even if it cost you more and not try and undercut the market by buying them cheaper overseas?

You say you are willing to support local markets for bike gear because of the service, return to local economy, blah blah blah...and now you are going into importing of bikes...

There's nothing worse than a wolf dressed in lambs clothing...1 word comes to mind:

[jimmy 2006]

huh??

so i look to make money through the off season of MY business (ice cream manufacture is only busy in summer) by possibly importing motorcycles for some friends? i will even be working closely with a local bike shop to do this (where do you think i even got the lists from duh......)

get your facts straight before you think you know what is going on..... i am an avid supporter of the industry here, as many can vouch for.

also your comment "not try and undercut the market by buying them cheaper overseas?" do you support the local market with your bel leathers that you import?

[takitimu]

The worm has turned, heading back to the states for work next month & was looking at some new boots, thing is SG10's are 10% more expensive here now & Sidi Crossfires are just as close in price, I might try & get some more life out of my boots seeing as no real advantage in getting them stateside ( NZ support being easily worth 10% in my opinion + if you get caught by customs & pay GST there's 12.5% ), some stuff is cheaper but the differences have shrunk dramatically.