I normally try not to reply to people that hide behind an alias, I have always put my name to everything if I have an opinion, but because you named me personally, I will make a comment to Up Yours.
On behalf of Bowlers World, all proshops in this country buy their products from distributors; we are helpless when it comes to prices. We know and understand that the cost of product to us in many cases is expensive, in comparison to other countries, but we also realise we are the furthest away from the US.
You mentioned Dexter, well Bowlers World were the Dexter distributors for this country for many years, we started bringing in Dexter’s in 1989, we had to give it away a few years ago because of unreasonable demands on us to buy 250 pair of shoes per order, cost around $40,000.00, we didn’t feel this was viable because of the size of this market.
In the end we were forced to purchase from distributors in the US because of the small size of our orders, this did cost us an extra few dollars but at least we could order small quantities when we needed to fill up certain sizes, and still supply the market here. At that time we worried very little about the Internet, and online proshops. No one else was supplying Dexter’s in Australia
The current distributors buy from Dexter direct and are under the same rules, minimum 250 pairs per order, our prices from the supplier are expensive, and we understand it, but with import duty and GST on top of the list price and distributor margin, what can we do. We either buy or we don't buy.
The dollar good or bad effects us little here, because it was probably 3 or 4 months ago they had to pay up front for the shoes, so it will always be slow in changing the cost of products over here. Before the GST and the fall in the dollar, I used to stock 20 - 30 pairs of Dexter’s in my shop, I now stock 5 - 6 for display only, and these days I only get them in if someone wants them. I always tell the customer they are expensive, and most of the time I am advising them to go to an online proshop in the US because I cannot help them.
With regard to your comment about us discounting these shoes, since the GST we all realise the price of Dexter’s shoes and others have risen too much, to make them available to bowlers I have discounted the price of my Dexter’s by more than $100.00 off the normal retail price we used to have, but in many instances I discount them even more and sell them just above cost price. I won't make any money doing this all the time, but at least I satisfied my customer, and got another pair off the distributors shelf.
I too order from online proshops in the US, and at various times in the last 12 months I have purchased around 10 pairs of Dexter’s from the US from an online proshop, I did it because I could not get the sizes or the style here. Each time I have paid import duty, GST as well as customs fees for every pair. The last order of shoes which included some SST6's cost me US$108.95 and by the time I landed them my price was AUD$319.00, I sold them for AUD$320.00.
I also recently purchased 8 Ritger videos from Ritgers Bowling Camps near New York, the cost to me for postage was US$20.00 for a small parcel, I know of a customer who recently purchased a ball from an online proshop, cost to send the ball was US$42.00 by USPS he got it in 5 weeks, by the time I drilled it he saved AUD$5.00 and the pin and CG was in an unusual place, I gave him no warranty on the ball.
Many of the more reputable proshops in Australia already discount well below retail price, last year alone my discounts amounted to more than $15,000.00 which means that came off my final profit, you have to understand that when we discount we are taking it out of our own pockets, because we cannot build in too much margin into our products anymore.
My website as well as the others, at the moment the cost of balls in comparison to US online proshops is minimal when you factor in the cost of postage. As an example and these are not on my website because they are sold out, from Bowling Index the cost of a Brunswick Inferno is US$138.95 + $82.00 postage with USPS Air Mail a total of US$220.95 (AUD$329.77), Bowlers Paradise are selling the Inferno for US$149.99 + $42.70 postage by USPS Surface Mail the cheapest 6 – 8 weeks, a total of US$192.69 (AUD$287.60) if they send it FedEx in 7 –10 days you pay US$106.75 bringing the total of that ball to US$256.74 (AUD$383.20). I am selling them in my shop for $304.00 plus drilling. And for my regular customers that support me I will always do better than retail price.
One thing you have to realise is that we are consumer driven, if we are too expensive we sell very little, all businesses work off a margin, they need a certain turnover to make a living, the proshops you mentioned in your post do more than just run a proshop, all provide a service to their customers, with the best advise, support for the products they sell, they help you choose the right product rather than selling you the most expensive product, they help you with surface changes and making sure the ball is right for you. They rely on your return business.
I am not saying all proshops do the right thing, many are overpriced and have margins that are ridiculous, many care little about the proshop and put little effort into it, the ones you mentioned all make a living from the proshop and cannot afford to rip people off, they simply would not survive.
I have always encouraged my customers that if they support me then I will always give them the best prices and always give them the best advise, in some cases selling to them for very little margin just to keep their business. Many times I have advised my customers to go to another proshop because they were cheaper.
Like many of the others we give balls away at tournaments and support the leagues and kids in our center, I make little for a lot of effort in many cases, I work more than 50 hrs a week and I earn less than some do working for McDonalds, sometimes I wish I had another job because I would be making more money, but we do what we do because we love the sport and the industry.
I understand you are not attacking anyone personally, but don’t ever say that we are ripping bowlers off, I take that personally as would the others. I guarantee everything I do and stand by my decisions, and that is why I am still in this business after 23 years.
And as Steve Jones rightly mentioned, always try and support your proshop, if it's a good one they will support you in return. We cannot stop bowlers from buying overseas, always take advantage of better prices if you have the opportunity, but if you have a good proshop in your area that makes a living from supplying you, support them, because you will win in the end.
Regards,
Patrick Birtig
Bowlers World
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