 Re: Help from our friends in the US
Playfordtree
The debate is great, I dont mind at all.
What does a Stihl retailer actually pays for a saw here?
What is the wholesale of that saw?
Now lets expand this a little.
Stihl have a factory called X.
X makes and sells saws in Germany. Simple right.
So wouldn't you think that whether I was buying from England, USA, NZ or Africa the factory X would have the same price!
But ahh, hang on, Stihl decide to supply a central store, they look after the distribution and freight to the country perhaps.
So when ringing factory X in Germany they say bugger off to your local country distribution centre.
Now you have X.NZ; X.Africa; X.USA etc
All of a sudden you have different prices now as Stihl decide the price into the country, and I assure you that price is not a cost price but another profit on top.
Now the funny part is, you can allegedly buy a retail USA saw cheaper than a wholesale Australian saw. And to make matters worse get it here including freight cheaper.... for a 1 off item!
So doesn't that raise alarm bells? A saw goes from Germany to USA in bulk, then retails and then to here cheaper than Stihl can supply.
Stihl are full of BS.
If USA can retail a ms200t for $500 they must be buying them for what, $250? So if I was a retailer I should be able to buy them off Stihl Germany for same and arrange my own freight ... like many other businesses do.
And what I sell that saw for depends on how my business is structured and located. Currently Stihl have a rrp system, which is unfair to remote areas or high profile shops who have higher overheads.
You know if you buy shoes at David Jones you'll pay more than K-Mart, even for the exact same shoe.
There's an element of anti competative behaviour here and price fixing for sure ... I have USA saws and have had them for some time, they're great!
But if they are different then why the secrecy? Why dont these Stihl people just open up? Because they have no argument strong enough to withstand their current pricing and practices. You honestly believe that Stihl make different saws for different countries within the same model number? I dont, sure some small things like air cleaners or bumper spikes, covers might change but the internal engine etc ... nope, I vote same thing.
Invite your Stihl bloke into the discussion, I bet he wont, they're sworn to secrecy and could have their dealership pulled ... dont forget, Stihl are Germans and some things haven't changed in a long long time. |