Think Twice - Buy Local

[DuffNut]

Panasonic Camera TZ7 - From the internet company which sounds similar to a magnificent South American river.....£236.04 delivered to Jersey doorstep..........from an 'honest' Jersey outlet on Queens Road....£299

Panasonic 42" V10 plasma television from Tv section within a well known King Street Dept store £1330........from online seller £956.50....delivery, negotiating at £75.....

will I think twice, will I buy local ??

[danrok]

Panasonic Camera TZ7 - From the internet company which sounds similar to a magnificent South American river.....£236.04 delivered to Jersey doorstep..........from an 'honest' Jersey outlet on Queens Road....£299

Panasonic 42" V10 plasma television from Tv section within a well known King Street Dept store £1330........from online seller £956.50....delivery, negotiating at £75.....

will I think twice, will I buy local ??

Add to the Jersey prices, all the other extortionately priced accessories they'll try and flog you, as well as the over-priced TV/camera.

[Ashley]

We all know you can get stuff cheaper elsewhere.  You just can't expect local shops to compete, realistically, on price with some UK shops that are buying huge numbers of units at a knock down price and getting it delivered to them for free.

It's a double edged sword - you buy local, see the product working, gauge it's performance yourself, generally get assistance, delivery and a point to sale to return the item to - or you save yourself some money and have a punt on something you've not seen from a faceless company that you can't easily return the goods to.  Fine for small items but not so smart, in my opinion, with larger goods.

The more cynical/savvy will test the product locally, make a decision and buy cheaper elsewhere.  It's fair enough - the problem being that we'll end up with less local shops to buy from and less choice locally.

In my experience, everything you can get over here is equal to, or less than, the RRP.  All discounts to be had elsewhere are as a result of cuts somewhere - they're selling hundreds of items with little or no added value. 

[Dylan]

The art of procurement is to get your cheaper prices in from the mainland, negotiate with them locally, adjust for gst and shipping. Ease peas!

[Mark Forskitt]

I am fully in agreement with the principle of buying local where possible.  However I have some problems with the practice.  But most irritating is that we only get this campaign after meddling with the tax system in such away as to have encouraged many locally owned businesses to sell up to non local owners. This means buying local is only half as effective as it could have been had the business profits also been retained and spent and taxed locally.  As far a 0-10 goes the 'think twice' part of the campaign is most apposite

[Norman_Point]

In my experience, everything you can get over here is equal to, or less than, the RRP

Point of order, please:

Who decides on the recommended retail price?  IMHO, this is not far off retail price maintenance, which has been illegal (in the UK, at least) for the last 30-40 years.

[Ashley]

Point of order, please:

Who decides on the recommended retail price?  IMHO, this is not far off retail price maintenance, which has been illegal (in the UK, at least) for the last 30-40 years.

The manufacturer decides that, as well you know. The purchase price to the retailer will reflect the RRP and also the quality of the product. There's nothing secret going on - produce needs a RRP.

[stoneface]

We all know you can get stuff cheaper elsewhere.  You just can't expect local shops to compete, realistically, on price with some UK shops that are buying huge numbers of units at a knock down price and getting it delivered to them for free.

It's a double edged sword - you buy local, see the product working, gauge it's performance yourself, generally get assistance, delivery and a point to sale to return the item to - or you save yourself some money and have a punt on something you've not seen from a faceless company that you can't easily return the goods to.  Fine for small items but not so smart, in my opinion, with larger goods.

The more cynical/savvy will test the product locally, make a decision and buy cheaper elsewhere.  It's fair enough - the problem being that we'll end up with less local shops to buy from and less choice locally.

In my experience, everything you can get over here is equal to, or less than, the RRP.  All discounts to be had elsewhere are as a result of cuts somewhere - they're selling hundreds of items with little or no added value. 

The internet does more than just enable us to buy products cheaper. It also means we can find out from other buyers their experiences with products: reliability, usability, customer service from the manufacturer, etc. It is increasingly becoming the case that the only use for local shops is that you can get your item today, and there's someone to show you how to use it.

Just because we've always had a certain number of shops, that doesn't mean we always should. If the functions traditionally performed by these shops can be done better through other methods, then we are all better served if they shut down and the retail space and staff are employed doing something more productive. It's never an enjoyable process for those involved, but that doesn't mean we should perpetuate something whose time has passed.

[danrok]

We all know you can get stuff cheaper elsewhere.  You just can't expect local shops to compete, realistically, on price with some UK shops that are buying huge numbers of units at a knock down price and getting it delivered to them for free.

Not true in my experience.  I used to spend approx. £50K a month buying stock, and was permitted to price it as I saw fit, and I would always match or better the lowest price I found on the net.  Plus, quite a few suppliers I dealt with would deliver to Jersey for free (included in the price), or as far as Portsmouth for free.  I could then negotiate cheaper freight costs on transport from Portsmouth.

Any buyer worth his/her salt, will negotiate low prices with suppliers to enable them to compete with all their competitors, including online competitors.

[Ashley]

Not true in my experience.  I used to spend approx. £50K a month buying stock, and was permitted to price it as I saw fit, and I would always match or better the lowest price I found on the net.  Plus, quite a few suppliers I dealt with would deliver to Jersey for free (included in the price), or as far as Portsmouth for free.  I could then negotiate cheaper freight costs on transport from Portsmouth.

Any buyer worth his/her salt, will negotiate low prices with suppliers to enable them to compete with all their competitors, including online competitors.

You weren't selling teles or cameras though, were you?  These are high competition, hugely advertised, status symbols that people actively shop around for the lowest price for - because they resent spending the extra money on them. 

You didn't say what you were buying in. I wouldn't say it was clothes or food so I'm guessing it was computer equipment.  Most people's computers are generic boxes that relay information to them . You can knock one together for a similar spec to a Dell and sell it to some old dear for 399 quid, same as a Dell and they'll think they're getting something like for like.  It's not the same - if that's what you were buying.

Of course buyers negotiate - but of course they cannot compete with the likes of internet sellers who can charge much less because they don't have the shopfront, staff and other overheads that you'd need to shift all that gear on the high street.

So when you were buying all that stuff in to retail - did you think there was no advantage to people buying from you locally? Or is your point that local buyers are marking up their retail prices over and above what's reasonable, all things considered?

IMO it's the clothes shops over here who take the piss.  I walk around like a hobo most of the time because I wont spend those prices.

[Norman_Point]

produce needs a RRP

I understand that many laws do not apply in Jersey, but I cannot believe that the COM has legislated against the law of supply and demand!

[Ashley]

I understand that many laws do not apply in Jersey, but I cannot believe that the COM has legislated against the law of supply and demand!

There's no point to this argument whatsoever.  Brands have kudos, reputation and an intrinsic value that relates to that.  Indeed - it's the public demand for such products as iPods and Pioneer teles that set their price above their counterparts in the market. 

[stoneface]

I understand that many laws do not apply in Jersey, but I cannot believe that the COM has legislated against the law of supply and demand!

Politicians regularly try!

There's no point to this argument whatsoever.  Brands have kudos, reputation and an intrinsic value that relates to that.  Indeed - it's the public demand for such products as iPods and Pioneer teles that set their price above their counterparts in the market. 

There is no such thing as "intrinsic value." Value is entirely contextual, and subjective to each individual. This is not just an esoteric point, but something people often forget - hence why politicians often think they can repeal the laws of economics (or just don't think and carry on blindly)!

[danrok]

I don't give Apple any kudos, thanks to their DRM shambles.

[Ashley]

What happened to the last few posts on this thread?  Why were they removed?