Monopoly on Aus Astronomy gear

[that_guy]

Hi guys, I've noticed a recent trend of every store being out of stock of the same items (in my case, 0.7x reducer for my EDGE HD). Estimated time for restock was early September for ALL Australian Celestron vendors. I thought that was absolutely ridiculous. It's the fact that every store in Australia has the same supplier (Tasco) that supplies them with all these gears. So, if one store is out of stock, theres a good possibly that ALL stores in Australia will be out of stores. What's the point of having all these different stores if they all come from the same place and have the same restrictions on stock?

Not to mention the price difference between AUS and US even with exchange rate + tax + shipping. My 0.7x reducer that I ordered from the US cost in total $680 from bhphoto shipped with import tax included. In Bintel it costs $850 (on sale mind you) excl. shipping. AND its not even in stock until September! Surely we're getting taken advantage of here in Australia. I want to support local businesses but a price difference of $270 and actually being in stock is hard to argue.

There's got to be a better way to buy some of these gears without having to pay arm and a leg and having to wait several months for it to arrive.

[glend]

Tony, Celestron are notorious for not producing enough reducers, there are always people waiting. Check out the Cloudy Nights forum, same situation over there in the US. You will never see them discounted either. They make them is small batches, so they claim, and this keeps the demand and price high.
There was a recent news story about Celestron price fixing, conspiring with its competitors to set prices in the US market, where together they control 80% of the market.
If you want "a better way", as you suggest, look at alternatives to Celestron, and parent company Synta products; or be prepared to play their game (and pay).

[that_guy]

Here's the reducer I bought from BHP (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1395949-REG/celestron_94245_0_7x_reducer_lens_f or.html) and here's Bintel (https://www.bintel.com.au/product/reducer-lens-7x-edgehd-925/?v=322b26af01d5). The price difference is immense even with exchange rate.

[FlashDrive]

IMHO ... I think Bintel are getting far too expensive in a lot of their gear.

Not long ago a 12" inch Bintel Dob was around $1050 ...now they are $1349.00 and that's a ' sale ' price

I've stopped buying from them a long time ago.

Col...

[Tropo-Bob]

True, but the Oz $ is not worth what it once was.

[spiezzy]

yeh i don't get the lodgic by making small amounts of the reducer and keeping customers hanging to make a profit is not very good business as those customer will go else where and find alternatives at a way better price its a shame its all come down to greed even with our great hobby and if the likes of Bintel as much as i like them and try to support them there prices have gone up quite a bit and for a pleb like me just can't afford to upgrade any scope equipment
cheers Pete

[FlashDrive]

Bob ....quite right, which beggars the question... how do they survive with ever increasing prices.

[LewisM]

All I have to say here is Andrews have been EXCEPTIONAL in every possible way for me during the Corona Hangover. Superb service, great pricing, stock levels are great. AAA+++


If only they would stock Takahashi :lol:

[glend]

Lewis I agree. I originally wrote a long post about how the importation process works here, the presence of exclusive import agents, like TASCO, etc then I thought stuff it. This has been discussed many times over the years, and some of these discussions end up being closed down by the Mods.

:thumbsup: for Andrews, they keep it real, even if their website is circa 1990 (part of their charm in my opinion).

[Peter Ward]

Ah! This old chestnut!

Frankly I don't begrudge Bintel their margin. Australian consumer law is close to the toughest on the planet. A warranty is mandatory for them (and all Oz based dealers)

Got a problem with your B&H supplied reducer? You will foot the bill for the return.

I also wonder about B&H's web pricing. Customs entry costs from $50 to $201 depending on the cost of the goods. Not sure how they get around that. Could be you get a nasty sting when the bill arrives.

[Nikolas]

It would depend on whether B&H do more than $70,000 in business here in Australia

[AndyG]

Honest question - how does a business become defined or "captured" as being in the >$70k class? I can understand the big players (like Ebay) couldn't pokerface their way out of this. But what of others? Must they self report? Are they counted and measured? By what mechanism?

B&H have been flawless in my last 3 purchases over the years. I've put around $2k through them, with no GST, import duty, or surprises. Surely there's enough Australian purchases to tip them past $70k p.a.?

[that_guy]

B&H has an option to pay the tax on their side, for my reducer it was an extra $30. It was an easy choice. The reducer arrived safe and sound within a week with no dramas. I would love to shop at andrews if they would just update their website or answer their emails!

[Startrek]

My 2 cents .....
It’s a tough gig being a supplier of astronomy gear in this country, it’s a very very small industry and without margins and profit you simply don’t survive ( I ran a small business for 25 years )
I’ve bought 90% of my gear through Bintel and will continue to do so , they have never let me down and it’s refreshing to talk to a fellow astronomer who knows their stuff , not just sales people at the end of a till
Cheers

[Peter Ward]

Duh. That's the point.

If you have a business with ABN in Australia, you have to pay Customs Entry and GST..a very real cost that the retailer has to pay to have stuff on the shelf .(The ATO gets testy if you don't)

Yet foreign operators, in many cases, pay zip.

Not so much a local rip-off....just really crappy local tax laws.

[AndyG]

Good point. In the era of big box stores this is getting to be a rarity. I should have added that my B&H purchases were mostly installation AV gear.

Can anyone answer as to the mechanism of foreign vendors becoming classed as "over $70k"? If they don't self report, what flags them?

[Hemi]

I agree, Bintel have been fantastic for me. John and Don in particular get my praise. They are knowledgeable and friendly.

As to prices, it’s surprisingly variable depending on what you buy and when. I’ve always been able to negotiate or price match a good deal from bintel. Their shipping costs are very honest, and often thrown in for free. I recently bought a celestron focus motor from them, John matched the price of an Australian competitor with the best price who was out of stock. He threw in shipping, and overall I couldn’t have gotten it cheaper from FLO, OptCorp or agena.

Andrews are also good, a bit more hassle because of their website, and shipping to Darwin is really expensive (they need to change couriers). Luke is also very knowledgeable.

Often, I find the main reason to buy from abroad, is delivery! It’s faster and usually cheaper then anyone else in Australia except Bintel. I usually buy from FLO, who deduct the VAT, and ship fast and cheap. They are also very helpful and respond extremely fast by email.

I prefer to buy stuff locally (Darwin, then Australia) as its in my self interest to support local business. They need to make sufficient money to have a good life. They can’t and won’t do it for subsistence.

.....just my 2c.

[jahnpahwa]

This is so different to my experience with these guys! I emailed a question this morning, and got a response saying that the best person to talk to would be back on Monday. I reckon even a place with "good" email response would get by with not answering until that person returned (only 2.5 business days... not bad), but to get that heads up within an hour or two is great.

My inbox is full of same day responses from them... I reckon give em another go :)

In general, I'm pretty impressed by the prices domestically. Coming from bicycles for the past 20 years, I'm used to being absolutely flogged domestically, but I don't see it so much with astro.

[LewisM]

Longest I ever waited for a reply from Luke was about 5 hours

[Nikolas]

Maybe they were having a bad day but I did email a question to Andrews 4 years ago, still waiting for a reply.
I bought a mini guide cam from ZWO direct as the backorder for bintel was a month. IT was cheaper and arrived in 7 days and no GST

[LewisM]

I ordered something direct from ZWO this week. Currently with FedEx for delivery Monday. All up, $80 cheaper than Bintel's price (which doesn't include post), which they don't have stock of anyway.

[xelasnave]

Nik stick with them, they are busy because they are just so good.

When I bought my EQ6 mount many years ago, Lee the man who we should all thank for generally lowering prices for astronomy gear in Australia, delivered the mount to my Sydney home personally. He did not know me from a bar of soap.

He and all the team there are great...I was speaking to Lee today and he is just such a nice bloke, really helpful...I was discussing a mount and all he was trying to do was save me money...Luke is to email me next week but if he doesn't I expect that he is just run off his feet so I will understand and ring him.

Lee was saying business has increased and we guess it is because of the virus with folk realising money spent on astronomy makes more sense than eating out...so please do not deny yourself the opportunity of great prices and fabulous back up because of a non reply...trust me...when I was in business it got to the stage where there were so many people after me I could not return calls ..it is a good sign not a bad one...Lee and his team really deserve our support cause without them where do you think prices would be.
Alex

[Nikolas]

I'm not prepared to wait 6-8 weeks on backorder when I can order direct and get a shedload cheaper. Case in point it's a 2 month wait for an asiair pro at bintel for $599 I can order one from asi direct with postage and it is $180 cheaper even after the exchange and the wait is 3 weeks. Why be held to ransom? I can understand on big ticket items like a mount then definitely local. But smaller items definitely shop around.

[xelasnave]

Of course..in fact Lee said to me today if I wanted a zwo camera that I should order direct...my only point was don't write them off because they fail to answer an email..that happens, they would be embarrassed clearly, but they still are a great crew..just don't forget that they can help in certain situations where you both will benefit from doing business with each other.
Alex

[Nikolas]

I haven't written them off mate I do think however Andrews need to update their website from 1998 to 2020
Also they can only do so much when I am based in Melbourne.

[LewisM]

I can understand a LITTLE markup for local guys, but when I am essentially paying a markup equivalent to 2.5 people's hourly wages over what ZWO charges for the same 2" filter, you can understand why many of us are starting to go direct. $80 extra for a filter??? I'd be fine at $20 over, but when each sale is such a mark up or more, plus a LONG wait, there is no way this black duck is going to pay it.

[xelasnave]

I see the problem now...and I have the solution as always..just to help...you need to move to Sydney.
Alex

[Nikolas]

Hahahaha Your premier thinks otherwise mate