Yep, god bless the Australia tax. IMO local importers (of all products) here, have had it easy for way too long. This country is also a very expensive place to do business, and everyone sticks their fingers in the pie, adding to the cost.
The internet has helped challenge that business model but many importers and a few retailers still cling to it.
We are now at a tipping point IMO. eg if I buy an expensive skimmer locally, you can rest assured I would expect it fixed in a few days when theres a problem. If the turnaround time is say a month or two, maybe because the local distributor carries few parts, then I will think twice before buying products offered by him again. Instead, I will most likely by the skimmer and a spare pump from Germany at an equivalent cost. You can't have your cake and eat it, too. I know of one major distributor who imports parts only as needed, which is not good enough for high value products. If they expect hobbyists to support them, then we expect outstanding service in return. :rolleyes
The internet has helped challenge that business model but many importers and a few retailers still cling to it.
We are now at a tipping point IMO. eg if I buy an expensive skimmer locally, you can rest assured I would expect it fixed in a few days when theres a problem. If the turnaround time is say a month or two, maybe because the local distributor carries few parts, then I will think twice before buying products offered by him again. Instead, I will most likely by the skimmer and a spare pump from Germany at an equivalent cost. You can't have your cake and eat it, too. I know of one major distributor who imports parts only as needed, which is not good enough for high value products. If they expect hobbyists to support them, then we expect outstanding service in return. :rolleyes