A sad,sad day for car audio

[Mk2]

Perhaps those in the industry with some sway (however small, it's more than the end consumer could dream of) should have been putting the pressure on distributors to bring prices down when they had a chance to be competitive and not just blame consumers. I doubt there are any retailers who have had a problem collecting the +x% Australia Tax while they had the opportunity. Grey imports are part of the problem with anything in retail but so is being raped at the checkout worse than a prisoner on christmas eve.

 

[vyseriesII]

We live in a greedy money making society. A place where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer in most cases. And as me move forth, some like to call progress, things aren't going to get any better either. A big problem with Australia is sometimes merchandise goes through too many hands/(tax after tax) before it gets to the consumer thus causes a higher cost to the consumer, pushing the smaller businesses out of business. And I don't know about you, but I'm going to buy from the cheapest place, even if that means looking abroad and unfortunately it's greed/progress that has made things like so.

These greedy companies are set on making record profits every year, year after year and don't give a stuff about anything but meeting these demands. People have got to change the way we do things, but I know this is never going to change, it's just way too late I think. It's easier to follow a trend then it is to set one and sheeple, I mean people will always just follow no matter how illogical it really is and big business will always make you think the path they want you on, the one that makes them big bucks is the right one.

/end rant
hehe

 

[toey@carfx]

an Australian retailer will never be able to compete with a overseas seller say in the usa. over there they work on a low margin high volume trade to make money and that works with their 320 million population compaired to our 22 million which means Australian businesses work on a low volume high margin to be profitable. most places will run anywhere between 50-100% mark up here in aus other wise they wont be making a profit due to Australia's higher operating cost. if a business isn't profitable then what is the point of running one?

if the importer purchased their bulk stock when the au$ was down at 70c but then trying to compete for sales when the au$ is back near parity, they are going out of business quick smart. sure its easy to say put some pressure on the importers/suppliers for a better price so the retailer can offer a better price to the consumer, but some times its just not possible as warehoused stock doesn't trade in current currency value, at times it can be up to 12 months or more behind where as online shopping the $ value is almost instant.

end of the day, all businesses sell at a set price and they will always have room to move on prices no matter what they say, its just a matter of haggling on price and shopping around. hell I just picked up a alpine head unit for my run about a month ago. rrp was $150 more than a grey import on ebay which was prices at $500 delivered. my nearest autobarn gave it to me for $540 and it only took one phone call, sure its $40 more but its a au model that is warranted and if I have any dramas I have a actual person to deal with rather than a email address.

my opinion is shop locally and keep another person in a job and stimulate our economy

 

[vyseriesII]

What you say is true. But it all started with someone greedy i think was what i may of been trying to say. And instead of just making a profit to keep one in business it's all about the mighty dollar. Believe me, i would rather keep my money in Australia don't get me wrong. It's a hard topic to comment on i spose with the economy being more global with the internet.


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[Tasmaniak]

Your right, it is a hard topic to comment on because as you pointed out quite clearly above... your wallet rules higher than your values.

Believe me, us retailers are always banging on the doors of our distributors to bring down our wholesale prices but in essence, they are in the same boat as us. While people continue to buy grey our wholesale prices will be through the roof. Supply and demand my friend, supply and demand. People seem to forget the AU distributors are usually NOT owned by the original manufacturer. Off the top of my head, there are really only three companies in the ICE industry that are. Clarion imports Clarion, Pioneer imports Pioneer and Kenwood import Kenwood and someone else.... JVC from memory but quote me on that.

Sony Car Audio, Polk and Orion are imported by Directed Electronics who are the same people who manufacture Viper, Python, Clifford, Avital and Hornet alarms. But even they have now dropped all of their OWN security brands and are just focusing on Viper. Which means that the guy down the road from who was a Python reseller is now a Viper reseller like me and we are now in direct competition with each other and will soon be entering price wars with each other.

Furthermore, I often see the Vipers being sold on eBay and think to myself...I could make more money buying those then ordering from Directed!... now ain't that ****? But even so, the almighty dollar rules out everywhere, so often when JB HiFi have their super silly 30% sale, I'm tempted to go in and buy half a dozen headunits from then as they are selling them out cheaper than my cost again.

I have to wonder throughout the various industries, how many people have hit the dole line because of grey imports and overseas sellers.... in turn, these people themselves then have to become grey import buyers themselves. Vicious cycle that I really don't see an end too. The whole way we buy things is in a state of change and it will be a permanent one.

I just don't know whats in store for this industry but I have a feeling I won't like it.

 

[brockzila]

Wow all valid points here, i admit to buying stuff online (25%) and locally (75%) both from shops and ebay. For me it came down to the dollar which sucks but thats me being a consumer.

As for the end of MEA it is sad because i go to most of the events even the finals and they have a great atmosphere hopefully another fomat will emerge but may require alot more volunteer participation to work and not rely on a store or brand to sponsor? It also sucks because i was building a car that i wanted to show at an event or 2

 

[mpower]

Car audio industry must be suffering bigtime at the moment, this is due to many OEM systems integrating well with vehicles and being more than acceptable for Joe Bloggs, etc. I'm sure the industry used to get looooots of $$$ from people buying basic systems who just don't buy them anymore.

Also the local markups are effing crazy, in this age of online purchasing bricks and mortar are really pushing the proverbial uphill.

 

[Tasmaniak]

G'day mate. There is still a big market for those companies smart enough. I prepared myself for OEM intergration when the BA and VY hit the showrooms. All it has done is open new doors requiring the retailer to stay on top. Amp and speaker sales are still strong, headunit sales are down quite a bit obviously. But many companies have come to the party with OEM intergration. AUX inputs, iPod adaptors, reverse sensors, reverse cameras, HUDs and so much more.

When I speak to store owners who are complaining about sales because of these new fangled cars with new fangled headunits.... thats their fault, not the consumer. But it's only a few that don't keep up with the times.

As for the local markups, refer to my above post.

 

[mpower]

I have a good mate who used to be an installer (comp level) and one of the things he did was a fair bit of lighting conversions, have you considered branching out into this area as well. As can be evidenced here cluster colour changes are hugely popular and good blokes are really hard to find.

 

[Tasmaniak]

No, too much work and tyre kickers for little profit. I spend my days doing alarms and remote starts at the moment. Little bit of audio but I try not to get too involved.