Quote:
Originally Posted by onem
Theres something to throw in. Limeted quantity will yeald less profit, Unless you mark up the cost. Now a large quantity will allow you to mark down the cost of the goods to the consumer and allow you to make a large profit. In the end having more of something makes you more money. And making it cheap makes you even more money.
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That's an understood practice in any reselling business - wholesale prices are always cheaper, but if it's that obvious, doesn't that make you wonder WHY they bring in limited quantities if they could make extra massive amounts of money on top?
Capital isn't endless, neither is warehouse space to store the goods, and it's possible that the importation permits actually have restrictions put on them that limit the quantity of guns that can brought in at any one time.
Back to the capital topic as well, sitting on the capital while you wait for it to sell also prevents that equity from being invested while it's sitting in product inventory. That's lost earning potential, that any smart business should take in to consideration when marketing their goods.
Anyways, I don't retail those restricted goods, nor do I plan to, so I don't know all of the intricate details behind it. But as a parts & accessories retailer, I have enough of an understanding of that side of the business to realize how much of an extra step is required to retailer in the bigger stuff.
It's just the way the business is, as are many other businesses. And yes, the government does have a huge hand in the pocket as well. Ultimately, airsoft retailers are businesses and have to pay income taxes on the goods they sell. The more they sell, the more the government takes. Surprise surprise. It'd be nice if airsoft retailers could work under the table, but if a crackdown ever rained down on them, forget about charges for selling airsoft, they'd have to worry more about tax evasion charges.
For an idea of some overhead costs, have you ever looked at the income tax rates of Canadians versus Americans? As well as land/warehouse ownership costs?
As a retailing business, there is a lot of overhead costs that simply make it not feasible for many products to be cheaper than their American counterparts.
Granted, I would be turning a blind eye if I were to say that supply and demand did NOT drive the prices in the Canadian market more than anything. Truth of the matter is, that's the largest driving factor.
Personally, if I were looking for a gun right now, I would gladly pay the asking price - complaining about it will leave you with nothing. Including no gun in your hand. Want to get that gun? Work harder to scrape up the extra dough. You just gotta do what you gotta do.