Another beautiful Anderson

[dsouza.b.a]

Too bad it's in Japan and thus the unfortunate price tag

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Free-shipping-TOM-ANDERSON-Drop-Top-Classic-Bora-Bora-to-Trans-Blue-Burst/161746747373?_trksid=p2050601.c100085.m2372&_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1% 26asc%3D20140211132617%26meid%3D3cf24825edb3446088 c2c9524cdfba4d%26pid%3D100085%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D4%2 6sd%3D161746747373%26clkid%3D7238482075688677809&_qi=RTM2067267

[dav2321]

yeah I don't understand their lack of financial awareness by pricing their instruments so high :confused:

[dsouza.b.a]

maybe the market over there is higher. I am pretty sure they have one of the highest costs of housing of anywhere so maybe things just cost more there. Or could have to do with how the dollar stacks up versus the yen. Not sure. I just imported an ESP from Australia last month and got a tremendous deal because the AUD was weak vs the USD.

[pipedwho]

That's the kind of price we'd pay here in Aus for the same guitar (pre-haggling).

Normally everything over here (in Aus) is more expensive (even after dollar conversion). We call it the 'Australia Tax'. It's not just guitars.

It's actually cheaper for me to order a custom guitar from a US dealer than buy it locally. That includes: flying over to the US, staying a few nights in a nice hotel, hand collecting the guitar from the US dealer, and paying the import duties and taxes at the airport on the way back in. Buying locally seems to impart an enormous markup on just about anything.

I can understand electrical and other products (e.g. amps) that may need local customisation, regulatory approvals and certifications (eg. 240V, compliance testing, etc), where the importer needs to pony up the cash and resources to handle everything. But, not guitars or other non-localised products where the failure rate is super low, and the risk/costs for local warranty support aren't extreme.

That being said, our local retailers need to eat and pay rent too. :)

[dsouza.b.a]

The dealer I bought my ESP from...Shane at BMusic said that in Australia, at least for ESPs, they have to go through an importer, kind of like a middle man which adds a lot to the cost. For example, a guitar I had them spec for me was approximately 20% more than if I ordered it here.

I lucked out on the one I got which was a limited edition from 2007 and was still in new condition. When they first came out they were selling for $10K new but due to a price reduction, the weak dollar, and exemption from your AUS govt taxes, I was able to get it for around $6600 including shipping to the US. It was funny though because I was talking to a guy in AUS with the exact same guitar that he bought in the US and imported to AUS.

[pipedwho]

The ESP was a real score!

Yeah, the importers/distributers are the primary reason things get marked up so much. Usually one or two importers negotiate an exclusive import agreement with a manufacturer and then set the local price as high as possible so retailers will still buy in. If it's way too high, then people just go overseas. So they set the price so it's just enough higher than taking the risk and cost of buying/shipping from OS yourself that they still get local business from people that are scared to order from an overseas online source, or that want stuff right away.

In AU, you can count on paying at least a 50% markup, usually 100% as compared to prices overseas.

I've been told by retailers on more than one occasion that the 'online + shipping' price from certain overseas retailers is lower than the wholesale price that they are paying the distributer.