Canadians Still Getting Hosed

[bush_cheney2004]

BMO confirms the obvious...despite dollar "parity", Canadian consumers are still getting hosed:

The loonie may be bouncing around parity with the U.S. greenback, but a new study has found that Canadians are still paying significantly higher prices than Americans for exactly the same consumer goods.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/stor...?hub=TopStories

Come on down 'Peggers.....the Mall of America is open 7 days a week!

Edited June 13, 2008 by bush_cheney2004

[M.Dancer]

BMO confirms the obvious...despite dollar "parity", Canadian consumers are still getting hosed:

The loonie may be bouncing around parity with the U.S. greenback, but a new study has found that Canadians are still paying significantly higher prices than Americans for exactly the same consumer goods.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/stor...?hub=TopStories

Come on down 'Peggers.....the Mall of America is open 7 days a week!

I have an email at my office from Bose explaining why the Bose Wave is $100 more in Canada. No where in it did he say it's because we are hosing you....but he should of. In a nutshell he said it was because of costs associated with inventory.

I leave it to others to excplain to me why that ain't horsefeathers.

[Peter F]

Good ol' capitalist maximizing of profits! Its good for consumers. I'd drive down to Duluth but I don't have a car or a passport and fear being packed off to Scotland...

[Wild Bill]

I have an email at my office from Bose explaining why the Bose Wave is $100 more in Canada. No where in it did he say it's because we are hosing you....but he should of. In a nutshell he said it was because of costs associated with inventory.

I leave it to others to excplain to me why that ain't horsefeathers.

Most of my career was spent selling electronic parts like resistors, capacitors, microprocessor chips and the like. I have first hand knowledge of why many things cost more in Canada.

"Costs associated with inventory" is code for another level of markup. What we are not being told is that many American companies market in Canada by means of a manufacturer's rep who usually provides a warehouse for products on the Canadian side of the border.

You see, despite the fact that we have NAFTA they reduced or eliminated the duties and tariffs but kept all the paperwork! This adds delays in getting product to consumers in Canada. It is also not unusual for a California company to ship to a rep warehouse in Quebec to supply customers who may be in British Columbia! The shipping costs are far from efficient.

It would be much more efficient to have American producers just treat Canadian customers the same as their American ones. California could ship into British Columbia and Maine could ship to Nova Scotia. The trouble is that from the American point of view its a PITA to process what are usually smaller orders with the extra paperwork to get it into Canada. Many just can't be bothered so they prefer to just ship everything to their stocking rep in "big lumps".

The only thing that seems to have been streamlined is huge money industries, like car making plants. For most consumer stuff the individual orders are too small. I regularly order parts for my home business of building and repairing guitar amplifiers. Most of these are still vacuum tube based and mainstream industrial parts suppliers long ago stopped carrying parts suitable for these circuits. Fortunately, there are a number of InterNet based distributors who service this niche market.

My orders are very modest, just a couple of hundred dollars every month or so. If I wanted next day delivery UPS or whoever would be glad to do it, with about $50 in extra costs! That's 25-35% of my order! So I turn to the cheapest method, Canada Post. A supplier ships from Phoenix Arizona and it reaches the border the next day. Then it's 2-3 weeks to reach my home! The systems used by Canada Post and Canada Customs eat up the rest of the time. Still, it's only $5-$10 dollars extra which makes more sense for my needs.

Somebody is probably thinking right now that I should be setting up my own Net store on this side of the border. Bad idea! The Canadian market is so small in comparison that few or no manufacturers stateside would give me a franchise. Besides, the Canadian market for these type of products is so small that I couldn't buy in high enough quantities to get a cost low enough to make me competitive as a re-seller. Even if I could, I couldn't pay the electricity bill on Canadian orders, let alone the rent. I'd have to target American customers!

The Wal-Marts and Costcos are big enough to swamp out these problems. They also don't have to keep their prices as low as stateside, just low enough to outcompete the other Canadian stores.

There's also business taxes and costs that are higher in Canada and have to get rolled into the price.

So yes, some of it is just price gouging but a lot is extra costs that a Canadian supplier just can't evade. I don't know if there's any solution, short of a wide open border with zero paperwork or Customs delays.

[M.Dancer]

Feel free to contact Bose and tell them they are full of it....

Dear Mr. ,

Thank you for your inquiry.

Bose Canada prices are slightly higher due to costs of manufacturing months of inventory to build up to supply the current selling season. Bose prices are not based solely on weekly currency fluctuations. Bose remains committed to serving the Canadian market and Canadian customers, regardless of exchange rates.

Thank you for contacting Bose Corporation.

Alvin Payne ext. 31971

Customer Support Team

-----------------------------------------------------

Bose Corporation - Contact Information

US Telephone: (800)637-8781

Fax: (508)614-7564

Fax: (800)360-2073

Email: http://www.bose.com

[eyeball]

I don't know if there's any solution, short of a wide open border with zero paperwork or Customs delays.

I think most Canadian's assumed this is what they were getting with "free-trade". Why would we call it that if that's not what we meant?

I guess its like the Made In Canada lable there's just no truth in advertising or politics.

[M.Dancer]

I think most Canadian's assumed this is what they were getting with "free-trade". Why would we call it that if that's not what we meant?

I think you are wrong and you believe most Canadians are stupid.

[Bryan]

I think you are wrong and you believe most Canadians are stupid.

Most Canadians (and most Americans for that matter) ARE stupid.

[Wild Bill]

Feel free to contact Bose and tell them they are full of it....

After reading that letter, yeah! They are full of it!

"Costs of manufacturing...varying" What does it matter? They don't manufacture separately in Canada! They likely have them all made in China. Their manufacturing cost will be exactly the same no matter where they sell the product.

They quoted irrelevant factors as reasons why they charge more in Canada. That just means they don't want to tell us the truth. Either they have an extra middleman in the loop for Canadian orders, they have extra costs involved in cross-border shipping or they just think they can get away with it!

Or a mix of all three.

[Topaz]

Most of my career was spent selling electronic parts like resistors, capacitors, microprocessor chips and the like. I have first hand knowledge of why many things cost more in Canada.

"Costs associated with inventory" is code for another level of markup. What we are not being told is that many American companies market in Canada by means of a manufacturer's rep who usually provides a warehouse for products on the Canadian side of the border.

You see, despite the fact that we have NAFTA they reduced or eliminated the duties and tariffs but kept all the paperwork! This adds delays in getting product to consumers in Canada. It is also not unusual for a California company to ship to a rep warehouse in Quebec to supply customers who may be in British Columbia! The shipping costs are far from efficient.

It would be much more efficient to have American producers just treat Canadian customers the same as their American ones. California could ship into British Columbia and Maine could ship to Nova Scotia. The trouble is that from the American point of view its a PITA to process what are usually smaller orders with the extra paperwork to get it into Canada. Many just can't be bothered so they prefer to just ship everything to their stocking rep in "big lumps".

The only thing that seems to have been streamlined is huge money industries, like car making plants. For most consumer stuff the individual orders are too small. I regularly order parts for my home business of building and repairing guitar amplifiers. Most of these are still vacuum tube based and mainstream industrial parts suppliers long ago stopped carrying parts suitable for these circuits. Fortunately, there are a number of InterNet based distributors who service this niche market.

My orders are very modest, just a couple of hundred dollars every month or so. If I wanted next day delivery UPS or whoever would be glad to do it, with about $50 in extra costs! That's 25-35% of my order! So I turn to the cheapest method, Canada Post. A supplier ships from Phoenix Arizona and it reaches the border the next day. Then it's 2-3 weeks to reach my home! The systems used by Canada Post and Canada Customs eat up the rest of the time. Still, it's only $5-$10 dollars extra which makes more sense for my needs.

Somebody is probably thinking right now that I should be setting up my own Net store on this side of the border. Bad idea! The Canadian market is so small in comparison that few or no manufacturers stateside would give me a franchise. Besides, the Canadian market for these type of products is so small that I couldn't buy in high enough quantities to get a cost low enough to make me competitive as a re-seller. Even if I could, I couldn't pay the electricity bill on Canadian orders, let alone the rent. I'd have to target American customers!

The Wal-Marts and Costcos are big enough to swamp out these problems. They also don't have to keep their prices as low as stateside, just low enough to outcompete the other Canadian stores.

There's also business taxes and costs that are higher in Canada and have to get rolled into the price.

So yes, some of it is just price gouging but a lot is extra costs that a Canadian supplier just can't evade. I don't know if there's any solution, short of a wide open border with zero paperwork or Customs delays.

I don't know what the price was but over on the shopping channel they have it around $850.00 for CD player. www.shoppingchannel.com

[GostHacked]

Using BOSE is a perfect example of huge mark up for a really middle of the road product. Bose is just horrible with sound reproduction. Great if you have a lot of money and little room to put a full stereo in.

Bose is overpriced garbage.

You can buy something that sounds better for 850 bucks.

[M.Dancer]

You can buy something that sounds better for 850 bucks.

the bose wave is 479 in the US, 579 here....and they sound amazing.

[sharkman]

Here's something I've been looking at lately, Kitchenaid products. They are much more in Canada than the US and there is no excuse for it, except an extra level of mark up as Wild Bill related.

Their top of the line stand mixer goes for $700 at my local Linens 'n Things. The Bay and Sears do not even carry this beast. At Amazon.com right now it is $299, with free shipping to Sumas, a border town about 10 minutes from my home in Abbotsford. Even after I would pay taxes(no duty - Made in U.S.A.) it would be under 400. That is just crazy. Most of their products are like that. Many bigger ticket items are like this, including appliances.

BTW I buy many things across the line like this and pocket the savings. I'm tired of being hosed by Canadian retailing. If I was in the market for a car I'd buy one down there in a heart beat. I saved around $150 on a vacuum and about $400 on a sound system for my car. With the high dollar it's a no-brainer until the prices get closer to parity.

[Leafless]

Using BOSE is a perfect example of huge mark up for a really middle of the road product. Bose is just horrible with sound reproduction. Great if you have a lot of money and little room to put a full stereo in.

Bose is overpriced garbage.

You can buy something that sounds better for 850 bucks.

I agree with you.

The Bose system is all about acoustic gimmickry with their television commercials relating to the push-pull speaker movement blowing out candles is equivalent to increasing the power of a vacuum cleaner by decreasing the intake diameter.

This is a joke.

Mostly everyone is aware that to obtain good stereo reproduction, good quality 3-way speakers must be placed at least 7-8 feet apart with a good quality receiver that will cost a lot less than $850.00.

This is relating to stereo.

BTW-there are a lot of bargains on older, quality stereo systems out there.

[White Doors]

everyone knows?

I prefer quality two way speakers myself.

totem is a very good speaker making. unreal imaging and Canadian too.

There is nothing wrong with Bose however.

[M.Dancer]

I have never seen a Bose TV commerical. I have heard Bose many times. My friends have a basic Bose Wave which fills their dioning room with sound, and another fellow I know had a more advanced model the size of a suitcase that filled a 1000 sq ft room with textured sound....

[bush_cheney2004]

everyone knows?

Agreed...hell, many think MP3 music files are high fidelity!

I prefer quality two way speakers myself.

totem is a very good speaker making. unreal imaging and Canadian too.

Yes....I lived happily with original Advents for many years.

There is nothing wrong with Bose however.

Forgive them God, for they know not what they do/speak.

[Wilber]

We have a Bose Wave radio in our kitchen. Got it with Visa points. Excellent sound for its size. Big powered mothers for the entertainment system though. A good system should be able to make the house rattle.

[Leafless]

everyone knows?

I prefer quality two way speakers myself.

totem is a very good speaker making. unreal imaging and Canadian too.

There is nothing wrong with Bose however.

Maybe you can tell me how two tiny speakers placed inches apart in a plastic housing can compare or properly duplicate the stereo effect created by properly spaced/angled, nominally enclosed, professionally designed, 3-way/2-way, speaker systems that house tweeters, mid-range and woofer speakers driven by a relatively high wattage,quality, FM stereo receiver /amplifier?

No doubt the Bose will fill a smaller room with music but so will a small inexpensive AM/FM stereo radio.

[bush_cheney2004]

Maybe you can tell me how two tiny speakers placed inches apart in a plastic housing can compare or properly duplicate the stereo effect created by properly spaced/angled, nominally enclosed, professionally designed, 3-way/2-way, speaker systems that house tweeters, mid-range and woofer speakers driven by a relatively high wattage,quality, FM stereo receiver /amplifier?

No doubt the Bose will fill a smaller room with music but so will a small inexpensive AM/FM stereo radio.

Dr. Bose's psycho-acoustic designs are still in production after all these years, from high end automotive to Olympic stadium applications. Can also be found in the US military and NASA applications, particularly when "room" size is a design constraint.

There are more approaches to good design than just acoustic suspension or bass reflex....go listen to some old school Dahlquist planars (e.g. DQ-10), for example.

In any event, if you purchase such products in Canada, you will invariably pay more.

[Guest American Woman]

In any event, if you purchase such products in Canada, you will invariably pay more.

Perhaps it's like real estate prices ... "location, location, location." The better the location, the higher the price.

[White Doors]

Maybe you can tell me how two tiny speakers placed inches apart in a plastic housing can compare or properly duplicate the stereo effect created by properly spaced/angled, nominally enclosed, professionally designed, 3-way/2-way, speaker systems that house tweeters, mid-range and woofer speakers driven by a relatively high wattage,quality, FM stereo receiver /amplifier?

No doubt the Bose will fill a smaller room with music but so will a small inexpensive AM/FM stereo radio.

Obviously you are unfamiliar with acoustimass.

also, Bose does not make stand alone amplifiers/receivers.

Edited June 24, 2008 by White Doors

[Leafless]

Obviously you are unfamiliar with acoustimass.

I know with stereo, what you hear is what you get, rather than as with Bose, what you perceive to hear, is what you get.

also, Bose does not make stand alone amplifiers/receivers.

Who said they did?

[White Doors]

I know with stereo, what you hear is what you get, rather than as with Bose, what you perceive to hear, is what you get.

Who said they did?

Ok, have you heard an acoustimass before?

I;m not saying that Bose are the best. Are they better than kenwood 3 way tower speakers from your $1100 stereo set you got in 1992? very much. Are they the best? No.

Totem, which I cited above, make better quality speakers in my opinion, but they cost much more too.

You are the one who brought up amplifiers, although I am unsure of why.

Actually, I have no idea what you are really going on about other than you have a bvery negative opinion of Bose for some reason that is not grounded in reality.

Edited June 24, 2008 by White Doors

[bush_cheney2004]

I know with stereo, what you hear is what you get, rather than as with Bose, what you perceive to hear, is what you get.

But this is exactly why Bose products are successful in the marketplace. Their approach to audio reproduction includes the listener's "perception". I can walk into a speaker demo room (a rare thing these days) with a copy of Holst's The Planets and quickly separate the toys from the good stuff....but this is just my "perception".