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Subject Topic: Bell tent direct from China? Post Reply Post New Topic
Personjlparsons
13/6/2013 at 10:33am
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I like the look of a bell tent, but it seems the majority are very similar models imported from China and marked up significantly for sale here. I've also read word of European distributors setting territories, with UK prices higher and no way to circumvent without travelling to the continent to buy (anti-competitor behaviour, not sure how this is EU legal but hey ho, I'm just an economist). So I have to ask - anyone imported one direct from China? I expect the cost saving would be dramatic...


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PersonOpensauce
13/6/2013 at 12:22pm
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Here yer go 22 pages to look through, they all seem to require a min order though. FOB(free on board)means that buyer pays all costs from the port of loading so add shipping cost & customs & import duty to unit price.

& its not anticompetitive for Obelink to not offer a delivery service to the UK even if it does protect UK retailers who they presumably supply because anybody is free to go & buy one from their shop in Holland.


Post last edited on 13/06/2013 12:42:51


Personjlparsons
13/6/2013 at 5:59pm
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Quote: Originally posted by Tentz on 13/6/2013
Here yer go 22 pages to look through, they all seem to require a min order though. FOB(free on board)means that buyer pays all costs from the port of loading so add shipping cost & customs & import duty to unit price.


Found those, was hoping someone had a contact to make single purchases. Wouldn't be difficult to set up if you knew a man in China, unfortunately I don't! Only other option is to do a group buy.

Quote: Originally posted by Tentz on 13/6/2013
& its not anticompetitive for Obelink to not offer a delivery service to the UK even if it does protect UK retailers who they presumably supply because anybody is free to go & buy one from their shop in Holland.


If the manufacturer, distributors or retailers of a product act to divide the territories of a free trade area by using market power to prevent arbitrage and differentiate prices then this would normally be seen as classical anticompetitive behaviour. This is legislated against in the EU and US. It harms the economy as a whole in the same way as other anticompetitive behaviours such as monopolising a market, dumping, patent misuse and protectionism.

There might be a very good and perfectly valid reason why a retailer might decide to stop shipping a certain product to the UK whilst they remain happy to ship lots of other similar weight/value products here and whilst they remain demonstrably competitive with that product here too. I'm struggling to think of one, but what do I know! I been wrong before and I'll be wrong again I'm sure. :)


PersonOpensauce
13/6/2013 at 10:51pm
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Obviously Obelink do not want to undermine their UK wholesale customers by offering shipping of same product to their own UK retail customers, I would have thought to contravene EU law they would have to themselves offer same product to UK customers at higher price than to Dutch customers, with goods being retailed direct from Holland, which they are not doing.

All sorts of the same product are often for sale at different prices in different EU countries, cars & laptops for example. You are free to take Obelink to the European court of course.





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Personjlparsons
14/6/2013 at 9:47am
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Quote: Originally posted by Tentz on 13/6/2013
Obviously Obelink do not want to undermine their UK wholesale customers by offering shipping of same product to their own UK retail customers, I would have thought to contravene EU law they would have to themselves offer same product to UK customers at higher price than to Dutch customers, with goods being retailed direct from Holland, which they are not doing.


No - collusion to artificially fix prices by dividing territories is still anticompetitive behaviour, just as collusion to fix prices by agreement is still in effect monopolistic behaviour (oligopoly). The line between the two is very thin, but both are anticompetitive and regulated against.

Quote: All sorts of the same product are often for sale at different prices in different EU countries, cars & laptops for example. You are free to take Obelink to the European court of course.

You're right there. Lots of prices are different across the EU, some for legitimate reasons, some I'm sure due to anticompetitive behaviour. Its unlikely the ECJ will care much about bell tents however - bigger fish to fry!

The OFT might tho! Reporting this kind of practice where we find it (whilst circumventing it if possible) is the best way to stamp it out. You can report it to the OFT here.


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PersonJohn in Leeds
14/6/2013 at 10:42am
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Interesting information - thank you

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"The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt." - Bertrand Russell


Personautopilot
16/6/2013 at 9:07pm
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We looked at importing from china too. The tents Soulpad, karma and Bell Tent UK etc sell can be had for £100-200 pounds. The problem is that most factories that make them will only trade in quantity. But even if you can get one imported, what happens if its defective? You are basically up that famous creek.

As for certain companies having exclusivity deals with suppliers, it might be annoying but this is extremly common with all sorts of products. What annoys me about belltentuk.co.uk is that they claim they make theirs yet they actually by them from obelink (who I think themselves import from china).

As much as I love my Karma bell tent, I was buying again I would pay a bit more for a British made one with thicker canvas.


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