Are you still buying in the USA? Why?

[Reef Supplies]

Originally Posted by 68shelby

My local fish store sells the halides I use for $130 and up a piece, sorry I can get them online for a less than half. There markup and then theres gouging.

So you buy them in the US..no one here has them?

Originally Posted by tim the toolman

I feel much safer buying as close to home as possible. I like to be able to see what I'm buying before I spend and also I would like to make any warranty work as simple as possible.

Yepp, warranty is another good reason to buy here.

Originally Posted by Cal_stir

Sometimes you just can't buy it in Canada, nobody has a decent supply of JohnGuest fittings or refillable media cartridges, so, once in a while I order from BRS, other than that, it`s All Canadian for me.
I live on the border but have no desire to go to the US, I have no passport, no nexus, no nothing, TOOOOOO many guns overthere.

I agree that for some reason RO equipment is hard to find here. This is why we decided to bring in Spectrapure in May.

[marie]

I only buy from the US when I can't find what I'm looking for here..... but having said that I have to pay shipping costs for whatever I buy and anything I do get from the States I get shipped usps and the brokerage fee is only $5
eg. I bought 3 phoenix 250K mogul bulbs from premium aquatics and after including all shipping costs they came to under 70$ can.each and to top it off canada post must of messed up because they left the parcel on my doorstep without collecting their brokerage fee or the taxes

[Reef Supplies]

Originally Posted by marie

I only buy from the US when I can't find what I'm looking for here..... but having said that I have to pay shipping costs for whatever I buy and anything I do get from the States I get shipped usps and the brokerage fee is only $5
eg. I bought 3 phoenix 250K mogul bulbs from premium aquatics and after including all shipping costs they came to under 70$ can.each and to top it off canada post must of messed up because they left the parcel on my doorstep without collecting their brokerage fee or the taxes

Can't realy beat that..I assume they were on sale? PA sells then at $69.99.

Our (and lot's of other CA stores) MH 250K mogul are a tad over $70.

Ray

[daplatapus]

I kind of agree with Marie. I don't have a LFS that deals with much of what I use (actually don't even have one here in Port Alberni). All they have is some Hagen tests and Tailored Aquatics supplements. When you consider the price of Salifert tests and BRS's alk, Ca and Mg, even with the shipping I pay about a third of what it costs me locally, not including the minimum hours drive to get anything at $1.37/l for gas.

[Reef Pilot]

I live in south Langley, and the Pac Hwy border crossing is only 15 min for me. That's way closer than J&L. I use a freight forwarding whse in Blaine to pick up my online purchases. I choose my times to cross, so line-ups are not a problem.

Having said that, I still buy locally or online in Canada whenever possible and if the price is not too far out of line. In fact, I have found that J&L prices are sometimes equal or better than online from the US, incl BRS. Most times I buy online from the US, is when something isn't available locally, and then while I am at it, I usually stock up on a few other items.

To keep customers local, LFS's should offer to bring in special purchases at close to or equal US online prices, even if they don't make a profit. That way they will keep the customer coming back, and buying other stuff, that otherwise would have been lost sales.

[daplatapus]

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

To keep customers local, LFS's should offer to bring in special purchases at close to or equal US online prices, even if they don't make a profit. That way they will keep the customer coming back, and buying other stuff, that otherwise would have been lost sales.

I agree. While I understand this won't make a LFS rich, it will keep customers. I don't mind paying 10-15% more to have it local, heck for some things, even 20% but when things cost 100-200% more, sorry.

[paddyob]

I buy BRS because I have yet to find certain products at the same or lower cost AFTER shipping is tallied.

I bought a JBJ ATO for $100 Shipped. Nobody was even close locally or even Canada wide, that I found anyways.

I am not rich, so I don't care who gets the end result as long as it's the best price.

If someone in Canada gets on board and realizes the dollar is on par, maybe they would stop over charging. Just my opinion.

I'm pro Canada, but more pro-money in the bank.

This is obvious to most people.

Anyone who justified spending 25% more, please send me your money, cause you don't need it. Lol.

[Reef Supplies]

Originally Posted by paddyob

I buy BRS because I have yet to find certain products at the same or lower cost AFTER shipping is tallied.

I bought a JBJ ATO for $100 Shipped. Nobody was even close locally or even Canada wide, that I found anyways.

I am not rich, so I don't care who gets the end result as long as it's the best price.

If someone in Canada gets on board and realizes the dollar is on par, maybe they would stop over charging. Just my opinion.

I'm pro Canada, but more pro-money in the bank.

This is obvious to most people.

Anyone who justified spending 25% more, please send me your money, cause you don't need it. Lol.

The dollar being at par helps but that's not the only issue. The big issue is duty, shipping and brokering. The JBJ products are made in China so we pay 7% duty on that right off the bat, then we have to ship them here and pay brokering fees. Any NON US product cost us Canadians 7% more sine US made are duty free.

With that being said, the JBJ would have cost you about $110 at our store (free shipping over $175).

Ok, some products maaaaay be cheaper in the US, but not by very much at all.

Ray

[paddyob]

Originally Posted by Reef Supplies

With that being said, the JBJ would have cost you about $110 at our store (free shipping over $175).


Ray

Again... I paid $100 including shipping/brokerage/duty. Most things are cheaper at BRS.., and if I had cheaper Canadian options I would take it. Any day. Even at jl it's free shipping over $100... And it would have been $135.

$35 back into other tank supplies.






I buy livestock exclusively local. But dry goods, hard to compete anywhere in town.

[whatcaneyedo]

My last purchase from the USA was a bulk order of media and RO filters but that was at least a year ago. I generally buy enough at a time to last a few years so I haven't needed to purchase anything from outside of the country since then. At the time BRS was still the lowest price for the best of those products even with shipping and brokerage factored in.