Don't quote me but I believe there are stricter laws on imports to the UK and Europe in general (as well as higher import taxes and other fees), so that may be reflected in you paying so much more......... I'm sure someone on here could verify that.
UK versus USA
- Thread starter john5748
- Start date
pica_nuttalli
don't be a twit
here are my culprits:
(1) Most European nations have much stricter import regulations than the US, meaning more fees and more paperwork
(2) Shipping from Asia to US can be done by plane/boat. Asia to Europe is plane/truck. Boats are cheaper than trucks?
(3) European fuel prices are twice or more than fuel prices in the US
(4) the US is definitely much closer to S. America, a plentiful source of wild caughts
(5) the major price leader in the US is Walmart, a company notorious for using any means necessary to undercut the competition and drop prices
(6) many European nations have stricter employment regulations meaning higher costs of business to be passed on to the customer
(7) US-based fisheries are increasingly common thanks to subtropical regions such as Florida; few European nations have the climate or available space to make large-scale tropical fish breeding feasible
just guessing...
(1) Most European nations have much stricter import regulations than the US, meaning more fees and more paperwork
(2) Shipping from Asia to US can be done by plane/boat. Asia to Europe is plane/truck. Boats are cheaper than trucks?
(3) European fuel prices are twice or more than fuel prices in the US
(4) the US is definitely much closer to S. America, a plentiful source of wild caughts
(5) the major price leader in the US is Walmart, a company notorious for using any means necessary to undercut the competition and drop prices
(6) many European nations have stricter employment regulations meaning higher costs of business to be passed on to the customer
(7) US-based fisheries are increasingly common thanks to subtropical regions such as Florida; few European nations have the climate or available space to make large-scale tropical fish breeding feasible
just guessing...
dothedew
Fish Crazy
Hey, there's a reason that we left England ya know.
jimw13uk
Fish Crazy
I buy quite a bit of stuff from the US (Mainly through Ebay but I use some shops as well) - the postage can hurt sometimes but i've never got stung for import duty. Even with high postage costs it can still work out cheaper - if I'm in a hurry I pay for airmail otherwise it can come on the boat and I can wait for it.
john5748
Fish Crazy
So what is the best stuff to buy from the US then?jimw13uk said:
xanthianacid
Fish Crazy
well us aussies are far closer to asia than the alot of you and we pay alot more.
its a case of supply and demand, and the fact is there is far fewer people who are into the hobby as this is a simple case of how many people there are compared to just about everywhere else. also, our laws are heavily restricting on what living animals/fish are allowed to be imported. most people in the hobby don't actually import anyway, so that is a smaller 'gene' pool of breeders, and they can charge weightier prices on such. as far as i'm aware, you have to go through a certain person, for example in aquabid to have it imported into the country here, Jody lea i think her name is. thats bettas anyway. live fish is not sold on our ebay site either, but i do think it is allowable. there is heaps of reasons, i guess. other aussies could add more if they wanted.
i can wish it will change, and start breeding myself to see if i can put a small dent in it, at least in affordabilty!!!
its a case of supply and demand, and the fact is there is far fewer people who are into the hobby as this is a simple case of how many people there are compared to just about everywhere else. also, our laws are heavily restricting on what living animals/fish are allowed to be imported. most people in the hobby don't actually import anyway, so that is a smaller 'gene' pool of breeders, and they can charge weightier prices on such. as far as i'm aware, you have to go through a certain person, for example in aquabid to have it imported into the country here, Jody lea i think her name is. thats bettas anyway. live fish is not sold on our ebay site either, but i do think it is allowable. there is heaps of reasons, i guess. other aussies could add more if they wanted.
i can wish it will change, and start breeding myself to see if i can put a small dent in it, at least in affordabilty!!!
Fish are generally so expensive in England because we're part of the EU. One of the European directives within the EU states free trade between member states. As you all know, fish do not tend to be imported from Europe, they tend to be imported from Asia and other afar places. To discourage imports outside the EU there are ridiculous taxes on everything that enters the country not from the EU which naturally affects prices so that everyone can make a profit. America is not part of any such Union and therefore the import laws and taxes are as they like meaning imported fish from Asia do not come with large taxes allowing prices to be cheaper!
With regards Australia, Xan sums it up. Where there is less demand shops see the fish trade as less profitable than others so are less willing to do it, and if they do, its at a price. Fishkeeping is so popualr in America and Uk so shops can guarantee that selling them will bring in customers whereas in Australia its more specialist so stocking tropical fish is not necessarily going to bring in the customers meaning prices are raised so they can make profit!
Dman
With regards Australia, Xan sums it up. Where there is less demand shops see the fish trade as less profitable than others so are less willing to do it, and if they do, its at a price. Fishkeeping is so popualr in America and Uk so shops can guarantee that selling them will bring in customers whereas in Australia its more specialist so stocking tropical fish is not necessarily going to bring in the customers meaning prices are raised so they can make profit!
Dman
john5748
Fish Crazy
I believe you can buy adaptors on Ebay which would allow you to buy electrical goods from the US but I am going to have to research this myself before buying anything as I don't want to fry my housecla55y19 said:
DMan99, thanks for the explanation, that just confirms my thoughts on the EU (lucky americans!!).
With regards to buying fish from the US, this is something I would not do. I was only considering buying ornamental, tanks, or electrical items and would like to hear of anyone else making similar purchases.
jimw13uk
Fish Crazy
Ive bought treatments , filter replacements , food and sponge filters from the USA. so none of it is electrical goods but I look for electrical goods and if I find anything that I need that I can buy cheaper then i'd certainly check out the converters.
Not sure on the diff voltages etc as when I worked in the states all my stuff I took with me plugged in and worked fine in the Hotels I lived in. My work mate bought some electrical gear over there and brought it back in our servers and he never mentioned that it didnt work or blew his house up so i'd check it out.
Not sure on the diff voltages etc as when I worked in the states all my stuff I took with me plugged in and worked fine in the Hotels I lived in. My work mate bought some electrical gear over there and brought it back in our servers and he never mentioned that it didnt work or blew his house up so i'd check it out.
abstract
Fish Herder
i'm suprised that no one has said this yet, unless i missed it, but...
ISLANDS COST MORE
long island and hawaii are two of the most expensive places in the US (in general, not just for fish related things) - is it ironic that britain and australia are also expensive? i think not
ISLANDS COST MORE
long island and hawaii are two of the most expensive places in the US (in general, not just for fish related things) - is it ironic that britain and australia are also expensive? i think not
Maybe, but fact is with Britain, fish prices are so high because they are all imported from outside the EU and so arrive with huge taxes, hence a higher price. With Australia, its the supply and demand. If you think about it Australia is surrounded by one of the most beautiful reefs in the world. Think about how many wild caught marine fish are sent all over the world, there is no clear reason as to why these are so expensive in Australia! Whilst the USA is not an island, a proportion of its fish imports are from Asia, now they dont transport them cross continent by car do they?
Lol, i in no way am meaning to be harsh even if it does sound it!
Dman
Lol, i in no way am meaning to be harsh even if it does sound it!
Dman
abstract
Fish Herder
well i don't really get what you are saying...i do understand that import taxes are high (i assume there are even import taxes from products within the EU, though not as high as out of the EU), but there is a reason for that - the people are stuck on the island, so the country as a whole can increase the taxes and people will continue to buy, whether it is from the EU or not...
in the US, the fact that there are so many breeders, suppliers, wholesalers, and local choices to make overall do not allow the government to impose a ridiculously high tax level...
i don't really know what i'm trying to say..i guess my point was that even in the US, the price difference you see inland vs. on islands is REALLY, REALLY drastic....so it makes sense, even subtracting EU/non-EU taxes from the equation, that island countries/continents, where people are in an essence STUCK with what they have, will cost much more money
in the US, the fact that there are so many breeders, suppliers, wholesalers, and local choices to make overall do not allow the government to impose a ridiculously high tax level...
i don't really know what i'm trying to say..i guess my point was that even in the US, the price difference you see inland vs. on islands is REALLY, REALLY drastic....so it makes sense, even subtracting EU/non-EU taxes from the equation, that island countries/continents, where people are in an essence STUCK with what they have, will cost much more money
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