You may not have to pay brokerage with USPS, but you'll also have to wait a while. From my personal experiences usps was horrible to deal with. Long delays, returned packages...etc.
UPS is alot faster...but then you're going to get raped on taxes and brokerage.
So although you may be getting a good deal, I find that it comes with a LOT of needless hassles.

 

Don't know where to start.

1. Brokerage fees suck. Getting around them could mean you end up getting burned. Sending stuff as a "gift" doesn't always work out, especially if you buy lots of stuff and it all turns out to be a gift.

2. Authorized and Authorized in Canada are two different things. If JL Audio authorized Sounddomain tomorrow, and there were no exclusions to selling to Canada, and you bought an amp in Canada, you would still have to ship it back to Arizona or Washington state to get it fixed. Gemsem wouldn't help you out, because you aren't there customer. So even a factory warranty can only go so far if you are in another country.

3. JL Audio in particular has lots of demand for products, so people go to great lengths to get it (and hide where it came from). So you get tampered products, products that have been taken apart to get at the serial numbers with no chance they will be put back together as the factory would. They hide serial numbers all over so its not as easy as you would think.

4. Ebay doesn't protect you from the above. You buy it, you get it, you leave feedback, and then you find out the product has a badly cut spider that has been haphazardly put back together, all in an effort to get a secret serial number removed.

5. Most sellers will probably fight you tough and nail to not reimburse for shipping and brokerage fees if something goes wrong.

6. Markup. The guys in Canada like Gemsem have to pay people to fix stuff. Someone has to pay for the website. Its no different than any other business. Some guys are happy buying beer money and weed with the website out of their basement. Some guys are young, and dumb and are the web developer/shipping/recieving/tech support/order entry and work 14 hour days hoping to some day make it big. At this point in the game, if you haven't got some brands authorized and your trying to compete with some of the big names, you won't make it. But they are happy making a $20 profit on a $500 radio and it distorts what everyone else thinks car audio is worth. Good luck trying to get ahold of these guys when the product goes bad and they barely broke even on your sale even when things were perfect.

So, buying in the US is good for some products, and not for others. Like everything, you have to do your homework.

Juan

 

WOW, very important point there although I do have one comment...just because a shop(or internet company) is small doesn't mean there are just as many expenses. Costs us more than most people realize.

 

I'm trying to think and understand what you mean by this?? But no matter how many times I read it I can't understand. I don't see what the problem is with someone running a website out of thier basement? (Provided they provide the same service and quality as a shop with a store). And you you also explain how being a web developer/shipper/receiver/tech support and order entry for 14 hours a day is dumb? At first I think when most people open a business they are EVERYTHING of it. If it wasn't for entrepreneurs like this the only places we would be able to buy stuff is Future Shop, Best Buy and other huge stores like this (not that there is anything wrong with these stores). And how would you know that making $20 profit, while selling something that doesn't work well will make them happy?

I think what the point you are trying to get at is there are alot of online stores like this. But you also failed to meantion that not all are like it. It's like normal places that own a shop, there are ALOT that are crap and not worth walking into, but at the same time there are also a few good ones, but that doesn't get rationalized bad??

I know exactly how at least 1 online shop runs. The owner and his wife does all the work and work 14+ days, and trust me, they are not young and dumb, they are doing better than I am by working a full time job with overtime. And you can get a hold of them more than you can a shop open 6 days a week. They will also go out of thier way to help people out, and do what's right in satisfying the customer. They have and will be doing more for the industry than most shops have done as well.

Another myth is that online shops don't have bills, a good one will have almost as many bills as a shop. But most people overlook this because how hard is it to setup a webpage? But there is alot more to it than this.

So just because someone runs an online shop doesn't mean it's just like the rest. But like anything else you got to do some research and find out who your dealing with.

 

if it wasn't for ebay i definatly wouldn't be able to afford decent audio equipment. that goes for any cars parts really. intrax lowering springs sell for $550 bucks at my local speed shop. at summitracing they are something like 180 bucks. of course sometimes its used stuff that i buy on ebay so the local stores aren't losing buisness because it could have gone to a friend if he was selling me a used amp. basically it comes down to doing your homework on what your buying and who you are buying it from. i also bought a camera on ebay, and saved lots more money same with the memory card. this is the time of the year to go to your local shop and try and get good deals.

 

chris brick and mortar store have alot more overhead than a basement store
how many basement internet stores do install
if your a b+m store you have too
do you know what i pay in shop insurance in a year
p.s. its not the same as my home insurance
if i payed out what basement stores do i'd be retiring right now
i have two of each of these heat ,electrical,one morgage one rent , water, insurance
and i bet if you add up my shop and home bills
they don't equal my home bill

 

I would just like to say that in my region there are huge marke ups on car audio.

And like other people mentioned, you can get craqzy deals in the states... and I have gotten some.

I beleive in if you are a DIY, buy it where its cheep.

Usually, if you do your research, you can get good deals with insurance off the net. And when shipping from the states, the best way not to get dinged for border charges is USPS air. It will cost a bit more for shipping, sure. But you get it in about a week and paye no duty fees.

As for UPS... so far 2 things were shiped to me that way.. none of them got to me. I hate UPS.

 

This statement is VERY true and it is the reason that the internet has gotten such bad marks with the car audio industry. There are not many companies on the net in it for the long run like we have put together in our business plan.

The same problem can happen in a B&M style business. Many times I have seen a inexperienced owner start up a shop in a smaller community, undercut the competion and put them out of business only to go under a year or so later do to bad business management.

Pinhead, one thing you are forgetting. Although you may have more bills than someone like me you also have another method of making income. You have an install bay that makes you money, I (an other companies like me) don't. We have to rely on strictly sales. While right now you are swamped with car starters we are just pulling through.

 

I understand what he means now, it just seemed like he was rationalizing all online stores. I wasn't referring to gca specifically, but there are a few that will go the extra mile as they should. But unfortionatly there are alot more than dont, which gives them all a bad name