@mark.wooba wrote:
that does not change the fact that this grub seller is gaming the system (and so are many others, according to reports at ozbargain). I should have gone to Amazon UK, where the item is selling for £45 (AU$78) delivered (in the UK) versus the $155 I was charged on eBay. That's why I CANNOT WAIT for Amazon to arrive here and sweep away the scum and profiteers.
I went over to the forums you mentioned and found two threads mentioning this kind of practice. I think the ones the members there are talking about are the very common 20% off deals for some of the big box retailers that are here on eBay - and I am aware that the prices with those sellers conveniently fluctuate.
For anyone wondering, a couple of months ago I needed to buy a new fridge. It wasn't an emergency, but still relatively urgent as it was a gift for my son who moved out and he was making do with a very small novelty cooler thing, thus I did not want to wait for one of the frequent 20% off deals from some of the large appliance retailers. So, I looked on many sites, eBay included, checked and compared prices, but if I took advantage of a site-wide offer (5% off purchase price from Australian sellers), the best price for the one I chose was on eBay. I bought it, but had a bunch of fridges remaining in my watch list for a while ('cos I'm lazy). Lo and behold, the next time eBay was promoting a 20% off deal from that seller, the fridge I bought was suddenly around 14% more expensive.
So, I know this stuff happens (I'm also in the market for a new computer, lost of tech sellers here who get frequent, exclusive discount promos 😉 ).
I'm also aware (as others have pointed out) that sometimes, it's just coincidence, and that regret over a price paid is a separate issue to a seller engaging in dodgy practices, so it would be better if we could separate those two issues, and focus on whether there is actually sufficient evidence to suggest the seller is (potentially) raising prices in line with eBay promotions.
I also feel the need to point out that a cheaper price overseas is unlikely to just be because it was on A***on, and that site setting up operation in Australia is not going to eliminate the reasons for the higher cost of goods here in Australia. I understand there are a lot of Australian consumers who honestly believe Australian retailers are just price gouging "because they can", but even if there are some sellers out there who are, honestly those who think it applies to the majority of Australian retailers generally are only looking at OS prices compared to Aus prices and making baseless assumptions, rather than informed opinions. (Think about this, I'm an Australian retailer. I price items at what I need to price them for my business to survive, because I both want and need my business to survive - that means I don't just have to consider how much money I want. I have competition from all over the world, it is ridiculous in this day and age to sit here thinking buyers don't know what their options are when it comes to buying online. For most businesses, that makes it difficult to impossible to price higher just to force other Aussies to pay more and not out of necessity but greed).
I notice that some people seem to think the A site is like some kind of promised retail messiah that will change everything.
I firmly believe, as a buyer and a seller, that it will change some things, but it's not gonna save everyone from all the stuff they think is wrong with everywhere else, because a lot of those issues are caused by people doing things, not the site they're doing them on. (Also consider this, if I just stay on the selling venues I'm on now, my prices will remain much the same, if I go to A***on, my prices everywhere will rise. Why? Because they require a seller's prices there to be equal to or lower than they are elsewhere, and their fees, if they retain the percentages from the overseas sites, are significantly higher).
