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"Tube":29auipqj wrote: Minimum order value to qualify for free shipping would stop people doing piddly orders, and force them to put a bit of thought in.

Also, if getting free shipping I don't expect Fastway to deliver - I'd expect whoever is cheapest - even if it's An Post (I know they're rarely cheapest unless the weight is next to nothing)[/quote:29auipqj]Its the reason we put a minimum on it . . .trying to co-ordinate orders from the same person was just getting too crazy. Even on large orders though, people do forget things, twice today for example. If the value is small (a euro or two) we will throw items in for free to avoid all the admin on both sides. For regular customers, we will go quite a bit further.

Sorry don't mean to ruffle feathers or anything but no wonder orders of €20 are breaking even when something as simple as five star 5.2 ph stabiliser costs €19 in ireland and £9 in England [url:2f99i5as]http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/Five_Star_5.2_pH_Stabilizer_1lb_454g.html[/url:2f99i5as]

Rip off Ireland is alive and well <!-- s:evil: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_evil.gif" alt="" title="Evil or Very Mad" /><!-- s:evil: -->

&amp;quot;eddieken&amp;quot;:3fq1l24w wrote: Sorry don't mean to ruffle feathers or anything but no wonder orders of €20 are breaking even when something as simple as five star 5.2 ph stabiliser costs €19 in ireland and £9 in England [url:3fq1l24w]http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/Five_Star_5.2_pH_Stabilizer_1lb_454g.html[/url:3fq1l24w]

Rip off Ireland is alive and well <!-- s:evil: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_evil.gif" alt="" title="Evil or Very Mad" /><!-- s:evil: -->[/quote:3fq1l24w]

This is actually a bug bear that I have with one of the stores that I designed. I keep telling the owners that they have to compete with other online stores, even if these stores are in the UK, as people can very easily do comparative shopping on the internet.

I know I'm back tracking on my previous comment (also I'm not affiliated with any homebrew retailers/distributors etc.) but when Donal said that he is breaking even at €20, he's probably only taking into account the direct cost of sale, i.e. the purchase cost & shipping cost. He's probably not taking into account his cost of; rent, wages, bank charges, website maintenance, etc, and therefore taking a hit in the long run.

Also, assuming he's paying €6.50 for shipping to customers this gives him a 35% gross margin which is actually a lot less compared to high street retailers of any kind in Ireland who have margins of 50%-60%, 90% in the case of pubs!

Now if Donal was money smart he would set his prices based on total cost. i.e. Rent, wages, repairs & maintenance, etc. and then give himself a 10%-15% margin on his sales compared to cost.

I apologise for the boring accountancy rant, but these guys are giving us a pretty sweet deal and I can see 1 or 2 of them disappearing from the market in the next few years if they keep up their price war. Then we'll be back to square one. So a bit of support for these guys won't hurt our wallets.

Also, Donal, I'll be billing you for the bit of accountancy advice above. <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->

But simple econimics also come into play.
If I can press the same button on my keyboard and get supplies 20,30 even 50% cheaper from the UK I will.

I very much understand basic accounting as well, I've been priced out of my chosen line of work in the past few years.

Life is tough and the bottom line is what counts!

&amp;quot;Spud 395&amp;quot;:2w5ecodx wrote: But simple econimics also come into play.
If I can press the same button on my keyboard and get supplies 20,30 even 50% cheaper from the UK I will.

I very much understand basic accounting as well, I've been priced out of my chosen line of work in the past few years.

Life is tough and the bottom line is what counts![/quote:2w5ecodx]
Whoa there, that may be true of bulky items where shipping costs from the UK can increase the price by as much as 30%, also our VAT rate is 3.5% higher here.

But for all that, the Irish on-line stores are still way cheaper than our UK counterparts on lots of products. Just try ordering Coopers products, Advintage products, from the UK. And many many more.

And the UK guys dont offer free shipping either, they may say they do . . . but just try to order a beer kit (or anything over 0.5 Kg) and see how you get on.

A more valid argument might be that certain UK stores can be better for specialist products, since the range can be wider. We stock over 1000 products, but its nowhere near enough to cover the entire market.

To develop specialist suppliers here, they need to see some profit so that they can expand their product ranges over time.