Why IRUNGUNS advertises in USD...
- Thread starter IRUNGUNS
- Start date
The extra costs you mention are included in the purchase price. When you check out from either website the only additional charge is GST of 5% based on the Canadian value and Canadian shipping to your door. All duties, import charges, magazine compliance, brokerage and importation are included in the purchase price.
Like it was mentioned already few times on this thread. IRG don't want to deal with the exchange. They let customers deal with it. Just imagine this, they buy their inventories in USD, convert it to CAD, then convert it back to USD. When customers deal with the exchange, guess what they can stay in USD and no need to deal with the exchange. Also, advertising in USD gives illusion that the price apppears lower as our CAD stinks now.
Oddly enough even the used firearms that IRG has in Canada are USD prices...
They must not have a CDN bank account, wonder if they dodge a lot of CDN taxes
I work for an automotive parts manufacturing company; we have US suppliers that export directly to us. All pricing and transactions are in US $. If you sell something, you set the terms of sale; such is their right to do also. While I have never dealt with them, I appreciate that they have gone the extra mile to do all of the export stuff that so many US dealers have not done; and they and others provide options and availability that we would not otherwise have.
Oddly enough even the used firearms that IRG has in Canada are USD prices...
They must not have a CDN bank account, wonder if they dodge a lot of CDN taxes
Of course they would charge everything else including used guns, key chain, or stickers. Why would they deal with the exchange headache that might end up costing them money? Let customers deal with it. All other Canadian dealers and distributors deal with items in USD and convert them to CAD so that customers don't need to deal with exchange rates and can give their customers exact price and cost before ordering.
IRG get their inventories in USD, get paid from customers in USD, and save their profit in USD. What's not to like? All works out well for IRG.
IRG's explanation is nonsense. Here are all the things they pay in CDN funds:
Warehouse rent/mortgage
Utilities on Canadian properties and fuel for vehicles in Canada
Taxes on entry to Canada
Payroll to Canadian staff
Payroll withholding (EI/CPP/taxes)
GST/HST payments to CRA
Somehow, they manage to deal with the exchange...
Warehouse rent/mortgage
Utilities on Canadian properties and fuel for vehicles in Canada
Taxes on entry to Canada
Payroll to Canadian staff
Payroll withholding (EI/CPP/taxes)
GST/HST payments to CRA
Somehow, they manage to deal with the exchange...
To clarify those expenses are fixed operation costs, the taxes and Canadian shipping are collected in Canadian funds. When you constantly move larges amounts of money between currencies there is a huge expense in doing so. Our Canadian sales are solely web based, we do not take any other form of payment other than Credit Cards and as such this is the most cost effective way to run it. The more efficient we are, the better the savings to you the customer.
You seem to have it all figured out. Congratulations! When can we expect to see you open your competing business to show them how it's done? I look forward to your low, low Canadian dollar prices.
I get a kick out of how a wild ass guess gets passed off as actual knowledge. The bottom line is that this is their business model and they obviously think it is the best way to provide manageable costs and give the customers what they want. And like all business, the proof is in the pudding. They are still in business all these years later so their customers (including myself) are obviously happy with the results.
If you don't like dealing in USD then you have plenty of other options. There are literally dozens of competitors that will see you what you want in CAD. That said, there is little to be gleaned or gained from speculation on how a business that you have no direct involvement in is run or managed.
Couldn't agree more!!
You can be a fanboy all you want, but what you seem to not understand is that their costs are fixed in $US. Their sale price is fixed in $US. They buy at $10, they sell at $15 with no risk in terms of dollar value. You buy at US$15, which means your actual cost will vary based on the exchange when the transaction settles, not when you buy it. The exchange your CC gives you on purchases will NOT be the exchange at the bank.
In other words, they are shifting the cost of changing dollar values to the consumer. You would be better off going to your bank, getting a US dollar draft and sending it to their American storefront, so at least you KNOW how much you're actually spending. I don't know if they allow that.
FF
In other words, they are shifting the cost of changing dollar values to the consumer. You would be better off going to your bank, getting a US dollar draft and sending it to their American storefront, so at least you KNOW how much you're actually spending. I don't know if they allow that.
FF
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There are means to hedge against that risk for a business. Those means are not practical for a consumer.
True. That's one of the things that pisses off everyone. Not sure what your point is here.
Yes, and that cost is higher for the consumer than it would be for the retailer. With a large volume you can easily execute a Norbert's gambit (everyone with a brokerage account does this on a routine basis), but it's not an option on a single retail purchase. With just a bit of finesse, IRG could actually end up making more money per canadian transaction while simultaneously charging less to their clients (the bank would be the one losing money in this scenario).
No you wouldn't be better. You would have to pay for both the bank spread AND the draft fee. And if IRG allowed that, they would have a fee for that, which they could either charge to people who pay with any non-electronic means, or increase prices for everyone, but it would still be an inefficiency that some consumer would end up paying for.
But the problem isn't so much about 1-2% extra charged by the CC, it's the confusion of a canadian website showing prices in USD imho. No problem with the US site showing US prices, no problem with general advertisement in USD, but if you visit IRG canada you kind of expect to see pricing in CAD. Maybe the best solution would just be to shutdown that site, and if someone puts in an order for a product available in canada, the product is shipped from that warehouse and the consumer is completely unaware of it. He's just happy because he hasn't waited 1-30 days for the US shipment.
I don't pay anything for bank drafts. The convenience would be that I could go to my bank, get a draft for the $499USD that IRG wants and know exactly how much it would cost me in CDN.
As it stands right now, I have two uncertain costs:
On top of it, you get hit with a $25 USD fee per item for shipping. Seems to me that it doesn't or certainly shouldn't cost the same to ship a little 22 pistol as it does to ship a 50BMG rifle.
FF
As it stands right now, I have two uncertain costs:
- The cost of the item as charged by the CC company
- The amount of GST which isn't determined until the item gets to Canada which IRG gets charged based on the rate in place when the item is physically imported
On top of it, you get hit with a $25 USD fee per item for shipping. Seems to me that it doesn't or certainly shouldn't cost the same to ship a little 22 pistol as it does to ship a 50BMG rifle.
FF
Most Canadian banks offer US Visa or MC Credit cards and chequing accounts. It is really quite simple, I pay with a US Visa. Once the transaction is posted, I transfer the exact US amount from my Canadian account to my US account and pay the bill. No transaction fees, just the exact exchange rate the bank offers me. IRun Guns eats the Visa fee that all suppliers are charged per transaction.
I then pay the shipping and Canadian taxes with my Canadian Visa. Again, no transaction fees.
Takes 2 minutes at my computer. Way quicker than going to the bank for a money order.
I then pay the shipping and Canadian taxes with my Canadian Visa. Again, no transaction fees.
Takes 2 minutes at my computer. Way quicker than going to the bank for a money order.
MikeyScuba
CGN Regular
- Location
- GTA, Ontario
I recently had a rep from Mercantile Exchange come into my place, .75% on top of the exchange rate. I was previously paying 1.5% with Canadian Forex. I'm exchanging only ~$20K every few months.
