With the ever-increasing presence of overseas websites taking market share from local businesses, the local business environment is becoming more challenging than it should be.
If we’re to ask ourselves why it’s cheaper to buy certain products from overseas, to my mind there are two important factors: New Zealand’s geographic location relative to the rest of the world; and economy of scale.
We’re a small population, and it costs money to import goods into New Zealand to do business.
Our businesses cannot compete with overseas markets that have better buying power.
The market conditions are not the same.
Profit is not a swear word either. Buying from an overseas website denies local businesses the profit to pay staff, and ultimately spend those profits back into the community.
Think local restaurants, furniture, house renovations, new vehicles – the list goes on.
I can’t deny a local business the profit generated from a local sale by shopping overseas, and then expect the same local business to spend their profits in mine.
Once the chain is broken, it’s broken.
- Contact: Clint Edwards, at Kaleidoprint, Unit 6, 115 Elliott Street, Howick. Phone 09 320 4395; or see www.kaleidoprint.co.nz.
