In India imported Hi Fi equipment is OVER PRICED .. TRUE OR FALSE ??

Issue is this IGST can be set-off only against sales in the financial year. If the stock remain unsold over a year then you incur losses. Thanks to the greedy importers.
Why would the unclaimed ITC be a loss? One can claim the unutilized ITC to be refunded. And why only "greedy importers"? Add "stupid government" to the queue too.
 
Keith, he meant that if the goods imported are not sold then the ITC is a loss for the importer... Else the ITC can be claimed..
Not sold = get the unutilized ITC refunded
Sold = claim ITC

So, I don't understand where the loss is.
 
Not sure if you can get the ITC refunded if you have already imported the goods but unable to sell them.. it can only be adjusted on sales otherwise it goes in tue govt's kitty..
Will check again just to be doubly sure..
 
Mass market audio products and electronics in India are at par and often cheaper than western prices these days.

Pricing and discounts are primarily driven by volumes .. You can see a clear example in hifi with UK hifi prices often being lower than the US - which is exactly the opposite for pretty much everything else..
Primarily because UK still has a thriving market for hifi separates unlike the US ..

As for India, extremely few people buy hifi separates - A typical high street JBL dealer will sell a 1000 boomboxes before he can move 1 Control-one pair even though both are not priced too differently.. SO he is going to keep the bookshelves on backorder with no incentive to discount 'em..

+ to @rikhav 's point: whatever small market exists is now fragmented across various brands
Actually, it depends on the brand. certain brands are cheaper in the US than UK. I know this because i whenever i buy Hi Fi equipment, I ensure that I'm buying cheaper than either UK or US prices (need not be both). Sadly, this means that I'll never end up buying either Klipsch, Polk Audio or BIC in India (i have been eyeing the Klipsch RP600Ms for a long time now but the price just does not make any sense).
 
Not sold = get the unutilized ITC refunded
Sold = claim ITC

So, I don't understand where the loss is.
no ITC on Basic Customs Duty. However, BCD should be offset to some extent cuz most equipment gets manufactured and shipped from China so the freight to India would be much lower than US and UK.
 
Headphone zone is the distributor of Chord Electronics in India. As far as I've heard, being an official dealer, Chord does not allow them to give away discounts, When I was in the market to purchase my Hugo 2, the MRP was $2695 in the US, and an equivalent £1800 in the UK. HPZ sold it for Rs.1.69L, which at the time, I felt to be reasonable. Still they seldom give out offers and discounts like EOY sales etc which most dealers abroad give out on a regular basis. So, IMHO, HPZ does swindle the customer, but they pretend to not do so.
With All due respect, That may not be an accurate assessment. I got my chord mojo from headphone zone for 24K which was cheaper than both US and UK prices at the time of purchase. Many a time, their other offerings such as the Audeze Mobius, Sony 1000xm3 and Meze 99 neos are priced cheaper than us/uk prices.
 
no ITC on Basic Customs Duty. However, BCD should be offset to some extent cuz most equipment gets manufactured and shipped from China so the freight to India would be much lower than US and UK.
ITC is applicable on IGST (and compensation cess if applicable) paid. As far as I know, BCD is not offset anywhere irrespective of where goods are shipped from - I'm not sure I understand why the port of origin would even figure in this.
 
I think the prices for Hi-Fi sold here are not overpriced from a dealer Perspektive. Unlike Europe or US the number of Hi-Fi items sold is quite less. To make it up, the prices has to be higher on individual unit to have a sustainable business. If more and more people are buying, then it’s no longer reasonable to sell them for a lower price. Buyers suffers anyways. But it’s part of it as long as you don’t buy speakers every year.
 
With All due respect, That may not be an accurate assessment. I got my chord mojo from headphone zone for 24K which was cheaper than both US and UK prices at the time of purchase. Many a time, their other offerings such as the Audeze Mobius, Sony 1000xm3 and Meze 99 neos are priced cheaper than us/uk prices.
This is true about many other devices too : especially fiio and audio technica are cheaper in India than Europe and US. I too saw this mojo pricing before. It’s the cheapest I have seen so far in any country.
 
Not everything is expensive here. I recently purchased brand new Marantz SACD player for a price which was cheaper than the selling price on audiogon for a used piece.
 
Not everything is expensive here. I recently purchased brand new Marantz SACD player for a price which was cheaper than the selling price on audiogon for a used piece.

Which model? And could you also let us know which dealer?
It would be good to send business their way when good prices are being offered.
 
Which model? And could you also let us know which dealer?
It would be good to send business their way when good prices are being offered.
I have sent you a pm.
I did talk to few FM regarding this cd player but dealers are different.
 
As long as Focal was sold by ProFX, its price was in pair with the international price (in fact, cheaper than US price), but then, as soon as the distributor changed, the price increased by more than 40%. At that time I was planning to purchase Focal Electra 1028Be, which was around 4Lakh MRP, but as soon as the distributor changed, the price jumped to close to 6Lakh and there fore, I dropped my plan of purchasing any Focal products.
If one distributer can sell a product for 4L and find profit in it, the 40% hike by the new distributor is unacceptable.
 
As long as Focal was sold by ProFX, its price was in pair with the international price (in fact, cheaper than US price), but then, as soon as the distributor changed, the price increased by more than 40%. At that time I was planning to purchase Focal Electra 1028Be, which was around 4Lakh MRP, but as soon as the distributor changed, the price jumped to close to 6Lakh and there fore, I dropped my plan of purchasing any Focal products.
If one distributer can sell a product for 4L and find profit in it, the 40% hike by the new distributor is unacceptable.
I had a similar experience with Ayon Audio once the distributor changed.
Cheers,
Sid
 
Several Indian distributors who are supposed to carry popular Hi-Fi brands neither have a working website nor have a listing anywhere on Google for us to contact them!

How is their boat sailing? And why are manufacturers asking us to reach out to these distributors who are least bothered about customers?

If one distributer can sell a product for 4L and find profit in it, the 40% hike by the new distributor is unacceptable.
Unlike the US or UK, there's no competition between dealers and distributors here. Thus, they know that you'll go to them if you want something from a particular brand :rolleyes:
 
Also the distributor here does nothing to promote a brand.. If a customer comes with an inquiry, they know the customer will buy it based on internet/peer reviews or not.. So they don't bother but want the same profit margins as worldwide distributors....
 
As long as Focal was sold by ProFX, its price was in pair with the international price (in fact, cheaper than US price), but then, as soon as the distributor changed, the price increased by more than 40%. At that time I was planning to purchase Focal Electra 1028Be, which was around 4Lakh MRP, but as soon as the distributor changed, the price jumped to close to 6Lakh and there fore, I dropped my plan of purchasing any Focal products.
If one distributer can sell a product for 4L and find profit in it, the 40% hike by the new distributor is unacceptable.
yeah this did happen but since then all Focal products go for 40-50% off the Mrp anyways ;)

Focal Hi-Fi products has failed miserably in India. Overpriced & Zero Service.

There are many brands to choose from.

Cheers.
 
This is indeed a difficult topic with many sides to the argument. The entry of Goldfinch Acoustics in another thread sparked me to write (and the fact that I wasn’t cooking in ages).

Before we hang the dealer, some introspection - our behaviour.

I know quite a few friends who come to my place and say “your system costs what?!!” But they drive really expensive cars. While my friends do like and listen to music, but perhaps with the intent that I use my car perhaps - just gets them there. However I don’t know how many of them compare the cost of their car abroad versus in India?

I also don’t grudge people their living. Would I like to get paid more for the work I do - answer is yes! Are the dealers ripping me off? I don’t know.

Let us look at our psyche. I know of a very rich person to whom my wife introduced a tailor - she asked if she could talk him down Rs 100. Perhaps she does with Versace also, but he lives in a slum (and has helped more people during the Covid shut down than her). A man of dignity (and perhaps some false pride too), the tailor said he won’t work with her anymore!

So how much is the dealer ripping you off? Does he have children whom he would like to send abroad for an education?

Also, can he meet the volumes (distributors have minimum volume agreements) needed to make a business if only a tiny section is interested in hifi. Remember the cost of carrying inventory could be at least 15%. And the fellow probabily needs to pledge his house as security.

Furthermore can you imagine the hassle of getting parts back and forth during the warranty period. Or the rental costs in Bombay

Then finally among us the audio loving community also. I think this write up covers it well - want service, the nice listening experience (a decent espresso too perhaps) and want a deal.


https://www.soundstagehifi.com/inde...-uk/1426-hi-fi-shops-the-death-rate-continues


I must admit I havent read this whole thread. On the other side of the coin, I agree with what Panditji says. The dealers don’t promote a brand (can they, with minimum volume commitments?). Many of them are a fount of audio garbage without a feel for the sound or music. Perhaps it’s just a way of making a living for them (home theatre is much better than hifi would be my guess). And renege on service, which is a crime!


And the inability to listen (audition my a$$) before buying is another frustration. What good is having a distributor in Bangalore for me? Or one in Bombay who won’t have a demo sample for home audition? Or are they broken with many a bad experience with ruthless customers? When a dealer says people just ordered it without listening, I grit my teeth. That is perhaps how we buy - good price based on peer and press reviews. So Panditji, can’t blame the dealer.

Why did the prices go up when the distributor changed? We won’t know unless we know their P&L account. Perhaps the first guy ran aground thinking of volumes that never came and second guy decided margins are the way to go, and that anyway people bargain.

I am still friends with my first hifi purchase which was from an audio dealer. He did not give me a discount on the Naim Nait or Roksan turntable even though I had a PhD student scholarship only. However, I am still in touch after all these years and go to him for advice - just the reliability of his thought process and his communication. And a sense of a larger interest in me rather than my wallet. What a good sales guy? What a good person!
 
I’ve bought a lot of used vintage audio gear from Various websites from US and Europe. I’ve only be charged customs once, that too was a small amount as compared to what I was fearing it would be. All items arrived in pristine shape and in time. And not the items were not marked undervalued or as a gift. I’m a believer that you can take a chance with Customs and get it imported from abroad, till the time shipping costs don’t kill you / nobody ships them.
Could you share the sites you have used to purchase these?
 
A beautiful, well-constructed speaker with class-leading soundstage, imaging and bass that is fast, deep, and precise.
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