I went to the Challenger Store to look a laser presentation remote device. They should me a few Targus models costing more than $120 each. This was rather expensive, as my friend told me that he bought a device for less than $30 in Sim Lim Square.
I went online to search for this item. A few Targus controllers were offered at Amazon store at around USD 50 (excluding shipping). This seemed to be at about half of the price charged by Challenger. I finally decided to buy another brand and paid less than $20 including delivery charges.
This episode seems to show that prices are really expensive in Singapore! It must be due to the high rental and staff cost.
I went online to search for this item. A few Targus controllers were offered at Amazon store at around USD 50 (excluding shipping). This seemed to be at about half of the price charged by Challenger. I finally decided to buy another brand and paid less than $20 including delivery charges.
This episode seems to show that prices are really expensive in Singapore! It must be due to the high rental and staff cost.
23 comments:
I don't think the electronic stuff selling at SimLim is very cheap too. As i need to travel to HK to meet my suppliers in HK every quarter, I sometimes shop the item I want there. I recently bought a re-chargeable 1200mA battery pack at simlim, it costs me $30SGD, the same battery pack I bought at HK 1 mth ago, it only costs me $16SGD. Another example is I bought a jean for my daughter at H&M store at orchard, last sep, it costs me $109 SGD, the same jean at HK H&M is selling $69 SGD when I check their H&M global website. I have no clue what contributes this huge difference even though HK has no GST. Taxi fare also, unlike singapore cab, the cab at HK dosen't charge double after midnight, no peak hours charge, .I really dun know what is really cheap in singapore sometimes.
I found two websites that offer this type of product at low cost:
DHGATE
http://www.dhgate.com/2-in-1-red-teach-pen-usb-wireless-presentation/p-ff80808127845b13012788e6ddde196b.html
G MARKET
http://list.gmarket.com.sg/gmkt.inc/BestSellers/Todaydeal.aspx?smart_keyword=LASER+PRESENTATION+REMOTE&mt=0#bs_deals
Our retail stores have to be competitive against the online models - otherwise they will continue to lose a bigger portion of their business.
Singapore has become such a costly place - it is really quite frightening. And overcharging seem to be so common.
@Mr Tan Kin Lian, I must say I am surprised that even someone like you (who has been a CEO for so many years) would comment that SG is a costly place, I wonder how those earning $1k to $2k cope. Maybe they cope by buying "affordable" HDB flats, huh? Thank you so much, MBT!
"...I wonder how those earning $1k to $2k cope."
Anon 6.16 PM
You forgot Courts offer weekly installment payments of $XXX over 48 months?
In fact TKL blog on this a couple of days ago.
Just came back from Jeju Island, Korea.
Stayed at a new resort.
Price of chunky Kit-Kat bar at the resort store was S$1.20
Price of chunky Kit Kat bar at Cheers minimart located in HDB void deck is S$1.70.
My kids used to survive on $20 per week at school for about 7 meals plus drinks. Now I have to give them $40 per week otherwise they have no food sometimes!
So u tell me expensive or not?
Of course la, the "bouyant" property market....its gonna trickle down somehow right !
I'm inclined to agree that the high rent for the shops is translated into high prices. The weird thing is that despite the "stronger SGD", prices for imports are higher than ever. Someone along the distribution chain between producer and consumer is creaming away...
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=12636402127&ali_refid=a3_420521_1006:1102477968:6:%BC%A4%B9%E2:14c5e53bfe9cff19734d7ee8d6bcad40&ali_trackid=1_14c5e53bfe9cff19734d7ee8d6bcad40
Amazingly Cheap!
Just add extra logistic charges.
Skip those rental charge, staff cost, business profit, etc.
Even small simple items like a Nokia HP connectivity cable is only about S$2 or less online. But it is retailed at IT stores for at least S$10 to $20!!
And nowadays food courts charge $4 for a simple kway teow or bee hoon soup. And even then the quality sucks!
I went to other countries, both the quality and price is good.
Singapore has indeed become a lousy place to shop and eat.
We wait for a clearance sale before buying electrical products, usually for older models.
Then for household things, we shop at Daiso, good and cheap.
We eat at hawker centres, cheaper and better than food courts.
Only petrol we can't find bargains, all the petrol oil Companies are in a cartel, CASE can't do anything about it. Also essential services like water and electricity we are at the mercy of S & P services. Can't figure out why an unoccupied house, with only a water feature and a refrigerator running, could get billed at $90 for only 10 days, they always say the reading is correct.
Even for water and electricity, consumers have no protection at all, dun talk about investment products sold by FIs.
That is the price we are paying for the so called first world country lifestyle. Unknowingly, we are becoming a rich country, but mostly populated by poor people.
The people of USA and Euro countries are fast experiencing the pain of such lifestyles unraveling. When will our time come?
I know a lot of people will say, hell never. How can we be like them. Our leaders are the best in the world. We are not like them. Singapore is unique.
Keep dreaming and pray the day will not come.
FE offers a unit of new town house (99y) at Woodland at nearly $3m.
The Philipieno salesman tell me: "If SGrean has NO MONEY, buy a Condo unit...".
Even in Ulan Bator, Mongolia, the Snickers bar is cheaper by 35cents than Singapore.. and they import everything also. ( the Snickers are from USA )
Someone is indeed telling lies or
some businessmen are laughing all the way.. they are gratefull to our Government, and will vote accordingly.
A 80yo male patient received a bill from KTPH. He stay 3days at C Class. The list price of a bed is $400+. His medisavs is deducted according to mean test result.
In case SG econ is not doing well like Europe , will a patient be billed at $400 daily bed cost?
Premium of INCOMESHIELD:
2010 - $797 (80yo)
2011 - $1291 (81yo)
Will a housewife able to pay higher premium next year?
Inflation rate is around 5%. Why the change of premium rate is 61.8%??????????
"Moral + Math =A new way to teach value" (ST 10/11/2011)
MORAL: Our elderly NSmen and retiree who had contributed one way or another to Singapore, they are physically sick. They should be helped.
MATH: Cost of C Class bed in public hospital keep rising
The Big Q: Can Moral plus Math equal Value?
"Morals + Maths = Value" (ST front page, 9Nov)
MORAL: To serve the nation is great.
MATH: Minister's salary should be greatest amount
VALUE: Very great
"Morals + Maths=Value" (ST 9 Nov)
MORAL: The duty of government is to take care peoples. All family has a home (HDB)
MATH: Maximum profit, minimum cost
VALUE: Profit is good, Higher property price is very good.
rental in Spore is the largest component of retail business cost, this is why most products sold in spore are more expensive than other countries.
do not forget we have COEs, ERP, high electricity rates, petrol taxes and expensive housing that is uniquely Singapore and adding to the cost of living
When land is sold on the bid, bid, bid basis and rental is taken up on the bid, bid, bid basis, what is the result and who is the biggest ultimate beneficiary?
Everything is for maximization of returns, not whether the people can tolerate such high prices, even though they know that such high rentals will be passed on to us, the consumers in the form of higher prices for products we buy.
They even have the presumption that happiness must be equated with high GDP and high property prices. What can we say?
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