First off, when you make a purchase in the US with a Canadian credit card you get at least 2-6% off of the current exchange rate.
This doesnt matter if we are buying it from ecotech or if a consumer is buying it from a retailer.
So at an absolute min conversion rate of 2%, with the CAD being only 1 cent below the USD as of yesterday, that means that the scale is actually being tiped slightly in the other directions and 1 USD costs $1.01 CAD.
Now add shipping to Canada from the US, brokerage and such and you end up with an importation cost of about 8%.
Ecotech typically sets the conversion at 6% and the 2% difference is absorbed by the distributors so that the retailers can still make their margins required to keep their doors open and giving their local clients the best help possible.
If the price for Canadian retailers was made the same as what it was for US retailers then this 8% would have to be absorbed by the distributor as the store still needs to make their margin on product or they will inevitably have to close their doors.
If this was to occur then as a distributor we would not be able to offer the same amazing customer support that ecotech currently is able to offer to the US clients. Then if you did have an issue with your pump or lighting it would have to be shipped back to Ecotech in the US and your savings of 6-8% would be grossly negated from the additional shipping expenses to get the unit back to ecotech and the brokerage when ecotech shipped it back to Canada.
IMO anyone that has owned an ecotech product and has had to send it in for their bumper to bumper warranty policy that covers everything from snail impact damage to updating drivers would agree that the level of service provided by all Canadian distributors is well worth the 6-8% price increase for the Canadian market place.
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