SKIPPERSMATE TOO CHEAP FOR NEW ZEALAND RETAILERS - WHERE IS THE JUSTICE!

I sell Personal Locator Beacons (PLB’s) from the SkippersMate website and keep my prices intentionally low – not just because I’m a good bloke or for altruistic reasons – but because I’m passionate about safety and want as many people as possible to enjoy the outdoors, whether on water or land, with the mantle of safety that a PLB provides.

It would be nice to think that our governments (Oz and Kiwi) provided these items of safety equipment “at cost” to all who needed them or that they were tax deductible for everyone who purchased them and not just those who need them to support their job roll or business. 

But I’m just dreaming…………….

The reality is that I make money selling PLB’s. Oh, the shame of it! But I’m not greedy and I don’t put profit first and never will. I was shocked to discover the price that PLB’s were selling for in New Zealand and, having visited your wonderful country many times, I was fully aware of the challenging terrain and climate and the Kiwi penchant for spending time in “The Great Outdoors” doing stuff that sensible people wouldn’t even think of doing.

So I started actively promoting my New Zealand coded Ocean Signal PLB’s there and, even posting them by Express service, could land them into NZ for under $400. I always allowed 3-5 days for them to arrive but recent feedback from delighted customers has informed me that 48hrs transit time is not unusual.

This was a Win-Win situation for both seller and customer but in doing this I have seriously pissed off the NZ Agent by selling PLB’s to you at an affordable price. His second complaint, again, has been upheld by the manufacturer and stopped the Australian Agent who was initially very supportive of my venture and must now refuse to allow me to sell New Zealand-coded PLB’s into New Zealand therefore allowing the local agent and retailers to maintain their traditional profit margins.

However, all is not lost………….Australian-coded PLB’s are just as effective and cheaper. The only difference is that you register them with AMSA in Canberra and not the RCCNZ in Wellington. They work exactly the same, anywhere in the world and any stories you hear about them having to be NZ-coded to operate them if you live in New Zealand is just retailer rubbish.

Recent news from AMSA and the RCCNZ is that the RCC-Canberra will be the first response center to determine if it is either Australia or New Zealand location... Read about in the blog stories...