Suunto authorized dealers

[Scubaroo]

"Grey market" is another term for parallel imports. Typically there is an authorised distributor in a market (eg Australia - the Suunto authorised distributor is Aquanaut), and then you will get Suunto products being imported by companies or stores not affiliated with Aquanuat, eg from a European source. They're not illegal, but the authorised distributor has every right not to provide warranty support should it be required. If the factory denies warranty support, it's just an indication of the ethics of the particular manufacturer IMO.

I'm having hassles with this sort of thing myself at the moment - wholesale prices quote by Australian distributors of scuba gear are often higher than retail prices overseas! I could literally buy numerous items from LeisurePro at RETAIL, ship it to Australia, mark it up, sell it here, undercut the local recommended retail pricing by 30% or more, and STILL make a worthwhile profit. But I don't, as I don't want my business to be labelled as a "grey importer". I'm having a hard enough time getting the industry here to recognise my business as a legitimate authorised business as it is, simply because I only sell online.

 

[Aussie Diver]

So why is there no businesses in aust doing that? People are always complaining here and at diveoz about products being so expensive. If Australia's scuba industry wants to survive, they're going to have to find ways to compete with international companies.

 

[sleepyhead]

Hi Aussiediver
I know i'm in brisbane right now. I went around the dive shops. Actually from what i have seen the markups in Oz are very high. 100% markup for them. So i can understand. The dive shops here are fighting for every single buck.
The grey market issues are there but i don't think Suuto would really mind. They are a Japanese company so.. but singapore is definitely cheaper than brisbane for sure.
But if u get it from Japan, the quality is assured. Lots of stuff in singapore are imported from there. So the dealers in Singapore get it about 1/2 of what they are selling for.
I would rather get it straight from a shop in Japan online and it flys in straight into Brisbane for me. If you decide to do that, check whether there's import tax u might have to pay on this side.

 

[Aussie Diver]

Actually it's not a Japanese company, it's a Finish company.

 

[Scubaroo]

So why is there no businesses in aust doing that? People are always complaining here and at diveoz about products being so expensive. If Australia's scuba industry wants to survive, they're going to have to find ways to compete with international companies.

There WAS one, it was supposedly "forced" out of business in unclear circumstances, but I believe their sources were cut off after complaints from local distributors to parent distributors, manufacturers etc. There was talk at the time that what happened was probably violations of Australian law, but I wasn't living in the country, and am not fully up to speed on the whole story.

I'm hoping my company doesn't run into the same problems, which is why I'm avoiding offering parallel import goods at present. But it's bloody tempting when you can buy stuff at full price from LeisurePro and get it shipped to your door CHEAPER than the local distributors (those who will even sell to me in the first place) will quote. Parallel importing isn't illegal, I just don't want to deal with those headaches.

sleepyhead, Suunto is not a Japanese company, it's a Finnish company.

 

[sleepyhead]

Hi
sorry for the mistake but i do believe in quality from japan cuz they are tougher on quality. Not saying european stuff are not. I bought a scubapro quattro v3 qab in japan, it's available in japan only. The warranty is for 3 years.

It's a very nice watch/dive computer with all capabilities. It's about $1400. The vyper was 50000 yen and it is going down this month. It can go for 40000 by sept.

 

[cra2]

So there's no way to buy a Suunto online in the U.S. and get a full warranty?

 

[RSdiver]

Doing a google search I see the best deals are Canadian companies that also service USA by having co-dealer offices just across the border:

www.diverswholesale.com *CLICK HERE* mosquito + PC interface + spare battery + case + shipping is $399 USD

www.divetank.net *CLICK HERE* mosquito alone is $309.99 USD

 

[RSdiver]

Bought the mosquito from Divetank which ends up to be an authorized Suunto dealer named "FitzWright Co. Ltd." in Langley, B.C. Canada. I wanted to make sure I was buying from an authorized dealer prior to purchasing and called, then double checked Suunto's website of authorized dealers as I don't want any issues if I need upgrades or repairs later on.

I'll try it on a dive this weekend and compare it to my Oceanic air integrated "hose attached" computer. Divetank I have 60 days "no questions asked" return or exchange. I actually just needed a new wristwatch and while this looks like a good backup, I've always liked the idea of a hoseless air integrated computer for diving in kelp.
Since the Suunto models in all their dive computers are probably similar, I'll find out from the Mosquito if I should consider the Vytec - I've heard these are very conservative computers.

 

[Dryglove]

So there's no way to buy a Suunto online in the U.S. and get a full warranty?

Goto www.divetank.net and click on the small print "return and repair policies" towards the bottom of the page for warrant info. I have bought a few items from them at www.divetank.com and www.divetank.net over the past 3 years or so and they have been great.