Cheaper lasers in Australia

suthera

Member
Given the amount of discussion about how overpriced laser products are – sails in particular – I am surprised that no one has commented about the recent price drops in Australia. Prices of both new hulls, and sails, have been reduced dramatically. The builder has said these price drops are due to economies of scale from large orders (there are a lot of world championships scheduled for Australia in the next 14 months so they are building a lot of charter boats) and taking advantage of the very strong Australian dollar to import cheaper sails/materials. Many of us were ordering sails from overseas so the locally sourced ones should now be priced competitively. I looked into getting a new hull 7 months ago but couldn’t quite justify the expense. With the price of a new boat now dropped by over $1,000 a trade in for a new boat is a serious possibility.

Credit where credit is due. For all the complaining we do we should also applaud when a builder delivers good news.

http://www.lasersailing.com.au/news.html

“Now the Laser has climbed past the 200,000 boat mark. And even better news with new Laser prices dropping as volumes continue to climb. Chris Caldecoat, the CEO of Australasian Laser builder Performance Sailcraft Australia has announced that the first of the new 200,000 plaques have arrived and boats starting from 201500 are available for immediate delivery.

Chris explains some welcome 'Performance Sailcraft Australia is currently experiencing high production volumes due to upcoming world events. With increased manufacturing comes better buying volumes and production efficiencies coupled with the strengthening AUD, we are able to make the following price reductions. The Laser Full, Radial and 4.7 rig, are now listed at AUD$7,700 and Laser sails, both North and Hyde brand have been reduced to AUD$583”
 
Good news indeed for Austrailian sailors.
Just for comparison, AUD$ 7,700 at today's exchange rate equates to about GBP£4,821 and $7,714 US dollars

The list price for a new laser with XD rigging in the UK ( http://uk.laserperformance.com/laser/pricing )is £4,797 which seems remarkably close to your Austrailian figure.

The quoted price for the sail also seems to be about the same as in the UK.

The US website lists the same boat for USD$6460 which equates to AUD$6,447

So it looks like the US is still the place to find the cheapest Laser.
 
The difference seems marginal really....

But where is the best place for the fastest laser? That's a whole new kettle of fish! From what I've heard it's AUS?
 
All I can guess is maybe the supply chain has opened up, and maybe variations in the exchange rate?
 
Actually I'm aware of why the prices have dropped, nothing to do with the supply chain and not directly related to the exchange rate but I'll leave it to PSA to make reasons widely known.
 
Actually I'm aware of why the prices have dropped, nothing to do with the supply chain and not directly related to the exchange rate but I'll leave it to PSA to make reasons widely known.

Come on Alan mate - you can't leave us hanging like that. Give us a clue or drop us a PM?
 
Perish the thought. Although I look foreword to the day when inexpensively produced Lasers will become available, Let's hope no one is ever allowed to build and sell cheap ones.
 
The point is can the supplier decide to have their product manufactured over seas "china" and still slap a sticker on it as their own? It would meet class standards, and be certified as a class legal product? LP laser built in china.. Would we as consumers have big benefit? or would it be in the pockets of the supplier?
 
In light of recent events, I have a new theory on why the price of Australian Lasers dropped.
 
You'll find the price in Australia is still significantly above the price in the USA / UK (28% above US price). Maybe it could also be said that if LPE paid their royalities the prices of the boats in USA / UK would be higher.
 
You'll find the price in Australia is still significantly above the price in the USA / UK (28% above US price). Maybe it could also be said that if LPE paid their royalities the prices of the boats in USA / UK would be higher.
Surely though if the rest of the world have to buy Australian built Kirby boats, that will be reversed ?
 

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