Question for the International Traveler or our UK Friends

Is it worth my while trying to con my brother into bringing me back a Hardy reel when he travels to London later this month.

In other words will I save any money?

Thanks in advance for any input!

We need to see what someone from the UK says with regards to Hardy reels specifically but I can tell you from traveling to the UK, EVERYTHING is so much more expensive there than in the States. I attended the British Fly Fair and also visited several dealers over there and averything from rods to tying materials to clothing was crazy expensive. What I found is that if a rod was $200USD in the States, it was $200GBP in the UK which is around $380USD! Needless to say I bought nothing but a couple interesting tying materials.

check the currency exchange rates at www.xe.com

plus theres a 17.5% Value Added Tax (VAT) you also pay (not sure if its built into the price of the item)

There is V. A. T. (Value Added Tax) of 17.5% on everything bought in the U.K. But if I remember rightly, when visitors to Scotland wanted to buy Malt Whisky they could minus VAT if they had it shipped back to the USA at the point of purchase. That usually applied to a 12 bottle case. If you bought something via the internet from a UK supplier, I don't think you would pay VAT.
If I buy from the USA, I don't pay US taxes, but the UK Customs & Excise dept, who collect all VAT, make me pay before I can collect my item.
As the old saying goes "Nothing more sure than Death or Taxes". :?

and leaky waders :)

The answer to this lies in the country of origin. As an expat Aussie I was shocked at the difference in price there with US-made rod/reels etc to what I could buy them for here.

The answer doesn't lie in exchange rates etc rather than the system of distribution. Most fly stuff made here is sold through a system of independent sales reps direct from the manufacturer.

Offshore they sell through a distributor, who has to hold stock, do advertising, import duties etc. Hence that adds a layer of cost not evident on fly gear here with a US manufacturer.

On the other hand stuff imported into the US from the UK and the rest of Europe is handled through US distributor systems who have to pay their costs and earn a living too.

Hence in general you are better off buying a for example a European rod in Europe if you are travelling already. Normally you shouldn't get slugged import duties etc for one rod.

However this may not be the case via internet buying etc, where you have to pay shipping/deal with import duties etc. And convenience can be an issue as well
Check warranties _ some items (cameras/rods) warranties require you to deal through the region you bought it etc, so there can be issues of service etc.


Its one very good reason to take a spare rod on your travels _ replacing a broken high-end USmade rod o/s to finish your trip could put a big dent in your budget. But then again you might be able to get a locally made product at a great deal.

Hope this helps

Steve