Cutting The Pie

Who gets the largest slice of the retail photographic pie? The retail shop? The wholesale agency? The manufacturer? I've asked and no-one will tell me...so I've had to make my own observations at the trade shows. And I have come to the conclusion that, oddly enough, it is the paying customer.

The reasoning behind this is simple - the percentages that come back to the retail shop are small these days. The burgeoning internet trade plus the sense of nervousness that pervades the consumer base mean that there are very slim profit margins. These in turn also mean reduced earnings for wholesale firms. There are various finagles tried at times to increase these profits but they all work out about the same in the end. The camera maker has the most investment of all, and it doesn't even need a tsunami  to devastate a plant - it can happen with a change of fashion in sensors or lenses.

But at the end of it all, the consumer gets an actual product - a thing to hold in the hand rather than just sit on a balance sheet. They get a camera and lens and get to use it every day. Their money might deflate as time goes on but the actual hardware stands a chance of keeping a decent utility for half a decade, if they let it. If it is Leica equipment it also stands a chance of going UP in price.

Does anyone else get some pie? The publishers of photo magazines? Probably not all that much these days. Schools and universities? Yes, some...

Governments? Well, there is the GST and other taxes to be considered, and if they bring in a GST on internet imports, well that will readjust the scales.

And then there is the overseas internet sale...For years I have been hearing how easy and convenient it is to purchase goods from New York. How they arrive in the twinkling of an eye and at a fraction of the cost and how the sellers reach out over the net and massage your feet and sing " Kumbaya" as they do it...

Watch this space. I was forced to order a material from New York that no-one, even us, wants to carry in Australia. I have been charged the price and assured that it is on the way, but my eyes have long since ceased to twinkle and my feet have been hurting for weeks now. We shall see if it is all true... I don't begrudge pie, but not in the face.

Note for Thursday - it did arrive yesterday...six weeks after placing the order...Hmmmmm...

Uncle Dick

Cameras And The Beer Economy

There has been a great deal of hoo hah recently in the media about Perth's beer economy. Apparently people pay for favours, products, services, and opinions by delivering cartons of beer instead of cartons of money. This is seen as matey and unlikely to attract the attention of the Australian Taxation Department. As it turns out, this is incorrect - everything - attracts the attention of the ATO.

Really, think about it. The ATO workers are in Canberra and Albury, NSW. If there were any two places on earth that would make you think about drinking, it would be Canberra and Albury. I should imagine office workers there think about it constantly, and the idea that they are not getting their share when your local tradie trims your asbestos fence for you with the chain saw( and then puts it through the mulcher ) would be gall to them.

Is it the same, we must ask, with bottles of beer at camera launches? Are we all in danger of little men in a grey sleeveless jumpers popping up at our elbow and handcuffing us as we reach for the Corona? Will we need to arrive at the door half cut beforehand on our own money and just sit down and watch the show.

And what is the sushi position?*

Well, after consulting a beeration expert I can reassure the clients and customers that it is not a federal offence to down one or two at the Camera Electronic promotional nights. The management are paying for the slosh and then reporting it diligently to the ATO as a legitimate business expense, as they do for the ammunition and spare horses, and you are in the clear. Your only obligation is to enjoy yourselves...moderately, please...and to give due consideration to the industry presenters, photograph makers, and video presentations. You are at liberty to fall lifeless from your chair after the first 20 minutes of a Powerpoint presentation and no-one will think ill of you...

It would be nice if you would look carefully at the special offer sheets that generally accompany the product presentations. Both the wholesalers and the shop work closely together to make sure that there are good deals there on the launch night - sometimes with prices and sometimes with added extras. Take advantage of these, and do it right then. Frequently the opportunity is only for that one occasion - this is a good illustration of the advisability of keeping an emergency photo fund somewhere. Somewhere that only you know about...when your time comes, Maitland, know it...

Product launches are fun. The industry reps there really DO know what their stuff does and they are more than happy to tell you all you need to know. It is ever so much more satisfying to get the REAL information from people that actually sell the cameras than rely upon someone at Mum's Basement Camera Rumour Pty Ltd. to tell you fairy tales.

Note: Keep reading the weblog and the CE Facebook site. We've got two dynamite Canon launches coming this month and March and I suspect there will be others from other firms as well. The recent Olympus and Fujifilm nights at the shop were a hoot.

*Rolled up.

Write-Off Right Off With The Tax Department - What It Means For Photographers

It means your money staying with you.

If you run a small business with a turnover of less than $ 2,000,000...and this would include a lot of photographers in Perth*...you can footle with your tax this year legally. The ATO has changed the rules for writing-off assets when you make your tax return.

Now if you buy any items for your business that cost under $ 6500 they can be written off the cost entirely in the 2013-2014 tax claim. Items over that threshold go to a single rate of 15% for the first year and 30% for years after that.

If you purchase a motor vehicle for the business you can get an additional claim of $ 5000 for the year in which it is purchased. That means that if your wedding business needs a new Altair tank transporter to haul your cameras, lenses, and speedlights....you can benefit. I am not sure if it covers the recovery crane needed to unload the transporter.

Do check with the ATO on their website at:

https://www.ato.gov.au/Media-centre/Articles/Simpler-depreciation-...


* I did not laugh as I was typing this, because I was afraid that if I started I would never stop...

Uncle Dick