I was at Chapters last night and questioned the price of a book that had both the US, UK and Can. price on the book. They said that I had to pay the price stamped on the book, even though that reflected an 80 cent dollar exchange rate. I spoke to the manager about this situation, and was told the same thing by him, so I handed him the pile of books and told him I would not be buying these until their prices came down.
Book prices in Canada are out of whack.
So how many of you are frustrated at the price of books here in Canada? With the dollar approaching 93 cents to the US dollar, publishers need to start adjusting prices for books.
In the past, I've been ordering books and DVD's from Amazon.com as opposed to Amazon.ca or Indigo simply because the prices were still better even after shipping rates and currency exchange.
I'd loved to forgo that hassle and just buy "Canadian".
In the past, I've been ordering books and DVD's from Amazon.com as opposed to Amazon.ca or Indigo simply because the prices were still better even after shipping rates and currency exchange.
I'd loved to forgo that hassle and just buy "Canadian".
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I agree, however we've also had the reverse situation. I've seen things cheaper in Canada than in the US simply because the price was set for a lower exchange rate. Right now the Black MacBook base model is $1649 here and $1499 in the US which puts it at a 10% exchange rate. I've made a number of purchases in the past week or so while down in the States and I'm seeing a 11.xx% exchange on my credit card.
Books (like most products) are produced and bought by Canadian distributors far in advance of today's dollar. Do you honestly expect every store in Canada to change their prices daily to match the exchange rate?
I didn't hear anyone complaining when books were priced per an 80 cent dollar when the dollar was trading at 70 cents or less.
If you don't like the difference in pricing, you have two options: buy from the US (Amazon.com), or ignore US prices. It's a different market, they have different pricing. Get over it.
I didn't hear anyone complaining when books were priced per an 80 cent dollar when the dollar was trading at 70 cents or less.
If you don't like the difference in pricing, you have two options: buy from the US (Amazon.com), or ignore US prices. It's a different market, they have different pricing. Get over it.
Books being out of sync with the exchange rate is something that annoys me as well.
On a related and troubling note:
A few months ago there was a story on the local news about how much money you could save by buying a new car in Montana due to the exchange rate.
When they asked local dealers why they did not reduce prices to reflect the exchange rate they responded by saying that people were still buying cars at the current price so why lower the rates.
If they do the same thing with books then I think we will need some kind of government oversight to regulate this kind of thing.
On a related and troubling note:
A few months ago there was a story on the local news about how much money you could save by buying a new car in Montana due to the exchange rate.
When they asked local dealers why they did not reduce prices to reflect the exchange rate they responded by saying that people were still buying cars at the current price so why lower the rates.
If they do the same thing with books then I think we will need some kind of government oversight to regulate this kind of thing.
I am purchasing from the US and I'm all over it.Books (like most products) are produced and bought by Canadian distributors far in advance of today's dollar. Do you honestly expect every store in Canada to change their prices daily to match the exchange rate?
I didn't hear anyone complaining when books were priced per an 80 cent dollar when the dollar was trading at 70 cents or less.
If you don't like the difference in pricing, you have two options: buy from the US (Amazon.com), or ignore US prices. It's a different market, they have different pricing. Get over it.
Canadian book distributors are not any different from any one else. They are all subject to the flux of the currency. And like everyone else, need to adapt if they want to remain competitive.
Books at an 80% exchange rate - that's not too bad. One of my favourite Magazines (now here's something that is published MONTHLY) still has a Canadian price that reflects when the dollar was worth approximately $0.58 (US price $9.95 - CND price $16.95)
Most of the magazines I buy are like that and the only way around the obscene pricing difference is to buy a subscription, otherwise the publisher doesn't care as they are making an extra 50%
Most of the magazines I buy are like that and the only way around the obscene pricing difference is to buy a subscription, otherwise the publisher doesn't care as they are making an extra 50%
What annoys me most about book prices is that the "manufacturer" prints the selling price right on the product. How many other products are there where that is the case.
And during times when the Canadian dollar was falling against the US one, book stores had no problem placing little price stickers over the pre-printed Cdn prices to increase the price, but now that the exchange rate is moving in the opposite direction, that seems no longer possible.
Solution is to simply not buy from stores like Chapters that insist on an unreasonable price - even Chapters prices on-line are often a lot less than in the store, so are Costo, Walmart and other bookseller prices.
And during times when the Canadian dollar was falling against the US one, book stores had no problem placing little price stickers over the pre-printed Cdn prices to increase the price, but now that the exchange rate is moving in the opposite direction, that seems no longer possible.
Solution is to simply not buy from stores like Chapters that insist on an unreasonable price - even Chapters prices on-line are often a lot less than in the store, so are Costo, Walmart and other bookseller prices.
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