Last week I said to Hubby: ‘My darling sweet man, I desperately need some new baking trays. Wouldn’t you agree?’ Because that is exactly how I speak, in real life.
‘Yes,’ he replied. ‘Please get some. You could almost classify your old ones as a food group.’
‘Ha! Very funny.' He was right, though. Years of baking will do that to a beloved tin. There’s always a little bit that won’t scrub off.
Delighted to get out of the house, off I went with a skip and a hop (with baby Charlotte in tow) ready to buy some new trays. Now in my head I was thinking, ‘mortgages, electricity, phone bills, petrol, rates, water bill, Foxtel, internet connection, baby formula, nappies’ and the list goes on.
These things are a priority over baking trays and so when I made my choice, I chose the $6.99 ones, on special—the ones made in China.
I then bought toothpaste for $7.95 and a small tin of Milo for $5.79. Excuse me? My toothpaste costs more than a baking tray? Thanks Colgate.
The point is, the cost of living in Australia is becoming outrageous. We simply have to buy the cheaper items WHENEVER we can.
It means our Aussie farmers and small business owners have to lower their prices, in order to compete. But where will that leave us down the track?
For example: milk at Coles (Down, Down. Prices are Down) $2 for 2 litres.
YAY?
No.
Can you imagine how much the farmer gets after labour, bottling, shipping and selling to Coles so that they both still make a profit? No wonder farmers are quitting in Oz.
We have to work harder over here to make sales, because: - Australian businesses have to charge more for their products in order to make ends meet.
- Australian Business owners have no choice but to pay more for: staff rates, rent and mortgages, and if they want to use ‘Australian Made’ in their own creations, put the prices up again.
- Australian businesses have to compete against overseas business owners that don’t need as much money to survive.
- Australian consumers can’t afford to buy Australian products, either. For example, I just opted for two paperback books shipped to my door from the UK for $22 over purchasing the same two books from my local bookstore for $46.45.
- Australian businesses who try to sell overseas have to compete against products that are cheaper and are not necessarily worse when it comes to quality. In fact, we even sell our OWN stuff cheaper over there.
Of course we all want to help support our Aussie families with their business. WE WANT TO.
It's just that, in comparison to the US:
- Overall consumer prices are approximately 64% higher in Australia
- Rent is 94% higher
- Groceries are 56% higher
- Mortgage interest rates are 51.11% higher Yet, our wages, on average are only 35% higher.
Here’s a good break down.
But don’t worry! Our oranges are 5% cheaper. We can also rent out a tennis court for a weekend for 1% less than our American friends. Now that calls for a celebration.
Tennis anyone? Anyone?
So, if you’re an Australian business, and you are succeeding, well done! Pat yourself on the back, mate, because there’s no fair go HERE. You’ve still got your head above the water despite no helping hands. I love my Aussie homeland and I’m Australian through and through. But if I have to move to America to buy onions, I’ll do it.
PEACE
HMC
Please leave a comment, suggestion, or any experiences you have had as a business owner.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Leave a comment for HMC.