I visited an Apple shop the other day, fully prepared to pick up a Mac Mini, with my credit card in my hand. The shop only had a demo unit, which crashed when I launched Garage Band. The shop assistant told me that you’d have to order the Mac Mini, and it will take two weeks to deliver.
I ordered an iPod Shuffle on 27/1. It is due for delivery “on or before” 22/2. Rumours have it that small number of iPod Shuffles are available for sale in certain electronic shops in Mongkok for nearly double the cost.
An ex-colleague (and good friend) joined another firm together w/ her boss as a team, and they need a photographer to take mug shots for all the professional staff of the firm. So I called my friend W right before noon (who is nocturnal and was woke up by my call), and asked him to get back to my friend, for a reasonable lucrative job. Well when I called W again at around 17:45, he still hadn’t made the call. Obviously he’s so booked up and busy these days he couldn’t be bothered to answer enquires. Oh well.
1 response so far ↓
1 James // Feb 16, 2005 at 12:10 pm
Maybe the Mac Mini is a case of an S&D problem like you said as there is generally no non Apple dealer shops selling their computers.
But the fact that iPod’s are available in general retail stores as well as Apple dealers suggests that it is most likely a market cornering tactic by the retailers than a demand bigger than supply problem.
Merchants placed a big order knowing that kids would pay just about anything for a new fresh on the market gadget, so by ordering more than the manufacturer could supply they could markup the price sky-high.
Just like the Sony’s PSP. A HKD$1900 MSRP product selling up to $4000 in some shops with stock! Same case with just about any high end DSLRs when they first came out.
When I was on honeymoon in Paris in 1990, I walked into a MB dealer where they showcased the brand new SL model – the one before this current new model. When I asked about the price, the salesman said it was “priceless” as “orders around the world” were already filled up to the ‘95 model and that if I wanted, I could place an order for the ‘96 model! A year later in Canada, MB SLs were readily available in just about any color one wanted.
Same with the Mazda MX-5 Miata roadster when they first came out in Canada. One had to pay an extra CND$8000 just to get in line for one! 6 months after it came out, one could get one with a CND$6000 discount without the need to pay that extra $8K. I guess the dealers really screwed that one up. The fact was, individual salesmen tried to corner the market and placed the order themselves before customers placed their orders and tried to sell off the ordering line-up position. Serves them right.