As a growing Australian online retailer, we are often asked a variety of questions from friends and family to customers and suppliers alike, with regards to the GST situation and online retailers. Often the Australian media incorrectly reports that purchases made online do not include GST, as if there is a mystical loophole which means online retailers such as Mr Cycling World can “get away” with not paying tax. Of course this is not the case for an Australian-registered business like ours. We, as with all reputable Australian businesses, are GST tax compliant which means our prices includes GST for all Australian customers. The media should correctly report that online shoppers do not pay GST on purchases made from overseas websites and sellers who are not registered GST businesses – for example private sellers on eBay.
Last week the Productivity Commission announced that they will not reduce the $1,000 GST threshold on goods purchased online from overseas. And, given the findings show that the process would cost more in expenses than it would gain in revenue, fair enough. After all, surely the underlining reason for adding a new tax is to raise revenue, not lose it, right?
One of the questions we have been frequently asked in the last few days in particular is how would a change in import tax affect our business? The simple answer is that there would be very little difference at the end of the day. If anything, it might encourage Australians to shop more with us rather than sending their hard earned overseas. In the early days of setting up our business we were very conscious of the fact that the world changes everyday, and with that in mind we wanted to develop a dynamic business that could handle changes when they are thrown our way and adapt to change quickly. In doing so, Mr Cycling World will be around for a long time yet.
What happens with the future of GST and import tax is obviously out of our hands. Rather than reach out to the government for help like some of the big retailers did earlier this year, we will instead commit our time and resources to giving Australian consumers what they want and when they want it. We are here to listen to our customer’s needs and are always looking for ways to improve.
Our customers are extremely smart and realise that it is completely their choice if they want to send their hard earned offshore, or if they prefer to keep their Australian dollars in Australia. It’s up to us to prove our value and worth, and that is something we take seriously and attempt to do everyday.
Much like cycling as a sport, all the 1%’ers add up in business and will collectively improve performance, there is no time to whinge and complain if things don’t go your way. I am reminded of a quote from a famous sporting brand you might have heard of, it goes something like “Just Do It”. Enough said.
