Herbert Graf wrote:
> Imagine my surprise if at the checkout they proclaimed I ALSO had to
> pay shipping and handling from the factory the item was produced in
> China to the store I'm standing in?

That would be silly of course, but the comparison is likewise silly.  Online
sellers aren't charging you extra for the various parts of producing the
product either.  The part you are complaining about is the extra cost to
deliver it to you.  When you go to your local bricks and mortar store you
pay this cost directly since you're the delivery boy.  You don't pay more
because the next customer drove 30 miles in a hummer to get there when you
walked accross the street.

> At a bricks and mortar store the
> price for shipping, handling, packaging, store clerks, store leasing,
> etc. is all built in.

But that part of the cost is built into online prices too, since you're not
talking about the handling, packaging and shipping to get it to you.

> Why are online retailers CHARGING shipping and handling separately?

Probably because the shipping and handling charges vary by destination, and
many online merchants let the customer chose the shipping method.

> Why do MANY of them royally rip people off?

They set a price for their product and a price to get it to you.  You should
look at the total and decide if it's worth it.  Whether the total is a
ripoff is a judgement call.  So a $50 item with $20 shipping is a ripoff,
but $70 with free shipping would not be a ripoff?

> I search out the online retailers that INCLUDE shipping in the price.
> It's not hard to do, some retailers do it, I find those are the
> retailers I always go to first.

You're choice.  That may be a good deal if you live where shipping would be
expensive.  If you're near by you may feel they are charging too much for
the item.  They are just moving costs from distant customers onto near
customers, but there is no such thing as "free" shipping.  One way or
another you're paying for it.  In that sense "free" shipping is somewhat
dishonest.

> Online retailers are competing with brick and mortar stores at a
> disadvantage: their customers have to WAIT for their items to arrive
> (and hope they do arrive).

Actually I think online retailers have the advantage in many cases.  I
personally hate physically going to a store and dealing with the associated
hassles and time spent.  Most of the time shipping looks real cheap compared
to ordering from the comfort of my computer and having the product come to
me.  Add up the all the true costs of going to a store and whatever hassle
cost your time is worth, and you probably "pay" more than reasonable
shipping for most items.  About the only stores I physically go to anymore
are food stores.

> Every time I've sold something online I've included the shipping price
> in the price.  Yes, on some destinations I've lost a little, but I set
> my margins to deal with that. On some items I've made money on the
> shipping portion. On average, the shipping portion comes out to close
> to zero.

So using your terms, you've decided to rip off customers near you.


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