Cheaper in the US?

It looks like my husband will be going on a week long jolly, I mean business trip to America? I was wondering if sports clothing, specifically running gear, is cheaper over there than in UK?  Am wondering if I can benefit too?image  Thank you in advance.

Comments

  • suitcases might well be....

     

  • Went to the US for our holidays last year and the cost thing is complicated. 

    Depending on how much you want to work and how honest you are will dictate what sort of discounts you'll get. 

    For biggest discount use mail order from an out of state retailer (smaller the better) so you can avoid paying US Sales Tax. Some places will send to your hotel/accommodation others won't.  I've heard of people walking through the 'Nothing to Declare' lane at Heathrow that is or course up to you!

    Some retailers offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee or your money back SO if you know your going back to the US treat yourself to a Garmin 620 or some expensive shoes etc and if after extensive use your not happy with them take them back for a FULL refund. Can confirm that you WILL get a refund no questions asked even on worn-out shoes image

    Generally with the current exchange rate there aren't many mega bargains to be had and you need to watch the warranty thing.

    Why not support your local indy running shop?

  • Cheers for that.  Thought there wasn't many bargains to be had, just wondered if I could guilt husband into buying us all some sports gear!  To be honest one of the best thing about US clothes are the sizes but hopefully as I am losing the lard I may be able to visit that Indy running shop and get something that fits...

  • I saved £75 by buying a garmin 620 in NY a few weeks ago (from a sports shop in Manhattan) so tech might be a good bet.

    Agree with the other responses - not much differential in places like niketown etc.

  • If you remember to ask for a detailed receipt and say you are bringing it back to the UK, you should be able to get the Tax back at the airport or deducted at the store.

    Getting the Tax remimbursement is a pain, but worth it if you have time etc

  • SS 9 wrote (see)

    I saved £75 by buying a garmin 620 in NY a few weeks ago (from a sports shop in Manhattan) 

    Whats that about £45? you don't say which model you got but most large UK shops will offer 10% even on Garmin. To my mind having a retail point of contact would have been a priority given the small saving but I have bought Garmin stuff in the US and had no problems getting warranty work done through Garmin UK.

    You would have had to pay Sales Tax was that factored into the saving?

  • Flob wrote (see)
    As long as you get the sales tax taken off on store and remove all packaging and labels from your purchases when packing then you will not need to declare anything..

    Thats blatant fraud and illegal. I know people do it but that doesn't make it right.

    You can't get Sales Tax taken off at the Store.

  • So if I murder someone and don't get arrested then it's not a crime, cool!! imageimage

  • Flob wrote (see)
    ??75 is ??75. Not ??45.
    Fraud? No. Illegal? No. A loophole yes. If they are not new you do not have to declare them. If you worked in the us for a month and bought some clothes when you got there, and wore them a few times, would you declare them? Or just pack them with your other clothes and say nothing? I know what I would do and I've done exactly the same thing when I visited New York. I even wore some of my new purchases on the plane home. I wasn't arrested so obviously it was not a crime.

    I don't want to turn this into a huge discussion but I'm afraid to say that you are wrong. Just because you can get away with it doesn't make it legal. The newness of an item is irrelevant its the value thats taken into consideration for VAT and Duty purposes. 

  • Chri5BChri5B ✭✭✭

    You can bring goods worth up to £390 back from the US (non-EU) without having to pay tax or duty.

    http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/arriving/arrivingnoneu.htm

    Good few years since I was in the US, but I've previously brought a couple of pairs of running shoes as they were a great price in Nike Town and a sports shop I can't remember properly in New York (Modells?).  Allowing for some currency fees, a 100 USD pair of shoes is going to work at £60 to £65 so you need to see what offers are on back here.

  • skottyskotty ✭✭✭
    Flob wrote (see)
    Rich people avoid taxation all the time so I don't see why I can't do it too.

    rich people sometimes get caught as well:

    "Coleen McLoughlin, the 18-year-old fiancee of Wayne Rooney was detained and questioned by customs officials yesterday as she returned to the UK from a shopping trip to New York.

    Ms McLoughlin landed at Manchester Airport at 5.30am, on a British Airways flight, accompanied by a minder and two friends. By 6am, her shopping companions had emerged, and informed reporters that they had sampled the delights of Bloomingdale's department store, but safely bypassed Tiffany's. However there was no sign of Ms McLoughlin.

    Shortly before 7am, four bags believed to belong to her appeared and were collected by friends. Ms McLoughlin did not emerge for two hours.

    She left for New York with her companions last Thursday. The trip was thought to have been a gift from Rooney to celebrate his debut for Manchester United, in which he scored a hat-trick, and as an attempt to appease Ms McLoughlin, after revelations surfaced about the footballer visiting prostitutes in Liverpool.

    Ms McLoughlin visited New York in July, but her shopping spree was impeded by her fiance, who was on crutches after breaking his foot during Euro 2004.

    Travellers returning to Britain from the US are permitted to bring in valuables worth no more than £145, in addition to 200 cigarettes and one litre of spirits. Excesses require the traveller to pay VAT and import duty - about 20% in total. Customs inspectors can stop and search anyone walking through the green Nothing to Declare channel, to ensure that no goods are brought into the country without the correct duty being paid.

    "We can confirm that Coleen was questioned by customs inspectors at Manchester Airport this morning, on her return from a shopping trip with friends to New York," a spokesperson for Ms McLoughlin said yesterday. "Like countless others, she visited the city to see the sights and to do some pre-Christmas shopping. She was entirely unaware that she was in breach of any regulations and cooperated fully with the customs officers in paying an amount of duty deemed to be due on clothing and gifts she bought in America. No charges have been brought."

    A Customs spokesman said: "Officers challenged 14 people from the flight and a number of detections were made relating to unpaid duty and appropriate financial penalties were applied and paid. No arrests have been made and we cannot confirm the identity of anyone who was stopped.""

  • Flob wrote (see)
    Well I'm not afraid to say you are wrong.

    What else can I say other than " Like, whatever"

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