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Riding big wheels in Switzerland Frankly, because bigger is better

Switzerland is the land of cows. There are the four-legged cows grazing the country’s green pastures and there are the two-legged citizens and consumers who are the cash-cows to producers and distributors who overcharge for goods like there’s no tomorrow. With the drop of the Euro and the Dollar, price differences between Switzerland and its neighbors have even grown wider and now reach exorbitant levels. Whether one looks at pharmaceuticals, daily groceries or bicycles and their components, it’s mind-boggling how deep the Swiss consumer has to reach into his wallet in comparison to others. Excuses by manufacturers and importers are manifold, but in the end it all boils down to “because they can”. The situation has to change and there are first steps in the right direction. Grocery chain COOP pulled a bunch of brands out of their shelves because manufacturers were unwilling to lower prices. Swiss bike shops near the German border have formed the group “Fairprice 2012” because their customers can get the same bike for a lot less across the border. Price differences reach the order of 70% say those bike shop owners. A few days ago, my old Crank Brothers broke. I hopped online to look for a replacement and started with Swiss shops. The best I could find was Primal which offers the pump for CHF 39.00. I expanded my Google search and found it at for CHF 20.36 and Blue Sky Cycling for CHF 13.40. I also needed a chain cleaner and looked at Park-Tool’s Chain Gang. Swiss wants a ridiculous CHF 67.00, CHF 30.54 and only CHF 17.40.

Item Swiss Price CRC Cheapest
CB Power Pump CHF 39.00 - 291% CHF 20.36 - 152% CHF 13.40 - 100%
CG-2 Chain Gang CHF 67.00 - 385% CHF 30.54 - 175% CHF 17.40 - 100%
Total CHF 106.00 - 344% CHF 50.90 - 165% CHF 30.80 - 100%

Add shipping costs and customs duties for items purchased abroad and you’d still be pretty dumb to buy the above items from a Swiss store.

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  1. 29inch posted this