Geoffrey on Ebay - Confusing or what?!

[Laird_M]

After getting a superb pair of brogues from Geoffrey, I looked at getting Argyll and Prince Charlie jackets through Geoffrey via Evil Bay, and boy! Am I Confused!!!

Same item, PCJ3, listed several times, all at different prices...

And to add to the confusion, they have two shops - Geoffrey Music AND Geoffrey Made for Scosttish.

The second shop also stocks the same items at a completely different price again!

Just to show one example:
PCJK8: Jacket, Vest, Kilt, Kilt Pin, Sporran, Chains, Sgian and Carrier
GM: £124.99 + £4 shipping.
GM4S: £99.99 + £20 shipping.

OK, the GM4S one comes with Black Watch, Royal Stewart or MacKenzie kilt and the GM version has a wider choice of tartans, but looking at GM4S, all the kilts are £29.99 + £8 shipping, so why £9 difference?

Why is one package cheaper, but more expensive to ship and the other more expensive but cheaper to ship?

In the words of the voice-over from the 1980's sitcom 'Soap', "Confused? You will be!".

[cessna152towser]

You will presumably be aware that this is not the same company as the Scottish based Geoffrey (Tailor).
I bought my bagpipes from Geoffrey-Music in 2009, at that time they were based in Sialkot Pakistan, from where my bagpipes were shipped, though I see their location is now shown as eBay as being the British Isles.
One possible explanation in the difference in costs and shipping costs could be that some of the items are shipped from Pakistan and some from the British Isles.

[Laird_M]

Yes, I checked whether they were the same company in Sailot before posting.

[WolfmanJack]

When I lost one of the buckles on my brogues, I received absolutely outstanding service from M. H. Geoffrey. Read about it at this thread.

[Really a McQueen]

...
The second shop also stocks the same items at a completely different price again!

... so why £9 difference?

Why is one package cheaper, but more expensive to ship and the other more expensive but cheaper to ship?

One thing you need to remember about eBay is that the fee schedule they charge sellers is based in part on the selling price. The shipping portion is not generally assessed at the same rate. So if two identical items are listed with 'buy-it-now' prices, the one with the slightly lower price and higher shipping charges may actually bring in more income to the seller at the end of the transaction.

[English Bloke]

Laird M. I believe some items are aimed at the American and / or Australian markets so there are variations in conversion $US to £ / $AU to £ and also higher postage rates for those regions. The auctions with cheaper postage are listed in £'s usually. If you click into the differing auctions for the same product you'll see the prices in the pre-converted currencies.

A word on the Argyles. I have one from this supplier. It's not good quality at all. You'd be better saving for a bit and buying a home grown one (in my opinion)

[seanachie]

I am another who received good service from this company. I have corresponded via email with questions and received answers in a reasonable time frame. One of the earlier posts suggested items possibly shipping from the British Isles, they may have more current info than myself. My recollection on why the rates were in Sterling and converted was that their foreign currency account was in Sterling, but again that may be dated information.

Value for money I am pleased with my purchase, I needed an argyll and had little money to spend at the time. Clearly it is not a bespoke garment but I am pleased with the quality and consider it a good buy.

[seanachie]

A word on the Argyles. I have one from this supplier. It's not good quality at all. You'd be better saving for a bit and buying a home grown one (in my opinion)

I am sorry to hear that John. I have had difficulties with making sure I understood proper sizing with some merchants. I usually wear a US size 42R and with this purchase I had some back and forth with Geoffrey before making the purchase. As I said in another post, it is not bespoke by any stretch of the imagination but value for dollar I really can't complain. That said, I really needed a jacket at the time for an event, if I had a few bob extra in my pocket I would likely spend it on a finer quality jacket. That said the seams seem well sewn, no problems with the workmanship. But it is always good to balance out experiences mine being different than John's.

[Laird_M]

Just had a mail from Hassan, the boss of Geoffrey Music/Made for Scottish, and it is as suggested, due to currency variations - some are priced for UK, some for US, etc.

I have to say that in my experience, they are second to none in their customer service.

They respond very quickly, are always polite and professional and I'll be making further purchases from them as and when I have available funds.