Ordering equipment online in Portugal

[BritAbroad]

Does anyone have any experience ordering kit online in Portugal? I'm going to be outfitting a boat there early next year, and want to know if there are any portuguese boat equipment sites which will be able to deliver equipment without me having to pay import and customs duties.

Thanks.

[tdw]

Originally Posted by BritAbroad

Does anyone have any experience ordering kit online in Portugal? I'm going to be outfitting a boat there early next year, and want to know if there are any portuguese boat equipment sites which will be able to deliver equipment without me having to pay import and customs duties.

Thanks.

first up - How's your Portuguese ?

Tip - google "google portugal" search under "páginas de Portugal"

Most stuff for sale in Portugal is likely to be imported irrespective of where you buy it I'd have thought.

Good Luck

[sailingdog]

If you buy the materials from an EU chandlery, chances are pretty good that you won't have to pay import and customs duties on it, since they EU is a single economic entity. If you buy from a US-based chandlery, you're going to paying through the nose, though the exchange rate will help somewhat.

[edstill]

I work at 'a large national boating supply retailer', in a the heart of a major U.S. city. We do LOTS of business with European (and other foreign) nationals who have come to the states for work or pleasure, and can't turn down the opportunity to fill their bags with our (relatively) cheap chandlery goods. Many even call ahead to order things in for their short visit, from sailing gloves to full Chartplotter/radar/sonar kits. The weak dollar isn't the only source of savings, as many manufacturers have total different price structures in different countries, sometimes changing model numbers so you can't comparison shop as easily.

Duties are a concern for many of them, and I offer my customers an order form that they can fill out themselves as a false invoice. (I never go so far as doing the lying myself). But then, these people are also flying back with bag loads of iPods and designer clothes, all bought on the cheap here.

For what it's worth...

[BritAbroad]

Thanks SD - that's what I'd hope, but then I hear that the Portuguese bureaucracy have a habit of doing things their own way.....

Are there any tame Portugeezers on sailnet?

[Stillraining]

He wouldn't be tamed so he left..

[sailingdog]

You could try PM'ing Giulietta, who may or may not respond. But he's a good egg and lives in Portugal. Has a custom 42' racing/cruiser.

[chucklesR]

Here's a clue, Alex on Giulietta normally does his shopping in the U.S. and packs it into a suitcase when he returns.
I visited one marine store while in Portugal, prices were 25-35% higher than I expected.

[sailingdog]

Good point... I do a fair bit of price shopping for Gui when he's headed to the states... since he's often in my neck of the woods... that's probably even more the case with the dollar to euro disparity.

Originally Posted by chucklesR

Here's a clue, Alex on Giulietta normally does his shopping in the U.S. and packs it into a suitcase when he returns.
I visited one marine store while in Portugal, prices were 25-35% higher than I expected.