Could I make a simple plea to all kiters in Australia?
Please support your local kite shop.
I think it's probably fair to say that very few local kite shops would exist these days if not for the rise of stand-up paddling in the last few years.The established kite brands have every type of kite you could possibly want, I think.
I always find it somewhat amusing when a kiter comes in panicking cause he forgot his pump or broke something or other and wants to get a quick replacement part, so he can get out on the water. If the local kite shop doesn't exist anymore, what would he do. Go online and wait X days for his bit to arrive?
I don't know of any kite shops making bucket loads of money. Most would make more working the same sort of jobs you work in and would then be able to go kiting as much as you do. And there have been several kite shops close down in recent times as testimony to this.
I'd be interested to read your opinions on this, but I'll probably be too busy rummaging through drawers trying to find some bit worth ten dollars for a 10 year old kite that someone is trying to fly in 10 knots.

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murrayceff said..
Could I make a simple plea to all kiters in Australia?
Please support your local kite shop.
I think it's probably fair to say that very few local kite shops would exist these days if not for the rise of stand-up paddling in the last few years.The established kite brands have every type of kite you could possibly want, I think.
I always find it somewhat amusing when a kiter comes in panicking cause he forgot his pump or broke something or other and wants to get a quick replacement part, so he can get out on the water. If the local kite shop doesn't exist anymore, what would he do. Go online and wait X days for his bit to arrive?
I don't know of any kite shops making bucket loads of money. Most would make more working the same sort of jobs you work in and would then be able to go kiting as much as you do. And there have been several kite shops close down in recent times as testimony to this.
I'd be interested to read your opinions on this, but I'll probably be too busy rummaging through drawers trying to find some bit worth ten dollars for a 10 year old kite that someone is trying to fly in 10 knots.

Lol, bring back the 20M C kites!

Living in Sydney I have a great local kite shop but after spending 6 months travelling north and occationally needing parts I realised how lucky I was at home.

What retail shop of any kind makes money....its all a false fascade. The sport peaked 3 years ago in nsw. Isn't kiting lessons the big income earner for kite shops. What shocks me most with a kite shop is I pay $2000 for a new kite as a new customer to the shop yet an hour later a regular customer who has that special relationship with the shop pays $1600 for the same new kite . The sport is too small in participants and people are too scared to run a contest /event. My beach has gone from 6 locals down to 1,me. Broke kiteshop owners might have more success opening a coffee shop in a Westfield centre..haha..or a boutique brewery.

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towradgi said..
What shocks me most with a kite shop is I pay $2000 for a new kite as a new customer to the shop yet an hour later a regular customer who has that special relationship with the shop pays $1600 for the same new kite . The sport is too small in participants and people are too scared to run a contest /event.

Why does this shock u?

Ever heard of loyalty rewards?? its everywhere from food stores to sporting stores even in my business of wholesale...we reward our regular customers with exactly what u have mentioned, roughly 20%

I get 20% at my local kite shop who give great service and great trade in deals which leads to me telling others how great they are which gets them more business...

You should try it....maybe then kite shops won't go broke

Coz my $2000 is the same as your $2000...who hands it over the counter should be irrelevant...and me paying $2000 is supporting / sponsoring the guy who pays $1600 special deal /price

I try to always support local, but sometimes when you order stuff and they don't ring you to tell you they got it it's easier just to go online. It's all about quality of service, you support them and they support you.

What local kite shop?

Has the kite bubble finally burst

Our kite shop is booming - excellent service including follow up, extensive range of gear and coaching , very competitive prices,
Just a great guy.

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murrayceff said..
Could I make a simple plea to all kiters in Australia?
Please support your local kite shop.
I think it's probably fair to say that very few local kite shops would exist these days if not for the rise of stand-up paddling in the last few years.The established kite brands have every type of kite you could possibly want, I think.
I always find it somewhat amusing when a kiter comes in panicking cause he forgot his pump or broke something or other and wants to get a quick replacement part, so he can get out on the water. If the local kite shop doesn't exist anymore, what would he do. Go online and wait X days for his bit to arrive?
I don't know of any kite shops making bucket loads of money. Most would make more working the same sort of jobs you work in and would then be able to go kiting as much as you do. And there have been several kite shops close down in recent times as testimony to this.
I'd be interested to read your opinions on this, but I'll probably be too busy rummaging through drawers trying to find some bit worth ten dollars for a 10 year old kite that someone is trying to fly in 10 knots.

The local kite shop I support is one that is willing to do good deal, and unfortunately that means I often buy from shops in WA or Qld as they are cheaper and more willing to do a deal (like free postage) than my local.

Not sure if my local makes money, but they look like they do all right, they often have 3-4 staff on even in winter. They are in an effluent (apologies to Kath and Kim) bayside suburb, so I presume must rely on local people to come in drop a few grand and use their gear once. Personally I have spent well over 10k at the shop over the years, but that doesn't count for loyalty rewards. They are helpful when it comes to repairs, warranty, selling second hand gear etc, so long as you get the right person.

Happy to support your shop Murray but it's at least 1.5 hours drive for me, I cannot even justify that distance to go for a decent surf.

Speaking of surf shops, I once suggested the local surf shop in inverloch they could sell kite gear when I came in looking for a pump as I forgot mine. This was over 5 years ago, they thought I was joking. Not sure if they have tweaked yet or maybe they still think its a fad even if hundreds of kiters and windsurfers regularly go down there. Doesn't matter now they're owned by Rip Curl.

My local surf shop (Mordy) has also been taken over by Rip Curl. They have some pretty sharp pricing on some superceded boards, so I suspect most revenue comes from boardshorts, bikinis and thongs.

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The sport peaked 3 years ago in nsw. Isn't kiting lessons the big income earner for kite shops.

shhhhhhhhhhshhh don't let everyone know the secret that there is big bucks in teaching kitesurfing or everyone will give it a go and we'll have to share the riches

I especially enjoyed the 10 dollar part for a 10 yr old kite in 10 knots line, sound like you get some big spenders

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towradgi said..
too scared to run a contest /event

I heard that in Oz you're supposed to get insurance if you do any kind of event, even a demo day, and that runs to thousands of dollars.

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Kamikuza said..

towradgi said..
too scared to run a contest /event

I heard that in Oz you're supposed to get insurance if you do any kind of event, even a demo day, and that runs to thousands of dollars.

Yep
cost me $1000 to insure myself to host the Midwest windfest here
and $60 per person competing , the shire won't permit the event unless done
demos from retailers generally works as long as riders have iko, Bksa, or KA insurance , but I'd say up to retailer , it wouldn't guarantee them being competent

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tgcp said..

The sport peaked 3 years ago in nsw. Isn't kiting lessons the big income earner for kite shops.

shhhhhhhhhhshhh don't let everyone know the secret that there is big bucks in teaching kitesurfing or everyone will give it a go and we'll have to share the riches

Yep, invested around $12000
On kiting equip, sups, trailer etc for my coming venture,
my instructors course will be approx $4500 inc travel accom etc then insurance of approx $1500, kites are a yearly turn around ,4 plus bar and lines so $7000ish , for a limited time return of 70/80 per hr, you can only teach in certain winds and certain times of the month
Ill be rich

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cauncy said..

Kamikuza said..

towradgi said..
too scared to run a contest /event

I heard that in Oz you're supposed to get insurance if you do any kind of event, even a demo day, and that runs to thousands of dollars.

Yep
cost me $1000 to insure myself to host the Midwest windfest here
and $60 per person competing , the shire won't permit the event unless done
demos from retailers generally works as long as riders have iko, Bksa, or KA insurance , but I'd say up to retailer , it wouldn't guarantee them being competent

Wow someone insured you??? old bloke pumping up a kids bouncy castle with a kitepump...........what kind of policy covers that???

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Weta said..

cauncy said..

Kamikuza said..

towradgi said..
too scared to run a contest /event

I heard that in Oz you're supposed to get insurance if you do any kind of event, even a demo day, and that runs to thousands of dollars.

Yep
cost me $1000 to insure myself to host the Midwest windfest here
and $60 per person competing , the shire won't permit the event unless done
demos from retailers generally works as long as riders have iko, Bksa, or KA insurance , but I'd say up to retailer , it wouldn't guarantee them being competent

Wow someone insured you??? old bloke pumping up a kids bouncy castle with a kitepump...........what kind of policy covers that???

Was gonna get Rolf Harris to do it
but price blew out

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cauncy said..

tgcp said..

The sport peaked 3 years ago in nsw. Isn't kiting lessons the big income earner for kite shops.

shhhhhhhhhhshhh don't let everyone know the secret that there is big bucks in teaching kitesurfing or everyone will give it a go and we'll have to share the riches

Yep, invested around $12000
On kiting equip, sups, trailer etc for my coming venture,
my instructors course will be approx $4500 inc travel accom etc then insurance of approx $1500, kites are a yearly turn around ,4 plus bar and lines so $7000ish , for a limited time return of 70/80 per hr, you can only teach in certain winds and certain times of the month
Ill be rich

Your gonna be a instructor! Are you sure you got the patience?

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quikdrawMcgraw said..

cauncy said..

tgcp said..

The sport peaked 3 years ago in nsw. Isn't kiting lessons the big income earner for kite shops.

shhhhhhhhhhshhh don't let everyone know the secret that there is big bucks in teaching kitesurfing or everyone will give it a go and we'll have to share the riches

Yep, invested around $12000
On kiting equip, sups, trailer etc for my coming venture,
my instructors course will be approx $4500 inc travel accom etc then insurance of approx $1500, kites are a yearly turn around ,4 plus bar and lines so $7000ish , for a limited time return of 70/80 per hr, you can only teach in certain winds and certain times of the month
Ill be rich

Your gonna be a instructor! Are you sure you got the patience?

As long as they're not regarded

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cauncy said..

tgcp said..

The sport peaked 3 years ago in nsw. Isn't kiting lessons the big income earner for kite shops.

shhhhhhhhhhshhh don't let everyone know the secret that there is big bucks in teaching kitesurfing or everyone will give it a go and we'll have to share the riches

Yep, invested around $12000
On kiting equip, sups, trailer etc for my coming venture,
my instructors course will be approx $4500 inc travel accom etc then insurance of approx $1500, kites are a yearly turn around ,4 plus bar and lines so $7000ish , for a limited time return of 70/80 per hr, you can only teach in certain winds and certain times of the month
Ill be rich

A kiteshops startup outlay would be half yours. They would employ an already accredited instructor. They buy kites wholesale and resell as ex-demos for almost same price as bought. Might also have a tax component involved with school and use of kites depreciation. And isn't the going rate $120 an hour?

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towradgi said..

cauncy said..

tgcp said..

The sport peaked 3 years ago in nsw. Isn't kiting lessons the big income earner for kite shops.

shhhhhhhhhhshhh don't let everyone know the secret that there is big bucks in teaching kitesurfing or everyone will give it a go and we'll have to share the riches

Yep, invested around $12000
On kiting equip, sups, trailer etc for my coming venture,
my instructors course will be approx $4500 inc travel accom etc then insurance of approx $1500, kites are a yearly turn around ,4 plus bar and lines so $7000ish , for a limited time return of 70/80 per hr, you can only teach in certain winds and certain times of the month
Ill be rich

A kiteshops startup outlay would be half yours. They would employ an already accredited instructor. They buy kites wholesale and resell as ex-demos for almost same price as bought. Might also have a tax component involved with school and use of kites depreciation. And isn't the going rate $120 an hour?

I got my equipment virtually at cost through contacts, I may use someone I trust 100% in the future but will do it myself initially, personally for me it's an addition to my cafe buisness which make perfect sense due to my location, I've a 20 klm beach with no limitations/ zones etc, you wouldn't survive just doing lessons over the year

You have a great lifestyle .

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towradgi said..
You have a great lifestyle .

It seems on the outside
but as any small buisness owner inc Kite schools shops etc, (Most of my mate own )
its certainly not without its head f..ks, if I'm having a bad one I always think back to my time in the forces and living where everything was black and white and generally a shidt hole, pretty blessed living here arnt we

I support this thread 100%, really want that GT2

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Kitepower Australia said..
I support this thread 100%, really want that GT2

Downgrading steve
just figured I coulda bought my dream bike instead of Kite equip,
Arghh f..k I've just put coin in you account indirectly
stitched up

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Kitepower Australia said..
I support this thread 100%, really want that GT2

ahahaha, how do you think I got mine?

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quikdrawMcgraw said..
I especially enjoyed the 10 dollar part for a 10 yr old kite in 10 knots line, sound like you get some big spenders

I thought I saw the damned thing in a draw somwhere just last week!

Kite spare parts are a nightmare. What is ironic I guess is that people will go online and buy a kite from the US or Europe and save a bit of cash, but then seem disappointed when we don't have a spare part for them. I'm actually very happy that you can go to some Euro or US site and buy a $10.00 spare part! Carrying the inventory, say for Ozone, who have say 10 models in maybe 7 or 8 sizes over what 10 years or something is impossible.

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Foghorn said..
Has the kite bubble finally burst

I think it probably peaked a few years ago.

More to the point I think is the fact that bricks and mortar retailers are struggling to compete with purely online businesses that have much lower overheads.

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cauncy said..

tgcp said..

The sport peaked 3 years ago in nsw. Isn't kiting lessons the big income earner for kite shops.

shhhhhhhhhhshhh don't let everyone know the secret that there is big bucks in teaching kitesurfing or everyone will give it a go and we'll have to share the riches

Yep, invested around $12000
On kiting equip, sups, trailer etc for my coming venture,
my instructors course will be approx $4500 inc travel accom etc then insurance of approx $1500, kites are a yearly turn around ,4 plus bar and lines so $7000ish , for a limited time return of 70/80 per hr, you can only teach in certain winds and certain times of the month
Ill be rich

Good luck Cauncy. Might take you a few years to recover your investment, in fact you may never recover it. You'll have some fun and meet some great people, but probably end up kiting less yourself as any available wind time will be devoted to teaching, unless you can't find someone available for a lesson. But you've got way more chance in WA than over here anyways.

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Peahi said..

murrayceff said..
Could I make a simple plea to all kiters in Australia?
Please support your local kite shop.
I think it's probably fair to say that very few local kite shops would exist these days if not for the rise of stand-up paddling in the last few years.The established kite brands have every type of kite you could possibly want, I think.
I always find it somewhat amusing when a kiter comes in panicking cause he forgot his pump or broke something or other and wants to get a quick replacement part, so he can get out on the water. If the local kite shop doesn't exist anymore, what would he do. Go online and wait X days for his bit to arrive?
I don't know of any kite shops making bucket loads of money. Most would make more working the same sort of jobs you work in and would then be able to go kiting as much as you do. And there have been several kite shops close down in recent times as testimony to this.
I'd be interested to read your opinions on this, but I'll probably be too busy rummaging through drawers trying to find some bit worth ten dollars for a 10 year old kite that someone is trying to fly in 10 knots.

The local kite shop I support is one that is willing to do good deal, and unfortunately that means I often buy from shops in WA or Qld as they are cheaper and more willing to do a deal (like free postage) than my local.

Not sure if my local makes money, but they look like they do all right, they often have 3-4 staff on even in winter. They are in an effluent (apologies to Kath and Kim) bayside suburb, so I presume must rely on local people to come in drop a few grand and use their gear once. Personally I have spent well over 10k at the shop over the years, but that doesn't count for loyalty rewards. They are helpful when it comes to repairs, warranty, selling second hand gear etc, so long as you get the right person.

Happy to support your shop Murray but it's at least 1.5 hours drive for me, I cannot even justify that distance to go for a decent surf.

Speaking of surf shops, I once suggested the local surf shop in inverloch they could sell kite gear when I came in looking for a pump as I forgot mine. This was over 5 years ago, they thought I was joking. Not sure if they have tweaked yet or maybe they still think its a fad even if hundreds of kiters and windsurfers regularly go down there. Doesn't matter now they're owned by Rip Curl.

My local surf shop (Mordy) has also been taken over by Rip Curl. They have some pretty sharp pricing on some superceded boards, so I suspect most revenue comes from boardshorts, bikinis and thongs.

Thanks Peahi. Your on the right side of the state for wind but the wrong side for surf I reckon!

But keep on supporting your local shop!