Canadian Book Prices Slashed

by ryan | October 31, 2007 at 02:16 pm

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The fluctuation in value of the Canadian dollar relative to the American dollar has sent ripple effects through both economies. Canadian retailers are scrambling to prevent Canadian from hoping the border fence to buy everything from gas to computers. The most prominent example of sudden shift in value is with books. North American are branded with two prices - one for Canadians and one for Americans. The pricing, however, reflects old exchange rates with the US price about 10-20% lower than the Canadian one. With the current exchange rate up 22.6% this year against the U.S. greenback the pricing is clearly out of whack.

In response, Canadian book retailer, Indigo, is offering a discount.

Indigo Books and Music Inc. said today that its new Sticker Savings Event entitles customers to a discount worth 10 to 20 per cent off any book in its stores. The higher discount is for customers who belong to its “irewards” loyalty program.
The price promotion comes in response to growing evidence that more consumers are shopping at U.S.-based online sites, said Indigo spokesperson Lisa Huie.

This works for the behemoth retailer who turn over their stock and got stomach a loss on books that were ordered a couple of months ago. But for smaller retailers, like Duthie Books, it's almost impossible for them to offer discounts on inventory they purchased when the exchange rate favoured the US dollar.

The Canadian dollar rose another 0.3 per cent early Wednesday to $1.0513 U.S. and is up 22.6 per cent against the U.S. greenback so far this year. Yet consumers have pointed out that prices for many goods remain as much as 30 to 40 per cent higher in Canada.