Amazon in Australia is not very good (yet). It's nothing like America or Japan, which have huge inventories and same or next day delivery.
This is a really really bad look for Amazon, which is in the process of expanding in Australia. Retailers are already nervous about their expansion plans here and this does further bad for their brand.
I live in a rural city in Australia and get 95% of my Amazon deliveries within 2 days of buying it (whereas most other online stores take a week or so), and have also found their range to be pretty extensive. Sure it’s not as big as the US but we’re a fraction of the market so it’s to be expected. If anything I’m constantly dumbfounded by just how much random shit I find on Amazon here (and I exclusively shop with “From Australia Only” ticked).
I’ll always buy local if I can get it at a similar price, and I’ll even pay slightly more for local, but I’m not going to spend 25%+ more for an identical product and Amazon’s prices usually really are that much cheaper.
While the delivery times are not great yet because a lot of items come from abroad, their inventory is now pretty extensive.
In these COVID times, I've been buying quite a bit of bicycle gear & parts and in many cases I could find stuff on Amazon at lower prices than AU specialist online shops. It certainly was not the case just a couple months ago.
I reckon Prime Membership in AU is now very worth it as you get free international shipping for orders over $49, in addition to free expedited domestic shipping and Prime video access.
Retail prices are very high in Australia. I specifically remember only finding mountaineering carabineers, at $35 AUD at the time (23 EUR at the time) when they’re 8 euros in France. Same goes shoes, tshirts or kettles. Maybe the absence of large-chain competitors plays a role in cost of life being quite high.
Then again, as a country, Australia would be free in deciding that it should only be affordable to people who have the means to support their life, to maintain a high quality standard and retails.
This is a really really bad look for Amazon, which is in the process of expanding in Australia. Retailers are already nervous about their expansion plans here and this does further bad for their brand.