Hum, the question is if we can afford other hobbies without ordering from China where the components and final products are much cheaper than in Europe :person_facepalming:
I ordered once from NKON, 3 Sanyo 18650 with top button. The batteries costed 13€, the shipment costed 14€! And it took almost 2 weeks from Netherlands to Portugal.
For the same price I can buy 8 (at least) 18650 from BG or GB with some coupon.
The thing is, not all the big sellers have the possibility to have wharehouses in Europe (Fasttech, AliExpress stores, Intl-Outdoor, and many others), even if we buy from them a lot.
Despite I know there number of importations from abroad is getting bigger everyday, can the European market apply such laws to refrain those numbers? My country - as many other EU countries - has opened itself for the Chinese market and investors; will they close the “gates” again and cease these agreements? Not sure about that…
About the idea of a European store with flashlights and parts, I guess it is a brilliant and - eventually - necessary idea. At least for parts, such as drivers and other components (in my case).
But, I don’t know if the business volume will flow without being associated to some brands / sellers / wharehouses…
Let’s see! Thanks for opening the discussion :+1: