Room Dividers/Partitions - Why so expensive?

azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 16:00
Last edited 31/08/2018 - 09:03

I'm looking for a room divider to separate some open storage, say about 3-4 panels across. I've had a look at brand new ones and I don't know if I just have no experience in furniture or the ones I've been looking at are really pricey! IKEA has is for $169. Google "room dividers" and the cheapest completely opaque divider is $43. I expected ebay to have one <$30.
I'm thinking I will have to buy secondhand but they're still pricey.

So, is this normal? Why are they so expensive?

EDIT: Some people seem to think that room divider prices are justified, please see IKEA and let me know why its $169? (BEFORE extra shipping)
Suggestions for alternatives are welcome, that's productive.
Sadly, I just want an opinion on why it is the price that it is. Take your "go try import it yourself and you'll see!!" attitude somewhere else because you sure aren't contributing.

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Comments

  • dasher86 on 30/08/2018 - 16:09

    shipping.

    • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 16:15
      -3

      Nope, they're ridiculously expensive before shipping. E.g. the cheapest Target has is $85.

      • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2018 - 16:46
        +4

        Shipping from CHINA to 'Straya, do you think they magically teleport to here or something?

        • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2018 - 17:16
          +6

          @azurenim:

          Sweet Jesus, lord'o mighty!
          Yes.

          PPRRAAAAAYYYYYSSE JESUS. AMEN!

        • HighAndDry on 30/08/2018 - 17:23
          +2

          @azurenim: I'm pretty sure people are talking about the cost of shipping them from China to the shop. Because I assume most of these are manufactured overseas.

          Edit: If you know, then why TF are you talking about 'picking them up in store' for?! Unless you're picking them up from the warehouse in China?

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:42

          @HighAndDry:
          I know.
          I'm wondering why some room dividers are as expensive as some sofas. I'm pretty sure sofa's are heavier?

        • HighAndDry on 30/08/2018 - 17:43

          @azurenim: A lot of shipping cost is based on dimensions, not necessarily weight. IIRC, weight matters more for air freight, dimensions matter for nautical shipping.

          Have you considered a curtain rod and curtains?

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:51

          @HighAndDry: So it should be comparative to a long table/ table top flatpack?

        • HighAndDry on 30/08/2018 - 17:51

          @azurenim: Of the same dimensions? Yes, should be - so long as they both can't be broken down into smaller pieces, etc.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:57

          @HighAndDry: Similar? This table top is of 200x60 and is $99. I can only guess that the quality of the screen is high, and it is more expensive because it cannot be flatpacked, despite being similar dimensions. I wish someone who had bought one would post.

        • HighAndDry on 30/08/2018 - 18:00

          @azurenim: That seems to make sense.

          the cheapest completely opaque divider is $43

          Basically shipping puts a floor on how cheap something can be. No matter the materials or the quality, it still needs to be shipped.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 19:03

          @HighAndDry: Hmm I think my point was not why are they expensive, it's why are they SO expensive. I don't think the cheapest deal I could possibly find is a good benchmark.Zero reviews too.

        • Ajax45 on 01/09/2018 - 15:11

          @azurenim:

          Jesus Christ you are dense.

      • dasher86 on 31/08/2018 - 14:03
        +1

        I'm talking about freight to Australia.

        Shipping costs are generally factored into cost of the product - then you need to add a mark up.

        Room dividers are an exceptional piece of freight that as explained above as weight doesn't matter so much but the dimensions do.

        When comparing this to flat pack furniture or sofas - you need to look at this from it quantity perspective.
        Supply and demand.
        You're more likely going to sell more sofas and flat packs as opposed to room dividers therefore the shipping cost is cheaper as it gets apportioned across
        more units.
        Room dividers sell no where as near as flat pack and sofas. the shipping cost to get the product landed to Australia is therefore higher against those units.
        Then it actually cost more to purchase in the first place as less demand means that it cost more to make in the first place because of set up costs.

        • azurenim on 31/08/2018 - 23:21
          +1

          Thanks, I was confused as to why the freight would be so different when comparing items of similar dimensions. Since it is a direct result of how low demand is for room dividers (which I didn't know since I had always thought people often used these as an easy and portable (?) way to section off areas), I wasn't sure why just shipping would account for the hike in price, when the raw material looked cheap and more sturdy and dearer looking furniture was being priced similarly.

  • ausdday on 30/08/2018 - 16:26

    Are they heavy? Maybe you can try AliExpress

    • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:21

      I can't imagine it being that heavy, especially the paper screen ones.

      Thanks for the suggestion, they're about the same price but I found some possible alternatives!

  • SnoozeAndLose on 30/08/2018 - 16:50

    Room driver is huge, 1.8 meter tall and 30~40cm 5 fold, the package is quite big and shipping company is charging by volume not weight on this.

    Stop complainting.

    You can buy raw material and DIY, i am sure it will be even more expansive and time consuming.

    Just buy second hand on Gumtree if you cant acford new or just dont divide the room for extra income.

    • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:07

      https://www.kmart.com.au/product/large-floral-print/1931308
      So about ^ that size?

      I honestly don't see how shipping would mean a room divider will cost >$150, even >$250?

      • SnoozeAndLose on 30/08/2018 - 17:09

        Big and bulky items (e.g. furniture, play equipment) will incur additional delivery charges beyond standard rates listed above.

        You can see the actual cost of delivering your order by adding items to your Shopping Bag and proceeding to the Checkout.

        Did you check the final price before check out?

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:12
          -2

          I am so confused. I don't care about the shipping fees that are incurred? I'm talking about the BASE, ORIGINAL price. Like if I walked into IKEA, how much would it cost me to buy it?

        • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2018 - 17:18
          +5

          @azurenim:

          Have you tried walking into IKEA and seeing how much it would cost you to buy it?

          Your attitude stinks.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:27
          -2

          @Drew22: Why go in store when they have a perfectly fine website?
          https://www.ikea.com/au/en/catalog/products/50370782/
          And yes, it is available to pick up in my local IKEA store.

          Every comment you have made on this post has reeked.

        • whooah1979 on 30/08/2018 - 17:28

          @azurenim:

          Why are you thinking of buying from ikea when Ebay sells a similar item for $30?

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:34

          @whooah1979: I'm not thinking about buying from IKEA, this post is about why they're expensive and I got my examples from ikea and Target.

          https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/vidaXL-Solid-Pine-Wood-3-Panel-R… This was the cheapest on ebay.

        • whooah1979 on 30/08/2018 - 17:36

          @azurenim:

          they're expensive

          Brand recognition.

        • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2018 - 17:38

          @azurenim:

          The scenario you painted was you walking into IKEA.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:43

          @whooah1979: For a room divider? That costs about the same as their cheapest sofa?

        • whooah1979 on 30/08/2018 - 17:49

          @azurenim:

          Consumers may spend $150 at ikea and $30 on eBay on a no brand item. That’s how brands work.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:52

          @whooah1979: …IKEA's room divider is the same as IKEA's cheapest sofa? If they are the same brand, where does the brand recognition factor?

        • whooah1979 on 30/08/2018 - 17:56

          @azurenim:

          room divider is the same as IKEA's cheapest sofa

          You’re comparing two different items.

          Compare the sofa from ikea with a similar sofa on eBay.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:59
          -1

          @whooah1979: :) :) :) Have you seen a sofa? I'm comparing what you get for a large item to a small item of similar price of the same brand.
          And wondering why the smaller item is a similar price to the larger item. :)

        • HighAndDry on 30/08/2018 - 18:02
          +12

          @azurenim: Because the price of things are based on more than just size? This exchange confuses the hell out of me. You might as well be asking why a cat and a dog are different species when some cats and some dogs are the same size.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 18:04

          @HighAndDry: A lot of shipping cost is based on dimensions, not necessarily weight. IIRC, weight matters more for air freight, dimensions matter for nautical shipping.

        • HighAndDry on 30/08/2018 - 18:06
          +2

          @azurenim:

          Again - there's more to the cost price of something than its shipping cost. Shipping cost is one component. The f*** are you quoting me back at me for? I know what I wrote. Goddamn I hope you're being deliberately obtuse. Because otherwise I do not want to see the state of the floor that you were dropped on as a baby.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 18:12

          @HighAndDry: That was snide, sorry.
          I'm not saying that some dividers are expensive. ALL are quite expensive. You would expect that room dividers/screens (made of plastic, or wood, metal or fabrics, one box however long)would be much less than sofas (being heavier and needing more than one box, the materials they are made of would be different).

          What I don't understand is why dividers can be as much as a sofa?

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 18:14

          @HighAndDry: I haven't squealed at anyone who's quoted me. What makes you so mad, that was your earlier argument. I haven't insinuated that you were dumb based on the fact we don't agree.

        • HighAndDry on 30/08/2018 - 18:19
          +4

          @azurenim: I made the mistake of reading the rest of your comments. I'm not insinuating you're dumb because we disagree, I'm doing it because your thought process was:

          1. Why are large things expensive? [after many replies about shipping] - but I can pick up in store. [After people point out things need to be shipped in Australia] Oh okay, shipping. BUT THEN you apparently completely forgot that there are elements to something's price OTHER THAN SHIPPING because you went straight to:

          2. Why are all large things not the same price? Apparently completely skipping over the fact that different things will cost differently, even without shipping.

          And then you quoted me when I clearly said a lot of SHIPPING cost is based on… as if it supported your idea that all things of the same size should have the same total cost.

          Now do you get why people are frustrated with you here?

          I apologise for insinuating you're dumb though. That was uncalled for.

          In any case. you linked to a $43 divider. That's basically "cost of shipping" + "cost of materials". Of course, if you buy better dividers from bigger stores, like the one from IKEA, it'll cost more.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 18:49

          @HighAndDry: Even I know the cost of shipping will vary according to the item and where it's being shipped to and from. I also never said that all large items are going to be a similar price. Eyeballing the two items, one looks like they would be higher in price. You judge this by how big it is, what it's made from, where it's made, where it's being sold, who designed it, etc. What this post is about is why this particular item looks less expensive than for example a sofa. Shipping I can understand, what about items of similar dimensions? Where it's shipping from, what if the items from the same place? Plus various other reasons why the price would be.

          I'm not trying to start a fight, I just don't think this item should be that expensive aside from shipping and branding. Are they monopolizing that there aren't a large variety of these in physical stores? Is the demand not high? Is it hard to make? It's cheapest at $43 on Ebay, does this not mean that this item is pricey? How much could the material vary to cost up to $200?

          I was under the impression that IKEA was marketing themselves to be cheap, I haven't even dared to check stores like Freedom. I lie, I thought of it and looked it up, $250ish.

          I just have a lot of questions about this, but people keep giving me 2D answers.

        • HighAndDry on 30/08/2018 - 18:52

          @azurenim:

          It's cheapest at $43 on Ebay, does this not mean that this item is pricey?

          No, that's crazy cheap for something that size. All the really cheap stuff on eBay are smaller and easier to ship.

          How much could the material vary to cost up to $200?

          I don't know what they make it out of, but yes, durable materials can cost more.

          I was under the impression that IKEA was marketing themselves to be cheap, I haven't even dared to check stores like Freedom. I lie, I thought of it and looked it up, $250ish.

          There you go, IKEA ones are cheaper than ones from other furniture stores.

          All the other things you mention are factors too - not a lot of suppliers, because not a lot of people buying them, probably makes it a bit of a niche market. But the real issue here is: IT DOESN'T REALLY MATTER. Buy it, or not. It costs what it costs.

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 19:01

          @HighAndDry: You seems to have misjudged what the original question was about. "So is this normal? Why are they so expensive?" I'm not asking for advice whether I should buy it or not. I thought there might be reasons that aren't as obvious for why a sheet of plastic and a frame of metal would cost what it does. I guess Ozbargain wasnt as cheap as I thought it was. $50 difference is not that much cheaper, but it does depend on the item.

    • Diji1 on 30/08/2018 - 21:24

      Stop complainting.

      Stop complainting about complainting.

  • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2018 - 17:01

    They're too long to fit on a pallet.

    • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2018 - 17:21

      This. Shipping cost from CHINA

  • star-ggg on 30/08/2018 - 17:06

    cause they know the majority of customers are commercial which = must have it now regardless of cost

    • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:13

      This I understand :(

      • star-ggg on 30/08/2018 - 17:19
        +1

        if you're not in a hurry, then you can wait for the opposite effect of this. When offices close or relocate they throw out most of this stuff because commercial = must have it gone regardless of cost.

        • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2018 - 17:21
          +1

          The office probably closed down because the business went bankrupt after they got some room dividers REGARDLESS OF COST!!! MUST HAVE IT NOW!!!

        • azurenim on 30/08/2018 - 17:29

          I've looked into this, for a commercial office room divider. Some have been in bad condition but keeping an eye out :) Some I think are a little thick too, since I originally wanted a screen type.

    • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2018 - 17:20
      +2

      What a bunch of crap.

      I am yet to see an office with a domestic room divider in it and businesses do not purchase things "regardless of cost".

  • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2018 - 18:01

    Black plastic sheet… Have you thought of that? Damn cheap

  • mskeggs on 30/08/2018 - 18:53
    +6

    This post is the best!

  • Nutrino on 30/08/2018 - 18:58
    +1

    I'm with you brother/(sister?). I'm totally outraged too.

  • mko75 on 30/08/2018 - 19:12
    +3

    I'd say not much demand for these things. Consider warehousing costs, precious sales floor space / shelf space lost, sellers have to keep stock of these slow moving items. So there is markup to recouperate the cost of an selling such items. I recently paid $120 for a very basic hinge that probably would cost $20 if it were in an automotive supermarket. The seller may have sold 2-3 per year, so of course they wanted ROI on the time and initial risk/money taken to make/import these items in the first place.

    • azurenim on 31/08/2018 - 22:55

      Thank you. This was the kind of response I was after. After looking for them on various sites, there really aren't a lot of retailers that have them and I'm guessing people might look at the price and decide not to get it, especially if they only wanted one for aesthetic reasons.

  • SnoozeAndLose on 30/08/2018 - 19:15

    If you think the price is marked up ridiculously, you shpuld become the importer and start selling it on ebay/Scamtree.

    Then you will realise the real cost to sell such item and why they are all marked up.

  • GangGang on 30/08/2018 - 19:29
    +2

    $44 shipped seems like a good price. That is not expensive at all.

    The average price seems to be $100>.

    • azurenim on 31/08/2018 - 23:05
      -1

      I can see that but I'm worried that like most things that are the very cheapest available, it might be of the worst quality.I didn't really include it the more searches I did, because there was the next cheapest ones were $73. It may be an outlier and be of good quality but I wouldn't be keen on trying myself.

    • azurenim on 31/08/2018 - 23:29

      Also, I probably should've made my summary more detailed (hahahahahahnewbiemistake) but the average price that is >$100 is what I meant when I said the ones I saw were really pricey. Again, $43 looks like a bad quality outlier.

  • peterpeterpumpkin on 30/08/2018 - 19:51
    +1

    I've previously had the same dilemma.

    I find typical room dividers with small bases can be a falling hazard around children and clumsy adults so I'm not a fan.

    There are a few ways of thinking outside-the-box: https://www.buzzfeed.com/peggy/room-dividers?utm_term=.jjyY9…

    • azurenim on 31/08/2018 - 23:09

      :O What did you end up doing?

      I don't have children and it was going to hide a seldom used storage space. I didn't want to install a curtain because my landlord is strict about anything on the walls.Thank you for the link, there are some really nice ideas to suit what I want!

      • peterpeterpumpkin on 01/09/2018 - 07:06

        Nothing :) At least for now…

        But since walking space was already an issue and the divider would have covered a long distance I think a curtain would have been the only viable option (for privacy rather than aesthetics).

        The walls and ceiling were freshly painted too so adding some holes isn't ideal.

  • puzzles2 on 30/08/2018 - 22:09

    Just don't buy the ikea one…

  • zonra on 30/08/2018 - 23:02

    If you think everywhere is expensive, it’s probably best that you make your own.

  • spook290 on 31/08/2018 - 09:12

    Looks like you've found a gap in the market and a way to make your millions, by undercutting the competition in the room divider market!

  • sheepzpal on 31/08/2018 - 09:45
    +1

    Gumtree mate. So many Slumlords moving out of their illegal rental scheme will sell all of their stuff for cheap.

    • azurenim on 31/08/2018 - 23:10

      Gumtree scares me, looks dodgy.

  • Euphemistic on 31/08/2018 - 13:07

    because 'designer'. Despite that everything has once had a designer, if you attach the word 'designer' into a marketing spiel you can up the price significantly.

  • A Driver on 31/08/2018 - 15:55
    +1

    Simple supply and demand… every home needs to be furnished w a bed, sofa, table and chairs etc but only a very small percentage need/want a room divider. This makes the demand for room dividers scarce hence the higher prices to accommodate.

    • Speckled Jim on 01/09/2018 - 10:02

      Yes, just to expand along these lines…
      A divider screen is a discretionary purchase. In most cases for decorative purposes, or at least to hide a messy room corner.

      I'd make my own. Some corflute panels and hinges from Bunnings - voila!

  • outlander on 31/08/2018 - 23:15
    +1

    If you don't like it hang up a sheet.. you hobo.

    • [Deactivated] on 01/09/2018 - 14:28

      Hobos use bunnings large cardboard boxes

  • Melong on 01/09/2018 - 12:38
    +1

    Just make your own then, tonnes or YouTube videos on how to do it!

  • [Deactivated] on 01/09/2018 - 14:59

    The real reason for the high prices is that these are heavily in demand by other slum-landlords 'subdividing' bedrooms into 2/3/4 so as to accommodate more backpackers / students on a tight budget / etc. Economically speaking, though, your plan would still make sense

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