“So, why does the new ZMF ATRIUM – for example – cost $ 2.800 in the US and €3.100 in Euro ???”

OK, let us take a closer look: Google says today that USD 2.800 is EURO 2.760 !!! (in early September ’22)

Hmmm, so why on earth does your favourite head-fi dealer ask €3.100?

Let’s calculate:

We start with €2.760

At the moment of import duty 3% and VAT 21% is due – and just like that we come out at €3.422,- 

Add exchange fees, shipping cost and think of currency fluctuation and quickly you are at the 3.500,-

When you order a product from outside the EU you will have to pay import duty and VAT as well.

OK, you say, but in that case I will bring my new headphone with me on the plane back from my next business trip:

In that case you will have to take into consideration that many US states have a sales tax of up to 9.5 percent. Now your $2.800 just became up to $3.050.

And then of course you are legally obliged to still pay the import duty and VAT at the airport. The fine for smuggling your equipment across the boarder is – if I read the regulations correctly – 30% of the value. Should that happen your $2.800 become close to €3.640,- …
And then the coffee in that customs office is just not as good as in my shop!

But that story doesn’t end here:

Fast forward 3, 6 or 18 months: Your amplifier just stopped working! Products sold in the EU automatically have a warranty of 2 years, while outside the EU, in many cases the warranty is limited to 1 year. At this point you start to send you defective product overseas, … you get the idea…

Which brings us to another frequently asked question:

“Stefan, why don’t you import product XYZ? The reviews are fantastic…!”

EU regulations like the 2 year warranty or the C.E. quality and safety audit make it impossible to sell many brands and products inside the EU. Some brands refuse to extend the warranty beyond 1 year or are not able to get the C.E. label.

EU regulations like the 2 year warranty or the C.E. quality and safety audit make it impossible to sell many brands and products inside the EU. Some brands refuse to extend the warranty beyond 1 year or are not able to get the C.E. label

No C.E. certification means no European dealer may import or sell the products.

No C.E. certification means you don’t have insurance. If your house burns down, it’s on you.

I made this little illustration of what happens if two people would start with €50 and pay one another back and forth 40 times using their credit cars at 3% service charge: Spoiler alert: the two people would keep € 14,79 while the banks earned € 35,21 

Yes, all my price must by law include my local VAT of 21%. After export outside of the EU the price is reduced as follows: If a product costs € 121 in the shop, divide that amount by 1.21 and you will see the net price, in this case € 100,-

Meaning: you pay € 121 and after proof of export you get € 21 back.. 

Yes, you should bring whatever you can carry to the shop. We want to re-create your home situation as much as possible so that you will hear at home what you heard in the shop.

Glad that you ask!

What I really provide to you is a service, but I get paid trough the sale of products: This is how I make a living and keep the shop alive.

But not in all cases people come to the shop to buy a product and I want to be able to provide a good experience to everybody:

Should you just be interested in the experience of listening to some of the best music reproduction systems on the planet, or you want to check out that headphone you’re going to buy on the second hand market, please make that known to me. We will have much more fun and be much more efficient when the objective is clear.

In order to keep it fair and everybody keep feeling good, you can contribute 100,- for the 2 hour session. This amount will be credited to you for any purchase at any time in the future. This way you don’t need to feel like you’re wasting anybodies time and can also come back a second or a third time.