"What in gaming terms is different to UK?" Topic

I'm moving to Auckland in autumn 2015 from UK, and was wondering what manufacturers are there in NZ? Should I have a buying spree in UK before I leave or is the miniatures market served well?

Cheers
Ian

Spree away….

Is there a small company making 15mm moderns there? Australia has a few companies. Depending on what you collect, you are probably better off stocking up -- shipping is not going to be cheap.

What 79PA says…
From what I read, when it comes to shipping and postage, Royal Post will treat you like the fresh fish in the jail cell when the lights go out…

I'd say stock up on what you can, and what you want, as much as you can before you get there and have "buyers remorse"…

Given that you are moving to Auckland I can see your concern :)

Seriously though, if I can get stuff to my rural Woolshed out in the sticks you will have no worries ordering from pretty much anywhere around the world.

Postage from the UK generally varies between 20-40% of your order. Shipping from the US is excruciating as they tend to use flat rate boxes.
I've come to rely on Caliver Books for a lot of my gaming purchases as they have free shipping worldwide on figures, and Book Depository for my books for the same reason. But these guys can't cover everything, so a lot of my figures are bought with that extra c.30% whack. On the plus side, some of the bigger retailers remove VAT which partially mitigates the postage – Perrys and Front Rank do this to name just two.
There is a local on-line retailer called Mighty Ape (based in Auckland) who can take care of your painting, basing and aerosol spray paint needs – they stock Vallejo and Army Painter.
If you are a Games Workshop player – buy out a store. A lot of people I know just don't buy GW stuff new anymore because the exchange rate they factor in is just ridiculous and you can't order direct from overseas stores anymore. I would say NZ is the most expensive country in the world to collect GW.
My suggestion is that if you want anything not covered by the guys mentioned above have a look at how much they charge for international shipping. If it is 30-40% – stock up!

As Battlefront are no longer produced here its as hard to get as anything else so. I'd keep a lookout for specials from the likes of Black Tree, Brigade Games to name a couple. Not sure if TAG still has free shipping or do discounts at the moment.
I've rarely had issues with getting stuff delivered but I'd email Caliver first to see if they have in stock what you want.
I'd stock up on your immediate needs and wait and see whats in being played when you get here.

Depends on what you want.

Perry removes VAT, and also does free shipping if you spend 200+ pounds, and postage on smaller orders is not too bad. Wayland Games free shipping on orders of 40 pounds, so I can get Perry, Victrix and Warlord through them (plastics only). So that is my 28mm Napoleonics taken care of. Wayland doesn't do free shipping on paints but as mentioned you can get them elsewhere.

I also just took advantage of Murawski Miniatures free shipping deal this December.

I also do 6mm sci-fi, and Steel Crown Productions do free postage on orders 60+ pounds.
steelcrowngames.com

Other ranges have not been so successful in cutting down postage, e.g. Essex miniatures postage is an absolute killer.

It's the same in Australia, Stock up before you leave, I filled 1/3 of our container with wargames bits.

Jules

Royal Post will treat you like the fresh fish in the jail cell when the lights go out

I've found that postage from the USPS to the southern hemisphere is MUCH worse than UK charges

link

This is the only NZ-based manufacturer I'm aware of. Found them easy to deal with from Australia. Otherwise, heed the above – the postage is ruinous from just about everywhere. Getting stuff isn't the issue, the cost add-ons certainly are.

I moved here 15 years ago Ian and brought my wargames stuff with me including my TSS terrain boards. I wish I could get more though.

Postage can be a killer but not paying vat mitigates against this in many cases, I note that the postage rate also helps me decide between 2 figure manufacturers.

As others have said, Caliver offer a superb service and these days much of what we want (or need) can be in plastic and post free from others.

I tend to return to see family on a biannual basis so stock up on return and I usually try to get to Melbourne once/year and visit Nic at Eureka which is a huge plus if AB Napoleonics etc is your thing.

What I miss most though is the dearth of wargames shows here compared to the UK. So before you leave get your fill of shows and stock up on bulky stuff would be my advice

Battleline seem to do a lot of the 15mm ranges I was thinking of so that is good, I will investigate postage rates and VAT status to work out other options. I don't use GW figures so that is not an issue.

Main scales I play are 10mm & 15mm for large games and 28mm for skirmish games. Will need to check out the club situation as well in preparation

Cheers
Ian

The club situation seems to be a lot easier than manufacturers – simply Googling Auckland wargames club finds 4 active groups in the first few search results.

I see that, me thinks I could be having some fun in NZ

cheers
Ian