The facts are that running a warehouse here in OZ is more expensive than running one in say Los Angeles.
The rents are similar per square metre, but their labour rates are far cheaper than ours.
Our minimum wage is around $19 per hour + 4 weeks holiday pay, super, sick leave, long service leave, workers comp and even payroll tax, whereas in the US for example, the minimum legal wage is around US$7.50 an hour, with only 2 weeks leave, no super, no long service leave etc.
Fuel is much cheaper in the US, which means that goods can be transported cheaper, and as their roads are better than ours, the goods get their faster too.
However, the BIG difference is volume.
Where a store here may order a pallet load of a certain item, in the US, they talk about truck loads, and the bigger the shipment, the lower the costs.
Retail margins are similar between Oz and the US, but the staff get paid less and they sell a lot more.
Don't forget that the US has around 15 times our population so competition is even fiercer than it is here.
Compare a good camera shop here with a good shop in the US.
One of the better stocked stores I frequent is Digital Camera Warehouse.
Now they have lots of stuff in stock, with most Canon and Nikon lenses on display, but go into
B&H's store in New York, where you have 3 large floors of every camera and accessory you have ever heard about, then multiply it by 4!
Just the vast range of goodies wil make you want to buy!
I guess we do get ripped off somewhat here, but that is the price we pay for high wages and overheads I'm afraid.