Buying lens online or in store .

[Babu]

I prefer to shop at bricks & mortar stores in Australia, especially when buying bodies or lenses, for reasons expressed by several respondents above.
However, I have purchased many items of photographic equipment online from overseas and will continue to do so. As MissionMan commented, it is quite common
to be able to land goods here for around half the best offer in Australia even after freight has been added.

I've found some items such as Vello Ultra LCD screen protectors or some B+W filters hard to source here in OZ at competitive prices or lengthy order-in periods.
Really Right Stuff camera L-brackets, clamps, lens plates.... seem to only be available from RRS in California.

It's unlikely that we will see AU$1 buying US$1.10 in the foreseeable future which made shopping at B&H et al pretty much a no-brainer, especially when I can receive goods
from New York in 4 days but an item in stock in Melbourne can often take more than a week to arrive.

So, except for bodies and lenses, I'll continue to shop judiciously while trying to support the local economy.