[jedmeyers]

I am originally from Eastern Europe. I have got an Australian permanent residence visa but decided not to move there at least for now. I feel much better in Silicon Valley on a work visa, where my salary is higher, my work is more meaningful, prices are MUCH lower and my wife found a job in a reasonable time, also in software engineering. I was shocked that you cannot find half-sized shoes in Sydney's stores, and this is considering that their price was 2.5 times higher than the price on Zappos. Australia has to wake up and deal with their protectionist policies regarding local businesses. By giving them protection from external markets they might survive for a while, but this definitely won't last long. No competition means no innovation and high prices for consumers.

[joonix]

Protectionist is exactly right. But things are quickly changing, at least when it comes to local retail. The incumbent bloated chains like Meyer are being disrupted rapidly by overseas online retailers as well as shrewd foreign retailers like Zara setting up in Australia. It's a good thing, too, because the duopolies in Australian retail deserve to be disrupted. They have coasted for far too long providing mediocre value to the customer.