Coronavirus: Kogan Exposed Rorting Hand Sanitiser

Kogan is back rorting all he can from the Coronavirus this time with antibacterial hand sanitiser, late last month we exposed the online Company for rorting the price of freezers.

A visit to the Kogan web site reveals that the Melbourne based Company has no qualms about charging $40 for a 75% Alcohol Antibacterial Instant Hand Sanitiser (500ml) that Kogan claims kills 99.9% of germs.

A visit to the Dick Smith web site which is 100% owned by Kogan reveals that a three pack of the same sanitiser is being offered for $90.

The only problem is that Kogan does not haver the goods in stock and that delivery will not be till May 18th.
Investigations by ChannelNews reveals that the goods are manufactured by a Chinese factory in Guangzhou and they are selling them for $2.3 USD for 500ml or in Australian dollars $3.84.

The predatory pricing appears to be based on sea shipping which means Kogan is netting up to $30 profit per single bottle.

Ruslan Kogan has admitted to ChannelNews in the past that he is a publicity junky and has doner anything to attract attention to the Kogan web site.

Kogan management said “We’re experiencing higher demand than usual across a wide selection of products,” said a spokesperson for Kogan, “We are working closely with our suppliers and partners to ensure that Australians can access essential goods and services in this time of crisis.”

There was no mention of price gouging or trying to take advantage of the Coronavirus situation to jack up prices especially as they appeal to a certain social economic group who have been hard hit with many of their customers laid off or retrenched.

A search of the Alibaba web site reveals that bottles of antibacterial products with over 75% alcohol can be purchased in bulk for as low as US$1.87.

Click image above to see pricing of Chinese made hand sanitiser.

See Kogan Freezer rorting story here.

About Post Author

David Richards

David Richards has been writing about technology for more than 30 years. A former Fleet Street journalist, he wrote the Award Winning Series on the Federated Ships Painters + Dockers Union for the Bulletin that led to a Royal Commission. He is also a Logie Winner for Outstanding Contribution To TV Journalism with a story called The Werribee Affair. In 1997, he built the largest Australian technology media company and prior to that the third largest PR company that became the foundation company for Ogilvy PR. Today he writes about technology and the impact on both business and consumers.