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It seems that Alfred Sargent is attempting to impose a degree of geographic price discrimination, as AS resellers in the UK and EU are apparently now not allowed to ship to the US.
As AFPoS is located in the UK and as most SF members are in the US, I suppose that they thought that, with the restrictions placed by AS, it wasn't worth their while to continue to be an SF affiliate as they can't sell their shoes to most of the people on this site.
People in the US can still buy AS shoes from places like Leffot. However, as is often the case, buying over the internet is probably cheaper and hence that is why people were purchasing from AFPoS and it is probably why AS closed the door on that option, as their US resellers were losing customers - although that is just a guess.
I knew about AFPoS not being able to sell AS outside the EU, but I wouldn't say it's price discrimination per se but about catering to specific markets. My guess is that a lot of other shoe companies do the same thing (ie. EG, C&J, Gaziano/Girling, etc.), so I don't really fault AS for imposing restrictions on their resellers. By the way, AFPoS isn't the only AS reseller that isn't allowed to sell outside the EU, Bodily's of Northhampton and Pediwear also cannot sell AS outside the EU.
Buying over the internet is definitely cheaper. I would rather order from and support companies like AFPoS than pay $200 more for the same pair of shoes from Leffot. With that said, I think a good strategy would be for AS to do what Carmina is doing - make certain shoes available only through certain websites, thus offering some exclusivity. If you look at the epaulet site they do have certain models of Carmina that aren't available through Carmina direct. this seems more practical to me. it gives consumers the ability to buy a specific brand but it also gives them an incentive to buy from a US company.
