You are not incorrect, we certainly do have to mark the prices up, as does any business that wants to remain in business. There are companies that have tried to work on extremely narrow margins, such as Bearmach, and it doesn't work so well.
Certainly not marking it up 100%, and definitely not lining our pockets with shipping charges. It really is just very expensive to ship from where we are, out in the middle of nowhere.
While we do get a discounted price from Exmoor, it's not much less than the pricing you see on their website. We also pay VAT, and constantly experience the highs & lows of the strength of the UK pound. Yes, there are times when going direct will save you plenty, and there are times when it does not. Unfortunately with so many line items it's impossible to adjust our pricing on the fly based on the strength of the pound. Additionally, the cost of shipping containers tripled in the past few years, adding to the cost of everything on the manifest.
As others have mentioned(thank you all), with us you are not just getting a product, but the customer support as well. If something goes wrong, we're able to make it right. The same cannot be said about purchasing from the UK, I myself have been burned in the past with little to no recourse.
I dont blame you for wanting to save money, however there are many people out there that want the reassurance that should something go wrong, they're not out of pocket for it.