Retailers are split over a campaign to force the Federal Government to impose the GST on overseas purchases online.

It was supposed to be a simple pitch about keeping Australians in work, but some retailers are calling the campaign an unmitigated disaster.

A coalition representing 2,000 retailers - including some of the biggest names in the industry - launched a campaign earlier this month calling for a level playing field in the sector.

They want the Government to close a loophole which allows overseas businesses to sell goods worth less than $1,000 to Australians free of GST and duty.

Harvey Norman head Gerry Harvey was one of the well-known faces used in the campaign.

"We'll open our store over there, send goods into Australia, evade the GST, evade the duty and then it's a level playing field," he said.

"And then guess what? One person in 10 is employed in Australia in the retail sector. Nobody will be employed in the retail sector."

But the campaign has struggled to find a sympathetic audience.

Furious consumers have taken to online chat sites, attacking Australia's retailers for what is being seen as a protectionist attempt to close the door to cheap purchases.

The executive director of the National Retail Association - a member of the retail coalition behind the campaign - says this is not the case.

"Retailers are not trying to limit that choice or cut off that channel for consumers," Gary Black said.

"When the impact on jobs and bricks and mortar retailers is fully comprehended, I think public opinion will shift as fair-minded Australians fully understand the argument."

But the retail coalition is facing criticism from within the sector itself.

Brad Kitschke, a spokesman for the Fair Imports Alliance, which represents nine associations of retailers and wholesalers, says so far the campaign has been an unmitigated disaster.

"We believe that it's quite narrow as well and doesn't actually look at the lengths and breadths of all of the issues," he said.

Mr Kitschke says members of his group warned the retail coalition it would face an uphill battle to win over consumers and that they asked the coalition to work towards a full government review of the retail sector instead.

"The Government has actually responded to our concerns and called for a productivity commission inquiry into the future of retail, and we believe that's the most proactive and productive process for retail to engage with," he said.

In the past couple of weeks, University of New South Wales' expert in competition and consumer law, Associate Professor Frank Zumbo, has written a couple of articles about the campaign, including one for the ABC's website The Drum.

"The biggest mistake an advertiser can make is to alert consumers to the fact that their competitors' prices are cheaper than their own. And that's exactly what Gerry and the major retailers have done," he said in the article.

Associate Professor Zumbo says rather than campaign to change the rules, the retail sector needs to find new ways to do business if it is to compete in an ever-changing environment.