carrot wrote:Dealers gotta eat. In the end it will probably mean I can afford to buy fewer Spydies. On the other hand a more comfortable margin means dealers will continue to stay in business.
Price increases only help profits if the amount of sales doesn't change. Price increases generally decrease sales, though, so there's a significant risk of this adversely affecting dealers.
This also hurts dealers in that it takes away a primary tool for competing(i.e. Lower prices). MAP makes it much more difficult to use item prices to out- compete others in the market. The idea is to keep large sellers from undercutting the smaller guys, but how's that going? The real result is that the smaller guys now have even fewer tools to outsell their competition while the large sellers keep doing what they do.
On something like the Sliverax, with a $249.95 msrp, the difference in MAP is around $12.50. Hopefully the total increase is only around $15 or so.
I don't think I'm the biggest fanboy out there, but I have about zero interest in other folder makers and don't see this changing that or my purchasing habits, except that I'll make sure to buy a couple I already want before 2018 lol. :p
Spyderco has always been one of the most ethical and transparent companies I've ever seen, so without some evidence to the contrary, I really doubt these are choices they would make lightly or without good reason/need.
The information posted by National Knives, LLC is slightly misleading (IMHO) and missing some information. We did announce that our MAP pricing will shift to 35% off the established MSRP, effective 1-Jan-2018. Corrections and missing information are as follows.
Very few products experienced an increase for 2018. In many cases, we chose to absorb much of the increases that we received. There were a few increases, however, that we couldn't absorb. We never make pricing decisions across the board. Our management team spends a great deal of time going line by line through our entire product line. Each item is evaluated independently.
We have also lifted MAP from the following products: Sharpeners, BaliYo, T-Shirts, Lanyards and other accessories, and the byrd line.
We know that there are still concerns about Spyderco pricing in the marketplace. Know that we are listening to all of our customers and our review of our policy is ongoing. We know some have very strong opinions about MAP based on experiences with other companies. Please remember that we often do things our own way and our approach is likely all-together different than others.
We do appreciate you taking the time to post your feedback and thoughts. We're watching.
Kristi
There is nothing more important than this one day.
The increase in MAP pricing results in higher street pricing even without an increase in MSRP. For instance, MAP price of ParaMilitary2 (assuming there's no increase in MSRP of $209.95) will go up from $125.97 (40% off MSRP) to $136.47 (35% off MSRP).
Last edited by RamZar on Tue Nov 28, 2017 6:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I welcome dialog, as long as it remains cordial, constructive and is conducted in a civilized manner. - Titanic: Blood & Steel
You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time. - Abraham Lincoln
I guess I'm not getting what the change is. Spyderco MAP is currently 40% of MSRP, right? If it's going to 35% that's a lower price, unless the MSRP's are going to shoot up...
pinepig2 wrote:I guess I'm not getting what the change is. Spyderco MAP is currently 40% of MSRP, right? If it's going to 35% that's a lower price, unless the MSRP's are going to shoot up...
I think we're talking discounts here, so a bigger discount gives you a lower price.
pinepig2 wrote:I guess I'm not getting what the change is. Spyderco MAP is currently 40% of MSRP, right? If it's going to 35% that's a lower price, unless the MSRP's are going to shoot up...
Incorrect. Dealers are aloud to sell at a 40% discount..... they will only be able to sell at 35% now which will increase prices
pinepig2 wrote:I guess I'm not getting what the change is. Spyderco MAP is currently 40% of MSRP, right? If it's going to 35% that's a lower price, unless the MSRP's are going to shoot up...
Unfortunately, you're missing a very crucial letter... MAP pricing is % OFF MSRP, not of.
A great disappointment to me. It would appear that Spyderco wants a certain type of customer, the kind that can mindlessly drop $200+ on a pocket knife. Thankfully I have more than enough to last me forever and then some. I’m finding more enjoyment with traditionals and that old time (formerly Spyderco) high value to cost ratio is found in Italian knives, for now.
I keep reading how soft the knife market is getting, so maybe Spyderco is looking to increase income by reducing output and increasing profit per item? Meh, after my first Native, I never really needed another knife and now I can save more money.
"...it costs nothing to be polite." - Winston Churchill
“Maybe the cheese in the mousetrap is an artificially created cheaper price?” -Sal
I needed to take a break anyways...or my wallet does. I’m pretty **** happy with the Spydies I have amassed now, and I’m not really into any of the new releases so far at the moment. Would it stop me from buying a knife I absolutely wanted, no, but it is definitely time to slow down, and this will help with that.
I am operating under a wait and see approach. I remember when MAP was first implemented and there was a fervor but it didn't stop too many people from buying spydies
I recall Knife News did a story saying that present day knife industry was a seller's market but predicted it could change dramatically due to what we're seeing here. I have enough knives to last me a few lifetimes, so knife buying is a hobby for me. People usually have limits on what they will spend on a hobby. Companies will keep pushing the limit as long as we keep buying.
I dont buy BMs and ZTs retail partly because of price and partly because I prefer Spyderco anyway. If I cant afford the increases, I have enough Spydercos to last generations. I havent broken a beater yet.
MAP and I have been playing games anyway. There is a thread here to defeat it. There are other brands that draw my attention too. I buy knives when I want one and think the price is appropriate. Minimum Advertised Price is marketing. Sorry folks, I grew up in a world where products and their prices were determined by supply and demand. One may demand a minimum price, but compelling others to buy and sell at your price does not always work.
RamZar wrote:I've been buying fewer Spyderco knives since MAP enforcement of I think two years ago and now it'll be fewer still.
The same goes with me
RamZar wrote:
Here's the full Facebook post by National Knives, LLC an hour ago:
Stock up on your favorite Spyderco knives. Come January 1, 2018 there will not only be the yearly price increases, but also a new Minimum Advertised Price policy (MAP) that will go into effect. Currently MAP pricing is 40% below MSRP. Jan.1, that will be 35%. That's a 5% increase on top of the yearly prices increases!
Actually going from 60% of MSRP to 65% of MSRP is 8.3% increase. Plus annual increase 3-4%? The company I am working for doesn't give it's employees even half of this.
All of this is up to Spyderco. I hope that they know, what are they doing. I do not need to buy any more knives. If I sell 80%, I will have plenty until end of my days.
"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf"
I bought several spydies this past year but only one from a store (the k390 urban). All the rest were on the secondary market. With this news I think that is going to continue. I love the new D'Allara but I can't justify the price right now for my needs.
