Large Scale Central

Aristo price gouge

General Discussion
#1

Anyone looking at new Aristo purchases is in for a very rude awakening. My favourite online seller has increased his ‘online’ price by around 20% on late December 2008 price levels. I was aware of a 2009 price increase, but like the massive increase on track announced last year we simply have to lump it or leave it. interestingly, the price of copper has dropped 40% in the last couple of months. Has this been reflected in the current price list? Remember those outside of North America are not eligible for the free box offer on track. Time to rationalise future purchases on my railroad.

Oil prices have plummeted in the last few months, so oil cannot be an excuse for increased prices for plastics production. The increasing value of the Chinese Yuan will kill off the hobby, making once affordable ‘economy’ brands seemingly spiralling ever upward in price and out of reach of the average modellor. Like track held in stock at the time of the price increase last year, it seems that Aristo stock on hand has suffered the immediate price increase, rather than being reflected in newly delivered more expensive stock from the manufacturer. Interestingly, this also increases the value of any stock wharehoused by Aristo. Personally, I consider this as unethical as the increase should apply only to stock arrivals that reflect the increased costs of production. We will hear excuses of how cost increases have been absorbed up until the present price rise and thus applying the increase to current stock on hand, is accepptable. This is simply profiteering.

Edit: maybe the online site has not been updated as yet, but track prices seem unchanged.

#2

I have not made any new purchases in 6 months and none to be made in the forseeable future ! :frowning:

#3

Well, USAT comes from the same factory and company (Sanda Kan), and they did about a 7% increase from my figuring.

So I’ll be interested how this is explained, but as always, taking a good long gulp of Kool-Aide will help swallow the reality.

Regards, Greg

#4

Tim over on MLS there was a brief discussion about the price increase as part of the new MAP (minimal advertised price) also driving printed prices upward.

My favorite drive bricks, the Aristo centercab bricks, went from $45 each up to $62 each, this will significantly stifle my plans for future bashes, I’ve already cannibalized my F40 for the drives for my doublemack, I’ll probably switch from centers to the lower price FA1 bricks for my unfinished road switcher. But the price of the centers is now past the point of rationality as far as I’m concerned. For the price of two bricks I can almost buy a brand new Annie! and Bmanns newest offerings are still in the Holy Grail range for my little dog and pony show.

Forget any new item from Aristo as far as I’m concerned, I like the C-16, and the planned 2-8-0, the PCC, but at the new listed prices…forget it! Are they trying to move into LGBs old price point level? I seriously wonder sometimes. On the plus side, I realize how lucky I was to buy what I did when San Val shut down, I really went on a feeding frenzy and seriously thought I got way too much, now I figure that in reality, I just got in that one spring what I can now no longer afford due to these costly increases and likely will not be able to afford maybe for years to come.

So its Macks and whatever used stuff I can manage to scavange from here on out :frowning:

#5

According to the man, they had contracts and bought metal at prices of 6 months ago. Whether or not there is legitimacy in that argument to jack prices up a lot now is another story. Profiteering? Only if people buy track at that price. I won’t be and if no one else does, you’ll see prices drop. They can’t give cars away now.

-Brian

#6

Vic,
I was aware that Lewis was enforcing the minimum advertised price (MAP) issue to comply with the latest American laws, but if the increase was simply complying with MAP laws, then the online sellers are not compelled to sell at the MAP, merely not able to advertise a price below the MAP. It appears that track is the only stock items not incurring a 20% price hike. The other manufacturers, USA Trains and B’mann, online prices have not altered. Is Lewis the only manufacturer enforcing the MAP issue? I have suddenly lost interest in other than track at this point. Fortunately, some eBay sellers are prepared to offer items at a price less than MAP. A better alternative would be the manufacturer setting the wholesale price, so that a realistic MAP could be set. This would of course, disadvantage low volume dealers. Even a now defunct manufacturer used to offer shipping cost ‘incentives’ to volume dealers, to enable them to sell the product more cheaply.

  Like the track hike,  we will simply roll over and take it.  Production contracts could be signed up to six months before any production actually takes place,  so this could explain the inability to reflect current metal/oil prices and currency rates.

Edit: I found a posting on the manufacturer forum dated, December 18th, 2008, in which the company advises confirmation of the price hike. The president of Aristo-Craft, advises that a price increase (10%) back in July, 2008 was not applied to product, at that time and thus the current 20% gouge reflects the increasing cost of production over the past year. The price hike was not applied to track, most likely because of the price gouge early in 2008 and now lower copper base prices. However, I would not rule out a price increase in track after the current free track offer expires in around six weeks. While I agree that increasing costs must be met with higher retail prices, exactly why is an across the board price increase applied to currently held stock on hand in dealers wharehouses? OK, if prices rose 10% in July, 2008 then why not a staggered price increase with a 10% price gouge to apply to existing stock on hand and a further 10% gouge applying to newly ordered stock after January, 1st, 2009?

#7

Minimum advertised pricing is a company policy, not an American law.
If Aristocraft is enforcing minimum advertised pricing, no law is requiring them to do so.
Ralph

#8

As the prices go up up up,
And the income goes down down down…

It’s just life. Prices on everything went through the roof. It’s hard to bring them back down quickly.

When I was planning my shop, there was a minimum advertisable price. By the time I got it open, there wasn’t and I had to refigure on a 15% markup. Now there is.

#9

Increasing prices on a discretionary product when personal incomes are falling doesn’t sound like a good idea to me. My company did it 6 months ago and we are now in a mess. One thing it allows them to do is have 20% off sales without going below their desired price. Only time will tell if that happens and how this shakes out.

I’m not in the market for anything discretionary so it won’t effect me.

#10

Welcome to the real world BOY’S!! Love it or leave it, i guess would be appropriate here. Your just going to have to search out the bargains, before I get em! hee hee LOL Seriously, now we all know why this hobby is NOT growing, and some people are jumping ship and going from G to smaller scales which are less expensive. I myself wonder just how many people are still with the hobby in G scale than were there before 2008???

(http://www.lscdata.com/users/blueregal/_forumfiles/dog.jpg)

Can you figure out which one is us and which one is the RETAILER/Wholesaler?

#11

They will simply price themselves right out of the market.

#12

Amen brother!!! If they already haven’t right??? The Regal P.S. i’m only looking for a dash 9 heritage 2, and somewhere in a distant galaxy a K-27, and then I’m DONE!!! for sure’s. Was able to buy a couple of weeks ago another box of 12 4’ plus track and a box of 10ft curves, which I believe will allow me to do what i want out in the back yard unless I get a really wild hair, and do something crazy.

#13

It’s like everything else. Prices rise. You either buy or you don’t. There is always someone n line to take up where you leave off. The price of oil drop considerably and gas should be selling at $1 gal but guess what it’s not. Go figure. Later RJD

#14

Yeah, our gas took a 20 cent jump in one day! And oil went down!

#15

Over here in UK folks are cheering in the streets now that gasoline has gone DOWN to only $6.80 a gallon. Dismal is still pretty high though, at around $7.30 a gallon.

And Aristo-Craft track has already taken a 100% price hike last year…a #6 switch is now over $200.

tac

#16

Terry time to go to z scale or that new one guage slips me but is way smaller than z. Then you can have a whole rr empire in your desk drawer!! Hee hee LOL The Regal

#17

Tim, the best deal on track in Australia is Club Track, at $A18.00 a 3.6 Metre length (12 feet) and a Bag of Sleepers (Ties) at $A28.00 sufficient for a 3.6 M length, mates with Aristo and LGB perfectly.

#18

Please note that I have had personal corresponsdence from the top and am satisfied that the price increase from the manufacturer was entirely justified and was actually establishing a status quo for past cost increases, in 2008, which had not been passed on and were thus factored into the current pricing schedule. The company apparently adjusts its pricing twice a year, inline with variations in costs of production. This last increase was entirely justified, however, I, like many others, would have felt that a forewarning of a cost increase would have gone a small way in overcoming the shock of the increase.

However, what I am most disappointed in is the immediate passing on of the cost increase by dealers on existing inventory. I consider this unethical as the goods have already been invoiced and so the cost increase is a 20% windfall in their coffers. It is possible that I am simply naive to the realities of life.

Danny,
at present the price increase does not apply to track. The existing free box offer is current until February 28th, 2009. After that who knows.

#19

If Aristo is having the stuff made in China then the devaluing of the Dollar and the in creast value of the (yin?) coulod also have something to do with the price increase. I look at this as a good thing. If it gets to costly to have the stuff made in China they might move it to the USA for cheeper labor as things keep getting worse.

it may take a bit but prices for al this stuff will come down. I think it is safe to say at these prices there will be alot of the newbies trying to sell there stuff off and move back to a smaller size. Me, I’m in iot for the long haul. Eyes to bad for anything smaller then “G”.

#20

Geoff,
it has already been stated many times that Aristo-Craft is staying put at Sandra Kan. Once the positive aspects of the Kader buyout are implemented, then Aristo will be even more entrenched in staying with Sandra Kan. Forget the ‘Made in USA’ label as that is a pipedream.