Benchmade pricing seems to have changed

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Received my back-ordered 162 Bushcrafter today. The new price is approximately 30% higher. Since mine was back-ordered I got the OLD price :thumbup: :).

I agree with everyone else, the new pricing will greatly affect (reduce) my future Benchmade purchases.
 
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I'd this is true, looks like my days of purchasing Benchmade knives are soon to end.
 
Got my backup 810 at the old price through KnifeWorks. $52 difference! Hope the order gets fulfilled!
 
RevDevil said:
Cutting off your nose to spite your face...ouch.
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This I agree with.

Let me explain a factor that nobody has seemed to pick up on yet. MAP pricing, is there for a reason. Yes we all like deals, I agree fully. I'm not sure how many guys fish here, but look no further than Loomis rods for the poster child of MAP pricing working. It stops stores, from turning your product into a garage sale. Store A bitches about store B under selling MAP, and store C is pissed off, because they are a smaller store, with less buying power, and they can't make shit on the product, because stores A and B are under selling the set price, and they can't afford to play hardball. The final part of this equation, is for the maufacturer to pull the reigns in, and then........wait for it........let it soak.............you, johnny consumer are pissed off, because you are getting "raped by the man", and vow to screw the man (BM in this case). When in truth, had everybody played by the same rules all along, nobody would feel molested. So who is the ulimate loser in this??? The manufacturer, that's who. Store C stopped carrying their stuff, which equates to lost sales/revenue, and everybody is pissed off, catagorically down the line.

As for the knives, and their prices, I will keep buying them. They are the best in the business, and there aren't many companies that can come close to their very unique brand of customer service. They aren't any more expensive than several other brands. Just my take on the deal. Everybody must vote with their own wallet.
 
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The manufacturer created the problem by pricing the product at least 25% above the end value, therefore allowing for the larger stores to give the discount.

Yeah, it hurts them, but only because they originated the problem. Pretty much like has already been said.

I don't think that the benchmades I have had or handled are worth what they are now priced. I am no expert though, in anything.
 
In response to L2bravo

I'm very familiar with MAP pricing as several of the manufacturers our company works with use this. When these policies were implemented the prices weren't too far off base from what we were selling the product at anyway. I don't take issue with the policy as it levels the playing field and when done fairly the MAP is usually inline with what the current market price was and does not attempt to gouge the customer.

Now i've always had the feeling Benchmade padded their MAP quite a bit and for years on every website you have been able to login, email, or use a coupon code to get a price which was probably closer to the realistic market price. Now they have removed this abilty from dealers and are essentially pushing a roughly 30% price increase on customers.

Thats a huge increase on the typical price the market was used to paying. If they wanted to move their product pricing upstream by controlling the MAP with an iron fist then maybe they should have adjusted their MAP lower and made the price increases in stages over time.

Just my 2 cents. Guess we will see how this works for them, they sure got expensive over night.
 
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Redmasta, I in no way am totally agreeing with a huge price increase. I guess I didn't convey that all that well before. Yes I think that they are padding their MAP, as they always have. What remains to be seen, is the next lesson in economics. The product is only worth what the market will bear. We all know this to be true, I am more than certain. If BM starts to take it in the shorts, in regards to my last post, of people "voting with their wallets", it will self adjust, or they will go out of business. I would think that right about now, dealers are burning their (BM"s) phone lines up, raising nine kinds of hell. Pressure from this front, will in fact alter their way of thinking, if it is strong enough. Just like the ammo shortage, if people pay it, it will remain in place. Time will tell my friend.
 
My first benchmade was the griptalian I purchased in 2009 or 2010, I think it was shortly after it came out. Purchased it for 65$ including shipping if I'm not mistaken from knifecenter. Not they sell for 93$ (not including shipping). Overall if you included shipping that's a >40% increase in price over the years just for the grip.

I purchased the Benchmade bedlam from bladehq in 2011 (Luckily they have all the order info saved) for 199.75$(free shipping). Now it is selling for 204$ A little smaller increase, but still.

Has the demand really increased so much that price increases are necesarry or are they just introducing artificial inflation?
 
I forgot to mention, in my case yes I have not purchased a Benchmade in 2+ years. partially due to price increase, but mostly because I have boycott them due to their terrible business practices.
 
It wasn't just the large online retailers that sold Benchmades at a large discount. I bought most of mine from a small local gun and knife shop. He generally keeps one of each model in stock and two-three of the most popular models like the Grips. Even as a smaller local dealer, his prices were about the same as gpknives. I paid $70 for a 530 there last month and back in August I got a Megumi from him that cost $120. He would also special order any Benchmade for you or $5-10 over his cost.
 
Placed an order last night for this very reason.

I expect there will be an adjustment in price from BM end after the new year. Less padding on the MAP perhaps.
 
RevDevil said:
Cutting off your nose to spite your face...ouch.
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Let me explain. First and foremost, I purchase Benchmade knives because I enjoy collecting them. It is a disposable income purchase and not one needed for work or some other endeavor. I carry a knife for enjoyment and cutting some cardboard once every while. If MY COST for these knives is going up 30% then their value (benefit/cost) has dramatically dropped. Benchmade makes a great knife that I currently can get for a reasonable price. When the price is no longer reasonable, then I'll look elsewhere for ways to entertain myself.
 
dfsutton said:
Let me explain. First and foremost, I purchase Benchmade knives because I enjoy collecting them. It is a disposable income purchase and not one needed for work or some other endeavor. I carry a knife for enjoyment and cutting some cardboard once every while. If MY COST for these knives is going up 30% then their value (benefit/cost) has dramatically dropped. Benchmade makes a great knife that I currently can get for a reasonable price. When the price is no longer reasonable, then I'll look elsewhere for ways to entertain myself.
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No need to explain as my comment was in no way directed at you, but alrighty then.
 
itssteve said:
Artificially raising their prices is just stupid. If they already offer them to dealers at a price cheap enough for them to offer 25% off the list price then the knives simply aren't worth what they want them to be.

I've been really wanting a 940, but I'd never pay 180 for one.
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Same here.

Even worse luck, every time I find one for sale here in the for sale forums I'm usually 5-10 minutes too late to view the thread and someone else has already snagged it up. :(
 
Looks like I'm done buying new benchmades too. None of them are worth MAP to me. I feel for the dealers who were selling them at reasonable prices; their business is going to drop now.

No problem though. Other companies are offering knives with equivilent or better materials at competitive prices. I'll just give my money to them if benchmade doesn't want it anymore.
 
Just to be clear, the prices are not MSRP, aka "full retail", they are MAP, the typical price most would see before the coupon codes.

Msrp= manufacturer's suggested retail price.

Map= minimum advertised price.
 
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