Benchmade pricing seems to have changed

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loonybin said:
All Benchmade dealers are required to have a B&M storefront. The difference is that the B&M stores with an internet site as well tend to offer the discounts to move volume. B&M-only stores, I've found, tend to only sell at MSRP, and thus are not competitive.


There aren't so many options for us lefties, though. The Axis lock has made knives fully ambidextrous, and with the exception of the ball bearing lock that Spyderco has on... what... two models, what else is there for us southpaws? No, simply drilling holes on the left scale does not make a lefty-friendly knife. I'm talking fully ambidextrous.
I've yet to get the hang of a right-handed liner/frame lock. I simply can't do it without coming close to shedding blood or getting really frustrated. The Manix2 XL is now on my list since there's a $50 price difference between it and the Rift that I would like to replace. At the Rift's previous realistic selling price, the Rift was definitely worth the extra $20, but $50 more for 154CM and G10 over s30v and G10?
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I am left handed, and find right handed liner locks easier to manipulate with left hand, since the thumb sweeps the lock to the left, simultaneously moving out of the way of the blade instead of pushing across the path of the blade.
 
skyhorse said:
I totally agree with your post and being you recently purchased a BM Gold Line knife speaks loudly for BM's best customers. This thread is in no way shape or form to be assumed as some sort of brand bashing thing,for we are Benchmade Customers and fans. As one poster stated brick and mortar dealers often discount their merchandise face to face with a customer and Benchmade is none the wiser,so if the( cum by ya ) level the playing field is Benchmade's justifacaion for price fixing it's all Bravo Sierra imho.




B
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Thanks. You are especially correct with the bolded portion. :) [Edit: I certainly would not have taken the time to put together that thread had I not been a fan of the brand.]

That 7505-132 that you mention that I bought is a real good example of how our knife costs have increased. I pre-ordered that knife in late June and paid $367 for it. A reasonable price for a good knife. I'm happy with that. But today that same knife would cost ME $510. $143 more for a single knife.

I don't boycott. Boycotts just don't work. But I am careful with my $$$ and always make sure that I get my moneys worth when I buy. That Gold Class knife was certainly good value in June. IMHO, not so much today.

RamZar said:
There seems to be a serious disconnect between your words and the bottom line reality for the consumer.
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Well said.
 
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Benchmade said:
Our price levels HAVE NOT changed. Our dealer base and customers of all shapes and sizes are of the upmost importance to us and we will continue to pursue the best possible avenues to support them. Please know that we are listening and appreciate your feedback.

~Benchmade Knife Company
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OK. All of that's fine. But If you're really listening, how about an actual response and not rhetoric? How about a few short and simple answers that will satisfy our concern about where this is headed. Please show us HOW 'the best possible avenues' work when the average buyer puts off buying a Grip because he/she can't afford it any longer?

And WHY do this just before Christmas? That's really lousy timing if asked when many of us are struggling. See, we have lots of questions when what we honestly need are answers.
 
I needed to stop buying so may knives anyway. I have a 300S-1 in the mail now from the very large auction site. I guess that's it.

<shrugs>
 
Benchmade said:
Our price levels HAVE NOT changed. Our dealer base and customers of all shapes and sizes are of the upmost importance to us and we will continue to pursue the best possible avenues to support them. Please know that we are listening and appreciate your feedback.

~Benchmade Knife Company
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After all the posts on this thread, this is how you choose to respond? By saying that nothing had changed when we all have seen the change already in place? Sounds like some legalese to me. Your price level to dealers probably hasn't changed, but the price level at my favorite knife store has went through the roof. Amazingly that was right after a Benchmade Representative visited that store. Coincidence? Not the slightest chance. To come on here and tell us that we (customers) are of utmost importance while making sure our prices are raised 30% is double-speak. Way to go, Benchmade. No answer would have been better.
 
dfsutton said:
After all the posts on this thread, this is how you choose to respond? By saying that nothing had changed when we all have seen the change already in place? Sounds like some legalese to me. Your price level to dealers probably hasn't changed, but the price level at my favorite knife store has went through the roof. Amazingly that was right after a Benchmade Representative visited that store. Coincidence? Not the slightest chance. To come on here and tell us that we (customers) are of utmost importance while making sure our prices are raised 30% is double-speak. Way to go, Benchmade. No answer would have been better.
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Agreed! They should have just stayed silent, like they always do!
 
Benchmade said:
Our price levels HAVE NOT changed. Our dealer base and customers of all shapes and sizes are of the upmost importance to us and we will continue to pursue the best possible avenues to support them. Please know that we are listening and appreciate your feedback.

~Benchmade Knife Company
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No one has more loyalty to Benchmade knives than I do, but I have to say that your reply is, frankly, insulting. :mad:
 
jeffwithaj said:
I swear some of you guys need to get out more. There are plenty of options out there for quality knives and if a certain company ( a company that knows the business) makes a change you don't like then move on. There are plenty of Asian manufactured knives north of 200 bucks that might better suit your philosophies. I might not be buying Benchmades with the reckless abandon that I once did but I'm not gonna boycott them for looking out for their business.
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There are lots of very competitive knives at far more attractive prices that are all-USA made. :thumbup:
 
BEBrewster said:
Why have all the large online retailers raised their prices in the past two weeks?
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^this. Maybe BM's price to their dealers has remained the same, but prices to consumers/end users have definitely gone up, enough so to be noticeable, hence the fact that this thread exists in the first place.
 
I feel bad for squirting fuel on the fire, but the response to this topic on the official Benchmade Forum from Benchmade bugged me:
Our price levels HAVE NOT changed. Our dealer base and customers of all shapes and sizes are of the upmost importance to us and we will continue to pursue the best possible avenues to support them. Please know that we are listening and appreciate your feedback.

~Benchmade Knife Company
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^Sound familiar? I hope this brief, canned response is simply a placeholder for a response that actually addresses the legitimate questions at the heart of the matter. That would mollify a lot of people--not everyone of course--but it would be the right thing to do.
 
dfsutton said:
After all the posts on this thread, this is how you choose to respond?...
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Exactly. I strongly suspect that the rep, who is "listening and appreciate your feedback", only read the thread title. If you look at the reply and the thread title, it looks very much like they replied to that and didn't take the time and effort to "listen" to the rest of the thread. That fits nicely into how they tend to ignore this sub-forum as a whole as well.

They just don't have the time for the customer.
 
I'm not sure yet how this will affect benchmade prices as a whole but I have already noticed that one of my favorite online knife retailers has increased the price of a few benchmade autos by about $40 a piece....ouch. There's no chance of me buying any of those at the new price, for my budget there are just too many options that are $40-60 cheaper and still very close to if not the exact same quality. With the new price increases the only benchmade knives that are still worth the money to me are the griptilians, which only went up about $10-15 at most of the places I've checked. As a huge fan of benchmade (they have been my favorite knife manufacturer ever since I started collecting knives) I am extremely disappointed by this and hope that they will make things right. They will definitely lose some business if they don't because the new prices are just too much for most of us. I know they must have some legitimate reason for doing this, but there just has to be a more consumer-friendly way.
 
Benchmade said:
Our price levels HAVE NOT changed. Our dealer base and customers of all shapes and sizes are of the upmost importance to us and we will continue to pursue the best possible avenues to support them. Please know that we are listening and appreciate your feedback.

~Benchmade Knife Company
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I expected some sort of caned PR department reply but this "Statement" is an insult to my inelegance and every other fan in this thread.

I really have to wonder if the person behind the post realizes they just insulted and alienated some of Benchmades strongest supporters with this post? You know, the customers that are of the upmost importance..

Benchmade, if your really listening, perhaps you might wish to clarify and really answer some of our questions and concerns.

Otherwise, I guess we really do have our answer.................
 
I can still find BMs at my local gunshop and they are cheaper than I have seen online. I just picked up a 553 Grip for $80.
 
CDKJudoka said:
When I picked it up on Thursday, I couldn't find them for less than $95 online. The river site still has them for $93.
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You were looking in all the wrong places then. There were at least 3 stores that most of us frequent that you could find that knife at for $70.
 
I generally buy knives that I believe are a good value. Even though I like Benchmade knives, my search for value sometimes put them at a disadvantage to some other brands before the price increase. Now.....
 
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