Benchmade pricing seems to have changed

[Stays Sharp]

Since they are pressured by some stores for "fair pricing", instead of enforcing MAP pricing, they can get rid of it altogether and let everyone charge whatever they want. Stick an MSRP and they can target a street value price point...

 

[RevDevil]

Since they are pressured by some stores for "fair pricing", instead of enforcing MAP pricing, they can get rid of it altogether and let everyone charge whatever they want. Stick an MSRP and they can target a street value price point...

They already did that to some extent. Years ago, Benchmade would sell to wholesalers, who would in turn sell to e-commerce buyers. Turns out things were worse for everyone but the eBayers. In order to sell Benchmade knives now (as far as my understanding is concerned), you must have a store (brick & mortar) and make a minimum purchase. Gone are the days of the eBay sellers undercutting prices. In fact, it appears that a lot more companies have followed this pattern. It's easier not doing it midstream before the largest holiday shopping month of the year is all. I would be willing to bet that a public announcement, indicating no more discount codes and a future date of implementation would have gone much smoother than this secret squirrel junk.

I'd also expect mom and pop stores to wise up a bit at some point too. You cannot sell everything at MSRP these days, people will be looking for a deal and buy when they find it. Running an occasional in store sale does not hurt when you get a few extra people in the door, they are more likely to buy stuff that is visibly marked down.

 

[monster]

Well if there's a silver lining to all this it's that Ill be able to find the knives I want in stock.... Now which kidney to sell first?

 

[dogboye]

I do see the 710 compared to the pm2 often. They have similar prices, even with this new pricing.
I've seen the grip compared to the pm2, and there's still a price difference with the new pricing.
Zt prices are much higher than benchmades, and personally I'd rather have a benchmade knife. I don't like the tank knives as much as the knives that cut well.
Kershaw in general seem to have lower prices, so that's not new.
I'm not sure I understand the idea that other companies are suddenly a better value. Maybe those are isolated examples.
If it came down to the best value, I'd just buy an Opinel and a Mora and be done with it.
End of the day I'll buy the knife that fits me. I think I'm going to take another look at the axis bonecollector...

Not all the ZT's were higher than Benchmades, even before this MAP nonsense. And you could find screaming deals if you searched around, bided your time, and caught a special. Now, my understanding, even those sales can't be done with Benchmades. Also, largely, for the amount of money spent, you got better, or at least higher-end, materials than what was offered by Benchmade at the same price. Sculpted titanium for around the same price as the more plain titanium of the Benchmade frame-locks (recent; I'm not counting the 630 or 635, which are from a different era). Now, with the MAP enforcement, for a similar price, you can get a knife with steel that I like better than 154CM (it works, but it really isn't all that, and I've been known to prefer 440C over 154CM), and arguably even higher-end steel. The only thing Benchmade really still has going for it is the axis-lock, which is quite good and ingenious. Which, BTW, shouldn't the patent on that be running out soon anyway?

I won't even go into the Kershaw line.

I've bought back and forth between Benchmade and KAI for a while now, after trying a couple KAI products. The new MAP enforcement is pushing me to KAI completely.

 

[reddragon29a]

Well if there's a silver lining to all this it's that Ill be able to find the knives I want in stock.... Now which kidney to sell first?

What do you mean by which kidney? With knife knuts selling kidneys to fund Benchmade Blue class purchases, the market value on kidneys has gone down.

In Benchmade's view of the market place, people everywhere will simply pay the new asking price and not bat an eyelash and every online dealer and mom-n-pop B&M will maintain or improve their Benchmade sales trends.

 

[JNewell]

Yes - that is the question and only time will tell. Whatever else is true, I don't think this crowd (and I love you all) is a very representative slice of BM's (or any other knife manufacturer's) retail base sales.

Thanks N8N and everyone else. So a little info about me. Hmm. My interest in knives is recent. I've been collecting multitools for a few years (hence my user name). As I've gotten some better Leatherman's, I've started to want to add a nice separate everyday carry blade. A friend gave me a Gerber Paraframe II last year, but it's really been poor quality. I purchased a Kershaw Leek about six months ago, but the blade is so thin and delicate looking at the tip that I'm almost afraid to use it. I wanted something more robust, and something ambidextrous, since I'm a lefty. When I finally looked at the Benchmade Axis lock I knew I found something special.

For work, I'm an I.T. consultant. In my business, there's a lot of reselling opportunities for hardware and services. Some manufacturer's reselling programs are great, some are laughable. One of the worst is brand of mid to high end networking hardware (firewalls, wireless access points). As a low volume partner, my distributor wholesale pricing is actually 5 - 10% higher than consumer street pricing from the high volume resellers. The manufacturer has MAP pricing, but never enforced it. Result, I'm not selling their product. That's one example (albeit at the extreme side of things). You can see where this thread hit a nerve for me.

I don't know how Benchmade's pricing structure works. I would assume it follows a tiered pricing structure (the more volume you purchase, the better your cost). Since the only change we know of is around Benchmade's MAP pricing policy, I strongly feel the impetus is coming from brick and mortars that can't compete.

As someone else mentioned, this is a tough issue to crack when they apparently haven't enforce MAP pricing for a long time. When we get used to a 25% discount as the norm, the that becomes the perceived value. The challenge for Benchmade shifting course so far into the game is it's a bit like locking the door after the horse is out of the barn.

The question is, will people still be willing to spend their money on it. On this point I said I think they'll weather the storm. My perspective as someone who's a newbie. Sometimes that's valuable, because a lot of people buying these things might be more like me and not be as fluent in the models/pricing and comparison's to other brands. On the other hand, I could be completely off base. Ultimately, time will tell and this will have been an interesting discussion.

Elisabeth

 

[JNewell]

Not disagreeing with you Rev, but I don't know? This move by BM does a lot to eliminate people walking into a B&M store and checking pricing on their phone.

They already did that to some extent. Years ago, Benchmade would sell to wholesalers, who would in turn sell to e-commerce buyers. Turns out things were worse for everyone but the eBayers. In order to sell Benchmade knives now (as far as my understanding is concerned), you must have a store (brick & mortar) and make a minimum purchase. Gone are the days of the eBay sellers undercutting prices. In fact, it appears that a lot more companies have followed this pattern. It's easier not doing it midstream before the largest holiday shopping month of the year is all. I would be willing to bet that a public announcement, indicating no more discount codes and a future date of implementation would have gone much smoother than this secret squirrel junk.

I'd also expect mom and pop stores to wise up a bit at some point too. You cannot sell everything at MSRP these days, people will be looking for a deal and buy when they find it. Running an occasional in store sale does not hurt when you get a few extra people in the door, they are more likely to buy stuff that is visibly marked down.

 

[RevDevil]

Yes - that is the question and only time will tell. Whatever else is true, I don't think this crowd (and I love you all) is a very representative slice of BM's (or any other knife manufacturer's) retail base sales.

It's a safe bet that a lot of people know we are in the minority here. How many people really spend between $200-300 on a knife anyway? The answer is not many. However, we are the bread and butter when it comes to those high dollar limited runs, gold class, etc.

 

[djdawg]

It's a safe bet that a lot of people know we are in the minority here. How many people really spend between $200-300 on a knife anyway? The answer is not many. However, we are the bread and butter when it comes to those high dollar limited runs, gold class, etc.

This .........
When I tell someone how much I paid for my knife ......they just laugh.
They dont understand quality......... who has to sharpen more often ......LOL

 

[rajincagin]

However, we are the bread and butter when it comes to those high dollar limited runs, gold class, etc.

I'm not so sure of that, I know a few, who have large gold class and custom knife collections, worth more than I make in a year, and NONE of them have thus far posted in this thread.

I've liked BM knives far longer than I've been a "member" here, since I was a kid actually, I think the forums are "representative" of a segment Of the knife buying community, but they certainly don't speak for the majority.

 

[jkarp_53]

I'd agree with Rev here. There are very few that I know that own large Gold Class collections. And in reality most of us are in the Blue augmented by Black Class category - ones that actually buy and use their knives. This being the case, we've (typically) got examples of most of the more common models from the catalogs, and older as some of us like the Old School stuff.

As a result (and since these aren't cheap knives) we slow down and focus on the Limited's and special runs. Given an example; Over this last two years virtually all of my purchases have been Limited's, and KnifeWorks has been my main supplier of these. And lastly for this piece, I would offer my opinion that the online Forums like Blade, KnifeForums, JerzeeDevils DO speak for the majority of us as buyers and enthusiasts. It's always the rank and file that have the loudest voice in things, and would consider us to be the average buyer of Benchmades.

 

[miltmaldo]

Kershaw can really take advantage of this . But all kershaw want to do is make budget knives that are made in China . kershaw can make knives like the Blur , Skyline , leek , and many other for $60 or less why not make newer models and upgrade the blade steel . Better steel makes them more expensive $80 to $125 Ill pay that . I don't think ill ever pay MAP price for a 940 or other benchmade knives . I know they have ZT but not every one like to carry a tactical knife as an edc knife .

 

[rajincagin]

I'd agree with Rev here...

You did make some valid points j, but if that's the case, judging by this thread, BM will lose at least half their sales immediately, and I just don't see that happening. It'll be interesting to see what the next few months, year bring.

 

[djdawg]

I,ll still buy BM knives ...........Iam just gonna pic an choose now.

 

[RamZar]

Frankly, I'm more concerned about Benchmade turning out quality products, introducing new products, designs and technologies. I see it lacking in all those areas right now and that will eventually hurt it financially.

Also, blowing money on acquisitions and the Axial line!

What happened to the exceptional Bradley Cutlery Alias 2? Wasn't that part of Benchmade? Great folders.

The Lone Wolf Harsey Ranger?!

 

[RevDevil]

I'm not so sure of that, I know a few, who have large gold class and custom knife collections, worth more than I make in a year, and NONE of them have thus far posted in this thread.

I've liked BM knives far longer than I've been a "member" here, since I was a kid actually, I think the forums are "representative" of a segment Of the knife buying community, but they certainly don't speak for the majority.

What does a person's large Gold class and custom collection have to do with posting in this thread or not? That was not the point, rather the people that spend over $200 on a knife are not your typical demographic, we are a minority (many manufacturers have already stated this).

Posting in this thread isn't by any means a qualifier of anything more than being an active member and wanting to join a discussion. Benchmade has not had a presence on here for long, it's also hard to judge who ownes what around here. Being new to the forums yourself, you've missed some pretty insane collector threads. You don't seem to be grasping the overall idea conveyed.

You did make some valid points j, but if that's the case, judging by this thread, BM will lose at least half their sales immediately, and I just don't see that happening. It'll be interesting to see what the next few months, year bring.

Again, no one is saying that. Your going to extremes and presenting very drastic, sweeping examples. The truth is, none of us know what next year will bring, or next quarter. I don't know about you, but I'm not going to place a bet on one thing or another. It's too soon to tell, but pulling the discounts right before Christmas wasn't the brightest idea in my opinion. Had they announced it say on December 1st that starting in 2014 the codes would be disappearing, that might have gone over smoother than the ton of bricks this thread is. If people want to buy them like before that's cool. But, many will think twice and possibly pass.

Like jkarp I too had started only buying the LEs. Not much was grabbing my attention, and it looks like it might stay that way for me.

 

[jkarp_53]

Frankly, I'm more concerned about Benchmade turning out quality products, introducing new products, designs and technologies. I see it lacking in all those areas right now and that will eventually hurt it financially.

What happened to the exceptional Bradley Cutlery Alias 2? Wasn't that part of Benchmade? Great folders.

The Lone Wolf Harsey Ranger?!

A lot of us didn't know at first that the Bradley Alias was made by Benchmade. The large Model 1 and smaller Model 2 are, in fact, brilliant designs, and in many ways equal to anything out there, including IMO, the CRK Sebbies.

Now on the Lone Wolf; I'm really sorry they couldn't make it and were bought by Benchmade. The original T1, T2 and T3 Harsey designs, followed next by the Longhorn and Blackfoot folders were near custom in rounded spines, beautiful blades, and terrific ergononics. The Lone Wolf branded offerings now made, sent off in limbo to the HK line and the much cheapened Swale models are only a shadow of their former selves.

On both of these LW and Bradley lines, they are fully covered under warranty, and in the case of the LW models parts for the originals are questionable in availability but are covered under Lifesharp, so they can be sent up for tuning, cleaning, and sharpening.

 

[skyhorse]

I saw the Ganzo mini, G 10 scales now comes with draw string bag.

 

[dogboye]

Kershaw can really take advantage of this . But all kershaw want to do is make budget knives that are made in China . kershaw can make knives like the Blur , Skyline , leek , and many other for $60 or less why not make newer models and upgrade the blade steel . Better steel makes them more expensive $80 to $125 Ill pay that . I don't think ill ever pay MAP price for a 940 or other benchmade knives . I know they have ZT but not every one like to carry a tactical knife as an edc knife .

The Blur, Skyline, and Leek, with 14C28N don't need steel upgrades. IME, that grade of Sandvik is equal to Benchmades 154CM in edge-holding, if not superior. And, in the last year, I bought two Blurs with CPM154, each for under $100. Which is a big upgrade in steel from BM's 154CM. Plus, each had the DLC blade coating, unlike BM's black coating, or Cerakote, which seems to wear even worse than BM's old black coating. No, what I see is BM often offering less than other companies, and now charging plenty more. They use to offer the best value in knives. Now, they're just overpriced.

 

[Redmasta]

The Blur, Skyline, and Leek, with 14C28N don't need steel upgrades. IME, that grade of Sandvik is equal to Benchmades 154CM in edge-holding, if not superior. And, in the last year, I bought two Blurs with CPM154, each for under $100. Which is a big upgrade in steel from BM's 154CM. Plus, each had the DLC blade coating, unlike BM's black coating, or Cerakote, which seems to wear even worse than BM's old black coating. No, what I see is BM often offering less than other companies, and now charging plenty more. They use to offer the best value in knives. Now, they're just overpriced.

I don't agree that the 14C28N holds an edge as well as 154CM. I have a blur in this steel and have found that to definitely not be true. I'm sure the CPM 154 is another story though.

Now the blade coating on the Blur is in a whole other universe, so was the perfect edge that came on the blade.

Some serious competition out there, time to step up their game at these new non discounted prices.