Has rising inflation caused considerable knife price increases?

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shane45-1911 said:
Again, I question this statement (and much of your "source" material). We are talking luxury items here, not essential goods or services. And a quick scan of just about any online knife retailer shows "no stock" on just about everything. And that is not because people are buying up everything - it is because manufacturers can't get raw material in steady, cost-effective supply to support distribution.

The shelves are bare everywhere for most luxury items. Knife retailers can't afford to re-stock due to manufacturer price hikes and lack of supply, and knife manufacturers cannot get material stock because of the aforementioned constraint reasons.
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Ok.

To answer OP’s questions, yes, I’ve seen price increases with some knife brands while others are talking about increasing prices as well.
 
ferider said:
Since most of the knives we are talking about are luxury goods, pricing works differently than for consumer goods. Compare to luxury hand-bags or shoes, for instance, they are priced to what the market takes, much more so than using a fixed ROI on top of COM.

Which is why the pandemic mattered, the current inflation not so much. Not yet anyways.
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This.

The increases I’ve seen were way before people were talking about inflation. Has much more to do with demand than anything.
 
The Aflac Duck said:
This.

The increases I’ve seen were way before people were talking about inflation. Has much more to do with demand than anything.
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That’s how I’ve been seeing it as well. Especially with CRK, Strider, Spartan Blades, and Pro-Tech. With GEC as well, that goes without saying. Never seen this much demand for GEC and their production numbers have never been higher.
 
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Here in the Philippines (where all knives are overpriced to begin with anyway), eh, yes and no. Some knives, usually the cheaper ones, maintained their prices. Others like the Recon 1 and PM2 jumped up by around 10 bucks or maybe more.
 
Some jumps, but still relatively mild compared to other things. I'd say on average $5-20 on most models I've been interested in during mid 2020 - early 2022.
 
At the dealer level I'm seeing a mixed bag when it comes to prices. Some prices are up, but others are down, and most haven't changed at all. I think I'll see some changes when new stock gets ordered in, but for the ones with a good inventory to ride, they seem to be staying pat on pricing. I imagine with the spike in inflation, dealers with wider selections are going to feel pressure to lower prices on some models to make sure some steel moves in the short term.
 
Prices on everything, not just knives, has gone up considerably, and from what I can tell, the current rate of inflation isn't showing any signs of slowing or reversing. :(
 
I bought my D2 BM Adamas in 2015 for abt $150. The same knife today, now with cruwear costs abt $250,
Inflation has been at work for the last 6-7 years at least, then we have Covid from 2020 onwards and related supply chain issues,and now we
have the global sanctions on Russia which can only have a further negative effect.
 
A Marbles slip joint that was listed for $12.95 a few weeks ago is now listed at $18.99 from the same dealer. Not exactly rocket science to see the new normal. I knew it would happen. ;)
 
When prices increase to the point that its buy a new whatever or eat.. I see cottage industrys taking a hit.. I believe in do time prices will fall some what.. I believe its better to have a few bucks than closing the doors.. n
Now I know thats an extreme but I posted that just for context..
Time will tell..
John
 
Certainly inflation has affected knife pricing just as it has everything else. When costs to manufacture go up and cost of materials needed to produce go up (both factors for all manner of reasons) then there is cause for inflation as well as price increases.

But... the price increases we see in some cases reflect a great deal more than inflation, which a case could be made is only a small factor in today's pricing. For those that require a cite, here is one of many easily found: https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/inflation-cpi
Following that link alone you can see that pricing in the knife world has gone well beyond simple inflation.

As a service company business owner (construction remodel/repair/maintenance) myself, my take is that "them that's shall get, them that's not shall lose" (ref: Billie Holliday) is working in he knife industry as it is every where else. MANY of my clients have profited and done quite well in this strange economy and continue to do so. Others, not so much. But the guys that have money don't seem worried about things today and don't really mind spending it yet. My industry has been completely changed by lack of materials, lack of available labor and other factors, but my business hasn't really suffered since my customers are generally well heeled and older, with good jobs and in some cases good retirements. I am surprised that they are doing "elective" repairs and remodeling at the prices of things these days, but on the other hand, I don't think pricing will go down.

Pretty easy to see that mindset reflected here on BF. "Wow, I got lucky and just scored a XXXX from XXXX for $500 before they went to $650" and "I am on the wait list for a XXX and got in at $800 before the price bump", and "I have $350 to spend, help me find a knife".

Manufacturers know their markets and what they will bear. Using simple inflation, cost of labor/materials/transportation, etc. is just as good as any to increase pricing by 35-50% (or more) on a knife as most folks will never stop to think about it or run the numbers.

Robert
 
As the prices go up, I believe many of the casual knife enthusiasts like myself will just back off on most purchases. My personal buying decisions will also impact the price I pay. Like no longer financing an unfriendly regime with my knife purchases. My recent Cryo purchase will be the last.
 
Knives have been selling at insane prices for years. The prices have been climbing long before the recent increase in inflation. To me, they are still just hand tools. It reminds me of the guy who came to work with the high-dollar titanium hammer. It sure was a nice hammer, but the whole crew used nail guns.

irsh said:
Like no longer financing an unfriendly regime with my knife purchases.
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Indeed, Mr. Irsh. I believe that I'll order that Buck 112 drop point, that I've been contemplating.
 
OK. Can't abide by the guidelines. We're done here.
 
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