Price increases?

[rule303]

Ammo prices seem to be coming down slowly, AR's are the cheapest they have ever been,and most pistols and hunting guns seem to be holding steady. There are some bargains out there on collectible guns, the economy seems to have hurt that a bit.

 

[Ignition Override]

oneounceload:
I agree with your basic viewpoint, but how about these 'angles'?
When scalpers here bought almost all of the large rifle primers after the last election and resold at Memphis gun shows (there were none to be found in shops) with sharp mark-ups, that appeared to be gouging.

My brother brought me some primers from way up in Evansville, IN. Only wanted a box of one hundred, to learn basic reloading for .303 British.

If we lived in an area hit by a hurricane and half the gas stations were closed, gouging might take place.
No gas stations have ever "held a gun to our heads" and forced us to buy gas.
We could choose to ride bicycles, but it would take far too long etc.

 

[Ohio Gun Guy]

While you slept last night, the fed. printed another dollar for the one stuffed in your wallet, making yours, mine, everyones, worth a little less. (Quantitative Easing)

 

[sedona]

I went to the range this morning.I usually keep the receipt with the ammo I buy.I had a 50 round box of blazer aluminum bought in Oct.05, it was $3.88 a box.I had a few 50 round boxes of wwb bought at wal mart for $4.50 a box.Those were the good ole days.

 

[orionengnr]

This is not necessarily true. I run a business and if I say that next May, our prices will rise by 25%, you can be sure that they will, because I'll keep my word and raise them. I decide if prices go up, not market factors. Steel prices have been increasing our costs for years now, but we've decided to keep prices at 2008 levels, despite market factors. If I put a sign up that says prices will increase by 15% next summer, my customers should take advantage of our products before then.

You, sir, live in a different world than most of us.
We live in a world of daily price adjustments.
The price of gas at the corner fluctuates daily...they do not announce a price increase that will take place 4-5 months from now.
Food prices adjust weekly, as reflected in the fliers we recieve every Tuesday.
Nearly every non-regulated consumer good we purchase has it's price "adjusted" on a near-daily basis.
I daresay that if the cost of your materials has continued to rise since 2008, and you have yet to raise your prices, you were either significantly overcharging for the last four years, or you may well be out of business soon.

 

[JTHunter]

For the past year, I've been tracking prices on the four types of ammo I need at two local discounters (Walmart & Rural King) and two LGS's. While there has been a few drops in prices, they have been short-lived and the overall trend has been up.
The ammos I'm checking are .22LR & Mag, .380, and .38 Special.
Here are a couple of examples:

CCI Minimag - 36 gr. HP (prod. #0031) - $6.97/100 @ WM; $8.99 @ one LGS.
CCI Minimag - 40 gr. LRN (#0030) - $7.99/100 @ Rural King; $8.99 at both LGS's.
Winchester bulk pack - 36 gr. HP - $18.97/555 @ WM (up from $16.47 last year) but one LGS has it priced @ $24.99!!
Win. Super-X - 37 gr. HP (#X22LRH) - $3.17/50 @ WM but $6.99 at that same LGS!
The only .22 Mag at more than one store was the Win. Super-X - 40 gr. HP (#X22MH) - $10.47/50 @ WM and $13.99 @ that same over-priced LGS.
WM has Winchester Dynapoints - 45 gr HP - but their price has gone up to $8.47/50 but 6-7 months ago, it was $7.47.

As for the .38, here's an example: One LGS (the one above) has Corbon 125 gr. JHP +P (#SD38125) for $26.99/20 but the other has it at $39.99!!!!

WM has Winchester "white box" target ammo (130 gr. FMJ-FP) for $30.97/100 but the first LGS has it for $37.99.

In the .380, none of the stores have the same brand and type of ammo. WM only has the FMJ-RN target ammo. In fact, most of the ammo on this chart is only available at one or two stores.

 

[CoRoMo]

We live in a world of daily price adjustments.

Yep. But I'm not going to change our prices because fuel is up this week or next. We run our business with a little more forethought than that. Can you imagine if you were to go price a hunting rifle locally, and the price changed with fuel prices? Nope. Imagine getting a quote from a couple roofing companies, and a few days later when you decide to give one of them the go-ahead, he says, "Oh no, peanut butter is up 85¢ yesterday. We have to raise that quote we gave you." Talk about bad business, eh?

...you were either significantly overcharging for the last four years...

None of our customers seem to think so.

...or you may well be out of business soon.

I'll keep you posted, but I happen to know that we are ready to start passing on the higher expenses soon. We've been in business since 1935 and I don't feel too uncomfortable saying that we'll be here for another 76 years. What is good is owning rather than renting, and having three CPA's on staff.