Spyderco moving to MAP pricing!

Well when any company makes a change to their pricing model, it is to benefit the company, pure and simple. Now they are trying to do it without affecting the consumer too much but in the end this is a way that Spyderco figures it will make them more money. And as many have noted, Spyderco has some ridiculously high MSRP's so I feel like this is definitely gonna cost us, and the small businesses that carry Spyderco, more money.

I'm not mad because this model will help Spyderco to continue cranking out some quality products, I'm just a little disappointed that this is the option more and more companies seem to be leaning towards. But this is still one of the better MAP models at 40% off which is only a little bit above the best price you can find online
 
It doesn't look like it will change any pricing I've seen unless Spyderco suddenly drastically increases overall MSRP.

It'll be interesting to watch it play out.
 
Well when any company makes a change to their pricing model, it is to benefit the company, pure and simple. Now they are trying to do it without affecting the consumer too much but in the end this is a way that Spyderco figures it will make them more money. And as many have noted, Spyderco has some ridiculously high MSRP's so I feel like this is definitely gonna cost us, and the small businesses that carry Spyderco, more money.

I'm not mad because this model will help Spyderco to continue cranking out some quality products, I'm just a little disappointed that this is the option more and more companies seem to be leaning towards. But this is still one of the better MAP models at 40% off which is only a little bit above the best price you can find online

Sorry, but what you wrote isn't right. Spyderco will still be selling their knives to dealers for the same price so Spyderco will make the same on each unit. The dealer will be the one who is making more money. Since the actual selling price will go up (on average), the number of units sold will go down. So Spyderco will actually make less money.

In other words, Spyderco does not want to put their higher cost (brick & mortar) dealers out of business. It's a race to the bottom. Without price controls, every Spyderco would eventually be sold on Amazon.com...you get the point.
 
I thought it was advertised price. A company can't advertise a price less than 40%. Does that mean they can't sell for less then 40? I see some companies now that list certain knIves for sale and post no price and say call for prices.
 
Let's take a look at a real life example:
One dealer shows the MSRP of the s110v PM2 as 249.95, with a selling price of $149.62...once under MAP rules, the lowest that knife could be advertised would be $149.97.
A whole 35¢ more?? <sarcasm>WTF - I'm never buying another Spyderco again</sarcasm>
Okay, so maybe that was a poor example...let's try a few more from the same place
Manix2 LW s110v: MSRP 179.95, price 101.60, MAP 107.97, so an increase of $6.37
Gayle Bradley (M4): MSRP 279.95, price 155..75, MAP 167.97, so an increase of $12.22
Stretch 2 in ZDP189: MSRP 349.95, price 194.70, MAP 209.97 so an increase of $15.27
Rubicon: MSRP 499.95, price 278.20, MAP 299.97, an increase of $21.77

I'm not really seeing much to cry about there...but it will obviously depend on each dealer's pricing scheme.
 
I'm not really seeing much to cry about there...but it will obviously depend on each dealer's pricing scheme.

Exactly, but I can see it being a two edged sword. On the one hand, it may help smaller dealers, both B&M and online, remain competitive against the "super deep" discounters. On the other, it may hamper those same dealers by making it more difficult to run close outs on slow moving items and thus tying up their capital. That, in turn, may make those dealers concentrate on the popular, fast moving, models and avoid stocking the less popular exotic models.
 
For a variety of reasons, this is a much bigger risk for Spyderco than it was for KAI and Benchmade. I think Spyderco is underestimating the amount of business they get from enthusiasts and overestimating their ability to compete with KAI and ZT in the mainstream market. Not everyone (or, nobody at all) likes the trademark hole at first sight. Oh well, maybe a few more brick and mortars will purchase your knives, and maybe a few more people will spontaneously decide they like the opening hole more than the tacticool Cold Steels, beautiful Benchmades, or tank-like ZTs.
BTW, I have like 15 Spydercos, 7 Benchmades, and 2 ZTs. If Spyderco had been operating under MAP for the past 3 years, I would have like 7 Spydercos, 7 Benchmades, and 2 ZTs.
So, Spyderco, you can count on your enthusiasts purchasing like 50% fewer knives from you and just as many knives from your competitors.
So thanks, Spyderco, for putting yourselves on the same plane as Benchmade and ZT.
Does this mean Spyderco's warranty will be as good as theirs now? No? So what additional value will we be getting for the extra money?
I'm not gonna go out on a limb and say I'm never buying another Spyderco. But I will buy fewer of them.

EDIT: Oh, and one more thing. This does not help out the good online retailers, it HURTS them. Why? The 'big river' site and sellers on the 'big auction' site DO NOT abide by MAP, and they don't care. You don't like it, they don't really care. Take it or leave it. So MAP only serves to disadvantage the GOOD sites like KW, GP, BHQ, USAMB, etc., that actually abide by the MAP policies. Oh but I'm sure the big river site LOVES when manufacturers implement MAP policies. Gives them a big advantage.
 
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Traumatic flashbacks to Benchmade's pricing policy changes that they introduced last year. I followed that closely because at the time I was purchasing about 1 per month. I have not purchased a single one since their MAPP enforcement.

I say that because this is a VERY similar situation. I saw how that played out, many people upset at first, but eventually the furor died down and it was business as usual. I do know however, that some of the dyed in the wool Benchmade fans did in fact turn their back on the company and moved on to other brands. We'll see how this works out, but somehow I think Spyderco fans may be a more loyal bunch.
 
I don't see the big deal. Many spydercos are already an incredible value and an increase of a couple bucks shouldn't hurt. I think people are more upset about the principle more than the minor price increase.
Also this is only MAP, meaning advertised price. I guarantee you'll still be able to find them on sale or a different "in cart" price. Hell, I've got a local ZT dealer who cuts 10% at the register so I actually pay under MAP, after tax.
Again, not a big deal to me. Just keep making great knives, Spyderco, but maybe consider offering blade replacement.
 
I've thought about this for a few days and this will be my first comment.

Spyderco had to have watched and noted the BF reaction to Benchmade when they made this move and saw how people took it. No doubt they knew there would be a lot of pushback from this.

That means they really feel this is in their best interests long term to safeguard their businesses future. I can understand them not wanting to have so much of their business relying on so few dealers in the long term.

I understand but I still won't put myself in the position to think I know what is best for Spyderco and their business model. I have asked for certain steels and models I wanted them to make a run of like everybody else does but only from the position as a customer and not a guy trying to give them advice. I have to do the same here and not place myself in the position of thinking I know what is best for them.

How will it affect me? I've thought about this after getting past any emotions I might have felt at first. ( :) not really. I never felt the anger some seem to have shown and can't understand it to be honest.)

It won't affect me at all, to be honest. I will still look at each purchase and decide on it's merits just as I do now. There is no difference in how I do it now. I still will only buy what I want so in that respect I see no changes. If I'm going to have anger it's going to be over the products I must buy that have got so expensive. Luxury items aren't the same as food or fuel.

I have enough knives to last the rest of my knife as well as my son's without ever buying another. I don't see myself buying too many more $250 to 300 folders in regular steels no matter how sexy they look. I do see myself buying every mule that is released as well as the Sprints like the current HAP 40 Endura and upcoming stretch as well as the future 52100 millie.

I would probably even pay more for them if I had to due to their uniqueness but hopefully I won't. I can't see the future and predict how they will fare on $300 runs of titanium and S30V. I'd guess they won't match the numbers of Enduras or Manix's sold but not many knives they can produce will TBH.

It's a shame they had to go to the trouble of applying a policy they knew would cause hard feelings with some percentage(?) of their customers. It must be important so I say good fortune and future to my favorite knife makers . I'll remain a customer. :)

joe
 
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Sorry, but what you wrote isn't right. Spyderco will still be selling their knives to dealers for the same price so Spyderco will make the same on each unit. The dealer will be the one who is making more money. Since the actual selling price will go up (on average), the number of units sold will go down. So Spyderco will actually make less money.

In other words, Spyderco does not want to put their higher cost (brick & mortar) dealers out of business. It's a race to the bottom. Without price controls, every Spyderco would eventually be sold on Amazon.com...you get the point.

This is the most rational explanation of this announcement I've seen, and one I've wanted to put into words several times recently. This move doesn't make Spyderco any more money unless it helps them move additional units (which it probably won't).
 
Not everyone (or, nobody at all) likes the trademark hole at first sight.

I liked the hole at first sight, so you're already wrong.
You become more wrong in assuming that people would buy a knife they find ugly due to a slightly lower price...there are literally tons and tons of knives with studs and disks, not to mention nail-nicks.
 
Traumatic flashbacks to Benchmade's pricing policy changes that they introduced last year. I followed that closely because at the time I was purchasing about 1 per month. I have not purchased a single one since their MAPP enforcement.

I say that because this is a VERY similar situation. I saw how that played out, many people upset at first, but eventually the furor died down and it was business as usual. I do know however, that some of the dyed in the wool Benchmade fans did in fact turn their back on the company and moved on to other brands. We'll see how this works out, but somehow I think Spyderco fans may be a more loyal bunch.

The ire drawn by BM fans was that it was a considerable increase, generally at least $30 on every model, and folks didn't feel like they were getting better QC for the increased price. It doesn't look like the Spyderco increase will be anywhere near as much. I own BMs and I own Spydercos without being a blind loyalist to either. If the knife is good and the math makes sense, I'll buy it and so will thousands of others. If it's beyond my realm of value for what is offered, then I won't. That goes for any brand.
 
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