Are NIB Stern buyers coping a double hit?

[spacejam0]

This may have already been covered but I haven't seen it.
I was reading on this forum last week that with the new stern boards the cost of manufacturing will be less and the question was asked if these savings would be passed on. Now it seems that instead of bringing the price down stern are doing the opposite and putting the price up and there costs will actually be coming down.
Does this sound correct or am I missing something?

[Pop Bumper Pete]

When was the last time a business cut its cost and passed on the savings to the consumer?

[Freiherr]

When was the last time a business cut its cost and passed on the savings to the consumer?

Yes,  the shareholders are chucking high 5s.

[GORGAR 1]

When was the last time a business cut its cost and passed on the savings to the consumer?

Like

[Homepin]

First, let's clarify that NOBODY except Stern and their accountants probably knows what the actual costs of old and new system is. It could well be the new system is MORE expensive - we don't know and I doubt we will EVER find out.

Second, the development costs for any new system like this are astronomical (ask me how I know ) and will have to be recouped from, yes, THE CUSTOMER!

Third, if you are reading this  crap on Pinside take ANYTHING you read there with a grain of salt. They are fast to gossip and bitch and tear down anything that anyone says but very slow to respond to a cry for assistance from a genuine hobbyist wanting help with a problem.

We are very lucky to have properly moderated sites here in Australia (AP & AA)

[Caveoftreasures]

I covered the conversion costs from a USA bought machine plus shipping plus import costs plus the Australian dollar exchange rate etc on another thread and the $7500 to $7850 range is exactly what the machine costs out to in Australia for a BNIB Pro so we are paying what the conversion formula says we should be paying pro rata.
We had it too good for too long with a good Australian dollar.

The $7100 and previous $6900 mark was about $500 or $700 under what we should have been paying when u do the maths.

Stern has to cover a massive increase in new high end design and engineering staff plus extra management , then throw in the research and development costs of the completely new SPIKETM system plus a new factory which is three times the size with 3 production lines instead of one. An increase was inevitable unfortunately.

The machines are a lot better so we have that as a bonus.

I am hearing that the pricing in Australia is not set in concrete and is being relooked at given customer feedback.
It pays to negotiate just like you do with any new purchase of a luxury item.

[pinnies4me]

When was the last time a business cut its cost and passed on the savings to the consumer?

Business needs to take care of itself and return the shareholders appropriately, so that comment is justified.

It's not the job of business to just "serve the consumer" - it must serve itself, and generally maximise profits.

As Mike said, there are also costs to recoup investing in progress.

But business also need to be mindful of risks of backlash when consumers become aware of behaviours that amount to profiteering.

Given the effectively boutique market Stern sells to and the lack of real competition - they will probably get away with some level of profiteering, and perhaps want to to maximise returns in the expectation of loss of market share to competitors - like Mike.

But here's the thing - if Stern keep pushing prices up to maximise profits, and the margins become so attractive, the normal economic effect is to bring new players into the field attracted by the returns. So like so many things, it is a balance. Some might even argue that they should maintain a good margin but drop the price as low as possible in order to discourage new players being able to compete well.

(Caveat - my worst subjects by a long shot at uni were economics and that probably shows!! :) )

[pinsanity]

Stern have yet to master how to boil the frog effectively.

The backlash we are seeing on forums is indicative of poor culinary skills.

I.E. You don't raise product prices across the board (pardon the pun) in the same week that you announce a new operating system that is less labour intensive and cheaper to manufacture than its predecessor.

[guyricho]

Business must be viable to continue operating so you can understand that

How much will the Aussie dollar effect sales of Future NIB games?
allot I would imagine.
Australia seems to buy allot of NIB games I wonder how much business will be lost from that?
It is not something they can really control though but would have to effect them.
With the higher prices might be a little of a problem unless the price increase locally covers the slower sales in Aus and other countries as the USA dollar gets stronger again?

The Aussie dollar would have to effect even the secondhand market I would assume the prices would have to go up by allot.

Im not entirely sure which one would be effected the most the NIB games or secondhand games?
Good if you own games already here in Australia new or old no good if you are an importer of new or old games.

[pinsanity]

Here's a good litmus test -

The Victorian ex-Stern agent has just pulled all of their NIB Stern pin auctions off ebay since they were listed at the "old" pricing. Never mind that the pins have has been listed for months on end with no sale.

No doubt we will see new listings with new prices (using old stock inventory purchased at the old prices) in the coming days.

[pinnies4me]

No doubt we will see new listings with new prices (using old stock inventory purchased at the old prices) in the coming days.

Given the next game(s) they have to buy to replace that stock will cost them more, that is not unusual retailer practice.

[Caveoftreasures]

Couple things to point out.

Two weeks ago I contacted three seperate businesses offering brand new Stern stock on ebay Aust and although they were offering titles like Zmustang n Star Trek n Walking Dead and some Premium Star Trek stock at various prices, NO ONE actually had any stock left at all.
So they are not profiteering on older purchased stock and charging the new pricing at all cause the ads were left to attract future orders and weren't indicitive of stock held.

ALSO, Bruce has stated today that he has 3 x Walking Dead Pro BNIB at the $7100. These three will be at $7100 and the next container will be the new pricing ! Seems fair.
If u want a TWD Pro, be quick and save $750.

[Replay]

The LE has gone up $950 to $11250
Premium $9850
Pro $7850
 

[RottyGuy]

Not enough for your money at those prices. For me I will be buying other luxury items before a NIB pinball. I like Stern pinball, but NIB prices are just too high now.

[pinsanity]

Given the next game(s) they have to buy to replace that stock will cost them more, that is not unusual retailer practice.

No doubt, but the real test will be if the end consumer accepts it.

I regularly sell restored machines in what is the premium (8k and above) range and the number of collectors in Australia who can come up with that amount of money in one hit on a semi-regular basis would fit on a standard A4 lined sheet of paper.

The basic stripped back Pro models are now breaching this price point for anyone who doesn't live in Sydney.

The home collector market is still a relatively new market for pinball, but instead of nurturing it and encouraging it to grow, they are squeezing their customer base too hard for the sake of short term gain.