Airsoft Canada - View Single Post

pancakedestroyer · May 1st, 2010, 01:59

High demand for a product shouldn't equate to higher prices. Lower prices gives more people an opportunity to get into something they might otherwise not bother with.
Some might argue that if you aren't willing to invest then you shouldn't be playing the game, true to an extent but look at it from a different angle.

Guitars, they range from dirt cheap to stupidly expensive. It is a hobby that can be gotten into on the cheap and when you approach someone else with your cheap guitar they don't look down on you, they go "man, that'll get you started but wait till you get your hands on one of these (insert brand x guitar here).

Airsoft from an outsiders perspective comes off like this, you buy a kraken or broxa to get a feel for it and people will either ridicule you for having a pos gun or someone will say "hey, its a start, maybe not a great start but you can work your way towards this (insert x brand gun here). Sometimes all people can afford is the lower end of the spectrum and while it is nice to say "save for something better, sometimes something better isn't always an option for some"
If the option to enter into the game with a lower price point isn't there then you won't see an influx of players and I think the one thing most of us want is more people playing the game.

Where am I going with this?

While the argument that high demand equates high prices seems valid to some people, some people don't buy it.
You would think that higher demand would mean a slightly lower price since they would be able to move more product.

If you're able to get a quality gun that someone is selling elsewhere for $600 into the hands of someone for $500 you've just made a customer. That person will remember that they got a good deal and keep coming back, they'll recommend that retailer to their friends and they'll spread the word.
We luckily have a store here like that and someone running it that is trying to spread the word for the airsoft scene in our location so kudos to him.

I don't think anyone should hold it against a retailer for the prices they list their product at. They really are limited on what their able to and we should support them as best we can.
We can't even say how much product the distributors bring in, I suspect part of them charging what they do is because they don't bring a lot of stock into the country.
I wouldn't want to import product that wasn't going to sell quickly and if I'm not importing a lot of product then shipping and storage costs are going to hurt me.

Having a US distributor may not be a bad thing, closer product could mean lower costs in the long run but, I don't import guns so I can only speculate.
I do know we shouldn't be harping on the retailers for trying to supply us with the guns we want.

Although, this is a topic thats been beaten, debated and discussed so many times before its starting to look like a halloween pumpkin that was left outside over the winter.

May 1st, 2010, 01:59	#32
pancakedestroyer Trader rating Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Edmonton, AB	High demand for a product shouldn't equate to higher prices. Lower prices gives more people an opportunity to get into something they might otherwise not bother with. Some might argue that if you aren't willing to invest then you shouldn't be playing the game, true to an extent but look at it from a different angle. Guitars, they range from dirt cheap to stupidly expensive. It is a hobby that can be gotten into on the cheap and when you approach someone else with your cheap guitar they don't look down on you, they go "man, that'll get you started but wait till you get your hands on one of these (insert brand x guitar here). Airsoft from an outsiders perspective comes off like this, you buy a kraken or broxa to get a feel for it and people will either ridicule you for having a pos gun or someone will say "hey, its a start, maybe not a great start but you can work your way towards this (insert x brand gun here). Sometimes all people can afford is the lower end of the spectrum and while it is nice to say "save for something better, sometimes something better isn't always an option for some" If the option to enter into the game with a lower price point isn't there then you won't see an influx of players and I think the one thing most of us want is more people playing the game. Where am I going with this? While the argument that high demand equates high prices seems valid to some people, some people don't buy it. You would think that higher demand would mean a slightly lower price since they would be able to move more product. If you're able to get a quality gun that someone is selling elsewhere for $600 into the hands of someone for $500 you've just made a customer. That person will remember that they got a good deal and keep coming back, they'll recommend that retailer to their friends and they'll spread the word. We luckily have a store here like that and someone running it that is trying to spread the word for the airsoft scene in our location so kudos to him. I don't think anyone should hold it against a retailer for the prices they list their product at. They really are limited on what their able to and we should support them as best we can. We can't even say how much product the distributors bring in, I suspect part of them charging what they do is because they don't bring a lot of stock into the country. I wouldn't want to import product that wasn't going to sell quickly and if I'm not importing a lot of product then shipping and storage costs are going to hurt me. Having a US distributor may not be a bad thing, closer product could mean lower costs in the long run but, I don't import guns so I can only speculate. I do know we shouldn't be harping on the retailers for trying to supply us with the guns we want. Although, this is a topic thats been beaten, debated and discussed so many times before its starting to look like a halloween pumpkin that was left outside over the winter.