Shimano price increse, varying reports of up to 100% increse

mtbhenry888
mtbhenry888 Posts: 287
edited February 2009 in Workshop
Heard first on the planet x website, shimano major price increse, people saying £400 for XTR crankset and £700 for XTR wheels, not sure of the road stuff but looks like bad news for us! Does anyone know if this will mean 2009 bikes will increse? or will it be 2010 bikes that get the increase?
Carbon fibre, it's all nonsense. Drink beer. Ride a steel bike. Don't be a ponce.
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Comments

  • Underscore
    Underscore Posts: 730
    Well, a number of road bikes are already seeing a round of new year price hikes due to the exchange rate - on top of the price hikes of '09 bikes over '08. The Giant Defy 1 that I'm considering is now £975 rather than the £925 it was before Jan 1st. The Bianchi dealer said that he was expecting a round of exchange rate driven price increases soon too...

    If you're thinking of getting a new road bike, start looking now - though it may already be getting a bit late...

    _
  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    mtbhenry888 wrote:
    looks like bad news for us!

    No ones making you buying Shimano stuff......
    I like bikes...

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  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    Not just Shimano, but most mainstream bike parts prices are impacted by fluctuations in the US$ exchange rate. Buy now would be my advise - the £ has dropped 30% against the dollar so expect big increases
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • Dustine
    Dustine Posts: 184
    DT Swiss rims have gone up by approx. £12 in the last 12 months, a 30% hike. I got a shock when i came to buy a rim to match the wheel i built in Feb of last year!!!

    Hub Jub have also mentioned increases they have had to make over the last few months, due to them being a small retailer, and not having huge stocks of items bought when the pound was stronger.
  • gkerr4
    gkerr4 Posts: 3,408
    prices are flying up at the minute!

    And red - we can't talk - when I look at the cost of the campag stuff I (we!) bought at this time last year - try getting your neutron ultras for £350 again - no chance - the Eurus that I paid £360 for are now £484 and thats a decent price compared to what most places are selling them at - Ive seen shamal ultras for over £800!! - they were just over £500 last year and I couldn't quite justify the extra £150 for them over the Eurus!

    Even tyres! - the bog basic Rubino tyres from Wiggle used to be £6 each or two + two inner tubes for £14 - the individual tyre is now £8.61 (discounted from a list price of £10.76) - OK so it's only a couple of quid - but it's a 43% hike in cost!
  • Dustine
    Dustine Posts: 184
    I think the scary thing is that this is real, ACTUAL increases in cost. A couple of years ago they were saying there was going to be a worldwide shortage of carbon, and bike prices would have to go up, ditto titanium. We could have panic bought, but they didnt go up at all in the end. But this time, no scare stories needed, the prices are just 30 or more percent higher one day than they were the day before!! Respect for P-X for at least forwarning people that prices are going up on monday. Wish i'd had a warning about those DT rims....
  • CumbrianMan
    CumbrianMan Posts: 240
    I'll vouch for the price increases.

    Came off my winter bike last week :cry: and trolleyed my rear Mavic Aksium. :x
    The set of Black Aksiums I bought in July 2007 - £78 - bargain. :)

    Fast forward to last week, where the cheapest I could get a Black rear Aksium £70. :!: Most places it was something like £86. And for the wheelset, £150.

    Suppose moral of my story is - don't crash !!

    But you get the picture !
    "There are no hills, there is no wind, I feel no pain !"

    "A bad day on the bike is always better than a good day in the office !"
  • Mettan
    Mettan Posts: 2,103
    Yep - seem to remember recently that you could get a pair of Fulcrum 7's for £99 or similar - now they're floating around £130 or more in many places.
  • bendertherobot
    bendertherobot Posts: 11,684
    Most places quoting £530 odd for the DA CL clinchers.

    And most places don't have stock. I wonder whether they could get up to £600 or so when they come back in.
    My blog: http://www.roubaixcycling.cc (kit reviews and other musings)
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  • Wappygixer
    Wappygixer Posts: 1,396
    All the new 09 bikes where I work are going up by silly amounts, some have gone from like £500 to £700 and these are bought against the Euro not the Dollar.
    Thing is bikes and components are still very cheap and good value for money.
    If any of you can remember the 90's prices in relation to performance was terrible.
  • fossyant
    fossyant Posts: 2,549
    I've been pricing up a fixed road bike from cycle to work scheme - the LBS warned prices were going up, and work's dragging it's feet...great....
  • daveplanetx
    daveplanetx Posts: 91
    Madisons pricing went up 30-40% overnight last week , pretty much across the board .

    Lots of repricing going on next week ,
  • softlad
    softlad Posts: 3,513
    great way to kill a marketplace....
  • shockedsoshocked
    shockedsoshocked Posts: 4,021
    The DA chainset I was going to buy on sunday night jumped from 175 to 295 in my LBS when i went to buy it on the monday.

    DO NOT WANT
    "A cyclist has nothing to lose but his chain"

    PTP Runner Up 2015
  • top_bhoy
    top_bhoy Posts: 1,424
    ShockedSoShocked wrote:
    The DA chainset I was going to buy on sunday night jumped from 175 to 295 in my LBS when i went to buy it on the monday.

    DO NOT WANT

    If it was to be an order then fair enough,they need to charge you the current price but if not and in current stock, the LBS is jumping on a bandwagon. If the latter, I'd be thinking carefully about using them in future as it seems poor customer loyalty and service.
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  • mtbhenry888
    mtbhenry888 Posts: 287
    This is quite a serious issue and doen't really benefit from smart arse comments
    No ones making you buying Shimano stuff......

    If you think logically, most, if not all kids and lower end hybrid/town bikes are Shimano equipt, this means that if they rise people who may not cycle usually will be put off, i thought the government was trying to get more people cycling, instead of paying car manufacturers millions and forgetting about the bike industry they need to think carefully about other aspects of the transport system in the UK. The bike industry is in theory fairly reccesion proof because when cars go up, bikes become much more attractive, but because of the weak currrency to the yen in this case it means bikes are going up, putting people who may be thinking about buying one off, because of the prices. I agrre that the car companies need to be helped as i hope the government would do for the bike industry if they had serious porblems, but they cannot just pour money into something whilst forgetting everyone else!
    Carbon fibre, it's all nonsense. Drink beer. Ride a steel bike. Don't be a ponce.
  • softlad
    softlad Posts: 3,513
    aluminium prices have dropped about 60% since July 08. Surely that would have more than offset any exchange rate increases..??
  • mtbhenry888
    mtbhenry888 Posts: 287
    not sure but Madison, the shimnao importers cannot buy it from shimano and phisically sell it for a profit over here unless they up the prices
    Carbon fibre, it's all nonsense. Drink beer. Ride a steel bike. Don't be a ponce.
  • meagain
    meagain Posts: 2,331
    Ah, back to the "good ol' days"!
    Unfortunately I'm old enough to remember the >25% inflation (and not just on luxury goods like expensive bikes) of the early '70s. Indeed my first HMG post was in The Price Commission!
    d.j.
    "Cancel my subscription to the resurrection."
  • meagain
    meagain Posts: 2,331
    "i hope the government would do for the bike industry if they had serious porblems, but they cannot just pour money into something whilst forgetting everyone else!"

    And what would you suggest? There IS no UK "bike industry" in any meaningful sense. It is a retail/service sector activity and a pretty small one at that. I didn't notice any rescue for Woolies!

    Transport policy is another matter. I suppose could be impacted by fiscal changes (no VAT on bikes?), but I imagine infrastructure more relevant (and there'll be precious little spend on that for next 2 years minimum).
    d.j.
    "Cancel my subscription to the resurrection."
  • acorn_user
    acorn_user Posts: 1,137
    Time to start buying British steel frames again eh? At least those prices aren't going up :)

    Over here, things are going the other way. The weak dollar was making Campag parts prices insane. The LBS price for new parts was over the top; 120$ for a Veloce rear derailleur.
  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    mtbhenry888 wrote:
    This is quite a serious issue and doen't really benefit from smart ars* comments
    No ones making you buying Shimano stuff......

    What was so smartarse about it?

    No one is making you buy new bike stuff. If you don't like the price increases don't buy anything. Yes, it's a b!tch that's stuffs gone up, but life isn't fair.

    There's plenty of bargains to be found on the likes of ebay and the like. Meagain is a good example of this (and I'm sure he'd agree) that you don't need the brand new stuff to enjoy cycling and get loads of miles in.
    I like bikes...

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  • Bikefotos
    Bikefotos Posts: 59
    Don't forget we are just at the start of the deepest depression most of us will have experienced. This is worldwide.

    In the end it will be supply and demand that dictates the prices. If you can't afford it - don't buy it. Manufacturers will have to reduce the cost of their products or else face the fate of the car industry.
  • shockedsoshocked
    shockedsoshocked Posts: 4,021
    Top_Bhoy wrote:
    ShockedSoShocked wrote:
    The DA chainset I was going to buy on sunday night jumped from 175 to 295 in my LBS when i went to buy it on the monday.

    DO NOT WANT

    If it was to be an order then fair enough,they need to charge you the current price but if not and in current stock, the LBS is jumping on a bandwagon. If the latter, I'd be thinking carefully about using them in future as it seems poor customer loyalty and service.

    Yeh, I think the guy had to order it in (and i have a feeling it would have been a 7900 one), and to be fair the customer service in there generally is top notch (everyone knows my name in there now, a bit like Cheers), it's just that I really can't justify spending that much unfortunately. The guy's have to make a living mind you.
    "A cyclist has nothing to lose but his chain"

    PTP Runner Up 2015
  • meagain
    meagain Posts: 2,331
    "If it was to be an order then fair enough,they need to charge you the current price but if not and in current stock, the LBS is jumping on a bandwagon. If the latter, I'd be thinking carefully about using them in future as it seems poor customer loyalty and service."

    On slow "stock turn-over" items retailers have, in times of high inflation, no choice but to increase prices of current stock bought at "last week's prices". Otherwise they cannot buy replacement stock at "next week's prices" and will soon go under. This distinction has historically been recognised in times of price/profit controls: grocers were not allowed to re-price fast selling items, other shops could legitimately up the price of say a bike. As I recall the limit was set at a stock turnover of 30x per annum.

    Currently of course there are no such controls in UK and thus no associated restrictions.
    d.j.
    "Cancel my subscription to the resurrection."
  • Birillo
    Birillo Posts: 417
    The tide might (just might) have turned. The pound has been rising steadily over the last few weeks.

    http://uk.reuters.com/article/ukPoundRp ... 7320090130

    Bought an item from Italy today and got almost 10% more Euros for my pounds than I would have a month ago. Retailers will soon be cutting their Campagnolo prices . . .
  • markmod
    markmod Posts: 501
    All this makes you realise in some areas, to BUY BRITISH now is not an option anymore. We have lost ground in so many areas of manufacturing against Europe, Japan and the States that its embarrassing.... Try buying a mass produced, British owned and British built car now, we were the market leaders in the world at one point in the past.

    We are now a country that is service and finance based, manufacturing is all farmed out to the Chinese/ Far East, for 'cheap items'. I have always said we will save now (an we did in the past) and pay through the nose for it later (what we are currently doing in Jobs/ repossions/ business going broke!), and I believe we are now seeing that.

    The credit crunch/ recession has destroyed the industries that make 'numbers and vapour ware' for a business... and the banks are playing Monopoly with business, both small and large, so even if you made top quality groupsets in the UK, they would freeze your loans, future business development investments, etc so they can try to rebuild their profits back up from the billions we have just given them to invest back into business.

    Remember the banks enjoyed a game of casino with your and my savings by playing the money markets and taking their eyes off the ball about the quality/ ability to pay back of loans they did make in the first place- it was a free money policy to all and sundry! (i just wish I had enjoyed the 'Credit Party' like most others, did rather than being sensible 'cos i'm paying for it now anyways!)

    We haven't got a manufacturing industry to fall back on to fight the downtown/ recession. It makes me mad when they say the low pound makes our goods great value for the rest of the world, but we now buy in everything with that 'week pound' from the rest of the world with much higher currencies.

    Anyways off my soap box, and i'm just so glad I bought my new Campag Chorus Scott CR1 just before christmas on the advice of Epic Cycles (who saw the storm- price increases coming)
  • Billios
    Billios Posts: 96
    Will Shimano reduce their prices when (and it already has started to) the pound recovers? Im gonna be cynical and think not. As someone else has pointed out, the crash in the commodity markets will mean at some point bike prices come down. Just need to sit and wait a little.
  • djaeggi
    djaeggi Posts: 107
    softlad wrote:
    aluminium prices have dropped about 60% since July 08. Surely that would have more than offset any exchange rate increases..??

    Unfortunately, raw aluminium costs in the region of USD1.50 a kg, and 60% of something small is something small :-) By far the biggest cost of a component is the manufacturing cost and the commercial overhead, and this is governed by where the stuff is made. On the plus side, shipping costs have radically dropped as have energy costs. It's not all bad news! That said, I'm getting my component purchases for the next year in now...
  • thetrotter
    thetrotter Posts: 258
    Bikefotos wrote:
    Don't forget we are just at the start of the deepest depression most of us will have experienced. This is worldwide. In the end it will be supply and demand that dictates the prices.

    Will be interesting to see if the new prices "stick". Don't see car manufacturers - equally affected by exchange rates - putting their prices up by 50% at the moment...........

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