DominikS Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 Hi! I've just learnt that Airfix is going to rise prices of their models. Does it mean that they have moved the production line from Asia back to Europe? I understand that the rise is connected to higher prodution costs. According to my fellow retailer the rise is about 40% to 60% on their small models (FW 190, Tiger Moth, Spitfire, Bf 109E-4 etc). If so, I'll reduce my purchasing of Airfix models to necessary minimum. That's a wrong way dear Airfix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul A H Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 40% to 60%? I'll believe it when I see it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Séan Pádraig Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 Revell have been releasing more of the subjects I'm interested in so Airfix price rises (if they happen) are not so much an issue to me, but price rises are always unwelcomed for us on a budget. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aeronut Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 When the price of oil went up in 1974 so did the price of kits - On the principle that oil is the raw material for polystyrene. On that basis the price should now be falling along with the price of oil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfqweofekwpeweiop4 Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 When the price of oil went up in 1974 so did the price of kits - On the principle that oil is the raw material for polystyrene. On that basis the price should now be falling along with the price of oil. Not if the labour and other costs go up. thanks Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sinnerboy Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 so that would mean 56 to 64 quid for a Sea Vixen.......can't see it, well not if they want to sell many kits. I've got 4 Vixens & 3 Javs for example, don't think I paid more than 30 for any of them & some I think were 25ish. If they cost much more it would be one of each & no more but as Paul said, I'll believe it when I see it which I hope I don't Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VMA131Marine Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 If Airfix has experienced a 40-60% rise in production costs, I'm quite sure that they will be looking for another supplier. No rational company would tolerate that kind of increase without looking for alternatives. There's no indication of a price change on the Airfix website but, in the worst case, Series 1 kits would be selling for close to GBP 10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 Is this a case of normal price rises being bumped up further by an importer? Wez Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Gordon Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 For me the price of a kit is not a major concern,if I want it then I'll buy it. What does bother me is the bit that I do at school.The bill is eventually paid by the parents.Most of them won't blench at the cost of a fiver or so for one kit. When the cost is going beyond a tenner for something that is only going to cover a couple of one hour sessions by a hamfisted,impatient kid who just wants to rattle through quantity with no regard for the quality of their efforts this rapidly starts to become expensive. The current Airfix releases are rapidly becoming a treat rather than run of the mill fodder and if the prices go up there is a strong possibility that they won't even be a feature purely because they are just too expensive to entertain. This is a sad state of affairs,the mere idea that Airfix isn't a part of a schoolkids world is too much to bear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marty_hopkirk Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 (edited) Not if the labour and other costs go up. thanks Mike Correct a lot has changed since 1974, labour costs are by far the biggest determing factor in cost now, the styrene costs have only a modest inpact.As much I look I can't find the registered charity number on the boxes of Airfix kits. Marty... Edited January 6, 2015 by marty_hopkirk 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Boak Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 (edited) Airfix have been putting a lot of effort into supporting younger modellers with school projects etc., so I don't see them suddenly abandoning that approach. But before that effort, was making Airfix kits really part of every schoolkid's world? Not since the eighties, I suggest, so we've had over 25 years to bear it. On the other hand, would an increase in price really destroy the market? I know I'm not entirely typical because of the number of unmade kits I already have, but I agree that if I want the kit, I'll buy it. The continued existence of the more expensive limited-production companies, which now cover such a wide extent on model shop shelves, has shown that high prices is not a complete sales killer. Let's face it, the current prices are staggering enough for those brought up on 2 shilling kits, it has all become just numbers. If yet higher prices are an unavoidable part of Airfix's recent higher quality, so be it. Edited January 6, 2015 by Graham Boak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kallisti Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 40-60% on the smaller kits? Tiger Moth is currently £5.99 on their website. 40% of £5.99 = £2.30 => new price £8.20 60% of £5.99 = £3.60 => new price £9.50 Hmm, I'd be very surprised if a retailer of non-essential products did something like this in the current economic climate. Inflation doesn't support that level of increase. What is the source of this rumour? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starfighter Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 Just a thought . . . If Airfix do increase their prices they'll still be cheaper than Hasegawa ! Well, that's my opinion anyway. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali62 Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Once again RRP means nothing these days as everybody discounts all products, not just modelling items, as soon as a new item is released. So the higher the pricing the higher the discounts. Airfix and other major brands are HURTING themselves and the market by doing it themselves and or letting retailers give huge discounts. Then you wonder how and why small traders are struggling and closing. I know it all gets complex and complicated and as I say it is NOT just the hobby industry, and we all like a bargain, and that is where it gets complicated. But just staying with the hobby, I know that it is really hard for guys to stay in business and offer the good service as very few items need to be bought at the RRP any more, as a quick look around can get you discounts of up to 40% on brand new releases, so the smaller guys just cannot match that, and most of the time cannot even buy kits at that price, and I know as I have been there and done it. I could go on but you all know what I mean, just look at some of the recent kits, and as we are talking Airfix, that they themselves dropped so heavily in price that small traders are still sitting with and will be for a long time, Nimrod, and Lynx, just to mention two examples. So wether the prices go up or not I am not sure what it will all mean, but what will be good for some will not be good for others. Pricing will always be a sensitive issue, and we all have our own ideas on what is right and wrong. I am also not convinced that this will happen as the current market is so competitive as others have said so we will have to wait and see. Any way that is enough rambling from me. Ali Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old thumper Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Can't see it happening, maybe it's 4% - 6% and somebody has got their wires crossed? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_modeller Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Well, the 7.99 they are listing for the new Defiant looks cheap to me, reckon its good value considering its a new tool. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul J Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Oil prices are plummeting and as oil is used in plastics should not this be reflected in the price of kits? To find out the truth why not ask Airfix direct!!??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kallisti Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 I would expect there to be some significant lag in the system for the very recent and rapid drop in oil prices to affect oil-derived products (except petrol which is sold as soon as it is made most of the time). That said, the cost of raw materials for Airfix is NOWADAYS probably a VERY tiny proportion of the cost of manufacturing an individual kit, probably outweighed by the cost of transportation (which of course will drop due to the oil price drop as well, but not immediately). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Rumour & hearsay at the moment until it's corroborated by Airfix themselves, or actual demonstrable means. Let's not let it become a factoid*, eh? Not even worth discussion further than that * Factoid - internet rumour that is repeated so often that it becomes thought to be true, regardless of the actual truth. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff_B Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Just a point but Dominik is in Poland, so this may be to do with the Euro exchange rates, local importer etc, rather than a price hike by Airfix themselves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DominikS Posted January 7, 2015 Author Share Posted January 7, 2015 Geoff you may be right. For me it stinks a lot. I assume it may be something with local importer. Below some examples (all in Polish Zloty) just to show the problem: Blenheim Mk.I from more less~50,00 to ~80,00Tiger Moth from ~20,00 to ~30,00Fw 190 from ~25,00 to ~42,00 These eamples were given by the man who works in one of the cheapest model shops in my country but show the problem. BTW. Why airfix don't produce their models in Europe. I don't think it is so much cheaper in Asia than in Europe. At least in some cases. Other companies have proved that it is possible to produce models at resonable price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul A H Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 That's interesting Dominik. Just looking at the Blenheim, 50 zloty = just over £9, whereas 80 zloty = just under £15. In the UK the RRP of the Blenheim is £14.99 so the new price is just about the same as over here. Maybe you've just been lucky so far! My advice is to stock up on Airfix kits quickly 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kallisti Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Looking at the exchange rate history between GBP and the Zloty, over the last month of so the Zloty has lost about 8% of its value against the pound, so that will account for some of the increase. However if we go back a year or more, the exchange rate history becomes more like an 11-13% difference from a low in March 2013 to now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ratch Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Just a point but Dominik is in Poland, so this may be to do with the Euro exchange rates, local importer etc, rather than a price hike by Airfix themselves. What a pity he didn't say that in his post 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DominikS Posted January 7, 2015 Author Share Posted January 7, 2015 Ratch, I haven't mentioned this 'cos I was assuming that this price issue is general for the UK too. But now I'm thinking that maybe our local importer has had to signs a new contract with higher prices. Funny enough, current low prices haven't changed for a few years, even when the exchange rate between Quid and Zloty was much less in favor of Polish currency than it is now. I only hope that the difference won't be so big. However, it's time to start saving money for Eduard's Spitfires in 72nd scale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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