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Tamiya prices at Tower/MAP Pricing

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18 minutes ago, Juggernut said:

There are principled buyers and there are buyers that are value focused. I'm primarily value focussed as I'm inclined to believe the vast majority of consumers are.  From the post I linked, it looks like the poster is hesitant about paying rcMart's shipping cost.  Add to that the time it takes to get the item from foreign supplier and you have a major negative when in the states shipping is both cheap and fast.

I presume a consumer in the states would have to be very motivated to either pay straight up MSRP or a high shipping rate from an unfamiliar foreign supplier.

Forcing online retailers to advertise at MSRP makes no sense in an age where price comparisons/product research can be done so thoroughly and easily.

The conspiracy theorist in me says someone with decision making power at Tamiya knows someone at rcMart and they both pulled off a major con. THAT makes more sense to me then forcing advertising at MSRP on US online retailers.

 

Your effort to classify a trivial amount of consumers is already betraying your original argument -- trying to treat everyone as "if not A, then B" is never going to work for you here. We're a group of weirdos that like to spend our hard-earned money on fancy toys that cost as much as it does to feed an entire family in Africa for years. I myself make purchase decisions for a whole variety of reasons, some more emotional than others. But never once do I believe that this is something Tamiya should pay attention to when making marketing decisions. They'd definitely be out of business if they did :lol:

And if you're relying on a theory that involves the word "conspiracy"?

I rest my case. ;)

 

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On 8/4/2018 at 12:58 AM, OCD said:

 

Again, maybe I'm mistaken, but does anyone here really believe that the increase in MAP pricing was anything but a global strategy? Tamiya sells most of its products in asia, and very little of that is RC items to begin with. How exactly would increasing their pricing in a very exclusive/tiny market ever translate to a significant impact in their overall sales? Or maybe a better question, how would the bean-counters ever allow it? Surely I can't be the only one that sees the flawed logic behind this?

As I am aware of, here in Europe, a guy, opened a Hobby shop in Croatia, Zagreb. Close to the local track.

that was in the time when when the tl01 came out, his carrer ended at the time when the TA06 came out. People realized that tamiya tt01 or similar are not competing well with high end chassis. He was left with a bunch of kits in his shop, which he closed a few years ago and sells only online.

 

the story behind opening a hobby shop and being a official dealer is... you need to buy a container full of the latest tamiya models and of course spare parts. And then make your profit. Not really a easy way to make money. So upping the prices is maybe to save other dealers from a bankrott. 

 

My opinion, might be very wrong..

 

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18 hours ago, Fabia130vRS said:

As I am aware of, here in Europe, a guy, opened a Hobby shop in Croatia, Zagreb. Close to the local track.

that was in the time when when the tl01 came out, his carrer ended at the time when the TA06 came out. People realized that tamiya tt01 or similar are not competing well with high end chassis. He was left with a bunch of kits in his shop, which he closed a few years ago and sells only online.

 

the story behind opening a hobby shop and being a official dealer is... you need to buy a container full of the latest tamiya models and of course spare parts. And then make your profit. Not really a easy way to make money. So upping the prices is maybe to save other dealers from a bankrott. 

 

My opinion, might be very wrong..

 

You just described nearly every retail operation that's ever existed. Manufacturers set the terms of trade, and the retailers either accept the deal or not. I'm pretty sure Tamiya's not holding a gun to anyone's head :rolleyes:

But again, I'm perplexed by how quickly everyone seems to jump on Tamiya, like they have some sort of sinister plan to deny us the huge lineup of products they offer, but happen to be such low-quality junk, no one wants them anyhow... Am I doing this right?:P

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< reply snipped on second thought>

Yikes. I just read the latest replies in the thread and the withering condescension is breathtaking. This is really a thread I should have rolled my eyes and passed by. MAP doesn't affect me ultimately since I've got all the Tamiyas I ever wanted already and the bits I need for my projects I get second hand anyway.

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5 hours ago, OCD said:

Your effort to classify a trivial amount of consumers is already betraying your original argument -- trying to treat everyone as "if not A, then B" is never going to work for you here. We're a group of weirdos that like to spend our hard-earned money on fancy toys that cost as much as it does to feed an entire family in Africa for years.

Oh, there is a difference between a casual buyer such as the poster I linked and the hard core collector. My point is the casual buyer is unlikely to purchase a Hornet, Frog, or Grasshopper kit to introduce his kids to Tamiya post MAP.

That's how I was introduced 30+ years ago. I don't think that's insignificant.

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Devils advocate:

Tamiya USA are about to launch a new website - sneak images of it came out over the weekend (at least that was the first I saw of it).

If they are planning direct sales, they'll want to get more of the cake for themselves.

What better way than ensuring their own website won't be undercut online?

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18 hours ago, OCD said:

And if you're relying on a theory that involves the word "conspiracy"?

I rest my case. ;)

 

Maybe a stretch but who knows.

My Monster Beetle purchase a year ago:

image.thumb.png.b92bb6ab72223ad165aa8abd3aa5e05b.png

Monster Beetle from Tower now:

image.png.2723396026f168d3046ddb2c1eac4b9e.png

rcMart now:

Capture.PNG.69e1eb51ec36d77ad0c64e00b2017c3d.PNG

If I can get past the crazy shipping, somehow rcMart just became $10 cheaper pretty much overnight.

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1 hour ago, Juggernut said:

If I can get past the crazy shipping, somehow rcMart just became $10 cheaper pretty much overnight.

 

I think you'll want to spend the extra $10 on the shipping time between the two options.  

 

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6 minutes ago, Mahjik said:

 

I think you'll want to spend the extra $10 on the shipping time between the two options.  

 

Most likely that's what I'd choose if I were in the market for one now and willing to stomach the $50 mark-up due to Tamiya's new MAP rules.  I'm glad I purchased one prior to.

Ideally, Tower (or even AMain) re-tools their website to bring Tamiya kit prices down to more competitive rates.  But who knows if that will happen?  Cost/benefit might not be there.  Would love to hear any inside stories as to how much warning Tamiya gave to their US distributors?

Until then, I'll work on building out my Kyosho collection.  I can get a Kyosho Optima from AMain for just $40 over what I'd be paying for a MAP Monster Beetle kit.  Nostalgia aside, my limited budget couldn't justify the $40 separating the two kits.

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I wouldn't mind the price hike so much if they just included bearings in all their kits!  Granted it wouldn't justify a 50 dollar price hike, but it would be something...

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42 minutes ago, 78Triumph said:

I wouldn't mind the price hike so much if they just included bearings in all their kits!  Granted it wouldn't justify a 50 dollar price hike, but it would be something...

That and throw in a voucher for an MIP dif kit and I'm back in :lol:

And I'm not trying to disparage Tamiya's re re offerings.  They're quirky 80's style plastic RC kits that some of us gen X'ers grew up with and loved.  My only contention is the obfuscated pricing scheme that has arbitrarily valued them above what they really are.  And sure, I'm willing to pay a premium for nostalgia, but I feel that I was already doing that.  

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On Saturday I was at the track and discussed Tamiya's MAP strategy with a few of the racers, one of whom was a former TRF racer and none of us could make sense of the decision to move to an MAP... unless as ShopKeeper stated, Tamiya is going to launch their own direct website.. then it makes sense.  This would also reinforce why they now have an outside company running their distribution centre

To be clear, TamiyaUSA does have its own shop presently... but it charges full retail price and meant to fulfil the need of the consumer when they can't find an item at a dealer.  

I mentioned this a few pages back.. When a dealer purchases a kit from Tamiya, they receive wholesale pricing. By implementing an MAP, the wholesale price the dealer is paying to Tamiya does not increase. If it did, they would drop Tamiya.  

The MAP enforces the dealer to sell the kit at a higher price, thereby increasing their margin. This is a good thing, however the offset effect is that they may sell less kits. If the latter were to occur, Tamiya USA will sell less kits.. so the end result is not a good one. 

Now if Tamiya USA is launching their own site and wants to deal directly with the consumer.. then the MAP does make sense.  This move would be in preparation of launch of the site.  I believe Apple did the same thing before launching their own retail stores.  But for Tamiya to become Apple and command the price control they have in place.... the road will be a steep one! 

I will tell you that the managing director of Tamiya USA has dropped the ball in the past couple of years.  Tamiya Japan may have given him an ultimatum and requested an action plan for him to turn things around.  The MAP and launching of direct sales would most likely be his plan to save Tamiya USA and his own job.  

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6 minutes ago, Raman36 said:

Now if Tamiya USA is launching their own site and wants to deal directly with the consumer.. then the MAP does make sense.  This move would be in preparation of launch of the site.  I believe Apple did the same thing before launching their own retail stores.  But for Tamiya to become Apple and command the price control they have in place.... the road will be a steep one! 

I will tell you that the managing director of Tamiya USA has dropped the ball in the past couple of years.  Tamiya Japan may have given him an ultimatum and requested and action plan for him to turn things around.  The MAP and launching of direct sales would most likely be his plan to save Tamiya USA and his own job.  

That makes sense.  Thank you for the info.  It will be interesting to see how all this shakes down.

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4 hours ago, Raman36 said:

On Saturday I was at the track and discussed Tamiya's MAP strategy with a few of the racers, one of whom was a former TRF racer and none of us could make sense of the decision to move to an MAP... unless as ShopKeeper stated, Tamiya is going to launch their own direct website.. then it makes sense.  This would also reinforce why they now have an outside company running their distribution centre

To be clear, TamiyaUSA does have its own shop presently... but it charges full retail price and meant to fulfil the need of the consumer when they can't find an item at a dealer.  

I mentioned this a few pages back.. When a dealer purchases a kit from Tamiya, they receive wholesale pricing. By implementing an MAP, the wholesale price the dealer is paying to Tamiya does not increase. If it did, they would drop Tamiya.  

The MAP enforces the dealer to sell the kit at a higher price, thereby increasing their margin. This is a good thing, however the offset effect is that they may sell less kits. If the latter were to occur, Tamiya USA will sell less kits.. so the end result is not a good one. 

Now if Tamiya USA is launching their own site and wants to deal directly with the consumer.. then the MAP does make sense.  This move would be in preparation of launch of the site.  I believe Apple did the same thing before launching their own retail stores.  But for Tamiya to become Apple and command the price control they have in place.... the road will be a steep one! 

I will tell you that the managing director of Tamiya USA has dropped the ball in the past couple of years.  Tamiya Japan may have given him an ultimatum and requested an action plan for him to turn things around.  The MAP and launching of direct sales would most likely be his plan to save Tamiya USA and his own job.  

I got an e-mail from Tamiya USA about their new website that goes live today. I haven't looked, so it could just be coincidence.

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I looked because I needed to find a part number. So far it looks like just an update / new look.

My bookmarks are all dead links at the moment.. hope all the urls to the home page of my kits haven’t changed.. otherwise  I’ll have to delete my entire Tamiya book mark folder 

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The new site is live. I wonder how this will affect an order on parts that I made last week with the old site. Usually after making an order there, it would ship 2 days later. I now know why the delay in shipping. I cannot login to the new site with my old account info (gotta make a new account). Searching by order number pulls up nothing. Going to have to send an email.

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So the new site works a lot faster and seems better organized. Product pricing for direct sales is still the same.

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I can’t log in either .. they have some bugs to work out 

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Wow, I've never seen any website that's so new.  I'm always slow to hear about things like this.  Makes me glad that I'm in TC.  

Konghead is $260.  I paid $159.99 on January 29th.  So that's $100.01 more.  Makes you wonder what you are getting for that extra $100.  Tamiya should keep MAP only for their own website. And drop MAP for others.  That way, Tamiya's website would work like an advertisement site showing the "recommended price," but people will go to brick and mortar shops or Tower.  

 

tA0OTOP.jpg

 

[AND TODAY.....]

 

Kc7wUIB.jpg

 

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16 minutes ago, Raman36 said:

I can’t log in either .. they have some bugs to work out 

You have to use the "Forgot Password" option and set a new password.

 

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10 hours ago, 78Triumph said:

I wouldn't mind the price hike so much if they just included bearings in all their kits!  Granted it wouldn't justify a 50 dollar price hike, but it would be something...

That and cough up a couple bucks for real *******in sponsor decals.   There's  many  a cheaper toy out there that's fully licensed. 

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2 minutes ago, Mahjik said:

You have to use the "Forgot Password" option and set a new password.

I did that and never got the email.  Not in spam either.

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Lets hope they fixed the hack with not being able to pay by paypal or stealing credit card info. I havent ordered from them since last year but i did it over the phone. I tried a few months ago for my txt2 and the same crap was happening. 

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TamiyaUSA used to be a bible website for a majority of the models from 58080 onwards, now it’s just a crappy web store of current stuff only, Very sad. 

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18 minutes ago, Juls1 said:

TamiyaUSA used to be a bible website for a majority of the models from 58080 onwards, now it’s just a crappy web store of current stuff only, Very sad. 

Me too, this sucks ... I'm seeing a lot of missing part and model info that was there on the old website. I hope they aren't done with this :unsure:

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