K-Man

Pricing is subject to a lot of things and customers often prioritize it differently from one other. Raising the prices does not always slow the ebb of demand.

We try and price our holsters at a price point that will allow the greatest number of people to purchase one. It does create a high demand.

T. Kanaley

I wish I could have said it differently, but the whole notion reeks of snobbery.

You aren't the first to suggest raising prices to what the market will bear. I have gotten numerous emails and phone calls in the past from others, suggesting I do as you suggest. I don't think any of those emails and phone calls had anything to do with any concern they may have had for the future success of my business, or for the welfare of any of my customers. The suggestion is generally made for purely selfish reasons, as those who have suggested as you do, also had a problem with any wait times, whether it is with us, or anyone else. Money was no object to those folks as long as they could get the product sooner, nor could they care less if it was an object to someone less endowed financially then they were.

We make a fair profit on our product and raise our prices only when necessary. But for those who are 'just getting by' in this business, maybe a serious consideration of your proposal is in order. A word of caution though. It's a lot easier to raise prices if you need to than it is to lower them later on.

__________________
Milt Sparks Holsters, Inc.
www.miltsparks.com
Second Best is not an option

orangehole

Although the demand for leather holsters has surely increased, I belive the supply of cowhide is plentyful since we consume millions of cattle every year so the leather is in no shortage. I think if a holster maker raises prices too high, it will cause buyers to shift to a cheaper maker and logjam their output. That is why Sparks has a 6 month wait. They make a great product at a fair price. Rosen and kramer both make great leather but their prices are higher and thus have a shorter wait. You can buy a cowhide scabbard from Sparks for $82 or pay $115 from kramer or $140 from Rosen. It's easy to see why Sparks is so busy.

jarhead79

Tony,

I don't think I ever want to experiment with that. I can clearly see your point.

__________________
Sig P239 9mm
Bersa Thunder.45
Ruger SP101 .38 SPL
Glock 36 (night sites)

UBG Holsters current wait time as of 7-16-2009: 3-5 weeks.

Ray Blodgett

Let's talk reality. Someone demands - Someone supplies. Someone demands more, and this demand is industry wide. Obviously something has changed in the market place and that change has lasted a year. The change Might be here to stay. It might be time for the supplying Someone to change-- God forbid!--
By the way(no names) If you have been paying attention a couple of the major players have made major changes.

__________________
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jarhead79

OK, All my holsters are now base priced at $200.

(not really, it's just a joke)

__________________
Sig P239 9mm
Bersa Thunder.45
Ruger SP101 .38 SPL
Glock 36 (night sites)

UBG Holsters current wait time as of 7-16-2009: 3-5 weeks.

Redneck Repairs

A lot of holsters are out there , I look at them as i can and select what fits my needs the best . A custom craftsman quotes me a price , and a delivery date far in the future ( i am currently awaiting at least one ) The craftsman gets paid for his hours crafting the produce , i get a better than factory product tho i wait for it . I dont see where its a down side , the craftsman gets what is needed to build the holster , and i get the better holster . I for one would not pay immediate gratification price for a holster , if i want factory i will buy it , for when i want better than factory the wait is a non issue . the quality however is expected to be and has been exceptional .

__________________
Make sure you get full value out of today , Do something worthwhile, because what you do today will cost you one day off the rest of your life .
We only begin to understand folks after we stop and think .

Criminals are looking for victims, not opponents.

ozshadow

I assure you, I am not a rich man.

When making this post, I was not even considering Milt Sparks in this classification. It was aimed at the part-time individual craftsman rather than a full time, multi-person business.

I currently carry in a VM2, that is until I receive my own custom, which I have been patiently waiting for.

I do not want to see these craftsmen fade away. I'd hate to see the day all holsters come from China or some machine that spits out 1000 a day.

Eric Larsen

Interesting thread.....what is funny is the average price for my holsters seems to be around 120$....because of shark skin accents....etc. At least 40% of what I do has some kind of exotic skin on it.

Shoot well and god bless...........Eric

__________________
If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice..........Rush

T. Kanaley

ozshadow, I'm not trying to pick a fight with you. Honest! But your initial post was pretty generic in that it didn’t differentiate as to the size of the company you were referring to. Not that it really matters. Intentionally raising prices in a purposeful intent to discourage customer interest in a product, really doesn’t make a whole lot of business sense now, does it?

If you go visit this thread and scroll on down, you will see the exact same question posed as to why Milt Sparks doesn't raise their prices to reduce their backlog. This isn’t exactly new stuff, though I decided not to get involved in that particular thread.

I suppose that on the other side of the coin, having a huge backlog is a good way to discourage the impatient from ordering, thus in effect limiting the backlog somewhat. I guess it depends a lot on a makers perspective. Sort of a Yin and Yang in the holstermakers universe.

__________________
Milt Sparks Holsters, Inc.
www.miltsparks.com
Second Best is not an option