Josh
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Apr 3, 2011
- Messages
- 218
- Reaction score
- 51
Mark has a great opportunity to leverage his collaboration and influence the Damascus market here - but it's up to the other makers to define how much they let Mark get away with.
He's intentionally or unintentionally impacting the other business he has - and he's created a dangerously fluid environment for himself.
By coming in with a $400 price point, he's limited the profit he and his suppliers can make on similar but not Damascus knives in the future, and created a ceiling for all the knives he sells including (not limited to) those from Butch, Raider, Carter & Devin. Did he just push his semi-custom makers and big suppliers of $300+ retail non-Damascus knives away? Does he think his knives can compete with all other manufacturers? Apparently he does! Can he? Only time will tell. I don't think people will stop wanting these big name knives.
I'd love to hear a review on the richM$ond. It would be a good indicator of what's coming. Apparently I can't type that word in now... not a good sign for this Forum.
It might very well be a bad move, considering folks like Takeda and Misono have recently raised prices - and I'd expect similarly marketed products to have a desire to follow suit. How long it takes for him to figure out if it was a bad move is up to his suppliers and competition and how and when they react.
The longer the wait, the more success and less risk Mark will have. He's positioned himself well - like it or not. This will be very interesting to watch, and I'm glad this product was pointed out. Someone might see this as an opportunity to pick up Mark's suppliers one by one and compete with his site.
PS - I'm not cancelling any of my custom orders thanks very much. I'm aware of the difference in quality, I'm willing to pay for quality.
He's intentionally or unintentionally impacting the other business he has - and he's created a dangerously fluid environment for himself.
By coming in with a $400 price point, he's limited the profit he and his suppliers can make on similar but not Damascus knives in the future, and created a ceiling for all the knives he sells including (not limited to) those from Butch, Raider, Carter & Devin. Did he just push his semi-custom makers and big suppliers of $300+ retail non-Damascus knives away? Does he think his knives can compete with all other manufacturers? Apparently he does! Can he? Only time will tell. I don't think people will stop wanting these big name knives.
I'd love to hear a review on the richM$ond. It would be a good indicator of what's coming. Apparently I can't type that word in now... not a good sign for this Forum.
It might very well be a bad move, considering folks like Takeda and Misono have recently raised prices - and I'd expect similarly marketed products to have a desire to follow suit. How long it takes for him to figure out if it was a bad move is up to his suppliers and competition and how and when they react.
The longer the wait, the more success and less risk Mark will have. He's positioned himself well - like it or not. This will be very interesting to watch, and I'm glad this product was pointed out. Someone might see this as an opportunity to pick up Mark's suppliers one by one and compete with his site.
PS - I'm not cancelling any of my custom orders thanks very much. I'm aware of the difference in quality, I'm willing to pay for quality.