Been watching the Euro lately? The Canadian Dollar?
Got this today from Vliegerop,
Upcoming price adjustments HQ, Peter Lynn and Kheo
"If you would like to benefit from the lower prices we advise you to place an order before Friday 4. September next. The difference can be significant."

Guess you all won't have anything to say untill after the 5th.

I'm not sure how much difference there will be for US numbers but for the people that have their price lists based on the Euro there will be a big adjustment. Similar to some of the Canadian businesses I have dealt with that had been watching the U.S./CDN exchange and had kept the price the same, meaning it was cheaper for Americans to buy the kites in Canada because they were the same price but in CDN so they saved on exchange. But now they have adjusted all prices to account for the difference in US so it's meant a big jump in CDN pricing. With Vlieger Op I expect a big change in the Euro price list which had been a saving lately as compared to having an account in USD. It'll be interesting to see if all prices go up including US retail.

Quote: Originally posted by bigkid

Guess you all won't have anything to say untill after the 5th.

I'm not sure what a retail customer can do to take advantage of the exchange rate. I've bought a couple of used kites which turned into good deals, but other than that?

My guess is the cost for those who will buy with the USD, prices will go up 20 to 30%.
Will you pay 30% more for your PL kites?

Quote: Originally posted by bigkid

My guess is the cost for those who will buy with the USD, prices will go up 20 to 30%. Will you pay 30% more for your PL kites?

That seems backwards. Right now, the USD is only slightly below its peak from last spring. There should be changes to lower prices from Vliegerop to reflect the better exchange rate.

Back to my used kite purchases, I've been able to get kites for 20-30% less than they would've been in the past. USD/UK exchange rate is still way in favor of UK buyers and a disadvantage to USD consumers.

I think it's going to effect the other currencies to make up the difference in loss to US. The factories produce and bill in USD and distributors work out the other currencies based on making money ultimately equating to USD to pay their bills etc but when the Euro and CDN are lower we can no longer pay our old price list and exchange rate so we'll all (non USD) be boosted 20--30% to make up the exchange. - you shouldn't notice a change in end prices in USD other than any regular price bumps in costs. For us Canadians that have been buying in USD there is already a hefty exchange plus other fees tacked on and for those ditributors where I have purchased in Euros there are big price jumps.

Oh, if the back end is USD then it's a wash for US buyers at best. The MFRs are paying the factories more so can't discount on the front end. Just makes the worldwide used market even more attractive.

Bigkid, tell Vliegerop you want to pay in Euros, instead of their assigned USD prices. That should help some. In the end, it should prove a wash to you.

HQ USA is not raising any prices right now.

Quote: Originally posted by chris

HQ USA is not raising any prices right now.

Thanks Chris, good to know your not raising your prices.
As for Vliegeorp I haven't bought from them in years.

I only wish we could see a discount in the dreaded VAT tax. :barf:

We just received another huge order from Vliegerop yesterday. No changes in the prices at all. If there is going to be a price change, we should know about it well in advance but I don't see anything happening in the next 4-5 months at least.

Quote: Originally posted by awindofchange

We just received another huge order from Vliegerop yesterday. No changes in the prices at all. If there is going to be a price change, we should know about it well in advance but I don't see anything happening in the next 4-5 months at least.

Guess you didn't get the email.

The email does say it is based on having to pay for mfg in USD and the Euro having less purchasing power to pay the bills.

Quote: Originally posted by BeamerBob

The email does say it is based on having to pay for mfg in USD and the Euro having less purchasing power to pay the bills.

This sends so many red flags off it's not funny honestly. So they have been floating profits on the basis of Euro strength? This screams to me like we don't hedge our exposure, because eh, free money as the Euro buying power increases. Scary.

the price lists to dealers and accounts are either in Euros or USD and they were not the same, in some cases the prices on some specific kites were priced cheaper on the US price list and others worked out about equal. It was when the Euro (and CDN dollar) were dropping compared to the USD that it was a better exchange deal switching to the Euro price list to save rather than US exchange rate plus bank fees + taxes + but now with the bigger drop in exchange the different kite companies that have prices in other currencies from US need to bring them up to make it equal after what equates to about a 30% drop.

Retail kites can't stand a 30% increase very well. This will either make other companies more competitive or if all retail adjusts, it strengthens the used kite market especially when buying from Europe.

It won't be a 30% raise in prices on the U.S. Retail, it'll be a raise on prices that are not USD. With the CDN dollar sitting around 75 cents US that means we are paying around 30% (or more depending on ones bank fees etc) buying a kit3 priced in U.S. For companies like Ocean Rodeo th3y had kept prices the same whether paying US or CDN so up until this month it was cheaper for Americans to buy the kites in CDN dollars but now they've finally had to up the price on the CDN. But you are correct, they didn't raise it 30% they did a 20% hike. Maybe it'll be in that same range for Euro prices - probably at least 20%. It'll be interesting to see what happens moving toward the fall as new kites come out and any year end offers are made.