... then have a good look around now for any last remaining bargains - they might be the lowest you'll find for some time . The drop in VAT rate in December caused many retailers to look at their prices and realise that they needed to raise them (while absorbing the vat cut too ), and with the pound slumping against the dollar and Yen the manufacturers are also raising prices...
From BBC news today...
And camera and printer maker Canon has already acted by increasing its prices across Europe by about 5%, and as much as 10% in the UK
Prices of big glass have already begun to rise towards levels from 4-5 years ago.
Posted by Sean Bolton on January 24, 2009 at 9:09 AM
Not any more!!
Canon 300mm f2.8 L was about £3000, now £3800. Canon 1dmk3 was £2400 ish, now £2900 ish, and the 1dsmk3 is now £6200 with Mifsuds!!!, was about £4500 a while back.
These are price increases of between 25% and 37%, I think I will wait a while before splashing out on new kit.
In a recession (with a credit crunch) raise your prices by 25%. Top notch thinking
As an example in a certain large on-line store the price of a new UK imported Canon 500mm F4 EF L IS was £3999 about 2 months ago @ 17.5% vat. It is now £5457.14 @ 15% vat which is a 39% price rise allowing for the 2.5% reduction in VAT....
I'mm sooooo tempted to spend .... not!
T
Posted by Rene de Heer on January 24, 2009 at 10:34 AM
ObviouslyTom, you havent worked in the foreign exchange business like me.......
Yen is very expensive and sterling is very weak, so cost is substantial higher.
A hint; maybe you should drop the pound and adapt the EURO?
Rene de heer
Posted by jack chapman on January 24, 2009 at 10:52 AM
Doesn't sound very good. Will this affect the prices of second-hand gear? Sorry if this is a silly question.
Posted by writepic on January 24, 2009 at 11:42 AM
yes it will affect second hand gear in that there won't be any....
i imagine everyone will keep their lenses etc as long as possible. before the exchange rate went all haywire it was looking like making sense for me to fly to the states to get my next UW housing/cam etc and i'd still have plenty of change out of my money than if i'd bought rediculously priced uk kit.
I know the cause, it's the effect that is more worrying.
The Yen is not linked to many UK peoples pay packet and that is where the money to buy goods comes from. Dearer goods are always harder to afford hence less are sold; now add in a recession and some UK dealers are going to struggle. No real answer is there, just casualties.
I would love to adopt the EURO as it would save me changing currency between here and Ireland.
Looks like i bought all my new Nikon gear just in time,The D3 was $4044 at BH but is now $4349,I have spent $30 000 in the last few months on kit with the price increases that would have put paid to that,Should help keep scondhand prices up for a while
Dave
Posted by Larry Corbett on January 26, 2009 at 7:17 AM
That's just so typical. Having been without my 500mm lens for nearly 4 years now, I'm really desperate to get a new one and was looking to purchase in the summer but i'm certainly not paying £5457.14 for one (I only paid £4400 for my last one 7 years ago!) guess i'll just have to bide my time for a couple more years then.
Unless the US$ happens to crash, I've a feeling we won't be seeing prices dropping in the UK quite some time. They're more than likely to keep rising . I think we're all going to have to accept our jobs/hobbies are going to become more expensive. That's why I stuck this 'heads-up' up... depending what you're after, there are still some places running at the slightly lower prices.
FWIW, it might also be worth keeping an eye on equipment insurance policies to ensure that they're not becoming underinsured .
Discussion
12 repliesFrom BBC news today...
Prices of big glass have already begun to rise towards levels from 4-5 years ago.
Canon 300mm f2.8 L was about £3000, now £3800. Canon 1dmk3 was £2400 ish, now £2900 ish, and the 1dsmk3 is now £6200 with Mifsuds!!!, was about £4500 a while back.
These are price increases of between 25% and 37%, I think I will wait a while before splashing out on new kit.
Sean
Sean
In a recession (with a credit crunch) raise your prices by 25%. Top notch thinking
As an example in a certain large on-line store the price of a new UK imported Canon 500mm F4 EF L IS was £3999 about 2 months ago @ 17.5% vat. It is now £5457.14 @ 15% vat which is a 39% price rise allowing for the 2.5% reduction in VAT....
I'mm sooooo tempted to spend .... not!
T
Yen is very expensive and sterling is very weak, so cost is substantial higher.
A hint; maybe you should drop the pound and adapt the EURO?
Rene de heer
yes it will affect second hand gear in that there won't be any....
i imagine everyone will keep their lenses etc as long as possible. before the exchange rate went all haywire it was looking like making sense for me to fly to the states to get my next UW housing/cam etc and i'd still have plenty of change out of my money than if i'd bought rediculously priced uk kit.
not anymore however.
oh well.
I don't understand how all of a sudden no one has any money? Did some eat it all?
Chris
I know the cause, it's the effect that is more worrying.
The Yen is not linked to many UK peoples pay packet and that is where the money to buy goods comes from. Dearer goods are always harder to afford hence less are sold; now add in a recession and some UK dealers are going to struggle.
I would love to adopt the EURO as it would save me changing currency between here and Ireland.
Dave
FWIW, it might also be worth keeping an eye on equipment insurance policies to ensure that they're not becoming underinsured
A