I have recently noticed a big spike in the price of Tamiya’s kits, specificially their 1/32 scale kits. Not too long ago I purchased their P-51D Mustang kit (kit #60322) for $95. That same kit now is $130. The plated version of this kit is now $170. These are probably the nicest kits on the market, but they were already expensive before the price went up. The new prices are ridiculous. What is driving these price increases?
Anyone?
My first guess would be devaluation of the USD.
Shipping costs, price of raw materials, avaiability of same…oil…, and possibly current currency exchange rate. It is a tough question to answer. Could also be as simple as supply and demand, more people are spending time at home ans alone so manufactures see an opportunity to increase profit.
Just in case anybody is interested, TamiyaUSA is showing the 1/32 P-51D/K with a sale price of $99.00. Same for the Spitfire MkXVIe ($99.00)…which I picked up a couple of weeks ago, when it wasn’t on sale, for $151.49 (still cheaper than the $189.99 MSRP). Wishing hobby dealers had a 30-day price match guarantee like Best Buy. LOL. Oh well.
My company just raised my shop rate by $3.00/hour, and they raise it every year. Why? Because the cost of doing business (including my salary and benefits) keeps going up. I imagine Tamiya is affected by the same cost factors, for different reasons.
Incidentally, the 1/32 aircraft made by manufacturers such as Academy and Trumpeter have a price point pretty close to Tamiya…but their quality and engineering isn’t nearly as good.
Gotta shop around,prices vary site to site,also watch for sales