BK price increases again?

[HoosierDaddy]

I'm up this early every morning. What in the world does what I am doing at this hour in the morning have to do with anything..? [huh]
HD

 

[Carlos840]

What I meant to say is that our "bombastic" statements were not bullshit. They were not marketing fanfare. Everything that is said about the leathers is 100% the truth. I don't understand why the truth should not come across well and be taken as arrogance.



I mean, don't you have anything better to do at 6:30am than to criticize BK?

First "Victory Horesehide" is the best in the world and can not be equaled, then, a few months later " Liberty Horsehide represents the peak of mount Everest of russet horsehides. There simply cannot be any other hide to outrank this, we reached the top and there isn't any higher than that."

Before the end of the year there will be a new "best in the world leather"...

The incessant self patting on the back, the inability to fulfill orders, while still taking new ones, the way everything is constantly argued on here, it just looks bad!

You are not doing your company any favour by doing what you are doing.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

I mean, don't you have anything better to do at 6:30am than to criticize BK?

Better to do..? I'm having coffee while reading this thread. It has just been bewildering how you and Platon(VLJ) continue to present yourselves and how that reflects on your company. Others notice it and comment...yet you two are always oblivious to why/what others could ever be concerned about.
HD

 

[andyfalzon]

Carlos, there is a reply to everything, if you care to search for the truth. If you don't know, then please ask, instead of jumping to conclusions.

The Victory IS indeed the best horsehide in the world. It is of much higher quality than the conventional horsehides and better than the Liberty.
The tannery who make the Victory make their leathers 100% by hand and also finish them by hand because they follow their traditional ways since the 1800s. We asked them to make the russet color with the same finish as the A-2 jackets WWII but they refused because that finish requires machinery which can make the color even and uniform. Since they do not use any such machinery it was not possible. As a result, the Victory russet was only available in "antique" finish which I can say resembled original A-2s that have seen extensive use and abuse during the war and afterwards. A few customers who can appreciate this quality bought the antique russet and are very happy with what they got.

Then after 2 years of negotiating with another Italian tannery we managed to develop Liberty horsehide. That tannery had the machinery and the capacity to recreate the WWII finish, so after we had their agreement that they were going to do it, we handed them an original russet A-2 jacket in very good condition from which they were able to recreate the finish and color exactly.

The Liberty horsehide is as good as Shinki and Warhorse. Its color is an exact match to WWII color, so a perfect match, so yes, can't go any higher than that.

The above does not change the fact that Victory is better and trust me when I say that there will be no other to surpass it.

 

[Cole]

I have nothing against BK, but I think that statements like "the best horsehide in the world" are highly subjective, as there are no universal quality standards to leather, as far as I know.

Personaly I like the Horween CRX Horsehide best, while others here may prefere your Victory Horsehide or Shinki Horsehide.

That Victory Horsehide is made by hand in a traditional way is nice and adds some flair, but the modernisation of some processes has brought an increase in quality most of the times, so handmade does not automaticaly equal better in my opinion.

 

[L'Onset]

I don't know, it's a bit dishonest IMO! They are not even in the UK. ...

I agree, even though they might claim that most of their customer were British.

 

[Justhandguns]

In a way, I am happy as I can sell my BK at no or little lost, just like the old ELC and Aero jackets on ebay these days. But until I am getting the same pay rise of my salary, it is going to be tough for me to get another BK with the price hike. From the view point of a consumer, at this price range, there are many other options. And if anyone based in the UK, similar ELC jackets will be the same or cheaper if you take into account of the postage; and ironically, BK is now British owned.

 

[zhz]

Cant agree more, ELC is a better choice now, I believe the quality is similar. And dont forget Aero, much cheaper than BK now.

In a way, I am happy as I can sell my BK at no or little lost, just like the old ELC and Aero jackets on ebay these days. But until I am getting the same pay rise of my salary, it is going to be tough for me to get another BK with the price hike. From the view point of a consumer, at this price range, there are many other options. And if anyone based in the UK, similar ELC jackets will be the same of cheaper if you take in account of the postage; and ironically, BK is now British owned.

 

[Otter]

I'm up this early every morning. What in the world does what I am doing at this hour in the morning have to do with anything..? [huh]
HD

HD is actually a giant Lark.

 

[Justhandguns]

Cant agree more, ELC is a better choice now, I believe the quality is similar. And dont forget Aero, much cheaper than BK now.

And for us who are so happen to be living in London or Devon, there is a good chance for use to try the ELC jackets on. And if anyone visiting the Duxford airshow, ELC are also present every year with the display of almost their entire range of jackets for trying and purchasing.

But I guess at the end of the day, business is business, for us as consumers, we just hope that there will be more competitions in the future to drive the price down again.

 

[Foster]

Our A-2 (gbp740) is cheaper than ELC's (gbp 750).

That's only 1.33% cheaper. Logically speaking, these are almost identical in price now.

 

[Edward]

Are BK's new owners going to go public, or do they prefer to remain secret? Are they already in the industry?

 

[Deacon211]

What I meant to say is that our "bombastic" statements were not bullshit. They were not marketing fanfare. Everything that is said about the leathers is 100% the truth. I don't understand why the truth should not come across well and be taken as arrogance.
/QUOTE]

Well, truly I don't want to bash here.

Most of the statements that people seem to take offense at, are the declarative ones. "X is the best. All arguments to the contrary are pointless".

The above response is actually one of them, though I'm afraid you don't see it that way.

The argument is a bit like saying "I am the greatest. That may seem arrogant. However, since I am in fact the greatest, it's not arrogant". It's an interesting circular argument in that it seems to the person voicing the opinion to be perfectly factual, while seeming to others to be perfectly illustrative of arrogance.

Terms like "the best" are subjective unless they can be objectively proven. Since you are dealing in artistic wares, declaring something the best is, by its nature subjective and therefore arguable.

I don't think anyone will argue that BK makes some great gear. But I do think that any statement that comes across as self aggrandizing is automatically off-putting, regardless of its truth or falsity.

As I said, I'm not strongly on either side of this issue. But it seems that there is a disconnect in communications on this subject.

Deacon




Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Great post Deacon and very well said.
HD

 

[Smithy]

I'm probably one of the few here who doesn't have an A-2 although I've been toying with the idea of getting one off and on since 2006, even to the point of emailing ELC and GW. Last year I thought, right once I get a couple of things sorted out on the car I'll go for BK - nice price point, good accuracy.

But now the price is just too much. And I have to say that the comments of "our leather, jackets are the best" have finally turned me off. Andy, maybe you do have the very best leather but harping on about it doesn't do any good, in fact it does the opposite. I don't see Gary from ELC posting here saying their Warhorse is the dog's bumpy bits or John from GW saying his leather is the bee's knees.

Sometimes it's best to let your product do all the talking. Some might call it old fashioned but it shows a bit of class to quietly do what you do and do it well without constantly saying "look at us, we're the greatest".

If a manufacturers products are good they don't have to rely on arrogantly blowing their trumpet ad nauseam. They speak for themselves.

 

[Sloan1874]

That's only 1.33% cheaper. Logically speaking, these are almost identical in price now.

Does that take into account postage? In the UK, ELC posts for nought, while BK have simply stuck a pound sign on their previously 40 Euro rate. That's a lot to add to a price ticket.

 

[Dickie Teenie]

Which reminds me, surely Jeff M has received his replacement BK jacket by now. I've been looking forward to his thoughts/review.

 

[zhz]

Does that take into account postage? In the UK, ELC posts for nought, while BK have simply stuck a pound sign on their previously 40 Euro rate. That's a lot to add to a price ticket.

Clearly the postage does not included...which means, the BK is expensive than ELC in UK.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Which reminds me, surely Jeff M has received his replacement BK jacket by now. I've been looking forward to his thoughts/review.

Surely he has...but he may not be in a great hurry to post a review..since his experience showed no great eagerness on the manufacturers part to deliver it. [huh]
HD

 

[handymike]

I'm bummed, a price increase and VAT puts a BK jacket beyond my comfort zone for the present. I totally understand that prices always go up though. I hope the Brit investors keep BK making really nice jackets for a long time to come.