[Craig Peters]

One thing that I've noticed about the Benefactor's Club is that if you're a sponsor (paying $2,000 for the first year, $1,000 for each subsequent year), you get access to the "Albion credit account (buy now, pay later)". Yet, it would seem to me that those people who can afford to essentially donate this much money annually are probably not that concerned about money and being able to delay payments. More than likely, they probably have sufficient funds. In contrast, many of the general people who order from Albion would likely find this feature immensely useful in helping them to finance the purchasing of swords. As long as they've ordered one or two swords before from Albion, thus proving that they are reliable when it comes to payments, I see no reason why they should not be given access to this offer. Raises the prices of your swords will never be popular, especially when your swords range at roughly $500 and up, and therefore making this option open to the general public would help to "appease the masses".

And yeah, I miss the fact that there used to be quite a few swords that one could order that were in the $500-$600 range before sales happened.

[Anton de Vries]

Some swords I like (mainly the XVa's) still look affordable to me, others definitely don't. I wanted a Munich but that isn't going to happen. The hollow ground blades are out the window too.

The Squire Line has become a lot less attractive as they're more expensive than similar european offerings right now.

I hope it's going to work out for Albion but... "I have a bad feeling about this"

[Mikko Kuusirati]

Ouch. Bye-bye, Knecht...

*sigh* Oh well, it's not all that bad, overall. And just because some pieces are now beyond my reach doesn't mean they're overpriced, just that I'm too damn poor. (If anything, the old prices were surprisingly low, IMO.)

[Roger Hooper]

It's curious that the percentage of increase was not the same across the board. Some swords went up 5%, others as much as 20%. I haven't looked at every model, but it looks like the lower priced next gens went up the heast, the higher priced the most. I mean percentage-wise, not just actual dollars.

Did model popularity play a part - swords with higher sales going up by a higher percentage?

[Micha Hofmann]

*Sigh*. I knew it was going to happen and I know it's probably necessary, but I still don't like the price increase.

I've been thinking about buying just one really good sharp european sword for some time, and every time i thought i could manage to bring up the funds, something interfered ( having to buy a new car, because your old one breaks down does not help ).

The price increase hast made the way to my Albion another couple of steps longer, perhaps too long.

40 - 50$ + customs more does not seem like a lot, but there's always some limit to what one is willing to pay for a certain sword, and there's always the competition. When I'm looking for a sword, I want a certain type of sword, certain looks, handling qualities etc. for which I'm willing to pay a certain price.

Ever since I've handled my buddy's Crecy, I know that Albion swords really are as good as eveyone's telling, but there are a lot of cheaper smiths in eastern Europe, whose quality has significantly improved over the last years, like Pavel Moc for example.

If I place an order with one of them, I can't be sure, the sword I'll receive will turn out exactly the way I want it, but when the price difference becomes big enough, I'd be willing to take the risk.

Just my two cents
Regards

Micha
I'm curious how Albions expansion into Europe will turn out, especially after the price increase.

PS: And there are always some psychological "price borders", some people are just not willing to cross. The fine line between $999 and $1000 might be one of them.

[Gordon Clark]

[Joe Fults]

[Bryce Felperin]

It's definitely going to hurt when you can get a Lutel for about $600 already and it includes a sheath and belt too! It gets hard to compete then. Of course you usually get what you pay for, or what you perceive as value. So there will always be a market with people like me who want "the best" and have the money to pay for it. However just the same it looks more like I'll be getting maybe only one sword instead of two or three per year now.

My suggestion to Albion would be to keep at least one or two decent cutting swords for each type (one handed/Viking/hand and half) more "afordable" than the rest so that someone who wants to enter their line cheaply can still do it. I think the proper price point is under $500 for an "affordable sword".

At the same time realize that their expensive "a grand a pop" production pieces still fall comfortable in between many other production companies and those custom made/hand forged swords that many people fancy on higher end for upwards or exceeding twice the price of Albion's expensive options. So there is a niche, even for expensive production pieces in the market IMHO.

I'm still waiting for my Munich with baited breath though! :-)

Bryce

[Jean Thibodeau]

As far as becoming a benefactor it all depends on the math.

If you pay up front $500 for basically a 10% reduction in price for sword purchases how many swords does one have to buy to just Break even?

Let's say 10 swords at $500 each for a total cost of $5000: 10% = $500. The results $5000 + $500 (cost benefactors ) - $500 for 10% savings just to break even.

Or 5 swords at $1000 each just to break even.

So if one can only afford to buy a couple of swords a year you are better off just paying the full price.

There are other features of the benefactors program that might be worth it to some people: I just don't see it myself.

If I was to invest $500 to $2000 dollars up front I would rather buy stock in the company ! ( Still this would be a risky investment and turning Albion into a publicly traded company would have all sorts of complications like having to report to the investors. Don't want to turn Albion into a sword ENRON. )

So if you are going to create some sort of reward for repeat buyers you have to make it advantageous for both the Company and the clients. If you misjudge the cost/benefits of the program it either becomes unattractive to clients or a money loser for the company.

Not, trying to be negative as I have nothing but satisfaction with Albion swords and customer service so far, but IF this benefactors program is ill conceived it is better fixing it soon before money changes hands and commitments are made that may prove problematic later.

[Kenton Spaulding]

I'm not really sure that I understand the Benefactor's Society either. I really wonder how many people would be interested in a deal like that. The way I see it, if somebody has $2000 available and wants swords, they have enough to purchase whichever Albions grab their attention without a 10% discount, and would probably be more interested in getting a one of a kind custom sword, than a "free/$2000" limited edition that they might not even like. Although I would be more than thrilled to have any Albions in production, for $2000 dollars I would want to choose a sword that I REALLY liked. That is the way I see it, at least. As for skipping in the que...while in principle I don't like the idea (which doesn't matter because I'm not waiting in their que anyway) I really can't imagine it being a problem in reality. I just have difficulty believing that enough people are going to join the Benefactor's Society for it to be noticeable, but hey, I've been wrong before.

As for the $1000 barrier, that is something that I thought about quiet a bit when they first announced their price increase. I wondered if they would want to go above $1000, because, to me at least, it does seem to be a mental barrier. Is a $1000 sword much more expensive than a $950 dollar sword? Not really, but mentally, I put them in two different categories. The mental divide definitely seems greater, especially at first glance, than the actual divide.

My 2 cents,

Kenton

[Nathan Robinson]

[Jean Thibodeau]

Kenton;

Good point about the $1000 barrier: I bought the Tritonia due to it being reduced to $950 for the pre-price increase sale.

The $50 bucks itself didn't make the decision for me but going below $1000 got my attention.

Those close to a $1000 dollars should stay below that line. Once over $1250 going to $1500 is not that much more if one can afford the $1250.

Anything above $2000 / $2500 custom starts becoming attractive even if the custom one is $3000: It's all psychology and what your budget is like.

[Jared Smith]

I could see some remote possibilities for a benefactor who is a new and serious collector/user to break even. It depends on the extension of the collectors guild period (1 year extension from what... now 2 years to buy 7 swords?), how much abuse and repair your swords ( my 1st Generation Crecey now has a loose guard and somewhat mashed grip wood under the guard) require, etc. Very important, if the 10% discount were extended to everything (armour by Mercenary's Taylor?), savings could add up.

I would find the benefactor sword more attractive if Albion let the benefactors' choose from existing Next Gen. swords listed at under $1000 U.S. with some sort of customization (engraving on blade, extra design on hilt/pommel like the Landgraf has, etc.)

I emailed Albion today and requested that they post some clarification of the fees and benefits. I have confidence that they will try to structure this program to be attractive to those who would spend several thousand dollars. It is called a "benefactor" program after all. I did not get the impression that they were trying to sell it as an investment with lucrative returns.

[Addison C. de Lisle]

[Roger Hooper]

How about $999.95? I guess that's why it's done that way - somehow your mind can't help tricking itself into believing the price is lower than it actually is.

[Edward Hitchens]

[Joe Fults]

I think some online defintions of the word benefactor can help clarify (from http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=benefactor ):

ben·e·fac·tor Audio pronunciation of "benefactor" ( P ) Pronunciation Key (bn-fktr)
n.

One that gives aid, especially financial aid.

benefactor

n : a person who helps people or institutions (especially with financial help) [syn: helper]


The implication of the word choice is that the value of the solicitation represents something greater than the value of the stated benefits. Make no mistake, by definition they are asking for financial help. There is nothing wrong with this, any number of institutions do it all the time. That said, people need to understand that part of the value you are recieving by becoming a benefactor is goodwill. It is not about who is coming out ahead.

[Alexi Goranov]

[Joe Fults]

I guess that's part of the downside of the endeavor.

[Nathan Robinson]

I'd think that a private equity/investment opportunity would be a more worthwhile endeavor than the Benefactor program. Truthfully, the Benefactor Society makes me generally worry about the state of the industry, and specifically about Albion. I hope all is well in New Glarus.

Traditionally, the method I typically use to support a company is to buy its goods. On that note, people, go buy some swords.