Joe,
Yes I did, or did you miss the entire first paragraph? Here it is again.
Joe,
What you are forgetting is no ball company (except Lane 1 I believe) sells directly to pro shops. The companies only sell to distrobutors who in turn can sell small lots to pro shops, maybe one ball at a time. The ball company has to make a profit and has hundreds of employees, large machines which require maintenance and not to mention, the supplies used to make a bowling ball can be very hazardous and is tough to work with, so a premium is placed on safety and the work these folks do.
Seeing how you wanted to beat this drum, let's expand a manufacturers cost. They need a plant if they are a true manufacturer (Visionary, Brunswick, Ebonite, old LaneMasters, Storm). Want to take any guess how much money it costs in either a lease for the land and building or a mortgage payment on a huge structure that you need several separate pieces to? You need an area where you pour the equipment, you need an area where the equipment is cured after pouring, you need an area to cut down the ball after curing, you need an area to finish the ball and label the ball, and finally, unless you ship everything out the day you make it, you need a place to store finished product. You cannot put any of the two areas you need above in the same area because of manufacutring issues. So...that is several areas and one large facility.
Further, how many individuals do you need to work in these areas? Have you seen the videos or Storm's and Ebonite's manufacturing facilities on Youtube? Yes, some is automated, but almost every step requires some human interaction. Don't forget, these folks have families too, so minimum wage in an industry working with hazardous chemicals...not a chance. One of the reason Brunswick moved to Mexico is the folks working the lines were paid from what I understand $30 an hour including benefits. Times that by what, a hundred individuals at least and how much hourly expense do you have in wages alone. Don't forget your mortgage, electric, gas, and other expenses you must cover as well. Hmm...oh yeah, INSURANCE! Remember when Columbia had a fire in 96 or 97....they probably needed INSURANCE and the last time I checked that is not free either.
Hmmm...how do you know about the new releases and the newest information from a company? Do you ever visit Storm's website? How about Ebonite? WOW, they need someone to work on the websites and update them with information to keep the site up to date. Dang, need to pay that person as well.
How about marketing? Sure, the amount of commercials that bowling ball companies put out is extremely low, but still, I have seen commercials from Storm and others. Dang, need to pay someone to market new products as well. There is yet ANOTHER expense for a manufacturer.
Oh yeah, working in this business requires extreme precision. You need very good maintenance on your stuff. Who is going to do that because it needs done or every ball that is poured will be an X out or a second and who is going to buy that? Not many unless it is deeply discounted.
Now...the copanies who do not manufacturer their own bowling balls (Lane 1, MoRich, etc) pays for a manufacturer to make the product (duh). Manufacturers still charge a pretty penny for these folks but they also get to cut out some of the other expenses on their end as they have less warehouse space, no need for a huge place as they do not manufacturer, no line workers, less insurance, etc.
So Joe, if you want to cut down a $210 ball and say that each level takes an equal piece of the pie from a manaufacturer, that means the manufacturer may sell a ball for $70 to a distributor, the distributor sells a ball to a pro shop for $140, and finally the shop sells the ball to you (drilled, etc) for $210. So, at each step of the way, everyone has fixed costs. The manufacturer with the amount of overhead above may charge a distributor $70...may...it depends on the distributor buy in. The more they buy, the cheaper the ball to the distributor. But in the end, the manufacturer has to pay everything above and the entire pie STARTS around $70 a ball. Take every expense above and start at $70....they are not making that much! That is a reason why Brunswick moved to Mexico....its why others tried to outsource some production to outside of the country as well.
Joe, in closing, you do not need anyone's approval to leave or do whatever you want. But the continued whining over ball prices that are more than reasonable in today's bowling environment is part of the reason this sport is dying. Look at the contraction the sport has seen. Yes, we have seen new ball companies, but look at who we lost. Columbia! Columbia 300 shut down. Unreal and unthought of 15 years ago.
Bottom line....new ball prices aren't going down. They will only go up. Don't want to pay the price? Go to ebay and find something older that will work just fine.
3835
