Loyalty is nice but pinball parts is not a huge margin business so I don't see why anybody is obligated to give away free stuff, even to their longtime customers.

I don't expect Pinball Resource to give me a special discount on anything just because I placed my first order with them in 2002.

We all got bills to pay and nuts to cover.

I feel your pain. Try being in business (not this one), and have a dealer network for years…just to have those same customers copy your product. It’s not just china anymore!

Just think of that Seinfeld episode where Jerry “always even’s out”. Nobody was complaining when they were selling pins they had 10%-50% over the prices paid. Now it’s time to “even out”. It’s really that simple. Roller Coasters have to come down at some point.

The pendulum swings both ways

Every year costs go up. Whether due to general inflation or requirements put into law.

Sometimes businesses don't raise their prices quite as high as they should so as to not scare off customers, and as a result, the profit margins become razor thin and they can't offer discounts or customer benefits like before.

As for free shipping--the cost of shipping keeps going up, just like everything else.

It really sucks to be a small/medium sized business these days. It's tough to get ahead in the current environment.

Even tougher when your customers seem to think you are Wal-Mart and can afford to just give out freebies and discounts en masse to "loyal" customers.

Amazon's got us all thinking shipping should be "free" (setting aside that $140/year "free shipping" fee you pay every year but then forget about). But of course it isn't, and little guys -- including anyone that sells pinball stuff -- pay way more for shipping because they don't move the volume that Amazon does.

I feel ya. Local jewelry store I've spent..enough in between my ex wife and current fiance. Wanted to buy a nice bracelet around the holidays. Were out of it, but the discount they had was a "christmas special". Called / checked back. Never got it back in stock by end of the year. Finally get it back - they text me. Wont honor the holiday price. Its like - I've spent a ton there. Have a wedding coming up, anniversaries, birthdays. You're willing to toss away a good relationship where you stand to make thousands over a few hundred?

If you’re paying $9.00 for a box of 47 bulbs, you need to find another supplier, and I know that’s not PBR’s price.

You should have told them you were looking into adding a mistress to the lineup.

Buy 100 for $15. $9 for a box of 10 sounds ludicrous.

https://www.pinballlife.com/47-bulb-bulk-pack-box-of-100.html

7% is just an average. It doesn’t mean everything went up 7%.

I own a business and my costs increases have far exceeded 7%.

Just my fuel bill 2020 to 2022, went from $108,000 to $333,000. That was also doing less jobs over that period. Revenue stayed the same…..with prices I’m charging up around 30% from 2020 to 2022.

When the inflation number is reported, it is only for the last 365 days. If you want to puke, look at the total inflation over the last 900 days.

During better times, I could do more for my repeat customers. Right now, the goal is to make sure my business is still here 5 years from now.

Inflation is not 7%. I don't claim to know the number but from buying groceries, to just about anything in life the prices on stuff has gone up anywhere from 20% to 100% depending on the item. I remember the days when you could get the PSW10 for $90.

I mean Dish Network is a giant corporation. They couldn't care less about most people and their $200 a month. Customers are just numbers on a spreadsheet to a place like that.

I'd argue that some local places still do treat you well as a repeat customer. I have several local places I go where I'm happy to pay slightly more than online, partially because I know I'll be back and also it is nice to develop a relationship with someone who sells things you like. For example, the local record shop calls when they have a stack of the stuff I'm looking for.

The best way I've found to be treated like a loyal customer is to identify the right situations and help them succeed. Spend some cash with them, tip them well, tell all your friends about them, etc...

Inflation is more around 25-30% on some things

Like Trekkie says it depends on the timeframe you're looking at and of course what kind of goods you're looking at. Here's the first thing I spotted with a quick google search (https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/inflation/current-inflation-rates/):
Screenshot 2024-02-27 132757 (resized).png
This would suggest annual inflation of 7%, 6.5%, and 3.4% for each of the past three years. But even if the thing you're thinking about -- sounds like groceries and speakers currently -- perfectly tracks that overall inflation number, if you're thinking back to prices from 3 years ago you've got to factor in the increase from each of those years, not just one of them.

I understand the cost of everything is up so companies have to charge more or do away with free stuff, but my big hang up these days is poor customer service. At least give me good service since I am paying out the ass.

My only interaction with DISH was when I bought a new house and tried to get them to come remove their crappy dish from my super-steep roof. They gave me the bird, but at least they didn't charge me anything for it.

Nice of Steve (PBR) to apply a 10% discount on any orders over $100.

Speaking of Dish network, I was a customer for many, many years. They always charged me equipment fees even though my stuff was old. Never once did they offer to upgrade it. Bill just kept going up and up. Whatever. I cancelled service a few years ago and never looked back. Loyalty means nothing. It's business. Dish has to make money and I always have a choice on who to do business with.

Steve also hasn’t raised his prices in 20 years. Just ordered yesterday and commented on something being expensive and he was insulted.
Steve is the only pinball parts supplier that doesn’t gouge the shit out of his customers and doesn’t jack up prices every few months citing “inflation” the prices on coils and rebuilt kits have been the same since Williams went out of business.
I’ve only purchased from the other guys when it’s absolutely something Steve doesn’t have. I don’t knock them for being a regular business and trying to make money based on supply and demand. That’s fair, the entire point is to make money.
Don’t be a coward and claim “inflation *yada yada*!” Just admit that demand is up so you charge more. Business is business, being truthful helps.

Steve and PBR is as honest as they come and he is truly one of the last “old school” businesses out there that believes in earning your business.

I have found w/large business companies they really don’t care if they lose ‘you’…there’s always somebody that will replace you and they go on making money.
There are times where if you get the right person you will be helped which can be a long shot for that to occur.
I worked 27 years for a cosmetic company and my bosses quote was:”anybody can be replaced.”
Depending on age, it will never be as it once was.

That'd have been hysterical.

I like what my father in-law says to these companies that keep raising rates, "why should I stay with you when you give a better deal to new customers versus someone who has been with you for over 10 years"?

5 or so years ago, I called Dish and asked if there was anything they could do to lower our bill since we kept seeing great offers for new customers, but as existing customers for over 10 years, our bill kept going up. After talking to them for probably 20 minutes, the only thing they suggested was reducing our package. Oh yeah, they eventually offered to take $5 off our monthly bill! I told them before hanging up I was going to call to cancel after I called DirecTV to set up service. They didn't try to talk me out of it.

Fast forward a week. DirecTV came out and got us set up. I called Dish Network to cancel, and it was at that point they were trying to offer me $50 off my monthly bill, etc. I explained to them that I called a week prior and they said there was nothing they could do.

I really hate that every few years you have to call these bastards and threaten to cancel just to get your bill down. My wife has to tell Sirius she's going to cancel every year so they'll give her the same deal again. It's ridiculous. They don't seem to care that if they just kept their prices steady (or just modestly increased with inflation), they'd have loyal customers for life. They must have enough customers who don't notice/care about the increases.

You do get the Prime network thrown in with that. But now those bastards want $3 a month for no commercials!!!!

I can't stand fees on top of fees, that's got me thinking I'll dump the whole thing and just go back to $25+ gets free economy shipping. Of course I'll probably cave when the next season of The Boys drops ...

and forty to fifty on others.

Kindly provide a hint of what game, part or anything with which the price has gone up so there’s a frame of reference here.

Yeah The Boys not Gen V

Stop the presses I agree with Woody

insurance and cable comp's are the worst for screwing their longtime customers. Change every two yrs.

As a business owner, I can tell you that we can't raise our prices nearly as much as our costs are going up. Our payroll continues to increase. Shipping furniture has increased a lot. The price of gas makes it hard for us to break even on local deliveries.
We have had some of the same clients for 40 years and as much as we value them, we have to pass on some of the costs to them.
Many businesses are raising their prices substantially as an effort not to go out of business. We're all feeling it.

THE RENT IS TOO DAMN HIGH!

Yes he and he does this if you’ve been a customer for 20 days or for 20 years.

Don't forget Marco gives a code throughout their Thursday afternoon tech stream on twitch that is good for free domestic shipping on orders >$100. Each weeks code is good for 24hrs.

I think that this is a misuse of the word “loyalty”.

A business transaction is just that. Unless there is a specific loyalty program, why would one expect anything for “loyalty”?

Gottlieb coil from Steve (PBR): GTB-A1496 $10.
Marco Specialists : Gottlieb coil, A-1496 $19.99

Depends on your point of view. I see the business/customer as a symbiotic relationship. As a customer, if you think the business provides you exceptional value, or you really enjoy their product or service, it's in your best interest to make sure they stick around. Maybe you show this with a larger tip, word of mouth to help them, etc.

Equally, a good business should recognize their repeat customers. Maybe this comes down to the benefit of the doubt if there is any dispute about anything.. maybe you give them a deal now and then because you know they have made referrals for you etc.

Unfortunately, for the most part these days, customers and businesses just want more for less. Many businesses guided by better returns in raising prices beyond what was once fair value.. and customers now compare small business transaction expectations to Amazon.

You guys need to watch more network news.Inflation is low and our future looks bright!

My so called " loyal customers " dont even want to pay their bill, they want everything for free.. so I send them to collections.

Hmm. What decade/century was this when businesses did such things?

During covid many people got used to spending a lot more money through computers and cell phones. You have to factor this in too when talking about how “expensive” everything is.

So accurate. Couldn’t have said it better myself!!