Changes Coming To The Outpost
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Retailers up and down the UK received some troubling news around 12 months ago, our prices from Games Workshop were going to go up. This was a price rise without the increase on MSRP. In short, this meant we took the hit financially and absorbed the impact.
We made some changes which were sustainable and allowed us to continue at 20% discount. However, as you too have likely seen we started to see supply side issues with capacity, deliveries and availability of new releases has been incredibly low or slow.
We had hoped this change was temporary but after 12 months we still find this situation and there is no longer room for us to continue at 20% discount as standard across the Games Workshop standard trade range and we are changing our pricing.
SO WHY THE CHANGES?
The increased cost prices on products have a larger impact on us than other retailers who offer lower discount levels. In order to maintain the same level of income for our overheads, team members, and business security, we would need to sell a much greater volume of product than the year-on-year comparisons. This brings us on to the next factor.
The limited availability of stock means less product to sell. We (along with other retailers) haven’t been able to reliably source the volumes we have been accustomed to for quite some time, including where new releases which were in abundance, that is less the case now. Our restocks are frequently confirmed back with around 20-30% of the order being “out of stock”; however, at times this can increase to 70-80%.
Alongside the lack of readily available stock are the delays which have seen orders takings up to 3 weeks to arrive, this is far from ideal in an industry that has weekly releases and moves fast.
On top of all that, there has been a significant increase in the cost of….everything. From electricity to shelving, bubble wrap and boxes and everything in between. But that also affects our team and we want to ensure they are looked after wherever possible.
So, the more expensive, less available and slower to arrive items have to earn their keep and whilst we love (and I mean LOVE) providing some of the best discounts around, we are having to make some changes.
WHAT CHANGES ARE WE MAKING?
At the end of January, we will be changing our discounts across most Games Workshop product lines to be around the 15% mark, there will be some variance and where possible we will retain the 20%+ discount model which we have had for so many years.
Pre-orders will remain at up to 20% discount during the pre-order period, once they have been released they will be changed.
We know this hobby can be expensive and we work to mitigate those costs wherever possible whilst still providing a premium service.
Orders placed before this change will be processed as normal.
We hope to see the pricing model and supply chain revert back to their previous outlook but for now, we are doing what we must for our team and to continue providing the exceptional service our customers rightly deserve.
WHY ARE WE TELLING YOU THIS?
It’s who we are, it’s what we do, and we keep you informed. We’re open and upfront about issues and even if we could have just made the change, we think our customers deserve a heads-up to make the most of this discount before it changes.
We want to thank you all for your continued support over the years and your support in this change which will allow us to continue supporting your hobby for years to come.
