paints some fast cats.
Despite waiting as long as possible, the time has come for us to acknowledge that the increase in the costs of doing business in the world today will have to impact the Battlefront range.
Despite the cost of metal and oil - a major component of resin - and the added cost of transporting anything around the world increasing to record levels these last few years, we have managed to keep to our promise not to increase prices for at least two years. In fact, this month will be two-and-a-half years since I made that statement.
Having gone through the numbers and tried to make sense of what is to come in the next few years, I am going to increase prices by 11% from 8th June 2008. This is an average percentage across the whole range, meaning that some items will go up more and some not at all.
The U.S.A. has seen no increase in prices for over two-and-a-half years, and Europe and Australasia for over three-and-a-half years. Inflation alone during this time would not be far from the change we are about to make, but the need to keep any increase to a minimum has been a major concern for us.
It is not all bad news, as we have not needed to increase everything. In areas like printing, where volume does reduce costs, this means we will be able to leave all books at their current price. Gaming accessories and hobby products will also remain unchanged. Boxed sets will continue to be the core of our range, with the contents - comparative to the individual components - being an even better discount after the change than they are today.
In all, we have striven to get an average balance that will hopefully be received as well as it can be, but that keeps the Flames of War hobby at the top of the list when it comes to value for money comparative to other toy-soldier gaming. A full list of what prices are changing to will be available at your local store next week.
On a final note, I am happy to once again pledge my word that I will not alter any prices for at least two years in the hope that, having managed to keep my word once, you now know I am making a statement of fact rather than intent.