Hobby Lobby has lost the plot with Vallejo Paint pricing

[DanR]

Get ready to see Vallejo Paints go from $2.99 to $4.99 at Hobby Lobby. This is an inexplicable price increase. I discovered this at a Hobby Lobby in Cincinnati that is less than 1 mile away from a Hobbytown USA that sells just about EVERY Vallejo color for $3.49 a bottle. I would often use a 40% coupon and buy two, which would be about $5. Now, with the coupon, two bottles will be $8. Compare that to $7 at Hobbytown. To me, this makes about as much sense as HL having priced the AMT Lawman kit at $40 instead of $30. It's like they have no concept of suggested retail prices. Why would you deliberately price yourself out of the market??

[Xingu]

Might want to see if Vallejo Paints has increased their MSRP. Seems like Hobby Lobby prices most of their items at MSRP. If so, I suspect prices will increase everywhere.

[DanR]

I asked the guy at Hobbytown and he said he was not informed of any price increase for Vallejo Paints. And even if there was, why would Vallejo jack the price up $2? That's a bit extreme and seems guaranteed to just push buyers to other less expensive lines.

[niteowl7710]

Vallejo sells the paints on the wholesale end in boxes of 6 bottles.  Based on that the MSRP for a bottle of paint (the eyedropper 17ml ones) is $3.30. That would seem to me that Vallejo has increased it's wholesale pricing since I doubt H.L. was selling it at a 30 cent loss per bottle before the coupon.

[Modelbuilder Mark]

Get ready to see Vallejo Paints go from $2.99 to $4.99 at Hobby Lobby. This is an inexplicable price increase. I discovered this at a Hobby Lobby in Cincinnati that is less than 1 mile away from a Hobbytown USA that sells just about EVERY Vallejo color for $3.49 a bottle. I would often use a 40% coupon and buy two, which would be about $5. Now, with the coupon, two bottles will be $8. Compare that to $7 at Hobbytown. To me, this makes about as much sense as HL having priced the AMT Lawman kit at $40 instead of $30. It's like they have no concept of suggested retail prices. Why would you deliberately price yourself out of the market??

I was shocked when I saw the lawman kit a well,  but iiI noticed the price bump was because of the upgraded Cartograph decals they included.  Not worth it to me,  even now the HL here has that kit on clearance,  still around $24

[niteowl7710]

I was shocked when I saw the lawman kit a well,  but iiI noticed the price bump was because of the upgraded Cartograph decals they included.  Not worth it to me,  even now the HL here has that kit on clearance,  still around $24

The price bump was from all the new tooling that had to be created to merge the drag and NASCAR versions of the two '64 Mopars together.  The Belvidere and 330 weren't compatible with each other as designed originally.

[ZTony8]

The regular retail price on the Lawman kit was somewhere around $25. Hobby Lobby's price hike was all on their own. So with the 40% off you ended up spending right about retail price.

On the flip side- if Hobby Lobby pays the same price for the Foose pickup as the regular hobby shops do, then, with the 40% coupon, they make about $ 1.15 per kit. Anyone have any genuine insight as to what HL pays ( no guesses- I can do that)?

[niteowl7710]

The regular retail price on the Lawman kit was somewhere around $25. Hobby Lobby's price hike was all on their own. So with the 40% off you ended up spending right about retail price.

On the flip side- if Hobby Lobby pays the same price for the Foose pickup as the regular hobby shops do, then, with the 40% coupon, they make about $ 1.15 per kit. Anyone have any genuine insight as to what HL pays ( no guesses- I can do that)?

The MSRP on the Lawman according to Stevens Int'l  is $32.95 currently. 

[Mark]

The regular retail price on the Lawman kit was somewhere around $25. Hobby Lobby's price hike was all on their own. So with the 40% off you ended up spending right about retail price.

On the flip side- if Hobby Lobby pays the same price for the Foose pickup as the regular hobby shops do, then, with the 40% coupon, they make about $ 1.15 per kit. Anyone have any genuine insight as to what HL pays ( no guesses- I can do that)?

HL is probably buying in enough volume that they can deal with Revell directly, where a local, one-location shop has to go through a wholesaler. 

[mikemodeler]

Squadron is having a sale on Vallejo paint, check it out!

 

[Robberbaron]

The regular retail price on the Lawman kit was somewhere around $25. Hobby Lobby's price hike was all on their own. So with the 40% off you ended up spending right about retail price.

On the flip side- if Hobby Lobby pays the same price for the Foose pickup as the regular hobby shops do, then, with the 40% coupon, they make about $ 1.15 per kit. Anyone have any genuine insight as to what HL pays ( no guesses- I can do that)?

I honestly think it was a trial balloon - let's see how these things sell with a $10.00 higher price than most of their other typical car kits.  If they moved enough (even with people using a 40% coupon), you will start seeing that happen more often.

Didn't work with me.  I originally planned to get one due to the steel wheels/poverty caps/Americans that weren't in the original Lindberg version.  I already have one of the Lindbergs, so I didn't NEED one of the Lawman kits, but if it was normally priced, I'd pony up using a 40% coupon.  But not interested enough to drop $25ish on one.

[DanR]

I honestly think it was a trial balloon - let's see how these things sell with a $10.00 higher price than most of their other typical car kits.  If they moved enough (even with people using a 40% coupon), you will start seeing that happen more often.

Didn't work with me.  I originally planned to get one due to the steel wheels/poverty caps/Americans that weren't in the original Lindberg version.  I already have one of the Lindbergs, so I didn't NEED one of the Lawman kits, but if it was normally priced, I'd pony up using a 40% coupon.  But not interested enough to drop $25ish on one.

I'm with you. On principle alone, I refused to buy one. I see a couple of Tamiya armor kits now selling for $50 each and I am pretty sure that neither of these retails for that much elsewhere. I did wonder if Hobby Lobby is starting to factor their 40% coupon into some of their pricing. If that's the case, I'll just go back to waiting a while and then ordering them from warrenshobbies on Ebay. He tends to lower prices on kits that have been out for a while. 

[niteowl7710]

Or maybe the manufacturers are raising their prices....

AMT PLASTIC MODEL KITS

AMT-1062

1/25 Mack Cruise-Liner Semi Tractor Cab

$44.95

TBA

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AMT-1064

1/25 Bobby Allison's 1972 Coca Cola Chevy Monte Carlo Race Car

$32.95

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AMT-1065

1/25 Dirty Donny 1969 Plymouth GTX

$26.95

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AMT-1068

1/25 George Barris Fireball 500 (Commemorative Package)

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AMT-1069

1/25 Tom Mongoose McEwen Fantasy Wedge Dragster

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AMT-1072

1/25 Petty Team Dodge Dart Sportsman Race Car & Ford LN8000 Hauler Truck

$63.95

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AMT-1073

1/25 Shelby Cobra Car & 1953 Ford Pickup Truck w/Trailer

$63.95

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AMT-1074

1/25 2017 Chevy Camaro SS 1LE

$32.95

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AMT-1075

1/25 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8

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AMT-1076

1/25 1950 Chevy Pickup Truck

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AMT-1077

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AMT-1079

1/25 1957 Chevy Pepper Shaker Race Car

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REVELL-MONOGRAM

RMX-4446

1/25 1985 Oldsmobile 442/FE3X Show Car

$26.95

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RMX-4463

1/25 1929 Model A Roadster

$26.95

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REVELL-MONOGRAM

RMX-4465

1/24 1933 Ford ZZ Top Eliminator Coupe

$25.95

TBA

 

[DanR]

Again, I'll wait for shows or for online sellers who offer kits at a discount. I already buy pretty much all of my Tamiya kits from Japanese hobby shops on Amazon. The ship time is longer, but the difference in price is so worth it. And most ship for free.