ETI 2022 prices are posted

[Robc inWI]

Originally Posted by Mike G

Rob must not be a Twins fan. Just joshing.

Brewers all the way......

[JeffreyG]

Originally Posted by Robc inWI

Brewers all the way......

I wish we had a professional baseball team here in Detroit.

[Centex]

Originally Posted by JeffreyG

I wish we had a professional baseball team here in Detroit.

OUCH!

[BoomerStu]

Originally Posted by Chamberman

Everyone wants to talk about the added costs for ETI due to inflation or the exchange rate but nobody has mentioned the efficiency savings ETI has realized in the past few years. There's a concept called "Economies of scale" that manufacturers realize when they increase production. I would say that ETI has benefited greatly from this. I say this because from what I can tell they have more than doubled their production in the past few years and are still using most of the same facilities. Oh sure they've had to add headcount and more equipment here and there but it doesn't take double the headcount or double the trailer moulds to double the output of a factory. In fact I'd be surprised if ETI added more than 30 - 40% to their headcount to realize the doubling of production. So as ETI ramps up production levels their capital depreciation and labor become a smaller component of every trailer built. I would be surprised if ETI has not realized as much or more in profit margin improvement per unit due to the production ramp efficiencies as the inflationary costs they've incurred in the past year. Just my opinion of course...

With all of that being said, ETI is a private company and as such they can set the pricing to whatever level they want. They can increase the prices by 50%, 100%, etc, if they so choose. The only thing that customers can do about it is speak with their feet. If we're not happy with it then we need to move on.

I will also say that while most companies do not get this type of scrutiny in their pricing I think that ETI ultimately invites it because of their business model which is direct to customer and keeps their customers locked on a long waiting list with an unknown future pricing. I've worked at companies that had months long waiting lists for their products, but those customers knew when they placed their order what their pricing would be.

You are correct about the "economies of scale" and that that should reduce labor costs, and I'm sure it has. However, as a manufacturing business owner in the states, I can assure you that not only materials, hardware, resin, and other components have gone up in price significantly, but also labor. We have had to increase labor rates several times over the past 2 years just to get/keep a decent work force. These increases significantly outweigh the reductions of economies of scale imho. Also, with workers paid to stay home recently, our turnover is greater which dampens the economies of scale, as newer workers must continually be trained to get "up to speed". We, and all of our suppliers, have had to increase prices well more than 10% recently so I think ETI is very much in line with the rest of the world. Don't get me wrong, I'm not thrilled with it but I certainly understand it.

[sofmerc]

Originally Posted by BoomerStu

You are correct about the "economies of scale" and that that should reduce labor costs, and I'm sure it has. However, as a manufacturing business owner in the states, I can assure you that not only materials, hardware, resin, and other components have gone up in price significantly, but also labor. We have had to increase labor rates several times over the past 2 years just to get/keep a decent work force. These increases significantly outweigh the reductions of economies of scale imho. Also, with workers paid to stay home recently, our turnover is greater which dampens the economies of scale, as newer workers must continually be trained to get "up to speed". We, and all of our suppliers, have had to increase prices well more than 10% recently so I think ETI is very much in line with the rest of the world. Don't get me wrong, I'm not thrilled with it but I certainly understand it.

good point. I think we all dislike but understand the reality of it.

[Michael.Chadwick]

No we drove out from maine to get ours……..was much cheaper and 26 days of seeing the country

[PM15283]

Originally Posted by diannelgraham

US dollar has lost ground to the Canadian dollar so that has some to do with the larger percentage increase.

Wrong. Yesterday's quote showed the weakest Canadian dollar number in many months.

[gbaglo]

Actually, he US dollar has been weakening against world currencies, including the Canadian dollar.

[Scot schroeder]

Supply and demand. Trailers go up in price and quality goes down. I’m not necessarily talking about escape. In the last 25 years it’s the only industry where quality has went down and people still are happy paying for it. That is why fiberglass is so popular because most (most) everything else is junk. Curious to see how well built these are with production going up. Don’t put your tools away your going to need them.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by Scot schroeder

Supply and demand. Trailers go up in price and quality goes down. I’m not necessarily talking about escape. In the last 25 years it’s the only industry where quality has went down and people still are happy paying for it. That is why fiberglass is so popular because most (most) everything else is junk. Curious to see how well built these are with production going up. Don’t put your tools away your going to need them.

A new neighbor of mine has a Rockwood stick built camper and he said to me just yesterday..."these things are such junk for what you pay and the service really stinks." By continuing to buy them we as consumers have kept the bar low. They haven't been forced to make things better. My perception is that European RV's overall are much nicer. Molded fiberglass is nice and I believe will provide you with a longer lasting, more trouble-free product. That said, Escape's appliance package still has quite a bit to be desired and is the source of most of the issues that I see posted. Good advice to keep your tools handy no matter what you buy.

[cpaharley2008]

Originally Posted by Scot schroeder

Supply and demand. Trailers go up in price and quality goes down. I’m not necessarily talking about escape. In the last 25 years it’s the only industry where quality has went down and people still are happy paying for it. That is why fiberglass is so popular because most (most) everything else is junk. Curious to see how well built these are with production going up. Don’t put your tools away your going to need them.

Scott, I'm not sure if you have seen an Escape but they are top notch quality wise, IMHO.....

[Eggscape]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

A new neighbor of mine has a Rockwood stick built camper and he said to me just yesterday..."these things are such junk for what you pay and the service really stinks." By continuing to buy them we as consumers have kept the bar low. They haven't been forced to make things better. My perception is that European RV's overall are much nicer. Molded fiberglass is nice and I believe will provide you with a longer lasting, more trouble-free product. That said, Escape's appliance package still has quite a bit to be desired and is the source of most of the issues that I see posted. Good advice to keep your tools handy no matter what you buy.

Completely agree.

The shell of the trailer is a thing of beauty and should last my daughter’s life time.

The appliances are common to many RVs and will eventually need to be replaced.