The Price of Sticks Must Come Down

[Jarick 5]

You're making the mistake of assuming the macroeconomic environment applies to your situation. Hockey is already a privileged sport...people who play have the money for the gear and the ice time. Just because some sectors are struggling doesn't mean the entire economy grinds to a halt. If hockey sticks were really too expensive, nobody would buy them, and manufacturers would stop offering them.

[Chadd 916]

Best stick I've used so far is the Harrow 300, just ordered another 2-piece for $90 shipped. As was said above, a top end OPS is a luxury item.

You can sell for a lot less when you aren't giving the dealers a cut.

[raganblink 82]

You can sell for a lot less when you aren't giving the dealers a cut.

Which is why a lot of dealers have left Harrow. Warrior is smart with their custom design program, making the nearest Warrior dealer the dealer you go through and having them get a cut in the custom product. +1 to them for that.

And DS idk if you have Miken sticks or not, but, I don't recommend them. Stick was horrible compared to other sticks at that PP. Shows how much of a legup the big 4 have on the startup companies.

As for this whole debate; if you don't want to get a 200 dollar stick, don't get one. That's why PP's exist.

[VakarLajos 5]

Don't want to spend $300 on a stick, then don't.

Nobody is forcing you to buy the top of the line item.

With this same train of thought, BMW needs to make it's M5 available for around $25,000 so everybody can afford it.

[chippa13 1844]

Which is why a lot of dealers have left Harrow. Warrior is smart with their custom design program, making the nearest Warrior dealer the dealer you go through and having them get a cut in the custom product. +1 to them for that.

And DS idk if you have Miken sticks or not, but, I don't recommend them. Stick was horrible compared to other sticks at that PP. Shows how much of a legup the big 4 have on the startup companies.

As for this whole debate; if you don't want to get a 200 dollar stick, don't get one. That's why PP's exist.

Bauer does a similar thing to Warrior with the Bauer ID program. The shop you select gets a piece of the action.

[Hradsky 1]

Me only "discovering" eBay and other online stores am still thinking that the top of the line sticks are really cheap compared to the retail prices I'm used to seeing.

I'm not going to pay $250 for a Mac Daddy, but I will pay $100...

And if this is turning into a fantasy thread, I'm pretty angry about the rising price of Coke and Pepsi. Over $2.00 /2L here in Canada :(

[DarkStar50 679]

Which is why a lot of dealers have left Harrow. Warrior is smart with their custom design program, making the nearest Warrior dealer the dealer you go through and having them get a cut in the custom product. +1 to them for that.

And DS idk if you have Miken sticks or not, but, I don't recommend them. Stick was horrible compared to other sticks at that PP. Shows how much of a legup the big 4 have on the startup companies.

As for this whole debate; if you don't want to get a 200 dollar stick, don't get one. That's why PP's exist.

Did not bring Miken but they are an example of new product with high end price. It is tough to break into the category with no exposure at that price point. Thanks for the input.

No one in my shop holds a gun to your head to buy an S19. I offer more low to mid OPS now so beer-leaguers can stop complaining about the upper end OPS price. Now when a 5030 Woody is $35-$40, with a game life of 5 before the blade comes apart on the bottom, why not try a low end OPS? Also, SW has had some issues with production so don't be fooled, that is not your father's 5030 anymore! Also in Jr and Int OPS, the lower price points help out those parents that don't have $$$ to spend on a stick. Not every Jr kid needs a Porsche................

[raganblink 82]

No one in my shop holds a gun to your head to buy an S19. I offer more low to mid OPS now so beer-leaguers can stop complaining about the upper end OPS price. Now when a 5030 Woody is $35-$40, with a game life of 5 before the blade comes apart on the bottom, why not try a low end OPS? Also, SW has had some issues with production so don't be fooled, that is not your father's 5030 anymore! Also in Jr and Int OPS, the lower price points help out those parents that don't have $$$ to spend on a stick. Not every Jr kid needs a Porsche................

Exactly. Normally what we do is roughly half our money in top end, and half in low-mid end. This season we're probably 35% high end, 65% low-mid end. Nobody can complain all we carry is $200 sticks this year!

Also, you don't use the gun? Works so well...

[DarkStar50 679]

The price point stick that doesn't sell is the one just below the high end, in between mid and high. X:50 and even an ST can sit on the rack for quite awhile before it is finally markdown time. That is no man's land in PPs.

[kovalchuk71 212]

The price point stick that doesn't sell is the one just below the high end, in between mid and high. X:50 and even an ST can sit on the rack for quite awhile before it is finally markdown time. That is no man's land in PPs.

Couldnt agree more. At the shop I work at, the new S3's are selling like hotcakes, yet we can't move the SE6's

[furlanitalia 1]

Looking at the costs of sticks I remember when the first Synergy's came out and were priced at $200 CDN. Well the newest ST's are out, and guess what they cost? $200 CDN. The technology is better and the performance is better, but the price hasn't really gone up. When the first Stealth came out it was $300 cdn. New S19? $300 cdn.

The point that has been beaten to death here is that the top of the line item is a luxury item, and almost every brand offers a mid to high end product with better performance then the original OPS' of 5-6 years ago. If you're that unhappy with prices just pick up last years models or pro stock. As far as I'm concerned, If you can get a stick that was at one time top of the line for $200 or less, then you're getting a deal. Which by the way is just about every stick after it's been out for a year or 18 months.

[silverclrk 0]

And DS idk if you have Miken sticks or not, but, I don't recommend them. Stick was horrible compared to other sticks at that PP. Shows how much of a legup the big 4 have on the startup companies.

Had a chance to demo a Miken for 3 months before it broke. It wasn't that bad decent durability and shot was ok. I wouldn't price it where they have it or want it at but if the stick was a $100 I would buy another one.

[DarkStar50 679]

No Miken on order here for the shop. I have a BattleAxe to try out. 80 flex, BX10. Just about to tape the blade.......

[Chadd 916]

No Miken on order here for the shop. I have a BattleAxe to try out. 80 flex, BX10. Just about to tape the blade.......

I really like some of the product ideas they have coming in the next couple years.

[dsjunior1388 81]

Couldnt agree more. At the shop I work at, the new S3's are selling like hotcakes, yet we can't move the SE6's

Oddly enough, both of those sticks are in my apartment right now. My one roommate played hockey his whole life. He LOVES the SE6, says the stick in an 85 Getzlaf was "literally made for me." He says it will be a long time before he buys any other stick. On the other hand, my other roomate has the S3. I've shot with both sticks. The SE6 is a fantastic stick, well balanced, performs well for a mid-end. I think the S3 sucks. I know it's a big step down from the S11 I had, but it's way heavier, feels like crap in my hands, and blade heavy to a fault. What are your SE6'I as selling for? My buddy got his for $85, the other guy got his S3 for around $65, and I can't believe the S3 would win with the wieght it has. For 20 bucks, or maybe as much as $30 in some places, I'm really surprised the SE6 is not outselling the S3.

I also spoke to an LHS worker who has since moved, leaving the shop to a couple of clowns who, when I asked if their were any Vapor XXXX's in a P106 curve told me 106 was probably a flex. Anyway, I was talking to the guy and he told me that basically, outside the top end stuff, 90% of customers are willing to spend $100 and barely a cent more.

[tro 4]

The one thing I find interesting and maybe someone could shed some light on it, is the difference in price from the high end to the low end in the YTH stick market and why that doesn't translate over to Sr.

I went to buy my son a YTH stick this year, the One95 was $59 CDN while some of the lower end Easton s5? and RBk 4k? were like $49. When you look at Sr, a One95 to 4K is $150 difference.

Do the YTH sticks just not differ much from high end to the low end?

I won't complain about stick pricing though, don't like it don't buy it, simple, in Cdn the S19 is $320, never would I consider paying that, but I was watching a Midget AAA game the other day and they were all over the ice.

[Jarick 5]

I can't imagine the youth sticks are constructed the same way as a senior model.

[Chadd 916]

The one thing I find interesting and maybe someone could shed some light on it, is the difference in price from the high end to the low end in the YTH stick market and why that doesn't translate over to Sr.

I went to buy my son a YTH stick this year, the One95 was $59 CDN while some of the lower end Easton s5? and RBk 4k? were like $49. When you look at Sr, a One95 to 4K is $150 difference.

Do the YTH sticks just not differ much from high end to the low end?

High end youth sticks contain far more fiberglass (in terms of %) than the senior counterparts. I haven't used them so it's impossible to say if there is any additional value to the more expensive models.

[Jordan 13]

in Cdn the S19 is $320, never would I consider paying that, but I was watching a Midget AAA game the other day and they were all over the ice.

One of the sad things that has happened in hockey, is that as fast as the price of sticks has increased, so has the cost of rep hockey. Around Toronto, AAA teams run $4,000-$7,000 per player depending upon the organization, plus the cost of hotels/gas and meals. It can run easily to $10,000 or more for a season.

So, in a perverse way whether you pay $100/stick or $200/stick or even $300/stick it makes a rather small dent in the total. Not endorsing it. Its' just what I see happening.

[furlanitalia 1]

YTH sticks (Not junior) are ideally all built identical and slapped with graphics. Anyone who uses a youth stick won't notice any benefits in expensive materials. And if this isn't the case anyone else can chime in because from what I've seen YTH sticks don't have any of the selling features of high end SR sticks. They're just a fancy paint job.

[tro 4]

YTH sticks (Not junior) are ideally all built identical and slapped with graphics. Anyone who uses a youth stick won't notice any benefits in expensive materials. And if this isn't the case anyone else can chime in because from what I've seen YTH sticks don't have any of the selling features of high end SR sticks. They're just a fancy paint job.

Performance wise I doubt there is any difference and a kid couldn't tell you the difference, the high end sticks are lighter(not much)

[AIREAYE 248]

Definately, I wanted to buy my brother a One95 for $60, so he can be 'proud' of what he has. Conspicuous consumption is quite apparent here. Ended up settling for an Ovechkin wood stick...hey its got ovie on it and it only cost $15

[jcp2 2]

YTH sticks (Not junior) are ideally all built identical and slapped with graphics. Anyone who uses a youth stick won't notice any benefits in expensive materials. And if this isn't the case anyone else can chime in because from what I've seen YTH sticks don't have any of the selling features of high end SR sticks. They're just a fancy paint job.

I'll have to say that the youth CCM V130 that I picked up on sale for my 6 year old son is substantially different than all the other youth sticks. It's super thin and super flexy (I think the CCM number is 35). I have his CCM youth wood stick and it's pretty hard to flex at a cut down length, even for me.

[kovalchuk71 212]

I suggest companies cut down their profit margins, because I know almost exactly what several of the top end sticks cost to produce, and they're overcharging the retailers, but beyond that, let's seriously explore the idea of getting rid of warranties. I really hope I'm not the only one who feels this way.

No, you really don't know how much they cost to produce..... and do you work at a proshop and know the profit margin? I can tell you right now they are not ripping retailers....

As the cost of oil goes up, the cost to produce carbon fiber goes up....

[shotty 7]

don't even bring oil into it. it applies to everything. inflation in general. things cost more to make today than they did 2,5,10 years ago.

the market will correct itself. it never adjusts according to petitions or strikes, it fixes itself based on retail math. sublitwill mentioned in another thread that TPS was afraid to be the first $200 stick, so they dropped their MSRP without adjusting their wholesale price. in the ski industry, when the design changed to shaped skis, the widths started growing huge, and in mountain biking, the travel on the front fork was becoming overkill... just like those two technologies, composite one piece sticks revolutionized their sport, and companies are in uncharted territory right now... just like they were with skis that had 140mm mids and a bike's front fork with 14" of travel, and with big "improvements" comes big price. will elliptical taper and 400g sticks be around in 3-5 years, or is the standard taper and 420g the design that "sticks" (no pun)? right now we're paying for evolution of the gear, and when they realize what people want and use, they'll fine tune it, prices will drop and margins will increase. it cant be done overnight. it takes years and years of numbers and millions and millions of dollars.