Tim Holtz New Halloween Dies - Unbranded

[gregzgurl]

Quote:

Originally Posted by montessorigrandma

If anyone is using Stampin Up images and making them in China, believe me Stampin Up is not suffering! Their prices are increasingly high! We buyers are all paying for demos cruises and trips.

I posted this on another thread, but it bears repeating here: Stampin'Up! prices on their stamps have remained fairly consistent through the years. The two examples that I used before are "Lovely as a Tree", released around 2003 for $24.95. In 2017 the price was $28.00 for wood mount and $20.00 for cling. The standard wheels (discontinued) were at $5.95 for many years. When they were discontinued, the selling price was $6.50. Not exactly huge increases. The biggest complaints that I feel are valid for SU! are the shipping costs and the gradual lowering of incentives, but they are certainly not alone in that - other companies do the same...

"Race to the bottom" is a phrase that, for me, sums up the whole debate. If we want to pay rock-bottom prices, we cannot be surprised when the quality is at rock-bottom, as well. If we want to continue to have quality products, we should expect to pay a bit more to support the companies that provide them.

[cuteblueshoes]

I totally understand not wanting to overpay for craft supplies. I don't do ********** because I believe the designs are being stolen. If you can wait, most Stampin Up sets and dies end up on eBay or Etsy at a discount once they are retired.

OR, you could always join SU and get your goodies early and at a discount!

[PizzaParty]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuteblueshoes

If you can wait, most Stampin Up sets and dies end up on eBay or Etsy at a discount once they are retired.

OR, you could always join SU and get your goodies early and at a discount!

This is what I do---   I wait.... then buy gently used from eBay / Etsy / Mercari , etc.  

Sure, by the time I get it, it's "dated", but I enjoy them all the same.  : )

[Jeanne S]

These companies are putting the stamp companies that you love out of business. It's that simple. They don't have to pay for someone to come up with ideas. They don't have to have a design team (because they not only steal the products to reproduce but also all the samples from your fellow cardmakers to sell these products and make them look like the genuine company). They have no real overhead. And then when someone buys from them they are not buying from the actual company so for the company it's like just plucking money out of their pocket. This is crushing many of my friend's livelihoods and it's really hard to watch unfold. 

BTW.. it's not just the stamp industry. It's happening with all types of products. 

[wavejumper]

Just an observation:

Card makers who use water marks on their pictures so their work is not ripped off....should not be supporting oversea companies who are ripping off the artwork for stamps/dies/stencils etc. 

If we don't support the US companies...they may not survive. So maybe you get only 2 dies instead of 5. 

It is easy enough to just WAIT for product to age....and get them on sale from the mfg, here, on ebay, whatever. Does not take that long. Lord knows I have more than enough now that I never HAVE to buy anything in the now. (or ever to be honest) From what I have read around here...that is true for a lot of us. 

As for whether the Chinese factories have original designs...I would imagine they do. They have cultural trends and they are selling to their own people. I just read a thing about "cute"-is HUGE in the Asian countries...all things "cute"...fluffy little dogs, etc. 

Given how much many of us look at product...if you have not seen it here...it may well be original. But if you can show us a link we can tell you if we have seen it anywhere here. 

As to quality...well. I would not be surprised if their clear stamps are the cheapest stuff that might tear...and might be suspicious of the metal dies and what they have in them. Just saying. 

For the "green folks"...China is one of the worst environmental offenders on the planet...from what I have read, a lot of it coming from their factories. 

I don't hate China. Ancient and interesting culture. But like all countries including us, there are some sad truths. 

Just some thoughts. 

[montessorigrandma]

I don't think it's fair or true that the reason companies go out of business is due to the China market. PSX stamps left us long ago, and long before China entered the market. There are also Chinese sellers that do use their own designs. And when you start looking at a lot of stamp companies, many of the sets are very similar in theme or in title. I have made a few purchases from a couple Chinese sellers, and the products were excellent quality. The dies cut well, and match the stamps. I think some companies' stamps are way over priced and so are the dies. A local seller that designs her own items told me that the mark up on Dies is ridiculously high.

TE=datgh;21871312]And everyone who buys the knock offs will wonder someday what happened to their favorite companies. Those companies went out of business because they didn't sell enough of their product to cover the costs of designing, manufacturing, etc. Same goes for your local stamp/scrapbooking stores. I work for one and want to scream when I hear customers say they can get it so much cheaper from China. If you are buying these Chinese knock offs, you are receiving stolen goods because the designs are intellectual property. We see the new releases before the general public and the copycats often appear from China before the stamps even arrive at the shop. As tempting as it is to go for the cheaper prices, you are only hurting the industry that you enjoy.[/QUOTE]