Here are some of the latest announcements on tariff strategies by 12 volt suppliers:
Scosche raised prices by 5 to 13 percent on some wiring kits September 1 and then implemented a second price hike on dash kits and additional wiring harnesses October 1.
“We held out as long as we could, hoping the situation would dissipate…Unfortunately, we realized it wasn’t going away and we had to react.,” said Nathan Perkins, Scosche 12 Volt Team Manager. The company is not ruling out making more price adjustments in January, although it hopes to avoid them.
Cedar Electronics, maker of Escort and Cobra has been hard hit be tariffs in 5 of the 6 product categories it sells. But it is keeping prices steady for the time being.
The most troublesome tariff for the company is the 25 percent fee on CB radios that hit on the first round of tariffs in July. Radar detectors, including Escort custom detectors that are built in the US, have also been slapped with a 10 percent tariff. Dashcams are also on the tariff list.
The company has filed for an exemption and is waiting to see if its application is granted.
“We’re committing to holding off on any price changes through the holiday season. We brought in a great deal of inventory prior to the institution of the tariffs. For some products, we weren’t able to bring in enough so we’re just cost adjusting,” said Cedar VP Marketing and Business Development Mark Karnes.
As with other suppliers, it will re-evaluate its pricing position in January, as tariffs on goods such as dashcams, radar detectors, amplifiers and other 12 volt good are due to rise at that time from the current 10 percent rate up to 25 percent.
As we reported earlier, in an ironic twist, Cedar recently opened a factory near Ohio to supply custom radar detectors, but the US made products use some Chinese parts and so they incur a tariff.
Automotive Integrative Solutions (AIS), the driver assistance brand, said it is not planning to raise prices on its products.
See also tariff stories here and here.
Tariff Police,
Randy Young is correct. Most manufacturers are only raising prices by the tariff amount with the promise of going back to the same prices if they go away. Our policy at Elettromedia is to stand pat on our prices and absorb the tariff increase for now. We will decide what we will do on January 1 if the tariffs increase to a higher level. If we do adjust, it will be just the amount of the tariff only.
Exactly… the “reasonable” manufacturers are passing on only the tariff… not using it as a price increase. Guarantee, if the tariffs go away, dealers won’t see a price “decrease” from these suppliers.
Support the manufacturers that are being responsible with the tariffs, not the ones that are using it to pad their wallets.
What really matters is the end consumer pain level. If retail price points move out of the “buy” zone, we all will have problems.
Are these manufacturers dumb? Say there is a 20% tariff. That tariff is on the raw product imported from China. So if something costs a dealer $100, Scosche or any manufacturer only is paying $20-$30 for that part max. So the 20% tariff is only on $20.00, and these dumb greedy manufacturers are raising their $100 price by $100.
That is what we call a SCAM! Do people not see this? Amy, you don’t see this?
If BOM increases by $20, then retail must increase by 4 to 5x that . . . dealer cost is a function of margin from retail.
That just isn’t accurate. Most manufacturers don’t operate with the same profit margins retailers do and make it up on the volume of sales so even a 6% increase is still a noticeable increase. Regardless, this increase isn’t their fault so why should they eat it? You know if there was an American alternative they would use it but there just isn’t and there isn’t going to be one any time soon. Retailers who are attempting to absorb these increases will truly be the ones hurt by the tariffs because that 6, 10, 20% increase is actually double the cost to them.