[bboris77]

I don't understand this--the mentality of "charging what the market will bear." We will always charge a standard (and hopefully fair) margin for our products.

This mentality is usually exhibited by people who are motivated by greed predominantly. You guys seem to be in this business because you actually enjoy having fun with audio as well.

I remember recently having an argument about this approach with my coworkers who are fanboys of a particular company that charges what the market will bear for a certain set of computer add-on wheels.

 

[Jones Bob]

Yes, we will be moving some of the smaller products to Texas at least partly for this reason, but not at the cost of staffing in California.

And traveling from California to your new production facilities in Texas, you might consider taking this short detour on The Texas Mile course in your Corvette.

 

[Ableza]

This mentality is usually exhibited by people who are motivated by greed predominantly.

Not "greed" necessarily, but the philsophy of "maximizing shareholder value." It's an attitude that comes from publicly traded companies.

 

[Ableza]

And, to continue the economics discussion, since Chevrolet cannot keep up with demand for the C8 corvette they should raise prices. If demand remains strong, they should raise them some more, right up to the point where demand starts to falter. Then they should lower them until demand = capacity. That is "maximizing shareholder value" and it is looked upon favorably by Wall Street and the SEC. They chose not to do that and good for them (and good for consumers) but that's how these things typically work, and their share price might get hit because of that decision. Although the marketing value of being "sold out" and making the vehicle more special has intangible value that might counteract their anti-market pricing position.

Schiit is not forced to follow that model because they are a private company. They answer to no government agencies overseeing their valuation (other than corporation and tax agencies) and to no nameless faceless group of stock holders or board of directors eager to squeeze as much profit out of them as they can. They are self-motivated and Jason has very clearly described that motivation in this thread multiple times. I for one applaud them and hope they can remain private, that they are making plenty of money doing what they do, and that they keep having fun doing it. But if they ever do decide to go public I will be in line as an eager investor.

 

[Rensek]

I have always shot for making audio equipment that is analogous to Corvettes and Camaros. Yes, this is a conscious decision.

So if Ragnarok is a Corvette, where's the Camaro

Mjolnir revision maybe? Maybe a Continuity/Nexus melded design that is a balanced differential amp, keeps the Alps pot, add 4-8 watt speaker taps, no remote.....

Just idle musing on my part...

But if you ever start looking at a smaller integrated with speaker taps I'd gladly volunteer to beta.

 

[Pietro Cozzi Tinin]

I looked twice but could not find any negative comment on Jason buying a new car so the sudden discussion is a spot of confusion.
And.. good for you Jason, I hope you'll buy a lot more of them.
i gather that in line of "spending money where you make it" you're a connaisseur of Californian wines which I heard can be very good.

 

[Scott Kramer]

But yeah, if I lived where it snowed, I would move...er, I mean, I would probably not choose a Corvette as a daily driver. Though I did drive my '98 convertible back from Chicago in the middle of an ice storm through the midwest. That was, er, not fun.

Spoiler

I drove a HEAVY (normal then vs. today) toyota turbo mkiii supra in ohio, in winter, in my 20's, on nothing special tires, thing was an explosive (laggy) fast damn tank--- gave me a certain confidence/awareness today lol. Got to the point where could precisely spin the tires to rotate & park in a space 270deg. it really trained me to look far ahead and know the speed, anticipate etc, snow or no snow. Everyone should drive in the snow for a year, sports car a bonus for a rough experience haha.

 

[killaHz]

And, to continue the economics discussion, since Chevrolet cannot keep up with demand for the C8 corvette they should raise prices. If demand remains strong, they should raise them some more, right up to the point where demand starts to falter. Then they should lower them until demand = capacity. That is "maximizing shareholder value" and it is looked upon favorably by Wall Street and the SEC. They chose not to do that and good for them (and good for consumers) but that's how these things typically work, and their share price might get hit because of that decision. Although the marketing value of being "sold out" and making the vehicle more special has intangible value that might counteract their anti-market pricing position.

Schiit is not forced to follow that model because they are a private company. They answer to no government agencies overseeing their valuation (other than corporation and tax agencies) and to no nameless faceless group of stock holders or board of directors eager to squeeze as much profit out of them as they can. They are self-motivated and Jason has very clearly described that motivation in this thread multiple times. I for one applaud them and hope they can remain private, that they are making plenty of money doing what they do, and that they keep having fun doing it. But if they ever do decide to go public I will be in line as an eager investor.

There’s a pretty serious amount of leeway granted to corporations w/r/t their responsibility to maximize shareholder value. For instance, the Dodge brothers—investors in Ford Motor Company—sued because Henry Ford was spending a bunch of money on social engineering that was only very remotely related to the health of the company. But the courts said it was fine. Directors and executives have a lot of different things to worry about, and unless their failure to maximize value in the short term relates to some kind of malfeasance, nobody can ever make a successful complaint about it.

So, the Corvette has a wait list, and corporate profits would go up a little if they increased the price. But there are other considerations that a board of directors or CEO could easily value more than those incremental short-term gains in profits. For example, Chevy gets a lot of good press for making a supercar that is much cheaper than similarly-performing cars. It could be bad for the brand to mess with that.

 

[Rensek]

Everyone should learn to drive in the snow in an old rear wheel drive boat that has disc brakes (non anti locking). Extra bonus points if you do so in a car that doesn't have power steering. Comparing a 78 Ford Fairmont to my 2016 AWD Chevy Traverse is crazy. I can now drive 60-70 on roads that I used white knuckle at 45.

 

[Ableza]

There’s a pretty serious amount of leeway granted to corporations w/r/t their responsibility to maximize shareholder value. For instance, the Dodge brothers—investors in Ford Motor Company—sued because Henry Ford was spending a bunch of money on social engineering that was only very remotely related to the health of the company. But the courts said it was fine. Directors and executives have a lot of different things to worry about, and unless their failure to maximize value in the short term relates to some kind of malfeasance, nobody can ever make a successful complaint about it.

So, the Corvette has a wait list, and corporate profits would go up a little if they increased the price. But there are other considerations that a board of directors or CEO could easily value more than those incremental short-term gains in profits. For example, Chevy gets a lot of good press for making a supercar that is much cheaper than similarly-performing cars. It could be bad for the brand to mess with that.

You are right of course, but I have also seen CEOs dismissed because of price strategy decisions that cause stock price to drop, so the pressure of valuation is usually king.

 

[GearMe]

Isn't the whole point of the thread to discuss schiit's business? I simply think they've gone too cheap, not that I am complaining OR know What I am talking about. Judging from the market Magnius and Modius are underpriced imo.

HA!!! Where did you get that idea? Primary topics are Cars, coffee, cats, corporations...

 

[Jason Stoddard]

And traveling from California to your new production facilities in Texas, you might consider taking this short detour on The Texas Mile course in your Corvette.

That's only about an hour away from Corpus Christi, which is where our new facility will be. Rina will be more interested than me. She's the track person.

And, to continue the economics discussion, since Chevrolet cannot keep up with demand for the C8 corvette they should raise prices. If demand remains strong, they should raise them some more, right up to the point where demand starts to falter. Then they should lower them until demand = capacity. That is "maximizing shareholder value" and it is looked upon favorably by Wall Street and the SEC. They chose not to do that and good for them (and good for consumers) but that's how these things typically work, and their share price might get hit because of that decision. Although the marketing value of being "sold out" and making the vehicle more special has intangible value that might counteract their anti-market pricing position.

Schiit is not forced to follow that model because they are a private company. They answer to no government agencies overseeing their valuation (other than corporation and tax agencies) and to no nameless faceless group of stock holders or board of directors eager to squeeze as much profit out of them as they can. They are self-motivated and Jason has very clearly described that motivation in this thread multiple times. I for one applaud them and hope they can remain private, that they are making plenty of money doing what they do, and that they keep having fun doing it. But if they ever do decide to go public I will be in line as an eager investor.

We've started to get our first inquiries from companies looking to "help" us with capital/management/oversight/etc. I answer all of these emails with the same one-liner: "Nah, doneedno money, got plenty of our own, having too much fun, go away." They usually react in a nonplussed manner. I don't know why. I think it's a very corporate email. I didn't even use any bad words.

I looked twice but could not find any negative comment on Jason buying a new car so the sudden discussion is a spot of confusion.
And.. good for you Jason, I hope you'll buy a lot more of them.
i gather that in line of "spending money where you make it" you're a connaisseur of Californian wines which I heard can be very good.

It was less that and more "business must be good, you got a new car." So I thought it would be good to clarify that I've been buying new Corvettes for a long, long time (since before I even had any successful company at all), and will continue to do so with or without Schiit. I also thought it would be good perspective to say that it's cheaper than an King Ranch.

And yeah, California wine can be very, very good. Though I'm more into beer these days.

Spoiler

I drove a HEAVY (normal then vs. today) toyota turbo mkiii supra in ohio, in winter, in my 20's, on nothing special tires, thing was an explosive (laggy) fast damn tank--- gave me a certain confidence/awareness today lol. Got to the point where could precisely spin the tires to rotate & park in a space 270deg. it really trained me to look far ahead and know the speed, anticipate etc, snow or no snow. Everyone should drive in the snow for a year, sports car a bonus for a rough experience haha.

I purposefully bought a 1966 427/450 Corvette (early 427/425 for the pedants) after totalling a Viper (10 years before Schiit, so don't start beating me up about that purchase either). This is a car that will spin 180 on the freeway if you stand on it in 3rd gear. It is very, very dangerous. I bought it to teach me respect. It seems to have worked fairly well. Not a terrible investment either, if that's what floats your boat.

 

[JoeWhip]

Manufacturers and the audio press suggest that Schiit could charge more because they want them to. Great gear at reasonable prices is a threat to the whole section of audio industry where prices are going up way faster than the rate of innovation and most importantly, SQ. Seasoned audiophiles hear my Yggy and say no way, not for that $. To that I say, yes way.

 

[gxleetw]

That's only about an hour away from Corpus Christi, which is where our new facility will be.

since there’s now a Schiit facility in Texas, is it possible to have another Echitr too? Say Austin or Houston?

 

[GumbyDammit223]

*snip*
I drove a HEAVY (normal then vs. today) toyota turbo mkiii supra in ohio, in winter, in my 20's, on nothing special tires, thing was an explosive (laggy) fast damn tank--- gave me a certain confidence/awareness today lol. Got to the point where could precisely spin the tires to rotate & park in a space 270deg. it really trained me to look far ahead and know the speed, anticipate etc, snow or no snow. Everyone should drive in the snow for a year, sports car a bonus for a rough experience haha.

Everyone should learn to drive in the snow in an old rear wheel drive boat that has disc brakes (non anti locking). Extra bonus points if you do so in a car that doesn't have power steering. Comparing a 78 Ford Fairmont to my 2016 AWD Chevy Traverse is crazy. I can now drive 60-70 on roads that I used white knuckle at 45.

Wholeheartedly agree about getting experience in less than ideal driving conditions. You most definitely look at what's ahead of you making sure it doesn't become one with you. Unfortunately you aren't gifted with a crystal ball to know what the other drivers are going to do... All's well and good when you give yourself 2-5 car lengths between you and the car in front when driving on a hardpacked icy highway, but that just gives the moron speeding along in the adjacent lane incentive to cut right in front of you for the exit you're planning on taking.