Folks, while no one, including me, likes Nikon prices going up drastically, assigning this to retailers trying to "cash in" on the Japan tragedy is short-sighted at best. Think of it this way: will retailers rather sell 1 D700 with a $300 additional markup on top of the margin they already make (probably also in the hundreds) or 20 D700 cameras with no $300 markup?
The markup first of all results from a very simple supply vs. demand equation, not some evil plot to fleece the Nikon faithful. If that is too abstract a concept, consider how now that retailers no longer have a steady supply of D700 cameras (and other Nikon goodies), those markups are short-term, limited hedges against the greater profitability they would experience with supply lines intact.
That is, of course, if one assumes that D700 supplies were holding steady, a tenuous assumption, since D700 production was probably ramping down in preparation for the next big thing. Add that to the Yen vs. Dollar exchange rate, which has decidedly been also creeping in the wrong direction, and all this dandruff about retailers foaming at the mouth to stick it to us seems ill-conceived.
Now, if you have around $2,000 USD laying around, just waiting to snap a delicious D700 deal, search your heart and see whether it wouldn't be better spent on a donation for aid to the Japanese people.
The markup first of all results from a very simple supply vs. demand equation, not some evil plot to fleece the Nikon faithful. If that is too abstract a concept, consider how now that retailers no longer have a steady supply of D700 cameras (and other Nikon goodies), those markups are short-term, limited hedges against the greater profitability they would experience with supply lines intact.
That is, of course, if one assumes that D700 supplies were holding steady, a tenuous assumption, since D700 production was probably ramping down in preparation for the next big thing. Add that to the Yen vs. Dollar exchange rate, which has decidedly been also creeping in the wrong direction, and all this dandruff about retailers foaming at the mouth to stick it to us seems ill-conceived.
Now, if you have around $2,000 USD laying around, just waiting to snap a delicious D700 deal, search your heart and see whether it wouldn't be better spent on a donation for aid to the Japanese people.
