Tightening margins

[S J H]

Yes but the “best price” will still have gone up significantly in recent years and there is nothing we can do about it. You can cut costs by deferring things which is really just kicking the can down the road and will often result in higher costs in the future. Maintenance of drains, walls, fences, hedges springs to mind

I’m not suggesting that, but all those things listed can vary a lot in price.

 

[hally]

Often when they are not selling....things can get cheaper. Thinking of plastic, fertilizer etc.

 

[ritchiekirkland]

I think I did that last year and the years before that. How do you know which thing to insure and which thing not to?

Cos touch wood all the old sheds have blown away already !!!

 

[livestock 1]

Yeh but it’s judging that one, I could feed a lot more hard feed but I don’t think I’d end up any better off financially, probably worse in a bad year and I’d of had all that risk.

Risk is involved in every part of potential progress

 

[ritchiekirkland]

Know how you feel, thinking of doing the same, re quotation taking place …..just a bit worried that anything we take off will become uninsurable in future

Well what set me off was they sent the renewal in to close to renewal date and no other companies had enough time to quote !!!

 

[Johnnyboxer]

True but there’s too many things we have to use that have , shot up in price and as the OP said we are at the end of the line with no one to pass it on to.

Insurance, fencing material, hardcore, drainage materials, hurdles, gates, parts, medicines, building repairs, vehicle running costs etc, the list goes on, and they’ve all shot up in recent years

Exactly
I was looking at a new Toyota pickup invoice (from a main dealer) from 2014, just an hour ago
The Towbar & electrics was £200 plus vat in 2014, all Toyota branded

Just looked at another new 2024 Hilux invoice from this week and the Toyota Towbar & electrics are now £750 plus vat

So in 10 years, how can the self same Toyota Towbar treble in price?

Somebody is royally taking the proverbial

 

[livestock 1]

Exactly
I was looking at a new Toyota pickup invoice (from a main dealer) from 2014, just an hour ago
The Towbar & electrics was £200 plus vat in 2014, all Toyota branded

Just looked at another new 2024 Hilux invoice from this week and the Toyota Towbar & electrics are now £750 plus vat

So in 10 years, how can the self same Toyota Towbar treble in price?

Somebody is royally taking the proverbial

I was thinking about this today when the mrs told me what the insurance lot were saying about the prices just going one way
And yet still some folks think we are getting prices that are too high, not with this in mind

 

[muleman]

Stop using them then.

Good idea that, I'd never considered that for some reason!

 

[belac]

Stop using them then.

I can`t stop using AHDB, their about to increase their charges by 25%.

 

[Boydvalley]

The rest of business that produces something is investing to remove labour and increase efficiency to counteract inflation. Cropping lends itself to that and maybe dairy and poultry. Beef and sheep are hard to mechanise and will get left behind in a an AI world. Cutting costs will not work long term. Producing more with less is unfortunately the only way forward. How you achieve that without working yourself into the ground at times I’ve no idea but we are getting seriously left behind now.

 

[Hilly]

I can never understand people cutting costs when things go down. I try to keep mine as low as possible all the time.

I often wonder what they doing to be able to cut them anyway .

 

[Hilly]

Exactly
I was looking at a new Toyota pickup invoice (from a main dealer) from 2014, just an hour ago
The Towbar & electrics was £200 plus vat in 2014, all Toyota branded

Just looked at another new 2024 Hilux invoice from this week and the Toyota Towbar & electrics are now £750 plus vat

So in 10 years, how can the self same Toyota Towbar treble in price?

Somebody is royally taking the proverbial

I know a brickie , not much work about now he saying , i get a weekly delivery tippers , get phone calls all time now off drivers looking for work tipper job is quiet ! Seen a car for sale tonight comments are they have taken 20k off the price last few months …. Things aint as exiting out their as we get led to believe ! Rumor a local large building firm bust this week as well …….

 

[unlacedgecko]

I know a brickie , not much work about now he saying , i get a weekly delivery tippers , get phone calls all time now off drivers looking for work tipper job is quiet ! Seen a car for sale tonight comments are they have taken 20k off the price last few months …. Things aint as exiting out their as we get led to believe ! Rumor a local large building firm bust this week as well …….

Agency driving is always quiet this time of year. Will pick up next month.

 

[livestock 1]

Any business can cut any costs at any time. Less feed for ewes less lambs and smaller lambs. Less feed for cattle same comments. No one knows what the upside of using more feed would be because there’s no measure of that once they haven’t used as much they look at it as a saving. Because profits follow initial costs some time later it’s easy to think savings are good when they are actually costs. Dwindling profit margins are likely to follow

 

[neilo]

Exactly
I was looking at a new Toyota pickup invoice (from a main dealer) from 2014, just an hour ago
The Towbar & electrics was £200 plus vat in 2014, all Toyota branded

Just looked at another new 2024 Hilux invoice from this week and the Toyota Towbar & electrics are now £750 plus vat

So in 10 years, how can the self same Toyota Towbar treble in price?

Somebody is royally taking the proverbial

Presumably you still paid for it though, as you’ve received an invoice? Did you get a quote for a ‘man in a van’ to fit one instead, or just play into the greedy buggers’ hands?

Not having a go btw. I recently paid similar for a dealer fitted towbar too, then electrics charged on top of that!

 

[neilo]

The rest of business that produces something is investing to remove labour and increase efficiency to counteract inflation. Cropping lends itself to that and maybe dairy and poultry. Beef and sheep are hard to mechanise and will get left behind in a an AI world. Cutting costs will not work long term. Producing more with less is unfortunately the only way forward. How you achieve that without working yourself into the ground at times I’ve no idea but we are getting seriously left behind now.

All that glistens isn’t gold. I have arable here too, alongside the sheep. It has only once ever made a better margin/ac than the sheep enterprise, and I know what I’d rather have a field full of to look at.

 

[Jonp]

With the seemingly more unpredictable weather, especially the winter rain, two farmers I know are looking to cut costs by reducing their suckler numbers, because of winter housing costs, and increasing their sheep numbers. Housing the sheep for longer over the winter, and feeding them from a clamp, is also in their plans so that after lambing they have grass to turn out on and reduced costs in rectifying trashed winter fields.

 

[Estate fencing.]

We are forever being told to price things and shop around to try and run our business more cost effectively but these salesmen don't seem to like it when people try something different and they might lose a sale.
They will have to get back to their bosses and sharpen their pencil, but then I suppose it is just us at the end of the chain that are supposed to work for nothing.
A sign of the times tho, it will get worse ....but I suppose quite reassuring to realise how many people do rely on us for a living!

I had a bit of a fall out with a company this week, they didn’t like it went I said I wasn’t interested in a girl coming out to go through a list of things for lambing without prices. I said that if anything is dearer than aps I won’t be having it, they have been milking this place for to long, same as the chap who rang up in September thinking he could buy 600 store lambs for his usual price of £50 and strong cull ewes for £34, don’t think I will be invited to his wedding.

 

[Johnnyboxer]

Presumably you still paid for it though, as you’ve received an invoice? Did you get a quote for a ‘man in a van’ to fit one instead, or just play into the greedy buggers’ hands?

Not having a go btw. I recently paid similar for a dealer fitted towbar too, then electrics charged on top of that!

Genuine Toyota Towbar - Just itemised in with the price of the new pickup and I was looking through some items in the office as it happens, tonight
So thought it was an interesting comparison of prices rising !
Best to fit genuine as they’re pre-fitted at factory and wired in as they’re built and with canbus wiring nowadays it’s just easier
Not sure if a pattern part would be cheaper or not ?

BTW the Hilux Invincible 3l was £20k+Vat in 2014 and now they’re approaching £40k + Vat, in the space of 10 years

is that inflation or not ?

 

[Jonp]

Genuine Toyota Towbar - Just itemised in with the price of the new pickup and I was looking through some items in the office as it happens, tonight
So thought it was an interesting comparison of prices rising !
Best to fit genuine as they’re pre-fitted at factory and wired in as they’re built and with canbus wiring nowadays it’s just easier
Not sure if a pattern part would be cheaper or not ?

BTW the Hilux Invincible 3l was £20k+Vat in 2014 and now they’re approaching £40k + Vat, in the space of 10 years

is that inflation or not ?

They've added value by installing all the must have gismotronics. Climbed into a mates newish truck the other day and, compared to my 17 year old jeep, it was like being in a space ship.