Price increases

I remember being very uncomfortable when the price of a figure went up past the £1 barrier. I am now announcing a price increase which makes me feel much the same.A couple of weeks ago, I started putting out feelers for a new batch of metal. The metal I use is a high grade alloy with over 90% tin content. This gives me a crisp casting with enough resilience to endure the rigours of postage and then use on the tabletop. The one time I tried to use a lower grade alloy I had so many miscasts and breakages in transit that I have not tried this again. When the quotes for the metal came in, it was clear that the price of tin has experienced a sharp increase. The increase in price for the grade of metal I use has gone up by almost two thirds! The price of my metal has hovered around the £14-16 mark per Kilo for some time, the new prices are now between £25 and £30. This is a huge increase caused by the fall in production of tin ore due to Covid and then an increase in demand, particularly in China, as the electronics industry has resumed manufacture post-Covid. Having done some research on the subject, prices are expected to keep rising until mid 2022 when they will stabilise at some lower value. They are not expected to come back down to pre-covid prices.This unprecedented price increase is of such magnitude that I cannot continue production without raising my prices. I have a metal fund specifically for the purchase of metal which I keep topped up to ensure continued production. This fund will not meet the new cost of metal. For the first time I have considered production in some other medium ? resin or plastic. I have even considered selling up and retiring. After some thought I have decided to continue doing what I love but to put my prices up.Figures will now sell for £1.50 and horses for £2. Guns will be £7. I know this is an eye watering increase but without it, I simply can?t continue producing metal figures with the price of metal as it currently stands.On the figure front, the 3D sculpting is going very well with lots of figures ready to print, but my 3D printer is still in storage as the building work on the house continues. I am hoping to be able to set the printer up before the end of the year but will have to pack it away again in February as the next stage of the build commences. I will keep you informed.Peter.