We start off with a good news. We extended our thoughts and concern to Lyra immediately after the earthquake, and we were happy to know that everybody at Lyra Japan is safe and well.
Furthermore, Lyra production was not affected much by the events in Japan. Thankfully, the manufacturing lab for Lyra is located in Yokohama, 200 miles away from the worst of the resulting damage caused by the earthquake and tsunami. There are daily rolling blackouts and life in general is challenging, to say the least. We know the individuals at Lyra are extremely dedicated, hard working folks, and they will do everything possible to keep production on track. To quote Stig Bjorge of Lyra, " Despite of this, it is business as usual and we are working full steam as much as we can." Both Lyra and Element Acoustics will do our best in keeping the product flowing and deliver to customers the same quality product that is consistent, safe, and timely.
Here comes the bad news. After over two years of price stability, we are forced to increase the prices of Lyra cartridges. Obviously, manufacturing costs are not going down, and the Yen has gained 19% over the US Dollar since our last increase. Fuel surcharges fit in there somewhere too. This increase is by no means a result of the earthquake as our distributor had planned this increase prior to that occurring. We always hate to raise prices on products that are relatively new and very hot because customers may think we are trying to cash in on the popularity of the products.
We also have some very cool news. There are now Delos and Kleos Mono models available. Lyra did not want to add these to the mix until the initial mad rush for the stereo models died down a little, but now that they have stabilized supply, they are adding these models.
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