9/29/2023
I know it may not seem so to those still waiting, but we are caught up to the point where we will have a fairly quick turnaround time on tanning soon.
It has been tough for a while, first surviving the obama administration, then getting knocked down again by obama v2, aka biden. (Things really started looking good toward the end of the 4 years between the two)
Yes, we needed to implement a couple sizable price increases to try and catch up to the absurd material, utility and insurance increases we were hit with, and labor was a big problem. We have worked through this and are now in a good position to keep more current this coming season.
That being said, we will be able to take in some new customers this season. If you are one of the many that we had to turn away last season and are still searching for a good tanner/dresser, feel free to reach out to us.
We do still have some back orders for shavers, we are catching up on that now too, as well as being in a position to do your blade regrinding in a reasonable time.
5/8/2023
I see it has been a while since I have posted any updates.
Even though labor is still an issue for us, as it is with all business's, we are starting to get caught up to a degree. The one principle I have always maintained since starting this business was to provide a quality product, not put volume out the door.
As I have said in the past, we do not have investors to answer to other then you, the customer. Even when we did have access to plenty of unskilled labor, needed to produce volume in a short time period, we did not operate in that manner. You simply cannot maintain product quality without good workers.
We will see as the season progresses, but I think we will be in a position to start accepting some new taxidermy customers in the fall, keep in touch for further updates.
7/17/2022
Due to the continuing increase in costs and the lack of available labor, which shows no sign of changing anytime soon, we need to make two changes we did not want to make.
First, we need to raise our prices once again. After a couple of years of holding the price, this is the second increase we needed to make in the past 12 months. Hopefully in November we will have a reason to be optimistic for the future.
Second, due to the lack of available, reliable labor, we cannot handle any more taxidermy dressing than we already have. During 32 years of business, we have never been as far behind as we are now, and I know the slow turnaround time simply will not work for taxidermists. With several other tanneries closing the doors I know many are looking for a new tannery. I understand your need for a quality tanner, but until something changes in the labor market, we simply cannot accept any new customers for taxidermy tanning/dressing. Hopefully by the 2023 season things will change and we can take on more customers.
We will not send out a new price list this season, but just look at last year's price and add 5%. The increase will take effect on skins received after September first, 9/01/2022.
We do not plan to limit what we call “Trapper Tan”, which is a garment dress, at this time, nor do we plan to limit skins taken from producers, namely cattle hides. There will be a price increase on Trapper Tan also, as well as some additional charges for improperly handled skins, and skins that are not prepared as if they were going into the fur market. See the Trapper Tan page for details as they are posted.
June 2, 2022
Since the February 2021 notice, nothing has really changed, at least not for the better. We are all are experiencing terrible financial strain at this time, our only hope is we can make it to the midterm elections and get the balance of power changed in DC, then manage to hang on for two more years and hope for an honest election this time.
Look on the Tanning Supplies & Miscellaneous page if you are interested in some training and education in the art of shaving or the business of tanning/dressing. We answer a lot of questions every year, helping the taxidermist and home tanner, but know the value of personal training and hands on experience. You will see three different levels of training listed, we can customize any training to fit your needs, just give us a call!
February 23, 2021
In just the past month things have been changing rapidly for our business. We have received a grim assessment of chemical availability from our major supplier, and on top of the availability issue, we have been warned to expect a sharp price increase. While part of the increase is obviously due to raw material cost, a large part of the increase is due to transportation costs to them. In turn, we can also expect a significant increase in the cost to transport the product to our facility, as well.
During this same time period, steel prices have increased approximately 30%. Although most of our business does not revolve around steel, our blades for the shaving machines and tungsten are a concern. I recently bought a few sleeves of tungsten and discovered the increase was just over 30%. The cost of the honing steels is heavy on the labor end, so we may be okay on those price wise. However, shaving machine blades may be a different situation. If we see a 30% price increase on our blank blades on our next order we will be forced to increase our price midstream. This is not something I want to do, but I may not have a choice. Fortunately, we use blades made from domestic steel. Because the steel is produced here in the USA, we should be able to maintain a steady supply.
On the tanning side of our business, we have already acquired different swabbing oil that is not dependent on imported materials. I really like the way it has been performing, but because our BASF products are imported, that supply aspect is already in doubt. We were fortunate to get an order that will sustain us for a little while, but upon seeing the handwriting on the wall a few months ago, we have already been working on an alternate procedure. We are achieving very similar results so we are prepared, if need be, but necessary midstream cost increases are still a distinct possibility.
Another major potential cost increase factor would be the federal mandate of minimum wage increases. Although, all employees are paid much more than the current minimum wage, a forced increase will require us to increase payroll to maintain living standards. Currently, it sounds like the clowns in D.C. on all sides of the aisle, will be dragging their feet on a minimum wage increase law as they are busy driving the economy deeper into debt and setting us up for big inflation by printing more money and giving it to other countries.
When we do need to take action on price increases, we will do our best to keep it as minimal as possible. It is my hope we can make it through the busy dressing season without an increase. If it is a necessity, we will notify all customers with pending jobs of the price increase. However, expect price increases soon on the few steel products.
Keith
March 12, 2021
We received the bill a few days ago for our latest order of shaver parts and were greeted with right at a 40% price increase from the last order. It will take a little time to crunch the numbers to determine the price increase, that's the bad news. The orders in progress, and any new orders before we determine a price increase will be held at the current price. The good news is we have a new machine and fabricator that will keep us current on future orders. We appreciate the patience shown the last couple of years, and promise much more reliable availability in the future.
Arlington Cape was started in 1991 with little more than the knowledge and ability to produce a quality tanned skin for the taxidermy industry. My goal in the beginning was to provide a product that was as close to ready to mount as possible, not as fast as possible. As we have evolved over the years, with a building addition, the purchase of two more buildings, and additional equipment and employees, our goal in business has remained the same. Everything we have done is because of the support of you, our customers. Your support of us has allowed us to grow as we have. Since we don’t have outside investors it hasn’t been a rapid growth, but, the only people we have to answer to is you, the customer, not people waiting for a return on their investment, that’s why our goal will always remain the same as it was thirty years ago.
We are a custom tannery/fur dresser, catering to the taxidermy industry in the wholesale capacity, and to farmers and ranchers direct. We don’t have a fancy facility or marketing package. We just have a knowledge and ability gained through years of hands on experience, and association with professionals in both the leather and garment tanning industries. You, the taxidermist, won’t find us going to hunters in the field trying to get their tanning work, calling your customers or advertising for their taxidermy work, and we don’t run an import service then hold your customers skins hostage to get the tanning work. We tan for you, not for ourselves. If you are an individual and have a skin or skins of a furbearer we do offer a service we call a Trapper Tan. See the Trapper Tan tab for information and pricing. We do offer direct services for sheep and beef hides. Many taxidermists don’t want to handle these skins, and as a producer we do consider you as a wholesale account.
Sending Capes and Skins to Us:
All skins are punch coded when we remove them from the box and a confirmation is made listing all the skins and the type of tan requested.
You will usually receive the confirmation with fourteen days.
Please check quantities and tan method immediately when you receive your confirmation and let us know immediately if there is a discrepancy.
Please keep your confirmation on file so you can refer to it if you have any questions at a later date.
When you are ready to ship us your capes or skins, please keep in mind they must be properly prepped (fleshed) and salt dried before shipping.
Please include a packing slip inside your box or boxes which indluces your contact information (name, address, phone, email, etc.). On the packing slip, please also state what you are sending us, including the quantity of items, and if the items are for a Cape Tan or a Soft Tan.
You may ship skins and capes to us via FedEx, UPS, or USPS, or you may personally bring your skins to us, as well. If dropping them off, please call ahead to be sure someone will be here to accept and check them i
Below is the article I just finished for presentation at the Association of Indiana Taxidermists 2022 show
We tan a lot of cattle hides, especially fair steers, but they are a very touchy skin as far as hair loss is concerned. If you are not able to bring your hide to us the same day it is butchered, or you are going to flesh and salt dry the hide yourself, please see the attachment with handling instructions.
It's not only difficult for us when we handle a skin that begins losing hair during the fleshing process, but it will be very disappointing to the customer who is hoping for a nice keepsake.
We love our customers, so feel free to visit during normal business hours.
Monday - Friday: 8am - 5pm
Saturday: By appointment
Sunday: Closed
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