Academy is still cheaper than Bass, Cabelas, Gander, Sportsman, Dunn's, etc.
What is going on right now is that a lot of products are under additional tariffs right now. If you look at ladder stands, you will find a big increase in prices this year over last (steel tariffs that took place last year).
Some companies have old inventory in their warehouse and don't have to pass on higher prices until they begin to receive new product at the increased cost.
And here is a bombshell for some of you that plant foodplots with store bought seeds. The big companies came together to create an industry standard. They now allow retailers to relabel the seed info with test date one time. Supposedly, the companies are retesting a portion to validate it's germination rate. I have no info on who has done it yet, but I was told that most have done it. Don't know if it is true or not. I know when I was a buyer at Gander Mountain, we were selling seed that was 4 to 5 years old. Our vendors would not take it back and/or replace with new bags. This is the reason Academy completely sells out of most their hunting products each year and clearances out most of their hunting stuff each year before spring.
Regardless, I will only buy retail seed directly from the company or from my local seed store.
Thanks for sharing this information. I have always viewed these labels as something the USDA requires the manufacturer to place on them so the buyer knows exactly what's in the bag and how long it's been in there. If retailers can change it later, it would seem the information is worth little more than the paper it's printed on.
Still, the intention of my post wasn't to draw attention to a bag of seed so much as it was to see if others have seen a trend in the prices they're finding at Academy. Of course this only applies to those who like to compare prices before making their purchases. While it may have been several years ago, I do remember "chatter" in these forums from others who feared Academy would eventually become more like it's higher-priced competitors after the buyout.
Thanks too for the comment on the increased price of steel and it's impact on the price of hunting stands. I noticed the price increase too but thought it might be more as a result on increased liability protection costs.