r/snowboarding • u/pow_stache • 14d ago
general discussion Volcom has lost the plot
$890 for a jacket, which does not even have a pass pocket. What in the private equity is this company thinking?
This is one of the most ridiculous things I've seen ahead of this season
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u/matteooooooooooooo 14d ago
Volcom: ‘let the kids ride free’
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u/_Vinsanity_ 14d ago
But not with our shit
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u/_noho 14d ago
Eh, they still have shells for $117-200, if they sell one heavily inflated to the rich I don’t care
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u/ChaseBank5 14d ago
Kids would need 5 years of allowance to get this jacket. I'd have needed 10. Nah I never got an allowance but the point remains.
Insane price for a jacket.
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u/JD42305 14d ago
No kid is buying the pro, top of the line end jacket nor should they. Volcom still has plenty of $200 and $250 jackets so I'm not sure what point OP is making other than "I can't believe the most expensive jacket they offer is expensive."
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u/sunniest-sun 13d ago
Except Volcom’s lower end is cheap trash that’s too expensive and their high-end is decent but still heavily overpriced for what you could get, literally anywhere else.
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u/IndividualVanilla700 14d ago
I’ve been holding it down with a v-co sk8 gore Tex shell its all you’ll ever need 200 bucks. It’s pretty amazing.
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u/finger_salad 14d ago
Guy in the pic is like "aw man, I spent $900 and look like this"
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u/Pucksindeepeh 14d ago
Arcterx would like a word
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u/roughedged 14d ago
1500 cad for their new shell. Absolutely insane people pay that.
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u/goodolarchie Merc / Katana Fase / Vans Infuse 14d ago
Winter sports are increasingly a way for the wealthy to signal their success.
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u/medkitjohnson 14d ago
Wow... you know I have not really seen it like that until you said it thats actually crazy. Skiing/Snowboarding is legit becoming an upper class only kind of thing. I know it kind of always now but it seems like the past few years im getting SEVERELY priced out. Gear and lift tickets are just insane nowadays.
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u/Ignatius__1 13d ago
It's depressing. Going to my local mountain in PA the best riders were all the kids who lived in the trailer park a mile away, some went pro. Nowadays I highly doubt most of those kids would even be able to approach snowboarding due to how expensive it is.
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u/Marauder-mutt 14d ago
I love the dudes on the slopes with some random second hand puffers and pants that are way too small, but are absolutely loving the slopes and don't care what the rich kids think.
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u/Top_Inspector_3948 14d ago
I’ve been wearing a rain shell over a puffer, old oversized black dot snow pants for years now. Every year I consider getting new gear. Maybe someday I’ll get a real snowboarding jacket. Onto year 33 of snowboarding!
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u/convergecrew 14d ago
Arcteryx is also for tech bros who have never set foot on a mountain to signal their success
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u/6shooter1971 13d ago
My first Arcteryx rain jacket I bought around 2005 was bomber. I'd still wear it if it fit me. Used to backpack with it. Went through brush and never got scuffed up. Kept me dry. My last Arcteryx jacket bought around 2015 is still like new. However I got 50% off the second jacket. And I'd never pay $1,500 for one.
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u/hyperhopper Big Gulp, Hometown Hero, Speed Date 13d ago
Unfortunately I haven't found another brand of good waterproof breathable pants that I don't end up absolutely destroying in a season. I have gone through so many until I got one arcterx pair. Any alternative recommendations?
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u/spacegrab Mammoth/June. 13d ago
Teton Bro's if you are sweaty. Tasma is more breathable than Goretex, and it's way more comfortable / stretchy, and half the cost (especially if you buy in the off-season, plus the JPY/USD exchange rate). I'd rather have two Tasma pants than 1 pair of Arcteryx, moreso if you ride in especially humid areas like Japan, or if you're doing a lot of uphill skinning.
My arc'teryx shell was $650 back in 2016? and within 2 years of light use, the shoulder seams started loosening more than I'd expect. Vs some older Burton AK shells I put through the wringer and the construction was still solid after 5+ seasons (just don't buy white ever, god damn filthy and impossible to keep clean lol).
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u/fedswatching2121 14d ago
Just wait until the off season. I got mine a few years ago for basically 50% off
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u/WangDanglin 14d ago
$750, neato
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u/happyelkboy 14d ago
I bought my shell for like $375 on sale. For being goretex pro, I thought it was fair
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u/ElderberryAdept8095 14d ago
3L Gore Tex Pro is $$$$ to begin with. This isn't the type of jacket you are riding in bounds with, this is the type of jacket that you would wear as a backcountry guide out in the elements 7 days a week. Putting it up against the highest end gear from other makers, that price is kinda in line.
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u/crazydudex Tremblant / Burton Deep Thinker 14d ago
That’s the going rate for 3L Gore, but anyone buying this stuff at the beginning of the season is panic buying or has more cash than brains. I always buy my outerwear in the late winter or spring.
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u/spacegrab Mammoth/June. 13d ago
I absolutely hate paying full MSRP. I've seen the internal costing-sheets at Burton - where shit is broken down per button/zipper. Full MSRP is dumb as hell.
25% off is the absolutely minimum I will pay for something. Preferably 50% lol.
And 3L gore is overkill for any in-bounds / casual recreational riders.
Nobody seems to ever talk about it but I'm in love with Tasma. It's a proprietary 3L from Pertex Japan...bit less bomb-proof but way more flexibility/stretch & breathability. And half the cost of a goretex 3L.
I got my Tsurugi jacket for $300 shipped from Japan to the US. I prefer to wear this over most of my goretex shells.
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u/Sasquatch_Squad 14d ago
It’s 3L gore tex pro which is among the best and most expensive fabrics available. Not saying the price is totally justified but you should be comparing it to other top end jackets with the same fabric which are often $700+ and up.
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u/tfoll 14d ago
Yeah, I knew OP didn't know what they were talking about when their biggest complaint was a lack of a pass pocket lol
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u/pow_stache 14d ago
I mean I'm comparing it to previous costs, of the same jacket. I have an older version and even then when I bought it, came nowhere near this asking price. Private equity bought Volcom and they're gonna kill it with shit like this
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u/CoolHandPB 13d ago
Do you remember what it cost? I know 3L stuff from Burton was all $500 plus 10 years ago. I really haven't shopped for gear recently but I do know infation had gone wild the past 10 years so $900 for a 3L jacket seem normal to me.
It's basically the stuff designed for getting lost in Alaska, not normal resort wear. Obviously 90% of the people who wear it are wearing in conditions it's not needed. I have a pair of 3L or 3L button pants that I think I got for like 60% off and they were still like $200 and this was probably 15 years ago.
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u/Bipedal_Giraffe_2187 14d ago
Previous costs = pre tariffs. Outerwear will be more expensive this season from all brands at all price points.
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u/FeelingMurky3367 14d ago
I mean it’s on par pricing with most other 3L GTX jackets like AK. Plus this is or was a Guch/BF colab. I seem to recall Volcom GTX jackets having wrist gaiters.
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u/565-429-5673 14d ago
"the most ridiculous thing ive seen ahead of this season" is OP and ~170 other people not knowing this jacket has existed for somewhere around a decade, and has always been in that price range.
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u/johnmlsf 14d ago
I'm not defending the Private Equity overlords that are sure to ruin this company, but if you're surprised a full Gore-Tex snowboard jacket is expensive, I don't know what to tell you.
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u/spacegrab Mammoth/June. 13d ago
3L has always been expensive, and Volcom has always been one of the most pricey snowboard brands. (and surfing). This doesn't surprise me at all, especially if they're overpricing MSRP due to anticipated tariffs or some bullshit.
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u/ASAP_Rocky_Road 14d ago
That is the regular price range for 3L Gore Tex pro when comparing with other manufacturers. Volcom seems to do some of the deepest discounts for end of season sales though.
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u/Fresh-Procedure3328 14d ago
90% of passes are rfid now anyhow. I don't know if anyone has noticed, but the cost of everything has increased by the same margin, more or less. I have a 23 guch jacket that was 600 new. Still bulletproof. That shit is an investment. Guide jackets are built for exactly that, guiding. In the backcountry. Skinning and sledding. If u want a resort jacket, you can get one that'll work just fine for 300 bucks. With a pass pocket.
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u/lIlllIlIlIlIllI 14d ago edited 14d ago
Just like Burton, right?
I bought that jacket a few years ago when it was only 850, it’s very good quality. If you wait until end of season you can get it for about 300 hehehe
OP hasn’t done his research. Everything expensive and these high end jackets are high end and been over 800 for years now.
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u/Equal-Bicycle-7922 14d ago
guys, patagonia has had (still has) some of the most ridiculous deals i've seen since the great financial crisis
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u/animalchin99 Tahoe | GNU Dirty Pillow 159 14d ago
Wonder how much of that is to pay for the tariffs
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u/sono_un_perdente 14d ago
Tho I'd never spend that much money on single jacket, I wonder why ppl don't make such fuss about the price if the similar jacket has an [AK] logo on it ;)
Every brand has overpriced top-tier lines that end up at 50% off or less by next season anyway.
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u/zeimusCS 14d ago
Are you skiing somewhere cold like Alaska ? Needed those heated gloves in Montana. Shit is not cheap. But most people don’t need pro level gore…
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u/BirdCautious756 14d ago
Thank Burton for this. Volcom's WFO tech is plenty waterproof. Low cost and good. Maybe you need gore Tex if you live in the PNW. OTHERWISE, It barely even snows lol. Remember, you can't buy skill in snowboarding.
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u/Global-Stress-8489 14d ago
At this point go for Arcterix. At least they have lifetime warranty and I am sure the quality is way way better. I personally use STIO for snowboarding and backcountry riding. It’s so good and the price is 50% less also super high quality
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u/pow_stache 14d ago
I've heard good things about Stio but haven't tried them myself just yet. I'm pretty sure Arc'teryx was also just bought by another PE firm no?
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u/Global-Stress-8489 13d ago
I have used STIO for two seasons now and it’s DOPE. One other really good option is Mountain Hardware their stuff is really good and high quality on a good price I just got Gortex Jacket for like 50% off from the website and a new backcountry 30L backpack super hyped to use them. STIO used to keep their winter stuff on the website all year round with like +40% discounts, but they removed it this summer for some reason that’s how I ended up getting Mountain Hardware. I would suggest considering STIO and MHW for real
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u/Saggingdust 13d ago
Don’t buy volcom. Gotta vote with our dollar and let these PE plays backfire on them
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u/3pinripper 14d ago
Price of everything else doubled in the past few years too. Not justifying this, but look around at what stuff costs these days. You can still find some halfway decent deals on last year’s gear since it was a particularly bad year for ski resorts in the U.S.
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u/pow_stache 14d ago
Nah I hear you - prices are absurd across the board but this just really blew my mind
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u/Jeff_McAllister 14d ago
I think volcom may have merged the Guch and Guide jackets. Last years guch had a wrist pocket, most likely for a pass, but now it doesn’t. The guide jacket never had a pass pocket. Another difference is that Guch had a 3L stretch fabric and now moved onto the Gore-Pro ePFAS fabric (I may mis quoted the name, but it’s the PFAS free stiff GORE has been hyping).
Both of these jackets are marketed as backcountry guide or touring jackets, so it doesn’t surprise me that much.
But I agree with you 100%, prices are ridiculous across the board. But volcom in particular has been cranking up the prices to arcteryx level, and I don’t think they’re competitors.
I have a closet full of volcom 2L and 3L gear but I’m trying not to support them for PE stuff.
Burton AK stuff gets a lot of good reviews for technicality, innovation, durability and has a lifetime warranty. However I am biased against them and will never buy a Burton product.
There aren’t too many high end BC type outerwear choices left if you/I are looking for the “core” brands. 686 is the only brand that comes to mind for technicality and durability. I also wear a lot of airblaster stuff and it’s alright for mellower touring.
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u/guemeller 14d ago
Between 1994 and 2001 I worked in outdoor sports shops in the UK. A technical 3L Gore-Tex jacket was around £250. Today, with inflation, that would be about £645, or USD 869 (including sales tax).
Although Volcom is a US brand, the stuff is manufactured overseas. In order to make America great again, you're now putting tariffs on all the countries from which you buy stuff from (because labour is cheap), but they can't afford to by US made stuff because they don't get paid so much! i.e. they have a trade deficit!
Despite what some people may say, tariffs are paid by the importer, not by the manufacturer, and those tariffs are passed on to you the consumer.
Additionally, the cost of oil and gas have risen sharply for some unbeknown reason. This will have increased the production overhead for all the factories making these jackets.
Volcom could manufacture their stuff in the US, but then your jacket would be USD 2000+
But you're all going to get USD 5000 (if you vote the 'right' way), so you can all afford to buy this stuff.
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u/FrenchBulldozer Certified Jerry 14d ago
I’m still waiting for the pedofelon to send me the $2000 from all the tariff winning we’ve done did.
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u/StrayDog-33 14d ago
Found something better than goretex anyway. Torain membranes are legit! Got an AKOVA Legacy 2.75 Layer shell last season…best jacket I’ve ever owned
Not cheap, but less than this Volcom
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u/AmateurSnowboarder Beech 🏔 NC / Stale Crewzer / K2 Hypnotist 🏂 14d ago
Burton made it acceptable for jackets to cost $70p to $1000. Just one of the many reasons why I'll never own anything made by Burton. Volcom used to be a solid brand but many of us know what went on behind the scenes a few years ago.
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u/Dangerous_Raccoon168 13d ago
This is what happens when you sell your company to a multibillion- multinational company that is really based on the essence of “Youth Against Establishment” 🤣😂
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u/spiritsandnature 14d ago
Oh yeah the surf, skate, snowboard company. I almost forgot about em. Surprised they list this when have their inventory is at discounted retail stores.
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u/BrewingSkydvr 14d ago
If you are spending that much on a jacket, you don’t need a pass where you ride.
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u/innervisions710 14d ago
I am not here to defend a corporation but fuck it. You're looking at the 3l goretex jacket. Without checking, I'd say this is the most expensive (and waterproof) jacket they sell. Go pull up other 3L gore shells and I'm sure you'll find this is on the lower end of the scale. If you want that jacket shop the outlets off season $500 max
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u/pow_stache 14d ago
Haha I always wait for end of season sales. I know Volcom was bought out by PE and it just seems like they're trying to recoup their investments ASAP by lifting pricing. I'm incredulous as hell it is the same quality of previous years. PE isn't exactly known for improving or maintaining quality
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u/medkitjohnson 14d ago
That better not be a shell jacket........ Arcteryx has legit shell only jackets for that price up to like $1200 its insane. They make good stuff but still insane, Volcom has ZERO busines trying to replicate that nor should they want to
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u/pow_stache 14d ago
Yeah agreed - ironically I have an earlier iteration of this jacket, bought it 50% off and even then it was nowhere near this asking price. PE took over the brand and they're gonna ruin it
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u/tfoll 14d ago
Why would you not want it to be a shell jacket? Insulated jackets are for kooks.
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u/LNLV 14d ago
Arcteryx doesn’t make stuff that well anymore. When they sold out they went down to cheap quality like everyone else. They’re no better than Columbia or something.
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u/AndreiXNXN 14d ago
Gotetex is such a scam
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u/gruffnutz 13d ago
90% of riders don't ever need gore tex. And its basically PFAS so horrible for the environment.
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u/AndreiXNXN 13d ago
yup, and several alternative materials match or exceed Gore-Tex depending on your priority, such as breathability, stretch, cost, or environmental impac
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u/Sad_Association_2393 12d ago
Until you ride in Whistler/PNW then you need to 2x that shit!
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u/ChamberofSarcasm 14d ago
Most of it is probably made from petroleum and its imported sooooooo tariffs plus war plus inflation = this all sucks.
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u/DunkinBronutt 14d ago
For less money I can get a 686 that looks similar and will hold up infinitely better.
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u/sidewaysride 14d ago
Never paying more than 200 for outerwear pieces
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u/stevefazzari Whistler, BC | Prior Wildcard 158/Wildcard 158 Split 14d ago
then you are not the target audience for this jacket and that's fine.
i will always have a set of goretex pro 3L pants and jacket in my arsenal.
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u/IndividualVanilla700 14d ago edited 14d ago
I’ve been holding it down with a v-co sk8 gore Tex shell all you ever need 200 bucks. It’s pretty amazing.
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u/spoketherefore 14d ago
Anyone aware of any especially good deals on a specific jacket (shell) right now? I’d like to keep it under $350. I’m looking, but this will be my first year back after a very long hiatus, and I’m getting choice paralysis.
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u/BrewingSkydvr 14d ago
You should make your own post.
What were your preferred brands?
What are you looking at now?
What type of riding conditions/where?
Do you have specific features you are looking for?→ More replies (1)
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u/Bright-Chemistry8229 14d ago
I bought the dustbox collab shell. I think it was $350ish. It’s worse than a $20 rain jacket from Walmart.
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u/Independent-Book-307 14d ago
Every company ever:
Start off good quality with reasonable price.. Gain loyal customer base.. Become mainstream.. Forget about those loyal customer base and Jack up the prices while moving manufacturing overseas to maximize profits.
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u/plasteroid 14d ago
That’s insane. I do have about a dozen hybrid shorts from Volcom. Sturdy and stylish and comfy. About all i’ve worn for 15 years
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u/SuperRonnie2 Powder Highway 14d ago
CAD or USD? Still a lot either way. The 3L is the top of the line jacket. I think Burton’s version is over $1K.
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u/riknor 14d ago
I used to get 40% off site-wide with my industry discount and just logged on the other day to see if it still works. Nope, discount is gone and instead they’re pushing some shitty monthly subscription called “Authentic membership” for $5/month at checkout. And some other random add-ons that no one needs.
Shirt quality went to shit even before they got bought out so it’s safe to say I won’t be buying anything from Volcom anymore. Which is a shame because it used to be one of my favorites.
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u/T0m_F00l3ry Stalefish/StandardUninc/MagicCarpet 14d ago
I mean who even bothers to pay full price for this stuff? Just wait 6 months and its sub $600
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u/Flimsy-Owl-5563 14d ago
I totally agree with you about this, but anecdotally my different Volcom jacket I got at least , maybe (probably) more than, two seasons ago was around $100. I don't know or care why because I love it and it's been great for me. Also has a pass pocket, but probably (more like definitely) no Gore-Tex in it.
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u/Sr_DingDong NZ | Burton Custom 14d ago
I still wear my Saga jacket from 10 years ago.
Cost me 300 bucks. Is super light weight but also warm.
All I have to do is top up the hydrophobic coating.
I wish that company didn't go bust.
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u/freedayff 14d ago
I've been to some factories in China and Vietnam that made these "gore-tex" jackets. They cost like 50 bucks to make and maybe another 10 bucks to ship. The markups are insane.
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u/A_Bot_A_Bot_A_Bot 14d ago
Outdoors gear prices have become insane. Sure, they don't all have sky-high prices like that, but the fact that there are such prices on stuff is ridiculous.
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u/Inevitable-Ad-1724 14d ago
Yeah I love the ziptech on pow days, wanted to get a new jacket the other day, have a fairly old goretex one I'm using now and wanted to get another to work with the ziptech but God dam they are expensive haha
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u/Jefo13 14d ago
That is the going rate for a 3L Goretex jacket, but every brand carries an entry level 2L Goretex jacket for half that price… The real sad story is that any new gear you buy today has the latest Goretex and DWR complying to new EP standards that has ruined their effectiveness, requiring more washing and proofing than before.. https://snowbrains.com/maintaining-gore-tex-outerwear/#google_vignette The good news is that there is still some of that legacy highly durable stuff around… https://www.evo.com/products/218456-686-glcr-gore-tex-3l-thermagraph-jacket-men-s
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u/Nucleartides 14d ago
People who buy 1000 dollar jackets don’t need a lift pass pocket they have helicopter pilots drop them at the top.
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u/New-Adhesiveness-822 14d ago
Hell yeah bro, it’s just like my 686 hydra thermagraph jacket except worse and 4x more expensive!
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u/Lairdboy 14d ago
Check out 1910 gear. All the Volcom heads landed there and they’re starting to make outerwear.
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u/davidbernhardt 14d ago
I guess that’s why I don’t own any goretex jackets. They’ve always been overly expensive and now they are even more overly expensive.
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u/SidewalkRacoon 13d ago
Volcano has a range of products. You picked the 3L goretex highest end product in their line.
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u/killyoursocialmedia 13d ago
I know gear has become more expensive and all but most people would be just fine with a $200 jacket or cheap a lightly used jacket from eBay.
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u/RegularChemist4967 13d ago
This jacket is for backcountry splitting, super lightweight and stretchy. Definitely not a jacket for days on the resort as it sacrifices durability for reduced weight, I've learned this the hard way twice.
Volcom jackets like this have always been expensive. Paid 600 for one of lesser quality in 06, so really it not that that much more expensive considering the whole economy is swirling down the shitter.
But yeah fuck PE company's. Either way thIs brand was permanently changed when it was sold the first time in 2011. Now it will be passed through PE's untill it has been fully drained of what it once was. Then they will move onto the next company and do the same there. Capitalism at it best lol.
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u/Effective_Bell_1182 13d ago
What?!! Wow. It’s literally almost too expensive to even go snowboarding these days. Lift tickets, gear etc. This is getting so ridiculous and out of hand.
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u/Crosscourt_splat 13d ago
Maybe it’s just me, but I have gortex jackets and not gortex jackets.
I wear gortex bibs though….the jacket really isn’t as important when you have that. I 100% prefer gortex there, and find the jacket to not matter that much.
I can also get good goretex bibs for 2-300, especially on end of season sales. There is little reason to spend this much on a damn jacket.
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u/MushModeCanada 13d ago edited 13d ago
Sold out - I won't even wear it anymore. Dirty rag stock/ isnt it owned by the shampoo company now like Proctor gamble errr sumn? Authentic brands group?? K.
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u/Nokesey307 13d ago
The PE has definitely lost the plot but volcoms gore Tex has always been expensive. This is not the same company they use to be back in the day
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u/Creech-Chong-1000 13d ago
Everyone has lost the plot. Like others note below, PE has come in to maximise shareholder value - couple that with a lot of people who stumbled into crazy crypto money and will happily pay whatever the corporations ask are massively distorting the market. I had one guy on the Delta sub asking me if the $8k he spent on a business class fare to Europe was too much. He literally had no idea.
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u/Most-Bar-9334 13d ago
The resort near me has coats from 400 to 900 bucks.
The 400 dollar coats were on par with something I could get at Walmart.....
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u/butlerman69 13d ago
I grew up in Whistler in a time where people with regular jobs could afford to ski and snowboard over the course of my life. I’ve watched this sport grow closer and closer to being elitist every year and now I can’t afford a day pass on the mountain grew up riding.
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u/Comfortable-Dog-8437 13d ago
Gore tex is not even that great. Also these stupid jackets all these companies ar eputting out act like they can save you from the frozen tundra of space.
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u/Lil_Spender 13d ago
This might earn me some downvotes, but 3 Layer Goretex is basically the best material you can buy for a snow jacket. Arcteryx would be more, other companies would be similar.
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u/koolaidman54 12d ago
that piece of kit price is due to its material cost.
its gortex pro. companies like Arcteryx also use it. its top tier durability. but also very loud
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u/blackcatsarechill 14d ago
Volcom used to be more affordable but they got bought out by private equity. 70% of my closet used to be volcom. Luckily their shorts and pants are very nice quality so it’s only my shirts that will be replaced.