What an Absolute Nightmare
Redpants has gone through a few major changes since I started it nearly a decade ago. The first half Redpants’s life was amazing. The second half, not so much. A lot of things happened during the last 5 years or so that have continuously upended things, and I did what I could to manage them each time. But this latest debacle is the final nail in the coffin… my inventory shipments have been getting hit with tariffs as high as 47% - over 4x what I used to pay - which means I have to either raise prices drastically or close things down. If it was just that, maybe I could handle it. But now, with so many catastrophic things all happening at the same time, there's just no saving it.
So, I'm closing down Redpants operations in the US. More specifically, inventory will no longer be kept in-stock at Redpants in the US.
What’s Happening Now
The Redpants Online Store is currently down while I make all the changes I detail below.
Going forward, I'll be handling everything myself from here in Japan. I'll be stocking parts, managing inventory, and shipping orders all myself, in addition to everything else I do. That may sound stressful, but it's actually going to be a massive relief for me, because the amount of stress I've had dealing with fulfillment issues from afar has been extremely damaging and has nearly had me in the hospital several times during the last year alone, not to mention what it's done to my company.
Me doing things myself my seem inconsequential for my customers, but it does mean there will be some major changes. Here's what you can expect.
Inventory counts in the Online Store for items kept in-stock at Redpants will be much more accurate, and I've also enabled backordering for products that sell out quickly but are routinely restocked, and for Special Order items. Each listing has a stock status explaining if it’s in-stock or not, as well as more information in the Ordering and Shipping section of the product listing.
"In stock" means the item is actually on the shelf at Redpants, or I expect it to ship quickly from our suppliers and distributors.
"In stock (Available on backorder)" means the item is actually on the shelf at Redpants, and can still be ordered even if it sells out. These items are routinely restocked, and if they sell out, I expect them to be restocked within 2 weeks. If one of these products do sell out, the status will change from “In stock (Available on backorder)” to “Available on backorder” so you still know if it’s on the shelf or not.
"Available on backorder" means the item is not in stock but is expected to be restocked within 2 weeks, or it is Special Order. Please feel free to contact me if you need an estimated restock timeframe for items on backorder.
Special Order items are products I don't usually keep on the shelf, but I can get as needed when ordered by customers. Please contact me before ordering if you need a delivery estimate on an item that is Special Order. Generally speaking, Special Order items take an additional 10-15 business days on top of usual delivery times.
Orders for in-stock items will ship out within 2 business days. Usually I ship out the same day or next business day, but sometimes that isn't possible so it might take 2 business days. Regardless, shipments will go out much quicker now that I'm handling them myself, than they were when a 3rd party was handling fulfillment.
Prices for items kept in-stock at Redpants will be lower. Prices are affected by multiple things, and all of them have gone up recently. The US Dollar is worth less compared to the British Pound, Aston Martin have raised prices across the board (plus some large price increases for a few products), and the new tariffs in the US (which are effectively 30-47%, despite what the news might be telling you) all play major roles in my retail pricing. The import duties in Japan are drastically lower than the new rates in the US, plus I'm no longer paying a 3rd party for fulfillment, so now I have lower overhead which means I can lower my prices despite price increases from Aston Martin and the weaker US Dollar.
Inventory is kept in Japan, which means all orders of items kept in-stock at Redpants are now sent via international shipments. While this does mean higher shipping prices, the lower product pricing will help offset this and, when factoring the tariffs, the overall cost is still usually lower. Orders sent directly to customers in the US from our suppliers and distributors in the US are still sent via domestic shipments (the ever-popular Porterfield brake pads, for example). There will be additional information in the Ordering and Shipping section of each product listing to help customers understand shipping arrangements.
Here’s a real-world example of how these pricing and shipping changes will affect the overall costs of an order:
A recent order that I shipped from Japan to the US with delivery very near my former shippers would have cost $756 ($738.00 + $18 shipping) with the new pricing I would have had to use if I maintained stock in the US. The same shipment would have only cost $679 ($614.00 + $65 shipping) at my new pricing by maintaining inventory in Japan. That’s a $77 difference, saving 10% using my new Japan-based pricing and shipping. Had the delivery been further away from my former shippers, the cost savings would have been even greater.
Since international shipments sometimes have import duties, some orders delivered to the US will be subject to import duties and customs fees. This isn't unique to Redpants shipping from Japan, nor is it a new thing in general. A shipment to the US would have the same import duties regardless of whether it shipped from Japan or from Europe because fees are imposed on the items based on where those items were manufactured.
As of right now, the exemption rate is 800 USD, so shipments valued below that level should not be subject to import duties. For additional context, shipments to Australia are exempt from their GST if valued below 1000 AUD (654 USD, at the current exchange rate). Import duties are based on the value of the items in the shipment, so shipping costs aren't subject to the extra fees.
Shipments from Japan to the US will be sent through either Japan Post or Yamato, and will likely be delivered by USPS, UPS, or FedEx. The shipping carrier depends on the items being shipped, and each shipping carrier has a partner carrier they use for final delivery. Shipping time from Japan depends on where the shipment is being delivered. Here are the delivery times for the shipments I've sent from Japan during the last couple years, again with Australia for context:
Japan to USA
Maximum delivery time range: 2-11 calendar days
Most common delivery times: 4-7 calendar days
Average delivery time: 5.67 calendar days
Japan to Australia
Maximum delivery time range: 4-8 calendar days
Most common delivery times: 5-7 calendar days
Average delivery time: 6.04 calendar days
Given how much more quickly I ship out orders than the 3rd party that had been doing fulfillment for Redpants had been shipping them, orders for in-stock items should be delivered to US-based customers in approximately the same amount of time on average.
Items shipped by our suppliers and distributors will not be affected by the new pricing or shipping changes. Things like Motul engine oils and Porterfield brake pads won’t have any changes to how they’re priced, or shipping costs, or delivery times. The changes I’m making only apply to items kept in-stock at Redpants.
Redpants still does not offer expedited shipping services. This is a decision I made a long time ago and that I still maintain because I've sent or received several thousand shipments over the last decade and, based on a lot of experience, I have zero faith in shipping carriers being able to consistently deliver on time. It's something I deal with very often, and I'm not going to offer my customers a service option that I don't trust whatsoever.
FedEX Express Saver is not an expedited service.
I’m working on bringing back Redpants products that have not been available for a while, as well as resume making videos for YouTube. With all these changes in place, I'll hopefully be able to get the Redpants products that have long-since disappeared (*cough* oil catch cans *cough*) back in production, be able to look myself in the mirror again so I can go back to making videos, and maybe even cut my stress levels down so I can get my health back in check, because hoooo-boy, it hasn't been good for a long while now. When I said towards the beginning of this Blog Post that I’ve been extremely stressed out, I was not kidding at all, and it really has affected every aspect of my life even beyond my company.
I'm updating the Redpants Terms and Conditions to help further explain how things are working now, so please check those out for more information. I’ll be making more updates to the Terms and Conditions over the next week so don’t be surprised if you see that page change a few times before I’m finished. I’m trying to write them to cover as much information as possible while still being easy to read. Feel free to email me or use the Contact Page if you have any questions about what's going on.
Sooooo yeah. Redpants is dead. Long live Redpants.
Redpants Products Updates
After some costly problems with a couple different manufacturers, I pulled back on reintroducing some of my retired products and decided to concentrate all manufacturing as close to me as possible so I could be directly involved. For some of them, I’ve actually redesigned, make them, and/or assemble them myself. Here's a run-down of what's going on.
TPMS Defeats
I'm now making my TPMS Defeats myself, so these will be kept in-stock and not sell out nearly as often, if at all.
TPMS Defeats are currently in stock.
Air Box Delete Brackets
I've completely redesigned my Air Box Delete Brackets and I'm now making them myself. My new design is made to be much more durable including using a stronger plastic, and has an integrated bushing that replaces the factory one (which is usually extremely worn out).
Air Box Delete Brackets are currently in stock.
Front and Rear Corner Markers
My dark-smoked corner markers are back. I've completely redesigned these to use lower-profile lenses, along with housings that I make myself. My new housing design replaces the fragile plastic pegs and speed nuts with stainless steal nuts and bolts so they're far more durable than the factory ones. The build quality and finish of my new design is also far better than the original Redpants corner markers (which I stopped offering due to quality control issues with the manufacturer). The front and rear corner markers are now available in dark smoked. Side repeaters are currently in development. A light smoked option for the front and rear corner markers and the side repeaters will be available after the side repeaters are in production.
Dark smoked front and rear corner markers are currently in stock.
Lightweight Lug Nuts
I've been testing out a new design for my Lightweight Lug Nuts. The original Redpants Lightweight Lug nuts were awesome, but sold somewhat slowly compared to production costs. When they sold out and production costs had gone up, I decided it wasn't worthwhile to continue with them. However, I still get a steady stream of demand for them so I decided to revisit the idea. My new design is a simplified 2-piece design using a titanium body and aluminum seat. Multiple colors will be available.
Lightweight Lug Nuts are available to pre-order at a discount now.
Oil Catch Cans
The main one that people ask about is my famous Oil Catch Can. I'm currently in talks with a manufacturer and hopefully it goes well! I've worked with this one in the past and they'll be bringing back another of my out-of-stock products soon, so I think we may finally see these on the shelf in the near future. I’ll make an actual announcement when I have updates.
Redpants Product Warranties
All Redpants Products now come with a 12-month warranty. Redpants products are now supplied to Redpants, LLC (“Redpants USA”) by Redpants 合同会社 (“Redpants Japan”). Redpants USA and Redpants Japan are two completely separate companies. Redpants products covered by the 12-month warranty will now include a warranty card from Redpants Japan because that is the manufacturer/supplier of the parts.
Keep Current
I’m closing down the Redpants page on Facebook. I haven’t used Facebook for Redpants or even for myself personally in ages, so if you’ve messaged on there, I won’t have seen it. You should have gotten an automated response saying to email me, though. I hate social media in general so I’m rarely on it. If you want to get in touch, email me or use my Contact page (they both go to the same email address). If you try to message me on any personal account, it won’t be seen.
Don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel and turn on notifications so you know when I put out a new video about Aston Martins, parts, products, and DIY information.
My second YouTube channel is for Redpants Unzipped. It focuses on events and travel in Japan and elsewhere. It’s been dormant for a while but I’m getting ready to launch some new stuff that will be showcased there.
There’s more happening but this Blog Post is already way too long. Congrats if you made it this far, because I barely did.