Dear Valued Customer,
Our tape suppliers have recently increased
our prices on all of our tape products. The intent of this letter is to inform
you of what is driving these increases and what you can expect to see in the
months to come.
In the pressure sensitive tape
market, there are three main types of adhesive; hot melt, acrylic and natural
rubber. Of these three adhesives, the hot melt technology has an 80% market
share.
The main ingredient in hot melt
adhesive is Styrene-Isoprene-Styrene (SIS). There are now only four suppliers
of SIS to the tape industry worldwide. The
limited number of manufacturers and strong global demand are both pushing tape
prices upward. Oil prices and
transportation costs have further impacted the price on all tapes.
What does all of this mean to you?
Our primary tape suppliers manufacture tape using all three adhesive
technologies. For this reason, we feel
that we are in a great position to offer alternative products and substitutes
in the event of shortages of hot melt adhesive products. Production of acrylic and natural rubber
products is being ramped up in order to have substitutes available for your box
sealing requirements.
Also, we have changed the shipping
charge on some tape products to a calculated rate based on your ship to zip
code. This will allow many of our
customers to realize a lower shipping
cost.
We will continue to provide you with
exceptional service and quality products at competitive prices. Thank you for your support.
Sincerely,
Eric
Eric C. Thomas
President