^ I think that is the answer to a lot of price related complaints. But, people are always lusting after a specific colorway, and want the yo-yo now, so not many people will be patient enough to do that. Finding the right deal, with low risk on the BST or waiting for a good sale takes time, and everyone wants things as soon as possible to keep up with the Joneses.
I believe they cost more than that to make. The statistics are available and I believe Nike’s actually cost ~$20 to manufacture for a pair of $80 shoes. Also consider that both the store AND Nike have to get their profits.
Beats
Too late.
That’s not surprising. Most reputable brands’ $30 headphones will sound better.
Jensen Kimmitt. End of story.
I got interested in CLYW six years ago. I liked the peaks splash, i liked the wooleys. I liked the logo and the name. Back then it was they yoyo with caribou antlers.
That was it for me, they seemed legit.
I do not prefer clyw anymore. All the fanboys turned me off of them.
that’s a weird reason to stop liking throws from a company.
people should go throw some more.
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didnt say i dont like clyw.
Lol i just feel that they are trying to hard so i tirned my attention elsewhere. I mean i i dont like their products why buy em?
I’m sort of surprised CLYW hasn’t tried 7075 on more of their throws or a new return top model only made with 7075.
I’m a bit late to the party but I’d like to add my 2 cents.
People have mentioned that some people seem to like to bash CLYW. I can understand why. I have a fair few CLYW throws and they all play nice enough but none of them have the wow factor for me. I am not a fan of the splashes and think there are other companies out there who do better splash jobs. Add to this that they are have marketed themselves as quite a hip and stylish company which just doesn’t attract me personally. I am more attracted to one drop whose philosophy seems to be creating top quality throws at a lower price bracket. I have trust when I buy a one drop yoyo that it will be of an expected quality. So for me CLYW just isn’t worth the extra cost, but that’s just my personal opinion. in the same way I am not a fan of Apple for the reason that their products are seriously overpriced in my opinion and I wouldn’t be willing to spend a premium for their goods when I can get something else which suits me more for far less.
I still enjoy CLYW throws and wouldn’t bash them directly. I just don’t get quite as excited about them any more.
It’s about charm, too. YYF, for example, is this huge corporate-like entity that feels super disconnected from the scene. Ben (admittedly from the very little I know about him) kinda reminds me of Mark Cuban, picking the best players so he can win, but more of a businessman than an actual yoyoer.
Nothing wrong with that, of course, but contrasted to CLYW, this 2-man outfit in a small office, making revolutionary, beautiful throws, packaged in quaint boxes with art on them. Chris is just so likeable, he seems like he would make an amazing friend. Obviously the quality in the throws has to be there - if they made bad yoyos, none of that would count for much - but relatability and charm is a big part of the reason IMO.
I have a YYF Supernova that I got bundled in a trade that may be one of the best yoyos I own, but I almost never use it because my CLYWs put more of a smile on my face when I look at them.
Heheh, I think you’d be surprised to discover how not-huge YYF is. 
I love the extent to which they do stuff for yoyoing in general… I mean, it’s financially beneficial to them to help the world discover modern yoyo, but that’s true of other companies and most don’t make nearly the same efforts.
Back to CLYW: I understand the Apple thing, and I dislike Apple as well (though my wife jammed an iPad mini into our holiday purchases and it worked out well for travelling with a 4-yo). However, I don’t get that same feeling from CLYW. Maybe that’s because I do find some of their throws to be quite special… the Puffin and the Chief for me, plus the H5xChief. A Yeti arrives for me soon, and I have every intention of grabbing a Puffin 2. I also feel more like Chris runs a “mom and pop” shop (which is part of the marketing… as a former marketer myself I do not see “marketing” as a dirty word) and I can buy into that culture.
Apple is far more about appearances and hipsterism than CLYW could ever hope to be.
Nothing wrong with that, of course, but contrasted to CLYW, this 2-man outfit in a small office, making revolutionary, beautiful throws, packaged in quaint boxes with art on them. Chris is just so likeable, he seems like he would make an amazing friend. Obviously the quality in the throws has to be there - if they made bad yoyos, none of that would count for much - but relatability and charm is a big part of the reason IMO.
Personality and quality!
YoYoFactory is six yoyo players in an office park in Arizona.
Here’s the guy you’re saying is more of a businessman than an “actual yoyoer”:
He’s been competing since 1997.
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^ You beat me to it, and the most brilliant in marketing too. I’ll give credit where credit is due. If you want to gauge popularity of a brand…sales, social media, accessibility, he is the guy who can get you to actually put your money where your mouth is 
The time I spent mail ordering yo-yos from ads in Yo-Yo Times newsletter probably gives me a different take on this kind of thread, but I really don’t understand the comments and criticisms of yo-yo manufacturer’s pricing and offerings.
This is by far the most amazing time to be involved in this hobby, there has never been this kind of quality design, availability, and choice in purchasing yo-yos. If you don’t like a product or company or design, just vote with your wallet.
You guys are going to miss this golden age when it’s gone, trust me.
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canada,jensen, the team, colorways, great yoyos, artwork
Good yoyos… Well, that’s why I like them.
“Golden Age” Sums up this time in yo-yo purchasing history so well. I remember those days of ordering from a catalog. You never knew what you were going to get because there was no internet, so no reviews, hype, or anything. All you had to go on was the store’s description (always positive of course) and there was like what 5 metal throws out at the time, and a handful of plastics.
Even just 5 years ago, while there was still a plethora of throws that came out, most were smaller runs that sold out quick. I remember if you wanted to get a specific throw such as a BVM, you had to camp out on the computer, and you were never sure what exact time they would drop. Scalping was rampant. And there was no budget metals. If you wanted a metal, $90 was about the cheapest. (I’m not counting the Duncan Freehand metal, because that was a piece of junk).
Now there’s so many good throws to choose from, in any price range you want, and the budget metals and plastics play on par with $100+ throws. And you don’t have to camp out to get a CLWY.
I didn’t bother to read all six pages of posts ahead of me, but I think most everyone has the right idea. Marketing, a great contest team, etc. So, I’ll just go ahead and give my own personal reasons for liking CLYW.
First and foremost, if it wasn’t for Jensen Kimmitt, I would not be a thrower. I know a lot of people drool over the guy, and while I think most of that drooling is warranted, I do realize it can get blown out of proportion. But the fact of the matter is that Jensen is the reason I started throwing. I had a friend who threw for years, and I’m a huge skill toy fan, so of course I appreciated his talent and was fascinated, but I was never interested in trying it for myself. I had watched countless videos, but it wasn’t until I watched Jensen’s performance at Canadian Nationals that I was truly inspired to give it a shot… I still throw to that stupid Pizza-Hut and Taco Bell song. >.<" Second, Kavka and Kahn both throw for CLYW, and they are two of my favorite players. And lastly, I’m a sucker for colors and splash designs. Even before I entered the world of yoyos, I would paint splash patterns on my own things. But of course, I wouldn’t play their throws if I didn’t like them…
Most of my is in fact CLYW, and that’s simply because I love how they feel. Each company has a distinctive feel, and I’ve found that CLYW offers a wide variety of throws for any mood I’m in. They have fun floaty throws, solid stable throws, and everything in between, but they all have a distinctive CLYW “vibe” to them (and I mean figurative vibe, not literal yoyo vibe that everyone nitpicks over for some reason).
But I think it goes without saying that I have no prejudice towards other companies. I buy throws at any price point, from any company, of any material. I’ve got nothing but respect for One Drop, YoyoFactory, etc., but at the end of the day, CLYW’s appeal to me for more reasons than one.
Ben may be a yoyo player, but he’s also still a condescending tool.
As far as Caribou Lodge prices, I’m assuming none of the people that have an issue with CLYWs current business model(save for the Yeti…)were around when the only way to get a Bear Vs Man was to deal with someone who put theirs up in the BST before YYN could even get it to their door. For double+ what they bought it for.