Cannondale: ³It's a better quality, nicer weld, with more patents.²

Story in a Canadian rag, The Globe and Mail, detailing the difficulties
of integrated an uptown brand into a low rent empire.

http://tinyurl.com/423pgm

There are two types of people-- those who ride cannondale and those
who wish they did!

On May 15, 11:34*am, Luke wrote:
Story in a Canadian rag, The Globe and Mail, detailing the difficulties
of integrated an uptown brand into a low rent empire.

http://tinyurl.com/423pgm

Luke wrote:
Story in a Canadian rag, The Globe and Mail, detailing the difficulties
of integrated an uptown brand into a low rent empire.

http://tinyurl.com/423pgm

I think that Specialized has no need to be worried, nor does Trek. When
was the last time you saw a bicycle store selling Cannondale?

In article ,
SMS wrote:

Luke wrote:
Story in a Canadian rag, The Globe and Mail, detailing the difficulties
of integrated an uptown brand into a low rent empire.

http://tinyurl.com/423pgm

I think that Specialized has no need to be worried, nor does Trek. When
was the last time you saw a bicycle store selling Cannondale?

Are you serious? Because they have a pretty extensive dealer network.

They may not be Trek, but then, who is?

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."

Ryan Cousineau wrote:
In article ,
SMS wrote:


Luke wrote:

Story in a Canadian rag, The Globe and Mail, detailing the difficulties
of integrated an uptown brand into a low rent empire.

http://tinyurl.com/423pgm

I think that Specialized has no need to be worried, nor does Trek. When
was the last time you saw a bicycle store selling Cannondale?


Are you serious? Because they have a pretty extensive dealer network.

They may not be Trek, but then, who is?


It probably depends on where you live. I don't remember the last time I
saw a Cannondale bike.

Ryan Cousineau wrote:
In article ,
SMS wrote:

Luke wrote:
Story in a Canadian rag, The Globe and Mail, detailing the difficulties
of integrated an uptown brand into a low rent empire.

http://tinyurl.com/423pgm
I think that Specialized has no need to be worried, nor does Trek. When
was the last time you saw a bicycle store selling Cannondale?

Are you serious? Because they have a pretty extensive dealer network.

Perhaps, but all the top tier stores seem to have dropped them.

I tried using their "Dealer Locator" on their web site, and I see that
REI carries them, as well as some second tier shops.

I was at a bicycle shop yesterday, talking to them about some marketing
of one of their niche product lines, and the owner was talking to me
about the lines of bicycles he carries. He carries Trek, Raleigh,
Electra, and Diamondback. Trek is no more expensive (wholesale) that the
other top brands like Cannondale or Specialized, and sells much better.
Trek's periodic dealer promotions aren't as good as the other lines,
they'll sometimes offer 25-30% off the regular wholesale price to clear
out excess inventory, which is less than the other brands offer, and
it's more limited (certain sizes and colors of certain models). In any
case, it's Trek sales, and accessory sales that are keeping the shop going.

Trek is not selling other lines of products into department stores, or
even chains like REI. The dealers still remember Specialized's ill-fated
foray into chain stores with the "Full Force" brand.

SMS wrote:


Trek is not selling other lines of products into department stores, or
even chains like REI. The dealers still remember Specialized's ill-fated
foray into chain stores with the "Full Force" brand.

An LBS employee told me that Bell had bought Giro (I didn't
know that) and now that Giro helmets are in places like
Copeland's (chain sporting goods) the LBS wouldn't be
carrying Giro any more. It was just a pricing issue though
I think... he said that Copeland's just has a lower overhead
and markup so he had to carry something that the cheaper
retailers couldn't offer. Nothing to do with diluting the
brand. So now he carries Specialized helmets along with Trek.

SMS wrote:
Perhaps, but all the top tier stores seem to have dropped them.

What top tier stores are you talking about?

I tried using their "Dealer Locator" on their web site, and I see that
REI carries them, as well as some second tier shops.

How do you know which LBSes qualify as top and second tier stores? The
way you phrased all this, you really seem to be talking out of your ass.
Seven out of the eight shops that deal with Cannondale in the Atlanta
are quality LBSes, from what I gather.

\\paul
--
Paul M. Hobson
..:change the f to ph to reply:.

Trek is not selling other lines of products into department stores, or
even chains like REI. The dealers still remember Specialized's ill-fated
foray into chain stores with the "Full Force" brand.

An LBS employee told me that Bell had bought Giro (I didn't know that) and
now that Giro helmets are in places like Copeland's (chain sporting goods)
the LBS wouldn't be carrying Giro any more. It was just a pricing issue
though I think... he said that Copeland's just has a lower overhead and
markup so he had to carry something that the cheaper retailers couldn't
offer. Nothing to do with diluting the brand. So now he carries
Specialized helmets along with Trek.

The issue isn't lower overhead for the big guys vs the LBS. The issue is
that, if Bellsports or whomever wants to hit their numbers at the end of the
month, they give a call to the big mail order houses offering them
incentives to bring in a ton of product. That's standard industry practice
with a lot of the players.

It's not a level playing field; the big guys have some huge advantages over
the LBS. That's one of the reasons shops support Trek so well. Trek doesn't
play games like that; if they overproduce something, it's offered to all of
their dealers at the reduced price. Everybody has the same rules. To be
competitive without having lots of slash & burn sales, they have to make
sure they've got a good product at a reasonable price, and they generally do
pretty well in that regard.

Unfortunately, Trek can make exceptional bikes, but they don't quite have
the high-end helmet thing down. Giro is king there, with the best-in-class
style & graphics around. It's not about quality per se; the $39.99 Trek
Vapor is the "killer app" of helmets. But Giro somehow manages to make hard
foam with a thin plastic shell actually look like something someone would
pay $200+ for.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

catzz66 wrote:
Ryan Cousineau wrote:

In article ,
SMS wrote:


Luke wrote:

Story in a Canadian rag, The Globe and Mail, detailing the difficulties
of integrated an uptown brand into a low rent empire.

http://tinyurl.com/423pgm


I think that Specialized has no need to be worried, nor does Trek.
When was the last time you saw a bicycle store selling Cannondale?



Are you serious? Because they have a pretty extensive dealer network.

They may not be Trek, but then, who is?


It probably depends on where you live. I don't remember the last time I
saw a Cannondale bike.

(looks around)

about 5 seconds ago...

might not be the *greatest* bike on earth, but for a Craigslist buy,
it's pretty spiffy. Would have had to pay at least 2-3x as much for
anything comparable from a LBS...

nate

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