UK bike sales plummet
Discussion
OutInTheShed said:
In my other sport, Sports Direct etc also gobbled up Gul Wetsuits.
Just another chav brand I won't touch with a stick now.
It's a businiess model.
Bulld a Brand.
Get established.
Flog brand to vultures.
Retire.
Its actually a bit different. Just another chav brand I won't touch with a stick now.
It's a businiess model.
Bulld a Brand.
Get established.
Flog brand to vultures.
Retire.
build brand,
get esthablished
sell out / get PE capital in. with a load of debt
business plan doesnt get hit, cant service the debt.
goes bust
original owner / mike ashley buys it
Wahoo, Jack Wills, Etc etc etc etc
z4RRSchris said:
OutInTheShed said:
In my other sport, Sports Direct etc also gobbled up Gul Wetsuits.
Just another chav brand I won't touch with a stick now.
It's a businiess model.
Bulld a Brand.
Get established.
Flog brand to vultures.
Retire.
Its actually a bit different. Just another chav brand I won't touch with a stick now.
It's a businiess model.
Bulld a Brand.
Get established.
Flog brand to vultures.
Retire.
build brand,
get esthablished
sell out / get PE capital in. with a load of debt
business plan doesnt get hit, cant service the debt.
goes bust
original owner / mike ashley buys it
Wahoo, Jack Wills, Etc etc etc etc
build brand,
get established
sell out / get PE capital in. with a load of debt
PE owners take out wads of £££, do a sale and leaseback at massively overrented rate, take out more £££
business plan doesnt get hit, cant service the debt.
sack some staff, because "paying them too much"
take out some more cash, because those school fees don't grow on trees, nor do houses in Tuscany, a boat on the Hamble, a wife with expensive tastes and membership at Soho house, and a Schoeffel gilet
goes bust
original owner / mike ashley buys it for 3p in the £
Walk away, make large donation to Tory party, rinse and repeat.....
Wahoo, Jack Wills, Debenhams Etc etc etc etc
Court_S said:
Yeah, I’ve read that too.
It seems that he’s got rid of most of the staff with a skeleton crew left until the last of the stock is shifted then it looks like Wiggle / CRC are gone. He’ll keep the IP for Nukeproof, Vitus etc and destroy the brands slapping their name on any old BSO to be sold cheaply. That’ll be a shame because CRC did a good job of bring those brands back.
I've just ordered a Garmin Epix Pro with sapphire glass and titanium bezel for £671 which is quite a lot cheaper than anyone else, feel like a bargain, assuming it arrives..It seems that he’s got rid of most of the staff with a skeleton crew left until the last of the stock is shifted then it looks like Wiggle / CRC are gone. He’ll keep the IP for Nukeproof, Vitus etc and destroy the brands slapping their name on any old BSO to be sold cheaply. That’ll be a shame because CRC did a good job of bring those brands back.
Seasonal Hero said:
Yep I bought a few bits and they took a while to arrive. I think, for now, the cycle industry will split between the high end and the lower end in a more marked way than before.My brother bought a new bike in lockdown and I reckon it’s seen 2 or 3 rides in 3 years. Quite an expensive bike bought C2W.
LimaDelta said:
I imagine there are a lot of lock-down bikes currently gathering dust in garages and sheds up and down the country.
Yep. It's been a few years since my kids got their previous bikes and my daughter asked for a new one. Previous was a mountain bike but, she wants retro style. I think inspired by watching all the seasons of Stranger Things on Netflix and bikes feature fairly often in that. 
Bike was literally brand new condition. Hardly been ridden, possibly round the block a couple of times.
Only cost £140 so less than half price.
Then I went looking for one for my son, who's just turned 18 and tall so was ready for a new bike.
Picked up a Voodoo Braag MTB with a ton of extras, child seat (will donate that) lights, lock, mudguard, front holdall and that bike was in hardly used condition as well. £150
So many bikes for sale locally on Gumtree/FB that they are literally giving them away.
I thought coming into spring, it's a terrible time to be looking for a used bargain but clearly not. So many listings for 'like new' bikes.
President Merkin said:
Sad to hear Pole have gone bust. A niche brand for sure but they made stunning looking bikes with very innovative manufacturing processes,
As a Pole owner I have mixed feelings. They were / are very innovative machines in both geometry and manufacturing.
However, customer service always seems to have been an issue from what I've read (took ages to get mine), and swing arm-gate really didn't help them.
Leo is an incredibly passionate and clever engineer, but he should have perhaps taken a less public facing role a few years back.
They're a loss to the industry though IMO.
You're not the first guy I've read about having customer service issues with Pole. Reading a bit on emtb forums, there's a few there expressing their frustrations & suggesting behind the scenes things were a bit chaotic, possibly related to over expansion. For clarity, that's owners pov, not mine - I've never owned one.
emicen said:
Craikeybaby said:
Sounds like Kona are on their way out too.
Off topic but related, how about this piece of nostalgia from Snetterton last weekend:
All the classics; Marzocchi fork, Avid V brakes, parallax hubs, SDG Comp saddle.
Their catalogues as a kid in the late 90's were lusted after. Wanted a 99 Stab Dee-Lux with the snake downtube so much. Sign of the times though, I bought a brand new Lava Dome last year as a pub bike for £350.
Terry Winks said:
emicen said:
Craikeybaby said:
Sounds like Kona are on their way out too.
Off topic but related, how about this piece of nostalgia from Snetterton last weekend:All the classics; Marzocchi fork, Avid V brakes, parallax hubs, SDG Comp saddle.
Their catalogues as a kid in the late 90's were lusted after. Wanted a 99 Stab Dee-Lux with the snake downtube so much. Sign of the times though, I bought a brand new Lava Dome last year as a pub bike for £350.
Terry Winks said:
I will light a candle if Kona do go, fair they have floundered around in the wilderness for a while now. But I did my first ever downhill race on a 1997 Kona Lava Dome, it was a Dragon Downhill too so not exactly tame, still unsure how I managed to manoeuvre that 21 inch framed with 80mm RST 381's down that track without dying.
Their catalogues as a kid in the late 90's were lusted after. Wanted a 99 Stab Dee-Lux with the snake downtube so much. Sign of the times though, I bought a brand new Lava Dome last year as a pub bike for £350.
Me too. I was a massive fan of their bikes back in the day - ‘97 range was perfection aesthetically for me. The dark green Lava Dome still is ace. Their catalogues as a kid in the late 90's were lusted after. Wanted a 99 Stab Dee-Lux with the snake downtube so much. Sign of the times though, I bought a brand new Lava Dome last year as a pub bike for £350.
I had a Koa which I adored.
loskie said:
yep
or only the "rough/thick" boys have those.
Along with rugby. woodwork and Army.
I get the fkn orchestra!
How wrong parents can be.
When my sister started secondary school, (I was 2 years younger), my parents went out and bought us both brand new Raleigh Foldaways with baskets on the front and luggage rack on the back. This was okay when we lived in a tiny village on the Cheshire Derbyshire border, and meant that they could drive my sister to school, but she could cycle home (3 miles) or only the "rough/thick" boys have those.
Along with rugby. woodwork and Army.
I get the fkn orchestra!
How wrong parents can be.
Edited by loskie on Saturday 18th November 21:08
Then we moved to a town in Merseyside, so in top juniors I did my cycling profiency on a womans, folding shopping bike. Every other boy in my class had a "Racer" or a chopper. It was the late 70s so I'm not sure the grifter was out by then.
They didn't have a clue. To them it was a bike. Practical, and it had 3 gears too. What more could you need.
I managed to get it stolen twice, but it kept being found and returned by the police.
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