You likely read Slowman’s interesting insight into the acquisition of Competitive Cyclist by Backcountry.com.
This link expands on the acquisition and provides an excellent and insightful commentary on the state-of-the-industry and its evolution.
If you work in this industry this is a must read. Thanks to Facebook friend Dave Vannette who passed this link on to me on my Facebook page:
There are a lot of interesting takeaways from that letter. Thanks much for posting.
I thought so too, the insights are valid, and it represents a solid, albeit polarized, perspective.
The one thing in here that got my rancor a bit was the commentary about Cervelo, as they are a brand, company and culture I hold near and dear. That said, Competitive is leading the way here with this distribution model, and their progress cannot be ignored. They have acheived a great deal, and I love their website and their reviews, etc. It isn’t a yard sale. It’s a nice place to visit. Clean and tidy.
as someone who was “in the industry” for almost a decade, i appreciate the insight. gracias tomas!
Their website is great. They list actual weights for many products instead of advertised weights. They have many mini-reviews or reasons for why they carry specific products. They almost always have one deal that looks too good to be true on complete bikes. Their fit calculator isn’t too bad (I ran my numbers through recently and was surprised).
It sounds to me like what they offered Backcountry was in part a way to legitimize their attempts at introducing self labeled bikes and components. I could be wrong though. Not to mention what Competitive Cyclist offers in potential with Merlin and Canyon. I think Canyon will be quickly accepted in to the U.S. market. I know the Aeroad isn’t aero, but that I still want it or maybe the Athena equipped CF 7.0.
Many LBS workers I’ve met do think of online sales as an us v. them situation when it comes to online sales. I hope Dan takes the recent poll on buying habits and analyzes this.
An interesting take on the industry and where it may be headed…but one thing very early jumped out at me:
It was the mid-90s and our industry was rudderless. There was no real innovation (no carbon, no concept of either aerodynamics or lightness, no suspension, no disc brakes.) Substituting for true innovation were things like Grateful Dead-licensed Gary Fisher HooKooEKoos and Specialized’s purportedly exoticMetal Matrix frames. Business was perma-slow
??? Seriously? The mid-90’s was one of the largest growth periods for the US cycling industry. Mountain bikes were taking off and had surpassed road bikes are the #1 segment of adult bikes. Aluminum frames were on the verge of becoming the dominant material and the full-suspension wars were just beginning.
That said, I think theya re spot-on re: how Specialized and Trek handle their online business. It amazes me that despite their preeminent positions in the industry, they remain hostage to the IBD network and are incapable if creating an online strategy that is widespread and reflective of the current consumer preferences. Talk about leaving money on the table, as well as opening doors to your competition (especially when it comes to P&A).