Triathlon has been sold to dealers across the U.S. as the “flavor of the week”. Strong growth “numbers” and good looking demographics as well as a commensurate contraction in darn near every other category make triathlon look like the goose that layed the golden egg.
So retailers are coming on board in droves. They are going to triathlons, doing triathlons, going to fit schools and going through all the motions. Most of them even know the order of events in a triathlon.
My concern is over what happens when the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow doesn’t meterialize for the big retailers. Or materializes then turns into fool’s gold.
I think a lot of retailers are buying into triathlon at the back side of the growth curve.
Aren’t the numbers still small though? Lots of people can watch le tour, then go out and buy a 5200 to ride around the park. But it takes a little more to even finish a sprint. My impression of the tri market is that it’s always going to be a niche industry where small,niche retailers have the upper hand.
As a bike retailer you’d be more aware of this than most of us. In past posts you’ve mentioned that you feel triathlon might peak as a participant sport in a few years? Triathlon could parallel the mountain bike industry when it peaked and declined. I also think in many cases a lot of newbie triathletes are making a bad decision purchasing a tri bike when they might be initially better served with a road bike. As the sport becomes less hard core/cultish and more for the masses, there will likely be more and more used tri bikes for sale on ebay in the next few years due to a higher turnover of people coming/going.
I agree with both of these Robb and Cerveloguy. I see guys falling over themselves to “get on board” with triathlon s the latest, greatest. I don’t they understand the true costs involved. If they did, they wouldn’t be involved.
-Kinda like the “waging war for oil” theory: There are cheaper, quicker more profitable ways to get oil.
The same thing happened with Mountain Biking a few years back. You think people would learn. I have no suggestions, just the previous observation.
I do still mountain bike though. I am racing Xterra this weekend.
I think it all comes down to lust for income. My wife wanted me to quit my job and start an Internet company and make millions. I liked my job and stayed and made thousands. The internet boom crashed. I still make thousands unlike many broke internet millionaires.
Road cycling is probably not a huge growth industry;
Most road cycling shops are looking for the next thing (now that the mountain bike phase has materialized and, I’d guess, plateaued);
Triathlon is sexy, and it’s market demographics are awesome (I think it’s one of the top income-per-household demographics of any sport);
I think it’s the case in most every industry that there are early adopters, then once the concept is proven others jump on board when the numbers look good (look at the way Dell adopts Apple’s technology product models once they’re proven profitable). Your only hope is that as an early-adopter is that you corner enough of the core market to out-compete the late-comers who do everything cheaper, faster, and with lower quality (for the guy that’s doing tris because they’re the new cool thing, all this is probably just fine as he wants to walk into the store a normal Joe and leave a Triathlete).
We have several LBS’s in the area. One specilizes in the high end Italian road bikes and has been around for years. They won’t grow much but they have weathered some big down turns. The other bike shops have really followed the flavor of the month and have come and gone. Product knowledge, quality products, and quality customer service are the core of the long term succesful businesses.
Retailers are investing into “going to triathlons, going to fit schools” etc. Isn’t this a good thing? They’re still getting publicity, and they can apply a lot of the “science” of fit to road, mtn and comfort bikes? I don’t think there will be a backlash - its just a matter of keeping up with the times. We’re probably a more discerning crowd but I think people should expect more in terms of bike fit.
I will be sad when retailers start dwindling. Less competition always sucks, but in my small view of the tri world, its still a niche sport. I guess part of my optimism also comes from the fact that I have to order most of my goodies. As long as someone is distributing it, I’m a satisfied camper.
The major retailers will still carry a lot of our toys. Just as they carry downhill equipment, I don’t see why they won’t keep the triathlon segment happy. Less profit may mean less inventory, but what does that matter?
At the same time I also think that once the market settles it will be much stronger. People say they’re qualified fitters, people believe they know best (aluminum vs. steel) etc. but only the strong will survive. That’s a good thing - I see so many people with really bad fits (myself included), or people with tri bikes riding on drop bars. Something is wrong and for the sake of tri, someone needs to clean up. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure there are many people who are genuinely interested in helping a customer buy the right equipment but some of their education is lacking.
I think you, Dan Empfield, Paul Levine and many others have all contributed a lot to the sport through this site, magazines (hey I still only see 2 major tri magazines, still think we’re not a niche?) and newspaper articles. I think over the past two years of doing tri I have learned a lot from everyone here -let’s just think of all these retailers getting on the wagon as a positive thing.
You’re right. The thing that scares me is when the local bike shop “steps up to the plate” and orders 15 triathlon bikes, has a difficult time turning the inventory, and then blows them out.
People wind up on discounted bikes (which, quite honestly, costs me profit margin) that are often times dubiously fitted (hey, a 54 may be one size too big, but just look at the price!) and the inventory gets devalued.
That concerns me. When there is too much tri inventory in the territory- not good for me.
a) Its not quiet the same as in road and mtb booms b/c this time round there are more women involved that in both road and mountain. Its a follow on from the participatory marathon boom of the 90’s.
b) We have only one real tri bike store in our area the rest are road and/or mountain bike retailers and in most cases I have a real problem steering any one new to the sport to these stores (except for the tri specific store) And most of these stores dont serve the female customers very well in terms of gear stocked or information. One road LBS owner could not understand why he had such a hard time selling ladies bike clothes. In fact he the observed tremendous difference between the buying thought process of men and women. I think understanding the micro difference will help any retailer.
c) I agree with Tom re: tri riding a wave, its almost crested. Maybe an early indication is the fact the IM Idaho is not fully signed up yet.
- I see so many people with really bad fits (myself included), or people with tri bikes riding on drop bars. Something is wrong and for the sake of tri, someone needs to clean up.
You want to rephrase that? Who are you, the fitting police?
Never forget: You are allowed to ride a bike without being fit on it. Some people prefer drop-bars, for good reasons. Others have a bad back and can’t assume a superman position. Do you want to negate those people the right to ride a Tri-bike?
May I suggest you first start helping to correct more urgent matters, like telling people to wear their helmets? There is always more than one side of the coin and the earth is not a disk!
Sorry, but this elitist behaviour touched a nerve!
I think you need to re-read the post and chill-out. He makes a very good point (newcomer tri-enabled shops may be doing a disservice to the newbie by providing poor fit - seeing a triathlete riding in the drops because they’re too uncomfortable in the aerobars is good support of his point).
Don’t forget that the triathlon community is identified as a group with more diposable income and a greater percentage of participants who desire equipment that is above the entry level point (higher end). This economic group is also claimed (by industry insiders) as being more insulated from economic down turns.
You can’t say that building your business to attract and cater to this clientelle (economic group) would be a bad business decision.
As “posers” invade this segment of the biking industry, the specialized niche retailers are once again challenged with trying to distinguish themselves from these posers before the customer makes his buying decision. This is how business has always been. When a man finds success in one venture, others envious at his success try to follow his path, but for other reasons and trying to take short cuts. They divide the small pie even more for the original entrepreneur, making it harder for him and they usually have marginal success, at best, in this new venture. Sometimes, they even force the original entrepreneur out of business.
Is this what is happening or happened to John Cobb?
It sounds as if your post is mostly self serving. From what I can see you are worried that your business will suffer if too many retailers “wade in” on the tri market. Maybe from both a sales standpoint (a customer going to another shop) or a margin standpoint (you having to drop you shorts due to an increase in inventory and less demand).
This is the risk you took on when you decided to become a retailer. My opinion on your business is that you have developed a niche for yourself, as have others, and you will most likely be able to weather any storm that should blow your way. You may have to suck up some margin at some point but I feel, as you should, that you are in this triathlon game for the long haul.
It’s like this for every business out there. Be it manufacturing, retailing, distriubution or service. The strong focused companies survive. The flavors of the day do not.
When Slowman finishes with the rest of the Bicycle Sports story, I think you’ll see that’s not the case. John Cobb is an upstanding, smart man who knows a hell of a lot about bikes, positioning, aerodymanics, etc.
I don’t want to tell you your business but I’m not sure how bad it is for you. You’re worried about someone else selling the same stuff as you except cheaper but providing worse service? That’s all the internet is, right? If you can survive one, you can survive the other. My guess is that most people buy from you knowing they are paying more than they would on the internet and are willing to do it for the service you provide. I think in many cases this is not a smart decision but I admit that it is usually an informed one and one that is unlikely to change. That’s all you really need.
Sorry, let me rephrase: A lot of retailers are fitting people on the wrong bike and making compromises for probably the wrong reasons.
If one decides to clunk down 4k$ on a tri bike only to ride it as a road bike, I wonder what they were thinking. I spent a good amount of time riding with neck pains and back pains after 2, 3 hr rides and assumed it was normal. Since I got my new Serotta (thru Paul Levine) its opened my eyes. I’m disgruntled at the fit of my old bike - I thought I was paying decent coin to a fairly big name but got screwed. So I’m hoping these people who pretend they know what they’re doing die off or shape up.
I sympathize with Tom’s sentiments on big brother moving in. Even without a big department store moving in, these ebay/liquidation stores popping up selling 10 cervelos at cost dig into his livelihood. All I can say is believe in your customers; a lot of them are loyal. If Wants2RideFast is right, that triathletes in general are quite wealthy I think a good proportion will stick to paying a little extra for the expert service.
As you know, the best manufacturers protect territories (I can only buy a Cervelo from Gateway in Portland for instance). I suspect the best manufacturers in triathlon are also aware of the more dedicated Tri shops. Therefore, you’ve already got a number of advantages (better service and a protected line of desirable products…at least in frames/complete bikes). I suppose your real risk is on the High % margin items (Those less than $500) such as aerobars, helmets, shoes, and some wheels which don’t protect territories and will be more readily available to consumers.
Depending upon your product mix of frames/bikes vs. components, this can have a very material impact on your overall revenue/margins. I can understand your concern.
However, as another poster stated, this risk already exists care of Ebay (who you leverage) and other internet retailers. I’d suggest that the best way to compete is to get in the internet game for all components which aren’t “fit specific.”
I gotta agree with Tommy-boy here. I’ve went into his store a few times, when I lived back in MI in the Dearborn area, and his place ROCKS!! It’s just the right size, has all the cool TDF posters and some serious, serious Tri-bikes and stuff.
I just didn’t get that same experience at the really large bike stores in the metro-Detroit area, btw, but the stores out here in Honolulu, like IT&B and Gary’s Bikeworld have that same ambience.
My biggest concern isn’t about them coming into tri. It is when they leave after discovering it isn;t the pot of gold it was represented to them as by some vendors.