Re: [CR]Bike Nashbar catalogue - old and new

(Example: Racing:Beryl Burton)

Date: Mon, 4 Apr 2005 03:45:19 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jerome & Elizabeth Moos <jerrymoos@sbcglobal.net>
Subject: Re: [CR]Bike Nashbar catalogue - old and new
To: BobHoveyGa@aol.com, classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
In-Reply-To: 6667


I think the new catalog layouts say two things - first, emphasize clothing and accessories because these, being made for next to nothing in China, have larger profit margins than bikes which are made merely cheaply in Taiwan (although some of the frames are starting to come from China now too). Second, it says the vendors think today's cycling cycling public is a bunch of narcissistic poseurs, to which there is probably more truth than we would like to believe.

Regards,

Jerry Moos Houston, TX

BobHoveyGa@aol.com wrote:

In a message dated 4/3/2005 3:01:40 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, classicrendezvous-request@bikelist.org writes:

I remember back when they were still "Bike Warehouse" and they offered all kinds of little things: Campy spare parts, Proteus frame building kits, a diversity of manufacturers' products -- Campy, Zeus, Shimano, SunTour, Stronglight, etc. And maybe half a page of clothing. Now it seems two-thirds of the catalog is clothing (yawn), and there are none of the funky little bits and pieces I used to like to pore over...

The thing that interests me is how the priorities seem to have changed. Look at how these modern catalogs are laid out... if memory serves, the old catalogs had their finest frames and bikes on the first couple of pages, followed by components, then tools, then accessories like lights, racks, panniers and rollers, then clothing and finally books and miscellaneous items. Today, I can open a Colorado Cyclist catalog and the first thing I see is clothing (lots of it), then sunglasses, shoes and helmets, jewelry, energy bars and drinks, stationary trainers, videos, cycle computers, then tools, components, tires and finally... bicycles.

I'm not sure if this is a statement about the new style of marketing, or the priorities of modern cyclists... or maybe it means nothing at all. Still, it strikes me as odd and maybe a bit sad.

Bob Hovey
Columbus, GA