I'm going to be a little contrary on this, though i'm certainly one to appreciate local, handmade goods. I'm a little bothered by the idea that just because something is made in China that it by necessity has to be cheap, and yet that's an argument that's come up here a couple of times.
It's certainly true that products *can* be make more cheaply in China (and many other places with lower labor costs), but it doesn't mean that everything made there is cheap, or inherently worth less than something made in another place. We aren't talking about craft, hand-made goods, these are factory products. High-end products certainly, but there's nothing inherently different about the quality of the product that results from a Chinese factory -vs- a British one. Would a Brooks made in Italy be a different quality or price than one from the original factory? Or a Sturmey hub from Taiwan? (though there are certainly design differences in that case). I've read several accounts of the terrible quality of Bianchi frames from the Italy shop years back and how it improved on some models when production for them moved to Asia. My Rivendell was made in Japan, and i don't think it's any better or worse than if it had been made in the US, though it was almost certainly built at Toyo because they had the best balance of price/quality/delivery that Grant could find. If I had the Richard Sachs of China build a custom frame for me, i would expect it to cost in the neighborhood of custom frames, not some stereotype of Chinese bikes. I don't have any stake in the business either way, i don't know anything about the factories they work with, and i can't afford anything (probably literally anything) from Rapha, but i'm not particularly comfortable with the geography-based assumption. Done ranting, going for a bike ride. -- Bill Connell St. Paul, MN On Wed, May 26, 2010 at 5:47 PM, Jim Cloud <cloud...@aol.com> wrote: > I think one of the things that most bothers me is the extreme price > mark-up by companies like Rapha, whose products are made in China. A > example which I've seen are some recent bags now being marketed by > Brooks (which are labeled as "Made in China"). The "Cornwall" > handlebar bag lists at $369.99 from Milwaukee Bicycle, each of the > "Devon" rear panniers are listed at $349.99 (the drive and non-drive > bags are individually priced). You can drop a cool $1,069.97 for the > set. My LBS has a complete set of these bags on display, I found the > pricing quite amusing. Each to his/her own, but this seems ridiculous > to me for products made in China. > > Jim Cloud > Tucson, AZ > >> > Rivendell's philosophy and marketing seem to me to be broad based. If >> > you're reading their stuff, you are definitely "good enough" to be using >> > their products. Rapha, on the other hand, what with all that "hard-man, >> > epic" stuff is all about exclusivity. If you can't average 18 mph on a >> > hilly ride you are not only not fit to be a cyclist, you certainly >> > aren't fit for (or going to fit!) Rapha stuff. >> >> Frankly, I have never been able to pay close attention to marketing >> blurbs, no matter the medium. I have looked at Rapha price, >> components and manufacture domicile. I cannot see how their approach >> is similar to Rivendell's. >> >> On May 26, 4:51 pm, Steve Palincsar <palin...@his.com> wrote: >> >> > On Wed, 2010-05-26 at 14:19 -0700, JoelMatthews wrote: >> > > > Rivendell's approach is inclusive, Rapha's is exclusive. >> >> > > The difference I see between Riv nd Rapha is the mark up. >> >> > > Riv bikes made in Taiwan use components and design close to their U.S. >> > > and Japanese made products. Labor costs less, so Riv charges less. >> >> > > There are several companies that make products similar to Rapha using >> > > U.S.,U.K. and even Swiss labor. Rapha makes almost all of its product >> > > in China but nevertheless charges a premium. >> >> > I'm not talking about prices or markups, or even where the products are >> > made. I'm talking about marketing and philosophy. >> >> > Rivendell's philosophy and marketing seem to me to be broad based. If >> > you're reading their stuff, you are definitely "good enough" to be using >> > their products. Rapha, on the other hand, what with all that "hard-man, >> > epic" stuff is all about exclusivity. If you can't average 18 mph on a >> > hilly ride you are not only not fit to be a cyclist, you certainly >> > aren't fit for (or going to fit!) Rapha stuff. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
