Rapha, nice but a bit pricey?

I’m in Glasgow so it’s East Kilbride RC for the (wannabe) nouveau riche, white Evoque, crushed velvet interior design local mob and Edinburg RC for the east coasters.

Sure but that all feels quite different from this;

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Blaming the ongoing competitiveness and turbulence of the "challenged" post-pandemic cycling industry

I really hate when cycling companies blame something like the pandemic for their misfortune. The reality of it is that they got greedy and overleveraged themselves in the midsts of clear bubble and now their employees will pay the price.

Isn’t that a little simplistic given the case here.

Isn’t that a little simplistic given the case here.

No

And the other 6 preceding years?

Pushing lifestyle for a customer that doesn't buy Rapha

I think it is pretty clear that they have prioritized growth at an unsustainable rate and are now paying the price. So many of these companies (especially the big bike brands) saw insane growth during spring 2020 and just assumed that it would continue. It didn't and that is why so many brands have folded. Escape had a very good podcast series on the bubble, it is insane how much product these brands had going into late 2022/2023 that they assumed would sell at 2020 rates.

Their split focus on silly things like their uniqlo-core line of "everyday" wear that you linked above certainly doesn't help.

Am I missing something or is £700 a lot for a rain coat that's very light on details?

https://www.rapha.cc/gb/en/shop/mens-gore-tex-rain-coat/product/BIT01XXKPA

I would expect at least a bit of superlative marketing copy to go along with the basic imagery.

Insane

I don’t disagree but I think 7 years proves that it’s a fundamental flaw.
I’m not sure despite rapids selling rates that any of the companies really benefited from the pandemic, they still made a loss during that time.
I think it’s also evident that there was a bubble of demand from a brand vs brand with suppliers.

I’d love to hear some examples of brands that bucked the trend but I’ve not heard of any…?

Am I missing something

yes, the memes

RIP merino boxers, no longer listed, that's me out.

MVP comment amongst all this chatter.

It’s probably gore-tex pro which is the far more durable than ordinary gore-tex and what guides in climbing/ski places wear as consumer stuff can’t take the wear.
but even then its still £300 overpriced.

So, you're saying it's pricey?

Is it ultimately just that a business like Rapha has a max size which has been far surpassed?

They had a niche providing really good core cycling gear that didn't look shit. Then migrated into smart prommuter gear that didn't look shit. Whilst always having a sideline in trinkets.

Beyond that what are your options? Ramping up the price and reducing the quality. I just don't see meaningful growth in customers.

Curious to hear opinions from people who know what they're talking about.

Sure, but is it nice? They haven't really elaborated on that bit.

It’s probably gore-tex pro which is the far more durable than ordinary gore-tex and what guides in climbing/ski places wear as consumer stuff can’t take the wear.

You may well be right, which makes it even more mystifying why they haven't made a big play on this in the description. Or, indeed, explicitly mentioned it at all. It's like they don't actually want to sell any.

It’s vapourware. The jacket doesn’t exist. Just drummed up by AI to make the other stuff look cheaper.

If someone actually bought one they’d be shitting themselves.

Was surprised to read they'd been making big losses
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Probably they over expanded
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Hunter went bust recently they had diversified so much from what they did well - wellingtons ... same sort of arguments could be levelled at rapha
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Hard to believe I bought my first rapha gear from a little pop up type thing at I think it was velorution they just had a couple of cardboard boxes with merino jerseys and leather fingerless gloves
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Why oh why they don't make fixed shorts anymore is a mystery
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Hope everyone is doing well
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Here's something for sock enthusiasts

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"The wetter the better"

"Take your goldfish to work in your pocket"

"Guaranteed Bukake proof"

All the data suggests this is not the case. The global cycling apparel market is about $60B so there's plenty of room for a brand to be 10x the size of Rapha. The growth of MAAP / PNS and the countless other new entrants (relatively speaking) suggests that there is still consumer demand for brands that offer the sort of product they want.

Rapha is in a bit of a mid-life crisis, and it shows. Their desire to be a mass-market something-to-everyone brand has diluted all their brand value. It's all become a bit Uniqlo on wheels.

I agree with the consensus that they have diluted the brand by chasing too many customer groups.

But I also think there is some scale of business there that should be viable.

The growth of MAAP / PNS

PNS growth? 🤭

Also mass convergence it seems.