Arrrrgh: Cannondale maties!



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"kaiser" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Avast ye scurvy dogs! Cannondale is about to go belly-up!
>
>
http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BF7F3CB7C%2D450D%2D4A7F%2D8
F97%2DF28A1FFA8869%7D&siteid=mktw
>
> Maybe Trek can start making motorcycles too (he he he).

Cannondale deserves to go bankrupt.

They entered a motorcycle market which has had flat sales (almost no growth) for the last 15 years
against established competition that has mature marketing, distribution systems and superior
technology. Those companies are Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha, and to a lesser extent, Husqvarna
and KTM. Who's slice of the market share did Cannondale think they were going to take?

What hubris must have existed at the management of Cannondale to imagine they would succeed.
 
>From: "Kurgan Gringioni" [email protected]

>They entered a motorcycle market which has had flat sales (almost no growth) for the last 15 years
>against established competition that has mature marketing, distribution systems and superior
>technology. Those companies are Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha, and to a lesser extent, Husqvarna
>and KTM. Who's slice of the market share did Cannondale think they were going to take?

The only company really making any market gains and money is H-D and that is more due to marketing
and culture than the product, which is pretty decent for the n iche market they are in.

http://www.americanmotor.com/news.cfm?newsid=2148

Bill C.
 
[email protected] (kaiser) wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> Avast ye scurvy dogs! Cannondale is about to go belly-up!
>
> http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BF7F3CB7C%2D450D%2D4A7F%2D8F97%2DF28A1FFA8869%7D-
> &siteid=mktw
>
> Maybe Trek can start making motorcycles too (he he he).

Dirt bikes were out of vogue by the time Cannondale started making them. There was an open niche but
they didn't go looking for it and it didn't come looking for them. They could have built 250 and 350
Cafe' racers and made some money if Honda didn't try to put them out of business too rapidly.
 
"TritonRider" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> >From: "Kurgan Gringioni" [email protected]
>
> >They entered a motorcycle market which has had flat sales (almost no
growth)
> >for the last 15 years against established competition that has mature marketing, distribution
> >systems and superior technology. Those companies
are
> >Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha, and to a lesser extent, Husqvarna and
KTM.
> >Who's slice of the market share did Cannondale think they were going to take?
>
> The only company really making any market gains and money is H-D and that
is
> more due to marketing and culture than the product, which is pretty decent
for
> the n iche market they are in.
>
> http://www.americanmotor.com/news.cfm?newsid=2148

Irrelevant to the topic since Cannondale was making off-road motorcycles, not 750 lb. street hogs
for old fat people.
 
"TritonRider" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> >From: "Kurgan Gringioni" [email protected]
>
> >They entered a motorcycle market which has had flat sales (almost no
growth)
> >for the last 15 years against established competition that has mature marketing, distribution
> >systems and superior technology. Those companies
are
> >Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha, and to a lesser extent, Husqvarna and
KTM.
> >Who's slice of the market share did Cannondale think they were going to take?
>
> The only company really making any market gains and money is H-D and that
is
> more due to marketing and culture than the product, which is pretty decent
for
> the n iche market they are in.
>
> http://www.americanmotor.com/news.cfm?newsid=2148
>
> Bill C.

While the filing is unfortunate, there appears to be a good chance that the bicycle division
will survive and continue in the same direction. Management will be kept in place as to
bicycles. The division was/is profitable. So unless the new owners decide to sell out to yet
another company, Cannondale could be around and not go the way of Schwinn and GT. Lets hope so.
IMO, they've got an excellent product.

Brian Lafferty
 
"Tom Kunich" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> [email protected] (kaiser) wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> > Avast ye scurvy dogs! Cannondale is about to go belly-up!
> >
> >
http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BF7F3CB7C%2D450D%2D4A7F%2D8
F97%2DF28A1FFA8869%7D&siteid=mktw
> >
> > Maybe Trek can start making motorcycles too (he he he).
>
> Dirt bikes were out of vogue by the time Cannondale started making them. There was an open niche
> but they didn't go looking for it and it didn't come looking for them. They could have built 250
> and 350 Cafe' racers and made some money if Honda didn't try to put them out of business too
> rapidly.

You're kidding aren't you? With the 400cc Japanese domestic model repli-racers already in production
by Honda, Yamaha, and Kawasaki, the story would have been the same. As nice as the FZR 400 was back
in 1988-89, why didn't Yamaha USA continue to bring them in? Because, like SUVs, bigger is better
and not enough buyers were interested in the 400 when they could have the 600, or 750, or 1000. The
400s don't have enough rocket-ship power to satisfy the riders whose rear tires have big flat
patches across the center of the tire. But then you knew that already.

Carl Former NC 30 owner
 
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