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Originally Posted by rnhood
I was hoping for this also, and I believe it may have worked. And, I guess depending on how things move ahead from here, it could still happen. Probably doubtful though, as Ben appears to be set on making an exquisitely well made bike - cost be damned. Problem is this type market is very small.
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It is and it isn't. 10% of the US population controls 90% of its wealth. That means about 30 million people have a LOT of money to spend. What matters is how many are interested in bicycles, or can be enticed to want bicycles. Top tier is one strategic play among many.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rnhood
I never understood the negative comments on Taiwan built frames. The US and Europe pretty much designed the factories, so its only the labor...and Taiwan labor is every bit as good as labor from any other country. People are the same, equal so to speak. Taiwan sailboats are a shining example of the quality Taiwan factories are capable of (and of course, so is my Tarmac).
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Labor quality and training isn't always the same. Automation generally is.
The problem I have experienced with Chinese , Indian, etc. manufacturing is that you can never guarantee anything. I've experienced work teams that opened the factory after hours and produced product without proper quality control, then sold it through alternate channels as being authorized product. Or, labels and packaging smuggled out of the plant and product manufactured on the cheap and again sold as legitimate product. How was this discovered? After fielding a rash of customer quality/warranty complaints and trying to determine what in our production process was responsible. Initially we spent a lot of money replacing product that we never actually saw any revenues on - just to keep customers happy. Then we figured it out.
There is little regard (or enforcement) for intellectual property in Asia. Improving because a number of companies have pulled out, or threatened to. Ten to fifteen years ago it was a nightmare.