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[rugbysecondrow]

As many of you know, I have an ad in the Classifieds here looking for a frame/fork for my wife.

There have been many responses and I appreciate all of those, if I have not replied, I am sorry, trying to sort them out.

But, I figured given the range of frames that I have been notified of I should at least poke my nose in the door of a couple of the local shops, see what is out there in small sizes so that I can bring my wife down and get her to actually sit on a bike and have a better idea of what is available.

Now- this is not meant to cast a broad brush - but ....

I went into one shop that deals with
Kona
Felt
Norco
Cannondale

The womens' frames are bright and colourful with blues, greens, purples and splashes of white and black for contrast.

Then I went to the store that carries Trek and Specialized. The womens' frames in sizes that might actually fit my wife are ..... get ready for this ..

Grey or Black, or one that was Grey and Black.

You know it wouldn't matter if those frames were EPS or Di2 at the $1500 price point, it wouldn't matter what on earth I told either my wife or daughter about them, if they so those colours - game over.

No discussion, it would just be over. And if I did buy one of them and bring it home - it would not get ridden.

How on earth did something this basic slide by the marketing gurus at Trek and Specialized??

Really.


I am with you and my wife is the same way, but apparently there are quite a few different tastes which I tripped over in this thread I started: http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=90550&highlight=color


Best of luck!

[zmudshark]

Go custom, have CS build up one and Spectrum do the colour. Win-win.

I'll send you the one I have in the meantime for her to use. Just pay the freight to the GWN. If she changes her mind, you can have CS build it for you instead, another win-win.

I'm here to help ;)

[slidey]

Here's someone who'd like Grey/black bikes: http://youtu.be/GCkJJeYOcLI

[zap]

Get a tandem. No worries and ride together.

[gasman]

The shop is partially to blame I think. Specialized makes bikes for woman that do have color, easy to order and have on the shop floor.

[ultraman6970]

I was going to add this, i have seen specialized and trek in pink. In a matter of fact i never thought came in black and grey because all i have seen around here is darn pink :P

[Grant McLean]

In my experience as a product buyer for a retailer, black sells very well
to women, often it's the number one selling colour. The reason Trek and
Specialized make it is because it sells. They do a lot of focus groups on
this stuff.

But the fact is, the women's product market is very diverse. On the one hand,
we'd get many complaint from women that were offended by women's
specific products that came "girly" colours, and on the other hand, pink
always sold very well too. But we could never only offer one colour,
because it never pleases everyone.

Sorry what you saw was not to your liking ... or rather you wife's,
hope she finds something that she likes.

-g

[tch]

...different tastes for different folks. It must make life hard for mass-market companies. My wife wouldn't buy a pink or colorful bike even if "those frames were EPS or Di2 at the $1500 price point". She wanted a muted color scheme; the Spec. Roubaix she got almost had too much sizzle for her.

I'm the same: one of the things that keeps me from buying a mass-market carbon is all the f#%@ing gaudiness plastered all over them.

[soupless]

I'll also chime in and say the black/gray/neutrals sold much better than "feminine" colors. This was for Trek and Cannondale.

[zennmotion]

When asked about a color for a new bike, my wife's response was black. Because black goes with everything and it's not about the bike.

[tv_vt]

My wife loves her black Specialized. She'd be offended if it only came in 'girlie-girl' colors.

[pdmtong]

My daughters carbon road bike is a nice blue. she tolerates it. I told her when you biuy off craigslsit you cant be picky about color. if she had her way it would be black or darker....defintiely not pink or creme.