Rivendell saved for now...
 

Just got this email, good on all of you that chipped in. Lets hope they keep the lights on.... :)



Thanks to you and not anything we did, in less than a week we went from me sure we’d be gone in four months — a fear I didn’t spread to the crew here— to solid money footing and optimism. Because of what you did, we can pay bills, buy inventory, pay credit card debts, pay decent chunks toward bikes already ordered and too late to take back, and pay off most of our line of credit. You must be wondering how much we took in. Businesses don’t customarily talk about specifics like that, but what you’ve done for us isn’t customary, either, and why should you, of all life on earth, have to be curious? t’s still trickling in, and we appreciate it all, but since last Th afternoon we’ve deposited a little more than $215,000.

I wondered whether or not to say the number, the only hesitation being that it might make some of you feel as though your $10 contribution for the gift certificate was a drop in the ocean. No! This had to be a massive collective effort. It would not have worked any other way, and there’s no ranking of contributions. Well...almost. BT bought a ten for the cause. That’s the one that meant the most to me, personally. Thanks, Brian. Holy cow.

Thanks to the rest of you, too—individuals and forums and websites and instagrammers and all those social media things that I don’t technically understand but I know work and made such a big difference here. If I name one I should name them all, but if I try I’ll forget one and feel horrible, so--argh-- thanks. BIG difference.

No simple thanks conveys what any of us are feeling, which is so much deeper and more complicated than that. What we’re feeling is huge relief, elation, and disbelief, and pressured, in a good way, to be worthy of it.

We have a restart traction, and we’re not going to blow it and waste your help.

From now on we’ll order and stock more conservatively, so we’re bound to sell out faster and might be out of stock when you finally want it. We’ll be better at the business, but we won’t change what’s working already, and I promise won’t get more mellow about bicycles or gear. We’re not joining the World Team.

It’s true that you saved Rivendell Bicycle Works and secured a future for the kinds of gear we cause to be, but it’s also an understatement. That’s just stuff. What you saved were jobs for the best people I know. You’re keeping us together, and we thank you for that and will never, ever ask again. — G

Wow.

That's a lot of goodwill.

Hope it works out... as stated, good to be radical in terms of ideas about biking, but a bit more conservative in business decisions...

$215,000....wow!!!!

Good news, but how long until the next crisis?

Lurching from one cash crunch to the next isn't a long-term strategy, and Grant's been sending out this sort of plea intermittently for years. Something in the business model has to change. That's easy for me to say from where I sit, but this has been a continuous problem, so I don't think I'm exaggerating.

i am fond of the Riv
 

and glad they will live another day. I can appreciate a lot of their stuff, even though mostly not my style these days. I ride the biggest bike I can cuz DBRK and GP said I should. But I still shake my head at double top tubes...for no good reason I can see. Making a stout bike stouter for looks is against my better judgement for bikes and selling them.

Yes, this is certainly not the first time he has launched a poor mouth campaign. He needs to get his business sustainable regardless of how this might affect his product offerings. Time to come of age.

Impressive outpouring of generosity. Maybe consider a move to cheaper rent district/county/state? No need for a web based co. to be where they are. And maybe consider a few changes with the frames. The Appaloosa looks like my 1984 Ross Mt. Hood..

Riv's staunch anti-World Team view has given others like Black Mountain an opening which they deservedly fill. Wish them the best, but doing the same thing over and and almost failing won't keep working. Yes, been in the biz and sunscribed to the Reader when it came out. :beer:

Grant dodged a bullet. Now to avoid another reoccurrence he needs to put together a sustainable business plan. Perhaps a good first step would be an evaluation of his product offerings...some of the frames in his catalog appear to have very minimal appeal to the cycling enthusiasts that comprise his target demographic.

Just a suggestion.

Thanks, Weisan, for posting the screen shot. Re-reading for the third time, I don't think Grant gets the bigger picture. It's not just about inventory management.

I didn't comment on the other 50 threads... but they got 215k because people have some appreciation for what Riv did for cycling.

Will this keep Riv afloat for a while? Its tough to say, they definitely need to change their business structure that is for sure. I know they want to stick to their roots which is awesome but sometimes screws you.

Their roots are being retro and iconoclastic while the world passes them by. :eek: That's fine, but thrive or fail on those same roots. Really, Riv doesn't offer a decent front rando bag?

I get it's part of the whole bit, but they've gotta find some better marketing. How does the rando/gravel crew largely miss out on the groad explosion they helped create?

Marketing AND product. Being focused on friction shifters and long wheelbases they missed out everything else: Wider rear end spacing and through axles, 1x drivetrains, faster and more supple tires, bikepacking equipment, et al. Shellacked bar tape only goes so far.

I like the Internet's style.

I’m glad to order a couple gift certificates from riv. They’re a great shop. Grant is an iconoclast who is responsible for much of the direction of the rando/gravel part of the industry as we know it today whether you can see that or not.

That being said I hope they read the other thread and take what people are saying seriously. I didn’t exactly get the feeling that they did from the email that Rivendell sent out. But maybe they did, I’m not a mind reader. Seeing how many employees they have in that image and the amount that they brought in, there’s a halfway decent chance that any used Rivendell frame will be worth much more in five years than it is worth today. I hope that’s not the case, so I’ll be wearing the riv t shirt and hat around town for some free advertising.

So awesome! I think grant has done a lot more than most people realize for cool bicycles. He earned this and I hope they use this second chance well.

OMG. I'm old enough to know just how funny that statement is...

I'm glad I kicked in....two of those folks in the picture are close friends of mine. I hope Grant realizes ow important those folks are..

Concur

Passing the hat around every so often is not a viable business model.

Where are these bicycles?? I just don't see them around and I look at every bicycle, I just do. Whether I'm riding, walking, driving, kicking it outside at a coffee shop, I check out bikes. I live in the South Bay Area but I'm also up in San Francisco a ton. Big family on in-laws side so I'm always on the go. When I'm in Sacramento I'm all over the American River Bike Trail. I never see these frames.

maybe they read the previous rivendell thread here and got some good advice from paceliners.

Drive over to Golden Saddle in Silver Lake. Hang out for about 30 min.

Little surprised he's so open about the $..I wonder if it has tax repercussions.

It's kind of like the cult of Apple. :help::bike:

This makes me think of groupon.

Buy a $10 gift certificate today, spend it at sometime in the future. The accounting for income matching/expense would be a pain, plus you no have a liability on your books for the $10 gift certifcate until it is spent. If all $215k comes in a bunch, the problem occurs again, no cash flow.

I'm not an accountant, nor do i play one on TV, have taken just enough courses in university and read enough balance sheets to be dangerous in thinking about this stuff.

Unless you want to be the best - and last - buggy whip maker.


Probably not until someone makes a purchase and Riv ships product. Those credits are like gift cards, a debt to be paid in the future on the balance sheet. The 215k is not free money but I am sure you already know that.


P.S. I wish them well no matter what happens but this might be the last time he can throw a hail mary or pass the hat around. This was very public and very different compared other times when he has just asked for orders.

except its not

Wow

This is so much more than i could have ever guessed.
Yeah my 10$ does feel like a bucket in the ocean but i have to say im really glad there is an ocean of cyclists out there appreciating good stuff!

Also like that he choose to share the number! :banana:

They both have fervent customer bases, charismatic leadership and a product that ties them all together.

I'm glad they are still around, I really am, it's just odd is all.

except one company is wildly successful and (usually) pushing cutting edge products. the other doesn't seem to want to change, at all, ever, and just ran the most recent of several GoFundMe-style rescue-the-company campaigns.

He could re-introduce frames in the mold of MB-1 in 27.5 version and the XO series in 700 and 650-B versions (two of my favorite frames from back when) then market his own products like Velo Orange and be done with it instead of retailing Nitto and Dia Combe at prices higher than can be found elsewhere. He was ahead of his time then stayed there though most of my bikes have followed along his thoughts in comfort, practically and aesthetics and why I'm riding a BMC Monster Cross at present though I recently purchased a Soma Stanyan,new version that goes back to quill stems but allow tires up to 35mm slicks/file tread.

One company has more free cash on hand than any other company in the history of humankind.

The other has to ask for donations by Monday to keep the doors open to avoid a cash flow crisis.

They're....not the same.

It's amazing & awesome to see how many pitched in & helped out Riv.

But personally I never want to see a mention of their finances again. This include payroll, exchange rates, cash flow, etc.

Sometimes it's difficult to try and be funny over the Internet.

Good for Riv, I hope the best for them and their fervent base :D

Hope they can make it work. I fear this is a case where a lump sum of smart money might be better medicine than a no strings attached handout. The former would come with oversight, new ideas, and force some tough but necessary changes, but the latter doesn't force anything to change.

There was a guy selling chainrings at a really low price. My buddy and I bought a 130bcd 46t triplizer and a 74bcd 30t chainring for like $20 plus shipping. It was a good deal, but I didn't realize that the seller was pledging all the money to Riv?! So he contributed $600 towards their cause.

Will it help? Definitely. Will they continue to do this, probably. Riv really needs to bring in their accountant and figure out not only their inventory, but direction of what they want to do. I didn't realize they now have 13 employees?! That seem like a lot - too much?!

Also, they make some strange looking bikes that apparently has a following. But the double top tube thing or bikes with no top tube look cheap and don't seem like serious bikes.

Good Luck To Riv!

Amen. :beer:

Perhaps they should reclassify as a non-profit charity (the Church of Rivendell) and go from there. :eek:

Just hang around somewhere people ride new bikes built to act like they are 40 to 50 year old bikes,