Rapha losses almost double to £22.7m as UK turnover drops 20% amid "challenged" cycling sector, brand's seventh consecutive year in the red

2wheelsRbetterThan4 wrote:

They have made a "loss" every year since the takeover. Something Todo with the atomised Goodwill write down.

Isn't that the case with pretty much every private investment capital takeover…?

You've echoed my thoughts exactly, it's been such a poor year kit wise, the offerings are dreadful

Feels like it's been that way for years though, obviously the creative designers who were there 20 or even 10 years ago arent still there,and the ones they've got now, have few ideas.

And yeah the oil slick jersey, even though imo it owed alot of inspiration to an indie kit makers ideas, why make it so limited?

They made the EF Roubaix kit, people liked it, it's taken them so long to make theyve been selling short sleeve jerseys in winter and a stupidly overpriced goretex windstopper, basically still sold out. Just imagine how much more they could sell if it was season specific and with autumn/winter kit based as well.

It seems crazier because you see alot of good custom designs for teams/clubs they do, how does it not inspire a better standard variety of kit.

Nailed it. Have some bits of their kit. It's expensive and the quality is ok. But a lot of it is incredibly dull.

Without wishing to spark an argument about how effective it is, I tend to opt for brighter colours not just because of how they look but in the hope that it makes me more noticeable on the road (and yes, I know it shouldn't be my responsibility and drivers should be looking more carefully for cyclists etc etc).

They've seen that PNS and MAAP can get away with charging top dollar for basic autumnal colours and figured they'd jump on the bandwagon

ceebee247 wrote:

Most people who spend £100-200 on a jersey arent really going to be thinking about the cost of living crisis going on elsewhere.

That makes no sense at all. People who previously might have spent £100 on a jersey as a luxury treat two or three times a year are going to be affected by the CoLC just as much as anyone else, luxuries are always the first thing to be removed from the budget if finances tighten. Sure, there may be very rich people buying a new Rapha jersey every week but it would seem to me inevitable that a dimunition in the average cyclist's disposable income will inevitably hit the luxury brands hardest.

I think people buying 2-3 Rapha jerseys each year are often in the set of people who are paid so much that there's always a surplus and their wallets pretty much just keep fattening. In an existential crisis for many, they're probably just going to wait an extra year before changing the shopping Range Rover. They must also have huge wardrobes.

I personally wouldn't wear Rapha because I'm far too image-conscious for my own good, and my image doesn't match theirs.

Galibier a different matter - reliable quality, good service and people who seem to understand the world.

Galibier are too good on quality vs price! I often just throw another item in my basket to try because why not!

TheBillder wrote:

I think people buying 2-3 Rapha jerseys each year are often in the set of people who are paid so much that there's always a surplus and their wallets pretty much just keep fattening. In an existential crisis for many, they're probably just going to wait an extra year before changing the shopping Range Rover.

Not my experience I must say, the mates I have who wear Rapha are fairly middle income types who certainly don't own Range Rovers, cycling just happens to be their main hobby and they happen to like Rapha gear. They tend to shop around and buy things in the sales where it's quite possible to pick up Rapha jerseys for not much more than £50. As I said elsewhere, it's not for me but I think we do have a tendency to judge people who choose that particular brand in a way that we don't judge people wearing, say, Castelli gear costing the same price.

Excellent response

 Nothing beats late 1980s' cycling fashion, with swirly pink tights, paisley jerseys and fake faded denim.

I think it's because they have quite strong outside investment, so they have money to fall back on.

I don't think Rapha has ever made a profit and they won't have that money to fall back on forever.

Even in the Rapha sale I didn't bother to buy anything. I was looking for a high-end rain jacket for the winter and looked at the Rapha offering. They don't do external pockets on either the rain jackets or the gilets which seems a really bad design decision.

If I'm out for the day and wearing a jacket/gilet I want to be able to access my snacks without having to take them off.

Fortunately Castelli make good quality and well designed gear.

And their very expensive kit doesn't always get the glowing reviews to match.

£165 for a basic gilet. Even if I had a fat wallet, I wouldn't pay that sort of price. It's like admitting to being a mug.

It would be a nice find for someone if it feel out of your back pocket though.