The online version of RoadCycling UK weighs in this week on road bikes priced at or below £1000 (about $1,600 US). They listed eight bikes worth looking at, of which only two are Campy equipped:
The skimpy availability of worthy bikes highlights Campagnolo's perennial difficulty in providing products at the lower end of the price scale that perform well in the marketplace compared to Shimano's lower-priced offerings. We at Campy Only have noted for years that the company's less-than-top-of-the-line gruppos are great, and often differ from Record in minor ways (weighing a few grams more, for instance). However, great performance and good looks simply haven't been enough, and Shimano is well entrenched.
I wonder if this has more to do with the entrenched business relationships with the manufacturers in Asia? I doubt that there is a significant difference in terms of OEM sales to the manufacturers... anyone have information to share on this?
ReplyDeleteI think this may have something to do with the fact that lots of entry level riders are coming over from mountain bikes. They are used to seeing Shi(t)mano or Sram and have no familiarity with the Campagnolo brand.
ReplyDeleteCampagnolo could also do a much better job of marketing as evidensed by the now departed Flat-Bar components. They were a really good idea but were not placed into identifiable groups or marketed well. If Campagnolo had marketed these groups as a MTB group and given them names they would have been a success or at least have had a chance.
Campagnolo SHOULD also abandon some it's goofy standards like the 110/74 cranks that are not the same as everybody elese 110/74 cranks, the 135 BCD double and cassette spline pattern. This would make other innovations like the UT Cranks more appealing to buyers and new road riders. I'd even consider making the low end parts Shi(t)mano compatible