Before you watch the video…if you want to check out the hoodie I am wearing…check it out at this link! -> bit.ly/3vcHjSq It is from Ornot Bike which is a small company out of CA. They literally only have 7 employees and this hoodie is fantastic for wearing around town and riding.
😂😂😂 the prices have been crazy for a loooong time. They moved their bikes with cheap debt. People are in record credit card debt, high housing costs, record food costs. They (the bike industry )have been gouging for a long time. Chickens have come home to roost.
True there is now way the prices equate. Just based on scrap value there is $1.00 worth of aluminum in a bicycle. There is a hell of a lot more machining and assembly time in a motorcycle.
Bike manufacturers got greedy and this is what they get. Sucks for their employees. Everyone has some steep discounts right now. Specialized just came out with a 14k mountain bike. The new bikes are tempting but too pricey to make sense. I personally think they need to stop with the 8k and up bikes. No way you can tell me it really costs that much money to turn a profit. Bikes have gotten out of control. They need to make their money from volume instead of high margin. It’s greed at its finest.
It does seem like they have decided on high price/high profit over volume. Unfortunately, that can't hold for long because the market for that is much smaller and it requires the economy to be perfect.
@@Bike198 yep. They are feeling the reality of 8k bikes are not the reality nor sustainable long term. Now, I have some pricey bikes but I have slowly wanted higher components over time but I’ve had to be able to sell previous bikes to make that happen. I don’t care how much money I have, I’m not coming out of pocket that high anywhere near regularly. Trek is simply going to try to manipulate the market by reducing stock. Ie kill the supply part to justify the pricing.
@@kentao4 I also think that mid range components and bikes are MUCH better than they were in the past. I just don't see the justification for the increase in price for the performance increase anymore. That said...I do love to geek out on parts so a lot of it is just an "I want".
About 6-7 years ago by LBS started marketing service for direct-to-consumer brands. Their promotion was if you bought a bike online, bring it to then and they give a free checkup to make sure everything is running smoothly. They also started offering lessons and discounts for people looking to package and ship or fly with their bike. It was a smart move, cause now the majority of their business revolves around service and they don't even need to sell complete bikes to stay in business. Smart move, sometimes being small is an advantage cause you can change direction quicker.
I was on the @b1ker podcast last night and we were talking about that very same thing. The LBS really needs to adopt that model to stay relevant and alive.
Sure but eventually if you're not selling any bikes, parts, or gear then it reduces your overall revenue to where you're not making enough to pay overhead in even a commercial space and pay living wages. Most shops need a bit of every part of the business to basically break even. DTC bikes are going to dramatically change the landscape, no matter how the LBS tries to adapt.
I purchased a new XC bike today. Dealer marked it down 50% and the manufacturer is reimbursing the shop for selling below the dealer cost. Full carbon full suspension with SRAM XO1 AXS for $3,500.
@@jamesw1791 what about the people who are loosing there jobs bike shop have never had huge margins but bike companys have at a shop level local shop are closing and now theres all these people who are job less
@@jamesw1791you don’t feel bad for these people, you mean shop owners that had to first buy the product at a dealers price to then sell it to the customer? Do you realize that 30% increase in retail price is also a 30% increase in wholesale price? Margins stay the same. When I was running a bike shop people were looking at me like I overcharged them all the time, they thought I was sleeping on money. The amount of people not understanding how market works really bothers me.
I’m a 70 yr old w serious heart issues but got a new shot @life w a Focus Jam2, have been flogging it for 6 years now (@ t hard end level..still love tech DH riding) SUPER impressed w t build quality (I’m not pushing Focus here) it just goes on+on (2nd motor now)… BUT, to replace it w something fresh I will probably have to sell my collectable ‘99 mx5 as retired people generally r living in a restricted financial “bubble”.. so I kinda agree w what’s going down. Bike manufacturers “business model” has bin too greedy… a LOT of us r prepared to make do + replace parts as required.
The 10k bike killed the bike industry. They literally killed the goose to get to the golden egg. When I dirt bike cost half of what a mtb costs. I knew it was over. E-bikes are next.
Ebikes are the problem as this is what many people are purchasing . When I'm out and about urban cycling or on rail trails , I'd wager 30% of the bikes I see are E-bikes.
The problem is even with there discounts, the bikes are still to expensive for the riders , not everyone has a extra 3500 dollars to spend on a new bike. With everything going up around them.
I am a long time mountain bike rider and supporter, however prices have just gone stupid…. This reminds me so much of the car market, to much greed for the product. I don’t care anymore about upgrading my ride in the next year or so. I spent big money (to me) on a Giant trance advanced 2 years ago. Never again will I fall for that trap. It’s just not worth it guys, buy something used, and ride for you. Don’t ride for anyone else but you, enjoy your time in the woods and who cares what who is riding. Enjoy life …..
The only people I feel sorry for in this are Trek's employees. Back in 2021 Trek opened a corporate store in our very small market. 3 miles from our LBS who had been a dealer at least 20 years. I sent JB an email voicing my displeasure and that I thought he was making a mistake. Basically got told "we know our business, too bad." Well now here we are. Karma
I don't disagree there. I feel bad for both sides when it comes to people that are on the LBS side, employees of Trek and the racing teams that are going to get funding cut.
More karma. Bought a Trek. Discovered the model was one of the few not supported by a manual or spec sheet showing parts or torques. Contacted Trek. They said “just bring your bike to us for servicing”. LOL. I told them that’s not something I’m going to EVER do. Quite possibly my last Trek (and I buy for kids and grandkids). Bike repair isn’t rocket science. A few model special tools and some mechanical sympathy. Trek it seems, is on the wrong side of reality, And don’t get me going on the “why tech” approach to justify the astonishing price of a Madrone.
If the model without a component / specification sheet presumably cannot be serviced correctly by a user, then how can a Trek store do any better if they also cannot get this information ?@@paulgrimshaw8334
Don’t say, “never”. You never know what the future holds. This is just the start of the sales. One company, which I will not mention, is sitting on a billion dollars worth of inventory. They have to get rid of it. Even if that means slashing prices by 75%. At some point it would be cheaper for them to give it away as opposed to storing or destroying it.
Back in 2020 ,I purchased a Fuel EX 5. Entry level, most affordable to me. I paid $2200 ,it had gone up after my purchase, and came back down again and sits at $2499 right now. The thing I hate is, is some higher priced bikes are having their prices slashed. And Bikes from other companies are getting huge sales. I can't afford a new bike, but the dealer is trying to get me to upgrade parts on my bike. And the area I'm at seems not to be hit by inflation. People are still buying expensive bikes, while every trail is being turned into freeride trails. However things work out. I believe I'm officially priced out in the bike market.
Treks biggest competition in the marketplace is all the used Trek bikes that were bought in 2020-2022 that are all over Facebook marketplace and offer up 😢
Agree. The market is saturated with used bikes and that's one of the elements turning the industry upside down. I worked in a shop in NC and almost daily last year to current someone walks in and asks if we will buy his/her bike. Best bike deals are used at this point. Bicycle Blue Book helps bring reality to their value.
Within the last few years Trek opened a retail store in my hometown. Myself and wife ended up buying new bikes from them and the guys who work there are always so helpful and friendly whenever I've needed bike advice or something looked at so I hope that store and team will be safe. I do often pop in just to browse and I'm often the only one in there so its quite worrying. But last time I asked them, they said they were always busy preparing bikes for customer orders. I hope their definition of busy is the same as what the higher up's think.
It makes sense that Trek needs to dial back so much. I think leisure, of any kind was on a decline even before Covid. I hardly see anyone on new bikes. It’s mostly older folks on older bikes. Younger people are fine with sitting inside, looking at their phones. Does anyone play golf or tennis anymore? lol
Anyone with a brain could see us going back to pre pandemic??? Except the top executives of some of the bike companies!! Huhhhhhhh haaaaaaaa! Now we now why these big decision makers get paid so much!
I’m 38 and just bought my first new bike in 10 years last fall, I snowboard and I disc golf. 2 of my buddies did as well. But we only got new bikes because they’re on such good discounts. (Sale) Prices are finally back where they should be. Can’t wait till vehicles do the same
To prove the point, I was going to buy a new bike last year but food, rent, bills just cut into my budget so hard that I couldn't justify the high prices of a new bike, even on sale it's too much to bite off, most people are in the same position, just can't afford to buy, lost my job too, so that makes it worse.
So the bike market got saturated when the pandemic. Sales were rampant. Bike store floors were empty. Did anyone think this was the new normal? When everybody got their bikes sales dropped through the floor. How the powers in the bike industry did not understand this was going to happen baffles me.
Most companies have way too many models. I have seen this as a bike dealer for years. Too many colors, spec levels and then niche models. Consumers have way too much choice in each line-up. The reason bikes are too expensive is due to the inventory and variety of sku's. I have seen these bike brands priority has been to sell to dealers, not the end consumer. Pushing stock on shops with little concern to what margin your average bike shop is able to maintain. Big reason I dropped major brands years ago and focused on smaller unique brands and building each frame to what the customer's needs.
Purchased a Pivot Switchblade last October for $5K - $3.5K off MSRP. Seems like I could get an even better deal now. All leisure items are falling in price - RVs, boats, sports cars, golf clubs, bikes, motorcycles, and, of course, Sprinter vans - so long van life. Covid and $12T pumped into the economy created an asset bubble.
I dont feel sorry for the bike companies. A lot of them are selling 2k bikes with basic components. Choosing bikes for me and my partner last month was a nightmare. We ended up with Scale 950 and 960 2022 models with nice discounts.
as a former enthusiast that recently re-entered the market for a mountain bike after appx 20 years, i can definitely say that its been different. to preface, i worked in two bicycle shops over the course of eight years in the late 90s early 00s and road a cross country bike... other than the oncoming of downhill rigs & some early freeride bikes everyone pretty much ran cross country bikes in my area... now i'm trying to figure out if i want a hardtail like i had in the past, or full suspension. and then i have to decide between cross country and trail bike! the biggest issue as a consumer i see is that most shops are carrying limited inventory... particularly where i'm looking in the $2000-$4000 or so range. i demo'd and enjoyed the ibis ripley.. like it, but really wish they had the exie or the hardtail in stock/my size (m) for me to try. seems to be the same at most shops... might have most of a brand's product line, but towards the top have fewer size examples, so harder to compare side by side, etc. hey at least once i figure it out i'll surely end up with a great deal!
Regarding used bike prices, private sellers are still asking ridiculously high prices for their used bikes. Some are even asking more for their 2 year old used bikes than the new bikes (same brand and model) are selling for after 30%-40% discounts offered by retailers and manufacturers. Nuts!!! These private sellers who purchased their 2021-2023 bikes new during the Covid shortage by paying a markup are not willing to part with those bikes at bluebook prices, which are fair prices in a regular market and are very generous during the current buyers' market. They are wanting to pass down the pandemic rip-off prices to the used bike buyers. How nice!
During the pandemic Trek and other MTB companies find themselves in the same boat automakers do. They struggled to meet demand, ramped up production and four years later there’s inventory that wont move.
most businesses ate downsizing right now, I work in medical supplies, I deal in everything from CT scanners, x-ray machines all the way through the catheters and diapers. The board decided to shut down our Minnesota and Jacksonville location. Things are about to get rough in the economy.
@radfordbean2855 Actually, I am exaggerating a bit here. BUT just a bit. The first real durable deivetrain that shimano considers a mountain bike groupset is Deore. Which you are correct is on a 1k marlin 7. But I should not have to pay 1k to get a functional mountain bike. Tourney, acera, etc. Are all plastic and cheap metal that depending on the terrain will not last but a couple of rides. Can't tell you how many people buy a mountain bike and are then disappointed that it breaks after just a few rides.
@@andrewclarke9817I have an Acera rear derailleur on my Cannondale and a Tourney front derailleur. Both work just fine, though probably not as smooth as my 105 groupset on my Trek Émonda.
I just visited a Trek store here in Houston and honestly I was stunned how many $1500+ bikes they had and how few sub $1500 bikes they had available. Seems to me it should be the other way around.
Well most brick and mortar retailers of recreational equipment want to grape their customers, so don’t feel too surprised. Go to your LBS, have them fit you to a bike, make note of what they tell you, then shop online or used. You’d be surprised how many new condition bikes are available in the aftermarket because the original owners discovered riding a bicycle can cause you to sweat. 😂
Several major issues exist currently- bikes are far too expensive, infact a lot bikes today are not only more expensive vrs 3 yrs ago but also the spec/ parts on todays bikes are cheaper /worse than 3 years ago . Then covid taught people you don’t actually use your bikes and so the lasting memory from covid is bikes aren’t worth it unless there’s a reason to use them very regularly- not to mention todays generation would rather play an online game than go outside . Used e bike prices are tanking and too many new models are coming out . Brand new e-bikes are now stupidly expensive. The bike market has got itself into a right mess
What are saying is so true. Im in Cape Town. Bought a Stumpjumper Comp Carbon with added extras worth almost more that the bike for a third of the overall cost. Our best bike shops have so much stock and they are discounting everything! The market is saturated with options and the tech level of bikes have peaked way past what normal riders will ever need.
I just can’t wrapped my head around spending motorcycle prices on a mountain bike. I was in the market for the fuel exe, instead I got a low hours, street legal ktm 350 for less $$
@@dadventuretv2538Most people “want” a dirt bike but settle for a Mtn bike because they know they will never be able to ride it to its full capability and are afraid of getting hurt or dying. And they most likely own a car and have no possible way to haul a dirt bike and the necessary gear. 🤷🏼♂️
@@daviddoucet2220 I don’t think either you or I are qualified to say what “most” people want. But I would surmise that most people who buy a mountain bike want to pedal, assisted or not, not use a throttle. I know people who do both, the minority, and those that do one or the other, most of them. None of the people that I know that only do one do it because they really wanted to do the other. I’ve done both, and they are both fun in different ways- mountain bikes can ride trails that dirtbikes can’t or that would suck on a dirtbike, and dirtbikes can do things because of the motor that mtbs could only dream of doing. Btw- do you even know what the same level riders as the moto ones you are referring to are doing on mountain bikes? Yeah serious injury or death is just as much a risk. But one thing I can say from first hand experience about “most” people is that most dirtbike riders are not using them to their full potential or doing the stuff where they might be afraid of dying- most dirtbike riders are not sending 80 footers just like most mountain bikers arent sending 60 footers and 30 foot road gaps . That’s a pretty small and elite group, and if you think that is most riders of either one then 1. You ride with a very high level group of riders, or 2. Don’t do either and watch too much TH-cam, or 3. Live off the glory of others that ride the same machine as you.
I’ve been biking seriously bout 11 years. My first “nice” bike was a lower level, mid range aluminum Trek. When I first road it I compared it to moving from a Yugo to Cadillac. I later upgraded to used carbon then to new carbon. I swore I’d never pay the prices, which I eventually did. Did I “need” the bike I bought? Absolutely not. My income doesn’t depend on my riding. I feel it’s like lots of things. As you become able, you upgrade, if it’s worth it to you. The only observation I’d make is that there now seems to be a larger gap between lower level entry bike to the “lower level mid range” bikes. Very few “need” XTR and carbon. Is it nice? For sure. However, a Costco bike is not gonna handle the abuse serious MTB’rs put their equipment thru. I learned that the hard way. Just my opinion…
My mountain bike from Norco costed me 1600 dollars. The store had a storewide 20% off sale. It is a Norco fluid FS A4. My dirt jumper the airborne cro-hawk retails for 700 and I bought it on clearance for 454 dollars.
I blame the companies totally! They really thought that the Covid numbers would last! I bet they figured once you sell a 4000& bike for 8000$ you can keep it up! And once people who got into biking realized riding is not their cup of tea repeat sales were gone and the used bike market got flooded with top spec bikes cheap!
Partly agree. I also blame government/consumers for giving away money to consumers, many which were not even working, and needed to do outdoors. This helped inflate bike prices. Fortunately, the current issue may help keep prices in check in the future for those of us who are long term mountain bikers.
@@rafaelalbertotorres8070 I think it will help the long term biker for sure. My buddy owns a few shops and was on a conference call with the major brand he sells and said to the executives that it hurts him and other business owners when patent companies drop prices so low. They have to sell them but are actually losing or barely breaking even at best
Tariff increases started it all, lots of overseas parts and products cost more now because the international shipping companies (none of which are US owned) refused to absorb those increases, so higher prices trickled down to US shipping companies first, and then consumers, and of course COVID made it worse. Other domestic manufacturers followed suit, figuring they could just get away with increasing their prices like everyone else was doing, then the problem just snow-balled from there. Price gouging is illegal in some countries, but not here. As for Trek, seemed like the articles I read didn’t paint a gloomy picture of their financial status, they just reported downsizing like every other company that produces products for outdoor activities.
So few of these comments (apart from the one above) seems to account for how the cost of shipping and manufactiring changed due to COVID's impact on consumer products.
After riding a cheap hardtail for the last 6 yrs i couldn't resist the reduced prices from Giant. I picked up my first full squish.a 27.5 Trance X 1, that $1250 that i just saved will go towards a new helmet and protective gear.
I just bought a Trek Fuel Ex 8 gen 5 for $4200 nzd (that’s $2550 USD) They were selling for $5700 nzd ($3470 USD) absolutely ridiculous pricing. Obviously they’ve just released the gen 6 but no one is gonna go for that if the price for the gen 5 is that low. It’s a really really great bike as well with full fox suspension and SX drivetrain.
Trek cut 25-30 ppl from the acquisition & “greenfield” team as they’ve slowed WAY down on buying retail or building new retail locations. A few employees that lived in or around Waterloo or Madison were offered different positions. That alone counted for about 10% of the corporate “right sizing”. The folks (both salary & hourly) in the Trek owned retail stores are all safe and still doing quite well.
Bike store in my area is having a "Buy One, Get up to Four Bikes of equal value sale" to clear out stock. Other stores keep extending their "spacial sales days" from days to weeks.
The buy one...get several model is crazy. It really tells you where inventory levels really are. Otherwise, they would just discount bikes to that price.
Was thinking of trading my two year old Trek mountain bike until I checked the value on the bike blue book. About a quarter of what I paid new. Selling it outright would be about half of what I paid. Think I will keep it.
That’s pretty much how I was able to buy mountain bikes for my whole family on a budget. Facebook Marketplace is littered with lightly used bikes for a fraction of the price. For $200-$400 you can get a hardtail in my area with a good air fork and hydraulic brakes.
Bought a 22 Marlin 6, upgraded tires, pedals, seat, grips, and fork. For the way I ride it's a great bike. Years ago I bought a Specialized RockHopper and rode the tires off that thing. Ride the same trails guys on 5k bikes are riding. Been riding long enough to know the difference. But I'm there. Been wanting a new road bike. Think I'll find a decent group set and ride that frame for a few more years. With the money I save, I'm getting a CF MOTO 450MT.
I just picked up a brand new 2024 Salsa Blackthorn (MSRP $3500) for $1760. There are companies out there still listing the frame (no fork) for $2000. The industry is racing to the bottom. Now is absolutely the time to buy a high end bike.
Plus all those corp stores were a mistake. Very hard to manage a chain of Bicycle stores. Performance had a great thing going until they started opening Brick and mortar locations. Just another ball to Juggle.
It’s hard to make sales goals when you don’t keep stock. I’ve been looking all over for a trek marlin 6 or 7 gen 3 in a medium and haven’t had any luck at local dealers. Even on their website they don’t have them in stock. Not to mention they continue to have their old versions up that aren’t even available
Well done. Too often the title of an article sends everyone into a crazy out cry. Why because they do not fully understand the reason for these changes and most of the time it's so a company can stay in business? It means we all have to adjust. We can't stand around and wait or not participate. Trek and others have to take these steps to survive.
Trek's situation may also have to do with their terrible quality control and even worse costumer service. Unfortunately i had to deal with both at once. Bought a bike. The next day checked the bike more thoroughly. It was full of scratches everywhere, carbon showing, and even a carbon malformation. Took the bike back. Second bike arrived also with paint issues. At the first glance it didn't look too bad. They offered me a symbolic discount and promised to give me a touch-up pen as soon it was available, just to make me take the bike home. I did. Next day I've found a bunch of other problems. They didn't care. Refused to change the frame. Only focused on the first small paint issue and ignored everything else. The touch-up pen should solve everything. After I've finally paid the bike they told me there wouldn't even be any touch-up pen. It's too difficult to reproduce. I should take the bike to some car paint shop and fix it
Trek makes great bikes but their quality control sucks, the paint is Chipping as hell, Headset was rusty and creeking after 200 miles (there was almost no grease in it) and the main pivot bearing wasnt pressed straight into the frame, it was stuck and creeking, so it ate up the bolt in a few rides, after fixing all this crap, applying New bearings and using a lot of grease, bike is silent and rides perfectly fine. You guys maybe wont believe it, but the best bikes i have owned so far, were from Canyon, no creeking, no loose stuff, no bearings changed so far.... My New Santa cruz is also almost perfect but there are some smaller issue here and there, but it rides better than the trek and my Canyons....
For about half the price of a full suspension mountain bike I got a full suspension e bike...I really wanted a full suspension mountain bike for the exercise however at that price the e bike made a lot more sense
I don't know how there could be an over stock of Trek bikes. When you go to a Trek store and say I'll have a Rail 5 or 7 or any eMTB, guess what they don't have stock and you have to wait 4-6 months. It's about keeping prices high. Prices are not a pre pandemic levels they are still at peak pandemic pricing. Basically all bikes and parts are way over priced you can buy Motos cheaper than some eMTB's, and as for used pricing they too are high unless it's a Shimano powered bike but even they are around $6-7k for a 2-3 year old bike with around 3000-4000km on the clock and needing a new drive train. Just checked Bike Excange Australia for Trek or any brand with a Bosch motor, and yep the price are still astronomic for both new and used. Sales targets and projected profit forcasts are just refined bullshit.
Mountain bikes are the most over priced thing I have ever owned....and there pretty worthless second hand. The cycle market must be massive, as they aim a bike at every member of the family, so to speak. I know what I spent on my son's mountain bikes as he grew up, oh and yes they grow out of them faster than you can shake a stick. I,m currently looking at buying a new emtb here in the UK and not every manufacturer seems to have any stock? and yes there are some discounts but not all the sizes. My last point I really was interested in the pinion MGU Bikes that are coming out, but at £10,000 pound plus !!..... It's just as bad as those forks.... ridiculous.
I stopped into a large LBS today. Some things were discounted, but only 10-15%. Was hoping for a great deal, but nothing that seriously tempted me to pull out the credit card.
If they were to drop their prices more people would buy them but people would rather spend a couple hundred dollars for a Walmart or Canadian tire bike compared to thousands of dollars for a bicycle.
Kind of unfortunate timing seeing as they bought like a million LBS's and trekified them during the pandemic. And all of a sudden everybody seems to have lost interest in MTB, so they've sunk all this money into buying brick and mortar stores, when clearly the market was going towards direct-to-consumer sales models even before covid. Seems to me like a giant poorly informed gamble that went really wrong. Their ill-informed attempt to increase their market share had basically the same effect as taking a bunch of cash and lighting it on fire.
The prices for the new slash doesn't look like they are learning the lesson. Not just trek tho, any bikes that just been released as a new gen model lately, are still selling with pretty steep price tag. Just saying...
I wonder if they think that it is such a departure from their normal suspension designs that they can...at least in the short term? I agree though. They need to not go down that same road.
I had a 10 year old Trek and I wanted to replace it with a new Trek. Unfortunately I could not find one for a fair price, so I bought from another brand where I got much more value for my money. Bad business for Trek.
I fancy a new bike (got 4 in the garage already) but even with 35% off they are still too expensive. Maybe 1/2 price or 2 for the discounted price of one? 🤫
Giant Penrith , in Australia have kept their prices high at MSRP in spite of this . Independents like Cycleworld Concord , in Sydney offered discount pricing on Giant which is more reflective of the times we are in . A neighbour bought a Talon e3+ at Penrith and got his " fingers burnt" to the value of about $700 dollars . He purchased without consulting me first . The pedalec is starting to fall apart already .
I'm considering an eMTB and Trek has FORTY FIVE (45) different options across the caliber, fuel, powerfly and rail models. That is INSANE! How can they justify that many different models? How many eMTBs are stores supposed to stock? Where is Trek storing all these bikes? What were they thinking?
How they "justify" is simple if you dig in. They are a global brand and what sells well in one market, can't be given away in another market. No bike shop (not even the ones they own) can stock all the skus - the companies know that. It even varies by region within a given State. As an example, lower elevation States sell shorter travel mtn bikes in higher volume and higher elevation States sell longer travel bikes. As a global company, you have to have the skus to cover the bases or another company might get an advantage. That being said, ALL BIKE COMPANIES are looking to cut sku's right now and that should be a good thing for everyone and it will simplify the manufacturer's Supply Chain to bring products to market faster and they can do more volume of fewer skus to increase profitability. Works for Manufacturers and Retailers.
I don’t understand why all these bikes cost what they cost. My suspension kit on my Bronco wasn’t 6k lol. I would love to own a full suspension bike but I don’t see the value in them.
I consistently buy 4-5 K aluminum bikes and swap a few things to get it how I want. I'm a super avid rider and I don't understand why people think they need $8000 carbon bikes to have a good time.
Well I will say, carbon is very light and makes for great bike frames. However, why you would spend thousands on them is beyond me. I bought a 2011 trek madone for $650. Weighs nothing, is stupid fast, and has quality components that are still better than the junk that comes on road bikes that are even 2K
I`m riding a `22 Nukeproof scout, and a `21 MetaAm. I`m happy with both so why would I want to change? For what I`d get selling them, I couldnt replace with equal "quality"...#notforsale
Same. I've got a 2018 trek fuel. If I sold it, I'd be lucky to get a grand for it. It's a great bike so why would I just to spend a chunk on top just to end up with a bike that's probably no better but a bit shinier for 6 months.
I just paid $7,600 for a Supercaliber 9.8 from the Trek Factory Store in Colorado, and I am seriously wondering if Trek is going to start blowing everything out as fast and cheap as they can creating huge discounts. Fingers crossed I get my bike before they close the doors….
The problem is the mountain bike community in a whole has been killing their customers with ridiculous prices and they arent making it up on service. No repeat buyer's and its their own fault. The entire mountain bike community not just Trek. For instance my sons race motocross and mountain bikes routinely cost as much or more than motocross bikes! Not one person can justify that stupid cost
i wouldn’t say Trek are in any more trouble than the rest of the industry. If anything they’re A lot better of than brands say specialized scott etc that are having ridiculous sales constantly to move old stock. When i comes to skus, it’s A weird one because A lot of the cuts will be getting rid of the bontrager equivalents to the new trek versions. Not as bad as it sounds…
I don’t think it’s a bad thing at all. Consolidating skus and not having 10 different bikes for the same model is a good idea. I think specialized seen the writing on the wall and seemed to do pretty good selling most of the 23 bikes (we made too much sale they called it). Being too late to discount can be bad for biz
This didn't surprise me at all. I said more than a year ago that brands are going to run out of customers willing to pay $10k or more for a bike very quickly. I predict a fire sale on e-bikes sooner than later. On the other hand, my local Trek dealer is discounting some pretty sweet gravel bikes...
It's going to be discounts across the board for sure. E-bikes will see the same thing but they have also kept the market up a little bit by being something new.
If I'm not mistaken, Trek isn't a publicly traded company as stated in this video. It's employee/family owned. Inventory (which sits) not turning is expensive. To my eye, Trek executives are doing exactly the right thing, albeit, late perhaps to place the company on a firm foundation. Firm found is defined by "not losing money. It takes serious wisdom and business experience to manage a company through normal times, let alone the largest boom market in bike manufacture history. Give them credit for right sizing which means don't spend more than you make.
I left Vail YEARS ago. One reason was I didn't need to keep up with the Jones'. I don't need new skis EVERY year. I DON'T need a new bike every year either. I'm still happy with my '21 trek. And my '16 GT. and my '04 Tacoma. These industries OVER produce.
The prices went up with covid demand and a interuption of delivery. Producing the parts didn't go up in the same way, but the prices didn't drop. And to be honest people don't buy >5k bikes when housing and enery prices exploded. Trek did some management errors themselve. Selling online with different colors for one modell pill a lot of inventory and have their own brick and mortar shops costs a lot of money too. I once was visiting the Waterloo facilites and was amazed by the inventory there, so I guess normal joe can't guess the money involved. In my minor opinion the prices have to come down to realistic pricepoints. But till then what will dealers AND facturies do to sell the stock without crashing???? Burke said what will he do in 2025/26 but what about the present?
TREK have priced themselves at Ferrari levels whist being the Ford of the bike world. Specialized have done the same, they are the mainstream high volume manufacturers, and cannot price themselves at the ultra high end.
Having just gone through purchasing a new trek mtb I can say i don't agree with some of the statements from the CEO. There was almost NO stock of mid priced bikes in a medium size 29'er. They don't have a ton of stock of most bikes people would be buying. According to my LBS trek stopped/slowed production late last year and they estimated trek will run out of bikes this year. Just my two cents, either they produced too many high end bikes or really underestimated their largest buyers. Also agree with most of these comments, these things are so expensive for what they are, granted they are excellent bikes.
The SKU reduction will be changing the amount frame sized offered. Bikes wont have 7 different sizes with 5-7 color ways each anymore. FY24 will again be tough on Trek but they are currently profitable this year. As far as the shareholders thing goes Trek isn't public so the shareholders are the employees who had their ESOP slashed by 8% this year.
Before you watch the video…if you want to check out the hoodie I am wearing…check it out at this link! -> bit.ly/3vcHjSq It is from Ornot Bike which is a small company out of CA. They literally only have 7 employees and this hoodie is fantastic for wearing around town and riding.
I see all of these changes as a good thing. The industry was getting a little ridiculous with prices. This coming from a 20+ year rider.
Agreed. They were keeping a lot of people out of riding at those prices as well.
😂😂😂 the prices have been crazy for a loooong time. They moved their bikes with cheap debt. People are in record credit card debt, high housing costs, record food costs. They (the bike industry )have been gouging for a long time. Chickens have come home to roost.
these changes also mean people are loosing there jobs thats never a good think :(
Can't agree more!!!
I think they're doing the right thing. Too many overlapping models. Also, it's smart to adjust spending based on the market.
Mountain bike pricing is absurd! You can buy a new Yamaha YZ250x trail bike for the same price as a mid-level carbon mountain bike. Makes no sense.
Makes sense if you really think about. I’ll let you think.
Agreed. Absolutely ridiculous!!!
@@Norcaljedi_ea Capitalists bootlickers are disgusting.
True there is now way the prices equate. Just based on scrap value there is $1.00 worth of aluminum in a bicycle. There is a hell of a lot more machining and assembly time in a motorcycle.
Young people can barely afford rent, let alone a bike that’s costs 10-15% of annual income. This is a time bomb for all manufacturers.
Bike manufacturers got greedy and this is what they get. Sucks for their employees. Everyone has some steep discounts right now. Specialized just came out with a 14k mountain bike. The new bikes are tempting but too pricey to make sense. I personally think they need to stop with the 8k and up bikes. No way you can tell me it really costs that much money to turn a profit. Bikes have gotten out of control. They need to make their money from volume instead of high margin. It’s greed at its finest.
It does seem like they have decided on high price/high profit over volume. Unfortunately, that can't hold for long because the market for that is much smaller and it requires the economy to be perfect.
@@Bike198 yep. They are feeling the reality of 8k bikes are not the reality nor sustainable long term. Now, I have some pricey bikes but I have slowly wanted higher components over time but I’ve had to be able to sell previous bikes to make that happen. I don’t care how much money I have, I’m not coming out of pocket that high anywhere near regularly. Trek is simply going to try to manipulate the market by reducing stock. Ie kill the supply part to justify the pricing.
@@kentao4 I also think that mid range components and bikes are MUCH better than they were in the past. I just don't see the justification for the increase in price for the performance increase anymore. That said...I do love to geek out on parts so a lot of it is just an "I want".
@@Bike198 I agree 100%.
In New Zealand Specialized have released a town ebike called the Porto. Its $12,000 here. Its a dam nice machine but WHAT is its real value.
About 6-7 years ago by LBS started marketing service for direct-to-consumer brands. Their promotion was if you bought a bike online, bring it to then and they give a free checkup to make sure everything is running smoothly.
They also started offering lessons and discounts for people looking to package and ship or fly with their bike.
It was a smart move, cause now the majority of their business revolves around service and they don't even need to sell complete bikes to stay in business.
Smart move, sometimes being small is an advantage cause you can change direction quicker.
I was on the @b1ker podcast last night and we were talking about that very same thing. The LBS really needs to adopt that model to stay relevant and alive.
Sure but eventually if you're not selling any bikes, parts, or gear then it reduces your overall revenue to where you're not making enough to pay overhead in even a commercial space and pay living wages. Most shops need a bit of every part of the business to basically break even. DTC bikes are going to dramatically change the landscape, no matter how the LBS tries to adapt.
I purchased a new XC bike today. Dealer marked it down 50% and the manufacturer is reimbursing the shop for selling below the dealer cost. Full carbon full suspension with SRAM XO1 AXS for $3,500.
3500 is right for a bike. The days of overcharging Riders is over. I don't feel sorry for these people one bit.
@@jamesw1791 what about the people who are loosing there jobs bike shop have never had huge margins but bike companys have at a shop level local shop are closing and now theres all these people who are job less
Good for you
@@jamesw1791you don’t feel bad for these people, you mean shop owners that had to first buy the product at a dealers price to then sell it to the customer? Do you realize that 30% increase in retail price is also a 30% increase in wholesale price? Margins stay the same. When I was running a bike shop people were looking at me like I overcharged them all the time, they thought I was sleeping on money. The amount of people not understanding how market works really bothers me.
🤯🤯🤯
I’m a 70 yr old w serious heart issues but got a new shot @life w a Focus Jam2, have been flogging it for 6 years now (@ t hard end level..still love tech DH riding) SUPER impressed w t build quality (I’m not pushing Focus here) it just goes on+on (2nd motor now)… BUT, to replace it w something fresh I will probably have to sell my collectable ‘99 mx5 as retired people generally r living in a restricted financial “bubble”.. so I kinda agree w what’s going down. Bike manufacturers “business model” has bin too greedy… a LOT of us r prepared to make do + replace parts as required.
The 10k bike killed the bike industry. They literally killed the goose to get to the golden egg.
When I dirt bike cost half of what a mtb costs. I knew it was over. E-bikes are next.
e-bikes are next? do you ride an e-bike?
Ebikes are the problem as this is what many people are purchasing . When I'm out and about urban cycling or on rail trails , I'd wager 30% of the bikes I see are E-bikes.
People with money are still buying 10k bikes, its the vast models that are bogging bike companies down.
@@manchesterexplorer8519well, when I'm out in the woods I almost never see them...
F*CK E bikes!
The problem is even with there discounts, the bikes are still to expensive for the riders , not everyone has a extra 3500 dollars to spend on a new bike. With everything going up around them.
Inflation hasn't helped at all for sure. Even with the discounts...the dollar is worth less.
True but the real problem is not the cost now. Its people dont want new bikes and the second hand ones cover all bases.
3500 is on the cheap side these days lol
I am a long time mountain bike rider and supporter, however prices have just gone stupid…. This reminds me so much of the car market, to much greed for the product. I don’t care anymore about upgrading my ride in the next year or so. I spent big money (to me) on a Giant trance advanced 2 years ago. Never again will I fall for that trap. It’s just not worth it guys, buy something used, and ride for you. Don’t ride for anyone else but you, enjoy your time in the woods and who cares what who is riding. Enjoy life …..
KEEP your "old" bike. It is better than you will ever be.
The only people I feel sorry for in this are Trek's employees. Back in 2021 Trek opened a corporate store in our very small market. 3 miles from our LBS who had been a dealer at least 20 years. I sent JB an email voicing my displeasure and that I thought he was making a mistake. Basically got told "we know our business, too bad." Well now here we are. Karma
I don't disagree there. I feel bad for both sides when it comes to people that are on the LBS side, employees of Trek and the racing teams that are going to get funding cut.
More karma. Bought a Trek. Discovered the model was one of the few not supported by a manual or spec sheet showing parts or torques. Contacted Trek. They said “just bring your bike to us for servicing”.
LOL. I told them that’s not something I’m going to EVER do.
Quite possibly my last Trek (and I buy for kids and grandkids). Bike repair isn’t rocket science. A few model special tools and some mechanical sympathy.
Trek it seems, is on the wrong side of reality, And don’t get me going on the “why tech” approach to justify the astonishing price of a Madrone.
If the model without a component / specification sheet presumably cannot be serviced correctly by a user, then how can a Trek store do any better if they also cannot get this information ?@@paulgrimshaw8334
Don’t say, “never”. You never know what the future holds. This is just the start of the sales. One company, which I will not mention, is sitting on a billion dollars worth of inventory. They have to get rid of it. Even if that means slashing prices by 75%. At some point it would be cheaper for them to give it away as opposed to storing or destroying it.
@@Shawn-in-da-Canyon my body (and garage) is ready.
Back in 2020 ,I purchased a Fuel EX 5. Entry level, most affordable to me. I paid $2200 ,it had gone up after my purchase, and came back down again and sits at $2499 right now. The thing I hate is, is some higher priced bikes are having their prices slashed. And Bikes from other companies are getting huge sales. I can't afford a new bike, but the dealer is trying to get me to upgrade parts on my bike. And the area I'm at seems not to be hit by inflation. People are still buying expensive bikes, while every trail is being turned into freeride trails. However things work out. I believe I'm officially priced out in the bike market.
Treks biggest competition in the marketplace is all the used Trek bikes that were bought in 2020-2022 that are all over Facebook marketplace and offer up 😢
Agree. The market is saturated with used bikes and that's one of the elements turning the industry upside down. I worked in a shop in NC and almost daily last year to current someone walks in and asks if we will buy his/her bike. Best bike deals are used at this point. Bicycle Blue Book helps bring reality to their value.
Within the last few years Trek opened a retail store in my hometown. Myself and wife ended up buying new bikes from them and the guys who work there are always so helpful and friendly whenever I've needed bike advice or something looked at so I hope that store and team will be safe.
I do often pop in just to browse and I'm often the only one in there so its quite worrying. But last time I asked them, they said they were always busy preparing bikes for customer orders. I hope their definition of busy is the same as what the higher up's think.
Anyone in the bike business 2 seconds knows it’s boom bust business. They sold 5-10 years worth of bikes in 2021.
When you have 27 different models of each type of bike, your situation is untenable
It makes sense that Trek needs to dial back so much. I think leisure, of any kind was on a decline even before Covid. I hardly see anyone on new bikes. It’s mostly older folks on older bikes. Younger people are fine with sitting inside, looking at their phones. Does anyone play golf or tennis anymore? lol
I actually just got back into golf! But what you are saying is true. People aren't paying the full retail plus pricing that has been out there lately.
Anyone with a brain could see us going back to pre pandemic??? Except the top executives of some of the bike companies!! Huhhhhhhh haaaaaaaa! Now we now why these big decision makers get paid so much!
Yes and most people who are really into the riding these days are the fast old guys on boutique rockets 🚀
I’m 38 and just bought my first new bike in 10 years last fall, I snowboard and I disc golf. 2 of my buddies did as well. But we only got new bikes because they’re on such good discounts. (Sale) Prices are finally back where they should be. Can’t wait till vehicles do the same
@@joshstokmans5534, awesome! Enjoy
To prove the point, I was going to buy a new bike last year but food, rent, bills just cut into my budget so hard that I couldn't justify the high prices of a new bike, even on sale it's too much to bite off, most people are in the same position, just can't afford to buy, lost my job too, so that makes it worse.
So the bike market got saturated when the pandemic. Sales were rampant. Bike store floors were empty. Did anyone think this was the new normal? When everybody got their bikes sales dropped through the floor. How the powers in the bike industry did not understand this was going to happen baffles me.
How on earth do a set of bike suspension forks cost 2k 😂 you can buy fully adjustable uprated shocks and springs for a car for that much
Most companies have way too many models. I have seen this as a bike dealer for years. Too many colors, spec levels and then niche models. Consumers have way too much choice in each line-up. The reason bikes are too expensive is due to the inventory and variety of sku's. I have seen these bike brands priority has been to sell to dealers, not the end consumer. Pushing stock on shops with little concern to what margin your average bike shop is able to maintain. Big reason I dropped major brands years ago and focused on smaller unique brands and building each frame to what the customer's needs.
Purchased a Pivot Switchblade last October for $5K - $3.5K off MSRP. Seems like I could get an even better deal now. All leisure items are falling in price - RVs, boats, sports cars, golf clubs, bikes, motorcycles, and, of course, Sprinter vans - so long van life. Covid and $12T pumped into the economy created an asset bubble.
I dont feel sorry for the bike companies. A lot of them are selling 2k bikes with basic components. Choosing bikes for me and my partner last month was a nightmare. We ended up with Scale 950 and 960 2022 models with nice discounts.
as a former enthusiast that recently re-entered the market for a mountain bike after appx 20 years, i can definitely say that its been different. to preface, i worked in two bicycle shops over the course of eight years in the late 90s early 00s and road a cross country bike... other than the oncoming of downhill rigs & some early freeride bikes everyone pretty much ran cross country bikes in my area... now i'm trying to figure out if i want a hardtail like i had in the past, or full suspension. and then i have to decide between cross country and trail bike! the biggest issue as a consumer i see is that most shops are carrying limited inventory... particularly where i'm looking in the $2000-$4000 or so range. i demo'd and enjoyed the ibis ripley.. like it, but really wish they had the exie or the hardtail in stock/my size (m) for me to try. seems to be the same at most shops... might have most of a brand's product line, but towards the top have fewer size examples, so harder to compare side by side, etc. hey at least once i figure it out i'll surely end up with a great deal!
Regarding used bike prices, private sellers are still asking ridiculously high prices for their used bikes. Some are even asking more for their 2 year old used bikes than the new bikes (same brand and model) are selling for after 30%-40% discounts offered by retailers and manufacturers. Nuts!!! These private sellers who purchased their 2021-2023 bikes new during the Covid shortage by paying a markup are not willing to part with those bikes at bluebook prices, which are fair prices in a regular market and are very generous during the current buyers' market. They are wanting to pass down the pandemic rip-off prices to the used bike buyers. How nice!
I was in the bike shop last week. It was packed with units! I'm going to wait and see if I can get a deal on a bike in a few weeks.
During the pandemic Trek and other MTB companies find themselves in the same boat automakers do. They struggled to meet demand, ramped up production and four years later there’s inventory that wont move.
most businesses ate downsizing right now, I work in medical supplies, I deal in everything from CT scanners, x-ray machines all the way through the catheters and diapers.
The board decided to shut down our Minnesota and Jacksonville location.
Things are about to get rough in the economy.
Bike prices are just at stupid levels these days... the RRP is absurd.
Dear Trek, when I spend 1k on a mountain bike I think it should have a different drivetrain than the bikes I see at Walmart. Just a thought.
I hardly doubt you're seeing the same drivetrain on a Marlin 7 that you're seeing on a bike at Walmart.
@@radfordbean2855Same quality of components just different stickers on them. 👍🏻💯
💯Accurate.
@radfordbean2855 Actually, I am exaggerating a bit here. BUT just a bit. The first real durable deivetrain that shimano considers a mountain bike groupset is Deore. Which you are correct is on a 1k marlin 7. But I should not have to pay 1k to get a functional mountain bike. Tourney, acera, etc. Are all plastic and cheap metal that depending on the terrain will not last but a couple of rides. Can't tell you how many people buy a mountain bike and are then disappointed that it breaks after just a few rides.
@@andrewclarke9817I have an Acera rear derailleur on my Cannondale and a Tourney front derailleur. Both work just fine, though probably not as smooth as my 105 groupset on my Trek Émonda.
I just visited a Trek store here in Houston and honestly I was stunned how many $1500+ bikes they had and how few sub $1500 bikes they had available. Seems to me it should be the other way around.
Well most brick and mortar retailers of recreational equipment want to grape their customers, so don’t feel too surprised. Go to your LBS, have them fit you to a bike, make note of what they tell you, then shop online or used. You’d be surprised how many new condition bikes are available in the aftermarket because the original owners discovered riding a bicycle can cause you to sweat. 😂
Several major issues exist currently- bikes are far too expensive, infact a lot bikes today are not only more expensive vrs 3 yrs ago but also the spec/ parts on todays bikes are cheaper /worse than 3 years ago . Then covid taught people you don’t actually use your bikes and so the lasting memory from covid is bikes aren’t worth it unless there’s a reason to use them very regularly- not to mention todays generation would rather play an online game than go outside . Used e bike prices are tanking and too many new models are coming out . Brand new e-bikes are now stupidly expensive. The bike market has got itself into a right mess
What are saying is so true. Im in Cape Town. Bought a Stumpjumper Comp Carbon with added extras worth almost more that the bike for a third of the overall cost. Our best bike shops have so much stock and they are discounting everything! The market is saturated with options and the tech level of bikes have peaked way past what normal riders will ever need.
Good. I’m glad the market is correcting Trek’s outrageous prices. Other bike manufacturers like Specialized are starting to follow suit.
Not "starting to". Specialized has had high end bikes on sale 20-40% off for nearly two years now!
Bike Prices are RIDICULOUS. ! Consumers want regular priced Bikes. ! $300 to $500 ! They would sell way more Bikes. !
We're not seeing any drop in prices in South Africa. Prices are beyond ridiculous here!
I just can’t wrapped my head around spending motorcycle prices on a mountain bike.
I was in the market for the fuel exe, instead I got a low hours, street legal ktm 350 for less $$
You are very wise. I brought a new Ninja 400 instead of replacing my ebike that was new in 2019.
Because people want a mountain bike, not a dirt-bike.
@@dadventuretv2538Most people “want” a dirt bike but settle for a Mtn bike because they know they will never be able to ride it to its full capability and are afraid of getting hurt or dying. And they most likely own a car and have no possible way to haul a dirt bike and the necessary gear. 🤷🏼♂️
@@daviddoucet2220 I don’t think either you or I are qualified to say what “most” people want. But I would surmise that most people who buy a mountain bike want to pedal, assisted or not, not use a throttle. I know people who do both, the minority, and those that do one or the other, most of them. None of the people that I know that only do one do it because they really wanted to do the other. I’ve done both, and they are both fun in different ways- mountain bikes can ride trails that dirtbikes can’t or that would suck on a dirtbike, and dirtbikes can do things because of the motor that mtbs could only dream of doing.
Btw- do you even know what the same level riders as the moto ones you are referring to are doing on mountain bikes? Yeah serious injury or death is just as much a risk. But one thing I can say from first hand experience about “most” people is that most dirtbike riders are not using them to their full potential or doing the stuff where they might be afraid of dying- most dirtbike riders are not sending 80 footers just like most mountain bikers arent sending 60 footers and 30 foot road gaps . That’s a pretty small and elite group, and if you think that is most riders of either one then 1. You ride with a very high level group of riders, or 2. Don’t do either and watch too much TH-cam, or 3. Live off the glory of others that ride the same machine as you.
@@daviddoucet2220 wrong. But keep telling yourself how awesome you are.
I’ve been biking seriously bout 11 years. My first “nice” bike was a lower level, mid range aluminum Trek. When I first road it I compared it to moving from a Yugo to Cadillac. I later upgraded to used carbon then to new carbon. I swore I’d never pay the prices, which I eventually did.
Did I “need” the bike I bought? Absolutely not. My income doesn’t depend on my riding. I feel it’s like lots of things. As you become able, you upgrade, if it’s worth it to you. The only observation I’d make is that there now seems to be a larger gap between lower level entry bike to the “lower level mid range” bikes.
Very few “need” XTR and carbon. Is it nice? For sure. However, a Costco bike is not gonna handle the abuse serious MTB’rs put their equipment thru. I learned that the hard way. Just my opinion…
My mountain bike from Norco costed me 1600 dollars. The store had a storewide 20% off sale. It is a Norco fluid FS A4. My dirt jumper the airborne cro-hawk retails for 700 and I bought it on clearance for 454 dollars.
I blame the companies totally! They really thought that the Covid numbers would last! I bet they figured once you sell a 4000& bike for 8000$ you can keep it up! And once people who got into biking realized riding is not their cup of tea repeat sales were gone and the used bike market got flooded with top spec bikes cheap!
Partly agree. I also blame government/consumers for giving away money to consumers, many which were not even working, and needed to do outdoors. This helped inflate bike prices. Fortunately, the current issue may help keep prices in check in the future for those of us who are long term mountain bikers.
@@rafaelalbertotorres8070 I think it will help the long term biker for sure. My buddy owns a few shops and was on a conference call with the major brand he sells and said to the executives that it hurts him and other business owners when patent companies drop prices so low. They have to sell them but are actually losing or barely breaking even at best
Tariff increases started it all, lots of overseas parts and products cost more now because the international shipping companies (none of which are US owned) refused to absorb those increases, so higher prices trickled down to US shipping companies first, and then consumers, and of course COVID made it worse. Other domestic manufacturers followed suit, figuring they could just get away with increasing their prices like everyone else was doing, then the problem just snow-balled from there. Price gouging is illegal in some countries, but not here. As for Trek, seemed like the articles I read didn’t paint a gloomy picture of their financial status, they just reported downsizing like every other company that produces products for outdoor activities.
So few of these comments (apart from the one above) seems to account for how the cost of shipping and manufactiring changed due to COVID's impact on consumer products.
After riding a cheap hardtail for the last 6 yrs i couldn't resist the reduced prices from Giant. I picked up my first full squish.a 27.5 Trance X 1, that $1250 that i just saved will go towards a new helmet and protective gear.
i was looking at the trek marlin+ 6.. but should i go for the cube 2023 , performance 625?
Well if they have so much inventory then why can they not warranty my 2023 EX-8 until July of 24 ? I cracked in March 7 2024
I just bought a Trek Fuel Ex 8 gen 5 for $4200 nzd (that’s $2550 USD) They were selling for $5700 nzd ($3470 USD) absolutely ridiculous pricing. Obviously they’ve just released the gen 6 but no one is gonna go for that if the price for the gen 5 is that low. It’s a really really great bike as well with full fox suspension and SX drivetrain.
Trek cut 25-30 ppl from the acquisition & “greenfield” team as they’ve slowed WAY down on buying retail or building new retail locations. A few employees that lived in or around Waterloo or Madison were offered different positions. That alone counted for about 10% of the corporate “right sizing”. The folks (both salary & hourly) in the Trek owned retail stores are all safe and still doing quite well.
Bike store in my area is having a "Buy One, Get up to Four Bikes of equal value sale" to clear out stock.
Other stores keep extending their "spacial sales days" from days to weeks.
The buy one...get several model is crazy. It really tells you where inventory levels really are. Otherwise, they would just discount bikes to that price.
You and 4 buddies should pool some funds, and everyone gets a new bike.
Was thinking of trading my two year old Trek mountain bike until I checked the value on the bike blue book. About a quarter of what I paid new. Selling it outright would be about half of what I paid. Think I will keep it.
That’s pretty much how I was able to buy mountain bikes for my whole family on a budget. Facebook Marketplace is littered with lightly used bikes for a fraction of the price. For $200-$400 you can get a hardtail in my area with a good air fork and hydraulic brakes.
I just want an og marzocchi open bath bomber 66 with a lockout in 27.5 and 29er. I have never ridden a fork more plush and maintenance free
Bought a 22 Marlin 6, upgraded tires, pedals, seat, grips, and fork. For the way I ride it's a great bike. Years ago I bought a Specialized RockHopper and rode the tires off that thing. Ride the same trails guys on 5k bikes are riding. Been riding long enough to know the difference. But I'm there. Been wanting a new road bike. Think I'll find a decent group set and ride that frame for a few more years. With the money I save, I'm getting a CF MOTO 450MT.
Trek has bought a lot of independent Bike Shops in Oregon which has to be a huge expense, not sure if this is the case all across the country or not.
I just picked up a brand new 2024 Salsa Blackthorn (MSRP $3500) for $1760. There are companies out there still listing the frame (no fork) for $2000.
The industry is racing to the bottom. Now is absolutely the time to buy a high end bike.
Plus all those corp stores were a mistake. Very hard to manage a chain of Bicycle stores. Performance had a great thing going until they started opening Brick and mortar locations. Just another ball to Juggle.
Im over the bs prices.
Trek needs to adopt lean manufacturing - have trigger levels on inventory so that manufacturing doesn't overtake sales.
Definitely see this happening in South Africa
It’s hard to make sales goals when you don’t keep stock. I’ve been looking all over for a trek marlin 6 or 7 gen 3 in a medium and haven’t had any luck at local dealers. Even on their website they don’t have them in stock. Not to mention they continue to have their old versions up that aren’t even available
I just lucked out getting a 2023 fuel ex 8 for 3100 at my lbs huge markdown on price
Well done. Too often the title of an article sends everyone into a crazy out cry. Why because they do not fully understand the reason for these changes and most of the time it's so a company can stay in business? It means we all have to adjust. We can't stand around and wait or not participate. Trek and others have to take these steps to survive.
Bought a Madone SLR GEN 7 in a Project One Colour and Red AXS build on Princeton Carbonworks with a 4,4k pricecut...
So you paid $10,000?
Trek's situation may also have to do with their terrible quality control and even worse costumer service. Unfortunately i had to deal with both at once. Bought a bike. The next day checked the bike more thoroughly. It was full of scratches everywhere, carbon showing, and even a carbon malformation. Took the bike back. Second bike arrived also with paint issues. At the first glance it didn't look too bad. They offered me a symbolic discount and promised to give me a touch-up pen as soon it was available, just to make me take the bike home. I did. Next day I've found a bunch of other problems. They didn't care. Refused to change the frame. Only focused on the first small paint issue and ignored everything else. The touch-up pen should solve everything. After I've finally paid the bike they told me there wouldn't even be any touch-up pen. It's too difficult to reproduce. I should take the bike to some car paint shop and fix it
Trek makes great bikes but their quality control sucks, the paint is Chipping as hell, Headset was rusty and creeking after 200 miles (there was almost no grease in it) and the main pivot bearing wasnt pressed straight into the frame, it was stuck and creeking, so it ate up the bolt in a few rides, after fixing all this crap, applying New bearings and using a lot of grease, bike is silent and rides perfectly fine.
You guys maybe wont believe it, but the best bikes i have owned so far, were from Canyon, no creeking, no loose stuff, no bearings changed so far....
My New Santa cruz is also almost perfect but there are some smaller issue here and there, but it rides better than the trek and my Canyons....
For about half the price of a full suspension mountain bike I got a full suspension e bike...I really wanted a full suspension mountain bike for the exercise however at that price the e bike made a lot more sense
I don't know how there could be an over stock of Trek bikes. When you go to a Trek store and say I'll have a Rail 5 or 7 or any eMTB, guess what they don't have stock and you have to wait 4-6 months. It's about keeping prices high. Prices are not a pre pandemic levels they are still at peak pandemic pricing. Basically all bikes and parts are way over priced you can buy Motos cheaper than some eMTB's, and as for used pricing they too are high unless it's a Shimano powered bike but even they are around $6-7k for a 2-3 year old bike with around 3000-4000km on the clock and needing a new drive train.
Just checked Bike Excange Australia for Trek or any brand with a Bosch motor, and yep the price are still astronomic for both new and used. Sales targets and projected profit forcasts are just refined bullshit.
Fox and pace had release valves years and decades ago.
Mountain bikes are the most over priced thing I have ever owned....and there pretty worthless second hand. The cycle market must be massive, as they aim a bike at every member of the family, so to speak. I know what I spent on my son's mountain bikes as he grew up, oh and yes they grow out of them faster than you can shake a stick. I,m currently looking at buying a new emtb here in the UK and not every manufacturer seems to have any stock? and yes there are some discounts but not all the sizes. My last point I really was interested in the pinion MGU Bikes that are coming out, but at £10,000 pound plus !!..... It's just as bad as those forks.... ridiculous.
I stopped into a large LBS today. Some things were discounted, but only 10-15%. Was hoping for a great deal, but nothing that seriously tempted me to pull out the credit card.
If they were to drop their prices more people would buy them but people would rather spend a couple hundred dollars for a Walmart or Canadian tire bike compared to thousands of dollars for a bicycle.
Kind of unfortunate timing seeing as they bought like a million LBS's and trekified them during the pandemic. And all of a sudden everybody seems to have lost interest in MTB, so they've sunk all this money into buying brick and mortar stores, when clearly the market was going towards direct-to-consumer sales models even before covid. Seems to me like a giant poorly informed gamble that went really wrong. Their ill-informed attempt to increase their market share had basically the same effect as taking a bunch of cash and lighting it on fire.
Paint-on-demand manufacturers like Ciöcc ISB reduce the build-up of inventory problem.
The prices for the new slash doesn't look like they are learning the lesson. Not just trek tho, any bikes that just been released as a new gen model lately, are still selling with pretty steep price tag. Just saying...
I wonder if they think that it is such a departure from their normal suspension designs that they can...at least in the short term? I agree though. They need to not go down that same road.
I wonder how Surlys brand is doing? They seem to keep a level head.
In Honduras the prices are frezee in the pandemic prices
I had a 10 year old Trek and I wanted to replace it with a new Trek.
Unfortunately I could not find one for a fair price, so I bought from another brand where I got much more value for my money.
Bad business for Trek.
The prices of bikes are out of control.
Most people buy one bike then use that one tell it dies then just stop riding.
Yip, I’m having that thought myself (I’m 70 but still mad-keen on tech riding/ feels like all I’ve got left after a lifetime of hard-out outdoors)
I fancy a new bike (got 4 in the garage already) but even with 35% off they are still too expensive. Maybe 1/2 price or 2 for the discounted price of one? 🤫
I’m still not seeing reasonable bike prices.
Trek was late to the party seeing the writings on the wall. All other major brands like Specialized and Giant have discounted inventory since 2023.
Giant Penrith , in Australia have kept their prices high at MSRP in spite of this . Independents like Cycleworld Concord , in Sydney offered discount pricing on Giant which is more reflective of the times we are in . A neighbour bought a Talon e3+ at Penrith and got his " fingers burnt" to the value of about $700 dollars . He purchased without consulting me first . The pedalec is starting to fall apart already .
What does the writing on the wall read at KONA?
@@mechanicaldavid4827 What is the answer ? Kona is in a similar position to TREK .
@@mechanicaldavid4827 They had to terminate their race program and had to call an emergency withdrawal from this years Sea Otter Classic event.
I'm considering an eMTB and Trek has FORTY FIVE (45) different options across the caliber, fuel, powerfly and rail models. That is INSANE! How can they justify that many different models? How many eMTBs are stores supposed to stock? Where is Trek storing all these bikes? What were they thinking?
How they "justify" is simple if you dig in. They are a global brand and what sells well in one market, can't be given away in another market. No bike shop (not even the ones they own) can stock all the skus - the companies know that. It even varies by region within a given State. As an example, lower elevation States sell shorter travel mtn bikes in higher volume and higher elevation States sell longer travel bikes. As a global company, you have to have the skus to cover the bases or another company might get an advantage.
That being said, ALL BIKE COMPANIES are looking to cut sku's right now and that should be a good thing for everyone and it will simplify the manufacturer's Supply Chain to bring products to market faster and they can do more volume of fewer skus to increase profitability. Works for Manufacturers and Retailers.
most bike companies jacked the prices during the pandemic, bad read on the many temporary bikers
I don’t understand why all these bikes cost what they cost.
My suspension kit on my Bronco wasn’t 6k lol.
I would love to own a full suspension bike but I don’t see the value in them.
Just bought a nice full suspension bike for $2300. 46% off what it was 1 year ago. Why would you spend $2600 on a fork😂
It is really cool! But I'm with you...that is double what I would want to pay for a fork.
I consistently buy 4-5 K aluminum bikes and swap a few things to get it how I want. I'm a super avid rider and I don't understand why people think they need $8000 carbon bikes to have a good time.
Well I will say, carbon is very light and makes for great bike frames. However, why you would spend thousands on them is beyond me. I bought a 2011 trek madone for $650. Weighs nothing, is stupid fast, and has quality components that are still better than the junk that comes on road bikes that are even 2K
the topline madone is $21,300.00 in canada
I just bought a brand new Zeb Ultimate for under $600 off Jenson; normally a $1200 fork. If you got the cash, now is the time to buy.
I`m riding a `22 Nukeproof scout, and a `21 MetaAm. I`m happy with both so why would I want to change? For what I`d get selling them, I couldnt replace with equal "quality"...#notforsale
Same. I've got a 2018 trek fuel. If I sold it, I'd be lucky to get a grand for it. It's a great bike so why would I just to spend a chunk on top just to end up with a bike that's probably no better but a bit shinier for 6 months.
I just paid $7,600 for a Supercaliber 9.8 from the Trek Factory Store in Colorado, and I am seriously wondering if Trek is going to start blowing everything out as fast and cheap as they can creating huge discounts. Fingers crossed I get my bike before they close the doors….
That is an absurd number for a bike with such little travel. Jesus
The problem is the mountain bike community in a whole has been killing their customers with ridiculous prices and they arent making it up on service. No repeat buyer's and its their own fault. The entire mountain bike community not just Trek. For instance my sons race motocross and mountain bikes routinely cost as much or more than motocross bikes! Not one person can justify that stupid cost
Quick! Roll out a new wheel size! Wind up the marketing tripe! That should be good for at least a few quarters
i wouldn’t say Trek are in any more trouble than the rest of the industry. If anything they’re A lot better of than brands say specialized scott etc that are having ridiculous sales constantly to move old stock.
When i comes to skus, it’s A weird one because A lot of the cuts will be getting rid of the bontrager equivalents to the new trek versions. Not as bad as it sounds…
I don’t think it’s a bad thing at all. Consolidating skus and not having 10 different bikes for the same model is a good idea.
I think specialized seen the writing on the wall and seemed to do pretty good selling most of the 23 bikes (we made too much sale they called it).
Being too late to discount can be bad for biz
This didn't surprise me at all. I said more than a year ago that brands are going to run out of customers willing to pay $10k or more for a bike very quickly. I predict a fire sale on e-bikes sooner than later. On the other hand, my local Trek dealer is discounting some pretty sweet gravel bikes...
It's going to be discounts across the board for sure. E-bikes will see the same thing but they have also kept the market up a little bit by being something new.
If I'm not mistaken, Trek isn't a publicly traded company as stated in this video. It's employee/family owned. Inventory (which sits) not turning is expensive. To my eye, Trek executives are doing exactly the right thing, albeit, late perhaps to place the company on a firm foundation. Firm found is defined by "not losing money. It takes serious wisdom and business experience to manage a company through normal times, let alone the largest boom market in bike manufacture history. Give them credit for right sizing which means don't spend more than you make.
super interesting analysis, great video!
I just brought a Specialized Stumpjumper comp carbon for 3k down from 5k
I left Vail YEARS ago. One reason was I didn't need to keep up with the Jones'. I don't need new skis EVERY year. I DON'T need a new bike every year either. I'm still happy with my '21 trek. And my '16 GT. and my '04 Tacoma. These industries OVER produce.
It took them 15 months to notice that their sales targets were off?
They oversupplied and over estimated based on COVID high. SMH. Business people are so unrealistic with projections and forecast.
The prices went up with covid demand and a interuption of delivery. Producing the parts didn't go up in the same way, but the prices didn't drop. And to be honest people don't buy >5k bikes when housing and enery prices exploded. Trek did some management errors themselve. Selling online with different colors for one modell pill a lot of inventory and have their own brick and mortar shops costs a lot of money too. I once was visiting the Waterloo facilites and was amazed by the inventory there, so I guess normal joe can't guess the money involved. In my minor opinion the prices have to come down to realistic pricepoints. But till then what will dealers AND facturies do to sell the stock without crashing???? Burke said what will he do in 2025/26 but what about the present?
TREK have priced themselves at Ferrari levels whist being the Ford of the bike world. Specialized have done the same, they are the mainstream high volume manufacturers, and cannot price themselves at the ultra high end.
Having just gone through purchasing a new trek mtb I can say i don't agree with some of the statements from the CEO. There was almost NO stock of mid priced bikes in a medium size 29'er. They don't have a ton of stock of most bikes people would be buying. According to my LBS trek stopped/slowed production late last year and they estimated trek will run out of bikes this year. Just my two cents, either they produced too many high end bikes or really underestimated their largest buyers.
Also agree with most of these comments, these things are so expensive for what they are, granted they are excellent bikes.
The SKU reduction will be changing the amount frame sized offered. Bikes wont have 7 different sizes with 5-7 color ways each anymore. FY24 will again be tough on Trek but they are currently profitable this year. As far as the shareholders thing goes Trek isn't public so the shareholders are the employees who had their ESOP slashed by 8% this year.