Importing European touring bikes to U.S. Stupid idea?

[Art Winterbauer]

Just how stupid is this idea? Not finding any European-styled "comfort" bikes
along the lines of those advertised by Gazelle (http://www.gazelle.nl) in the
U.S., I'm entertaining the notion of opening a small shop to import and sell a
few models in a university town here. The town has extensive biking trails and I
think folks might like to have a utility bike for running errands and the like.

Obviously, since no one is importing such bikes, I think there must be a very
good reason. Any guesses why such a venture would be foolish?

Some similarly styled bikes that reader Yannik pointed me to were:

http://www.utopia-fahrrad.de/
http://www.batavus.nl
http://www.pashley.co.uk/
http://www.sparta.nl/

Being a hardened pessimist, I'm especially interested in hearing from other
pessimists.

--Art

[Ken]

Art Winterbauer > wrote in
:
> Just how stupid is this idea? Not finding any European-styled "comfort"
> bikes along the lines of those advertised by Gazelle
> (http://www.gazelle.nl) in the U.S.

Here is a USA company that specializes in high quality commuting bikes:
http://www.breezerbikes.com/

fyi - there's an interesting article in Bicycling Magazine this month about
Joe Breeze and why these kinds of city bikes (designed for commuting and
shopping, not recreation) are much more popular in Europe than in the USA.

[Chris Neary]

>Just how stupid is this idea? Not finding any European-styled "comfort" bikes
>along the lines of those advertised by Gazelle (http://www.gazelle.nl) in the
>U.S., I'm entertaining the notion of opening a small shop to import and sell a
>few models in a university town here.

Trek appears to be moving into this market:

References:

http://www.bicycleretailer.com/bicycleretailer/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1775856

and

http://www.bicycleretailer.com/bicycleretailer/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1921956


Regards,


Chris Neary


"Science, freedom, beauty, adventure: what more could
you ask of life? Bicycling combined all the elements I
loved" - Adapted from a quotation by Charles Lindbergh

[Chris Neary]

>Just how stupid is this idea? Not finding any European-styled "comfort" bikes
>along the lines of those advertised by Gazelle (http://www.gazelle.nl) in the
>U.S., I'm entertaining the notion of opening a small shop to import and sell a
>few models in a university town here.

Trek appears to be moving into this market:

References:

http://www.bicycleretailer.com/bicycleretailer/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1775856

and

http://www.bicycleretailer.com/bicycleretailer/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1921956


Regards,


Chris Neary


"Science, freedom, beauty, adventure: what more could
you ask of life? Bicycling combined all the elements I
loved" - Adapted from a quotation by Charles Lindbergh

[Jkpoulos7]

>Here is a USA company that specializes in high quality commuting bikes:
>http://www.breezerbikes.com/
>

If you want pay too much for basically a cheesy cruiser type bike and support
some jiker who thinks he invented mountain biking.
I'd never buy such a bike as it has a limited use. There are other bikes that
can be made to do many jobs and still be fun to ride.

[Mark Weaver]

Boy, even in a university town (where I live), I can't see many people
wanting to pay, say, $600-$900 for a 45lb tank with 5 speeds and a coaster
brake that looks like something Grandpa might ride around his condo in
Florida. There are some number of old profs riding around on bikes that
look like those here, but those guys tend to buy a new bike and a new Volvo
every two or three decades.

"Art Winterbauer" > wrote in message
...
> Just how stupid is this idea? Not finding any European-styled "comfort"
bikes
> along the lines of those advertised by Gazelle (http://www.gazelle.nl) in
the
> U.S., I'm entertaining the notion of opening a small shop to import and
sell a
> few models in a university town here. The town has extensive biking trails
and I
> think folks might like to have a utility bike for running errands and the
like.
>
> Obviously, since no one is importing such bikes, I think there must be a
very
> good reason. Any guesses why such a venture would be foolish?
>
> Some similarly styled bikes that reader Yannik pointed me to were:
>
> http://www.utopia-fahrrad.de/
> http://www.batavus.nl
> http://www.pashley.co.uk/
> http://www.sparta.nl/
>
> Being a hardened pessimist, I'm especially interested in hearing from
other
> pessimists.
>
> --Art

[Chris Neary]

>Villiger (the brand Trek just bought) do make fine bikes. We have two of
>them at home and are happy with them.

>I don't know, however, if Trek will sell them in the US. One comment is
>that here these bikes are sold fully equiped (lights, rack,...), while in
>the US you seem to buy "naked" bikes then add options.

Well, if you had bothered to check the second URL and followed the reference
to the Bike Gallery site (www.bikegallery.com), you would have seen that
Trek is in fact test marketing bikes equipped just as you state.


Chris Neary


"Science, freedom, beauty, adventure: what more could
you ask of life? Bicycling combined all the elements I
loved" - Adapted from a quotation by Charles Lindbergh

[jacques]

>
> Well, if you had bothered to check the second URL and followed the reference
> to the Bike Gallery site (www.bikegallery.com), you would have seen that
> Trek is in fact test marketing bikes equipped just as you state.
>

....Ooops !

[Steven Scharf]

Chris Neary > wrote in message >...
> >Villiger (the brand Trek just bought) do make fine bikes. We have two of
> >them at home and are happy with them.
>
> >I don't know, however, if Trek will sell them in the US. One comment is
> >that here these bikes are sold fully equiped (lights, rack,...), while in
> >the US you seem to buy "naked" bikes then add options.
>
> Well, if you had bothered to check the second URL and followed the reference
> to the Bike Gallery site (www.bikegallery.com), you would have seen that
> Trek is in fact test marketing bikes equipped just as you state.

I'm glad to see this. That's a great store, I bought by Burley d'lite
trailer up there while on a business trip and saved about $150 over
what the Bay Area stores were charging. Knowing that shop, I'll bet
that they pushed Trek to let them try to sell these bikes in the U.S.

Too bad only ONE store in the whole country sells these Trek's
which apparently are normally sold only in the Benelux region.
Adding options to naked bikes is okay--where can I buy chain
guards (the answer is nowhere).

Giant has similar bicycles that they sell only in Europe, i.e.
see:

"http://www.bike-shed.com/products.php?plid=1-0-18-214"

200 UK pounds (including VAT) but lights are apparently not included.
The steel model is only 165 UK pounds.

Trek is really gouging on these bikes considering the componentry
and what similar bikes go for overseas, but they have a real niche.

I looked at the Breezer, but the Nexus hub doesn't really thrill
me; part of my commute is quite a steep hill on a trail that goes
under a freeway, and I want the lower gears.

I'd rather fly to the UK or Benelux to buy a bike. It's not that
much more than a trip to Portland these days, and there is no
charge for a bike on the airplane internationally. The net cost
will be less!

Personally I think that there is a real market for bikes like this
if they are priced only $150 or so more than a bike without the
fenders, chainguard, rack, and lights. These four options would
cost the manuafacturer about $35 in parts, but would cost the consumer
about $75 even without the chainguard. Then there is the hassle
of installation for the consumer which is worth at least another
$50-75.

Has anyone added a rear rack to a "comfort bike" lately? Get
out the aluminum flat bar, a saw, and a vise to bend the
aluminum, and a drill. The place where you attach the front of
the rack is way too far away to use the hardware that comes with
the rack.

[Steven M. Scharf]

"Art Winterbauer" > wrote in message
...
> Just how stupid is this idea? Not finding any European-styled "comfort"
bikes
> along the lines of those advertised by Gazelle (http://www.gazelle.nl) in
the
> U.S., I'm entertaining the notion of opening a small shop to import and
sell a
> few models in a university town here. The town has extensive biking trails
and I
> think folks might like to have a utility bike for running errands and the
like.
>
> Obviously, since no one is importing such bikes, I think there must be a
very
> good reason. Any guesses why such a venture would be foolish?

If too successful, the major bike companies would bury you. Trek and
Giant both sell these types of bikes in other countries, and as other posts
in this thread have shown, one bike shop has somehow gained permission
from Trek to sell these models in the U.S.

But go for it. Momovelo in Berkeley does exactly what you are thinking of
doing. http://momovelo.com/bicycles.html

Meanwhile, anyone interested in a trip to Oregon or Amsterdam to buy a
bike? We could make it a group trip and get maybe get a group discount
on the bikes. The airfares to Europe are amazingly low.

I wish that one Trek shop in my area would be able to get these Trek
models that The Bike Gallery managed to be able to sell. Mike J, are
you there?! There are a lot of bike commuters in the Bay Area.

[Luigi de Guzman]

Art Winterbauer > wrote in message >...

There are some dealers who deal in these, or similar--

Kettler has a few dealers in the States...and I was somewhat surprised
to find them under "comfort bikes" in the modell's sporting goods
website <www.modells.com>.

But as many others will have noted, they will never take off. They're
expensive, compared to 'plain' bikes.....never mind that they come
fully-loaded with everything needed for practical transport, but the
mass market doesn't shell out RealMoney for what it thinks of
primarily as a fair=weather toy. The sport market will shell out
RealMoney for its toys--but a large proportion of these drive to ride
and wouldn't dream of actually using the bike to get around.

So that leaves...errr....

-Luigi

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article >,
(Luigi de Guzman) wrote:

> Art Winterbauer > wrote in message
> >...
>
> There are some dealers who deal in these, or similar--
>
> Kettler has a few dealers in the States...and I was somewhat surprised
> to find them under "comfort bikes" in the modell's sporting goods
> website <www.modells.com>.
>
> But as many others will have noted, they will never take off. They're
> expensive, compared to 'plain' bikes.....never mind that they come
> fully-loaded with everything needed for practical transport, but the
> mass market doesn't shell out RealMoney for what it thinks of
> primarily as a fair=weather toy. The sport market will shell out
> RealMoney for its toys--but a large proportion of these drive to ride
> and wouldn't dream of actually using the bike to get around.
>
> So that leaves...errr....

There's a definite (albeit small) commuter market, but I think this
evolution is typical:

Phase I: ride what you got. Probably no rack, fenders, or lights. Most
likely a rigid MTB with mild knobbies, but could be anything from a road
bike to a department-store FS.
Phase II: evolved ride. bike is probably a hardtail or rigid MTB, though
a road bike is possible. Fenders, rack, and lights are added as they
become necessary. Slick tires get put on, completing a semi-permanent
commuter bike.
Phase III: there is no phase III. If you've got an evolved ride, there's
no great advantage to a Euro-style city bike. You might like the
tradeoff of fewer gears for a simpler 7-speed driveline, but that's a
pretty expensive trade.

--
Ryan Cousineau, http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine
President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club

[Jeff]

"Luigi de Guzman" > wrote in message
om...
> Art Winterbauer > wrote in message
>...
>
> There are some dealers who deal in these, or similar--
>
> Kettler has a few dealers in the States...and I was somewhat surprised
> to find them under "comfort bikes" in the modell's sporting goods
> website <www.modells.com>.
>
> But as many others will have noted, they will never take off. They're
> expensive, compared to 'plain' bikes.....never mind that they come
> fully-loaded with everything needed for practical transport, but the
> mass market doesn't shell out RealMoney for what it thinks of
> primarily as a fair=weather toy. The sport market will shell out
> RealMoney for its toys--but a large proportion of these drive to ride
> and wouldn't dream of actually using the bike to get around.

I looked at the website and have to disagree. They do not come with lights,
so I certainly wouldn't consider them to be fully loaded. And they
certainly are expensive, at least to me. Of course, when contemplating
commuting in a true winter climate, such as Winnipeg, the thought of a
thousand-dollar bicycle is rather laughable.

[Steven Scharf]

"Jeff" > wrote in message >...

> I looked at the website and have to disagree. They do not come with lights,
> so I certainly wouldn't consider them to be fully loaded. And they
> certainly are expensive, at least to me. Of course, when contemplating
> commuting in a true winter climate, such as Winnipeg, the thought of a
> thousand-dollar bicycle is rather laughable.

Many of the Kettler's come with lights, i.e.

Paramount
Jan
City Tour
Traveller
City Comfort
Elegance
Wings

For most commuters, these lights are sufficient, since
they're riding on lit streets and the lights are
more just to be seen.

There are a lot of commuters in my area, and they generally
are the more well-off professionals who do not hesitate to
spend money on expensive bicycles. No harsh winter climate
either.

[Steven Scharf]

Art Winterbauer > wrote in message >...

> Some similarly styled bikes that reader Yannik pointed me to were:
>
> http://www.utopia-fahrrad.de/
> http://www.batavus.nl
> http://www.pashley.co.uk/
> http://www.sparta.nl/

I threw together a web site with currently available
"Eurobikes" in the U.S.. Basically the selection
is small and the prices are outrageous considering
the compenentry, but "you get what you get or you
get nothing."

"http://nordicgroup.us/commutebike/"

Fuji has some very nice models that they don't sell in the
U.S., including the only derailleur equipped chromolloy
model I could find. I sent an e-mail to the head of Fuji U.S.
suggesting that they consider selling some of their models
here, now that Trek is doing so. I have little hope of a
positive response!

[Steven Scharf]

Art Winterbauer > wrote in message >...

> Some similarly styled bikes that reader Yannik pointed me to were:
>
> http://www.utopia-fahrrad.de/
> http://www.batavus.nl
> http://www.pashley.co.uk/
> http://www.sparta.nl/

I threw together a web site with currently available
"Eurobikes" in the U.S.. Basically the selection
is small and the prices are outrageous considering
the compenentry, but "you get what you get or you
get nothing."

"http://nordicgroup.us/commutebike/"

Fuji has some very nice models that they don't sell in the
U.S., including the only derailleur equipped chromolloy
model I could find. I sent an e-mail to the head of Fuji U.S.
suggesting that they consider selling some of their models
here, now that Trek is doing so. I have little hope of a
positive response!