price of cycling clothing why so high?

holker

Someone's making serious profit on cycling clothing. For e.g. a summer jersey can cost £50 or more, up to £100 for top of range. Basicly they are tee shirts. OK with some added features and cut for cycling that will bump the price up a bit but not the amounts we are asked to pay. Most kit I guess is manufactured in China, imported into Europe and massive mark up added for marketing hype. Ever felt like you were robbed?

sunburntknees

If you want some cheaper kit then try shopping at places like Decathlon or Lidl or Aldi. I believe they all offer kit at cheaper prices. You have a choice.

SDK2007

I agree they are expensive but they are not just 'T'Shirts' !!

Most are made from technical fabrics which wick away seat and dry out quickly. They also have panels made from different materials i.e. a thick windstopper body layer with incorporated stretch fabric panels and a lighter weight fabric for the sleeves.

Sure mark ups are high but its the same with everything these days.

bruce225

Been out of cycling for the last 5/6 yrs due to kids but since got my new bike and needing new clothing..I'm shocked it seems to have doubled in price, Team jerseys especially..Now out of my price bracket just keep looking for sale items...

Smokin Joe

The price is based on what people will pay for it, not what it costs to make.

dirkdiggler69

welcome to broken britain :roll:

Berk Bonebonce

The budget stuff is made in the Far East, and your pro quality stuff is made in Europe. The quality of the fabrics are what can make a difference.

petemadoc

Keep an eye out for the sales and get the best kit you can afford, it makes riding longer distances much more pleasurable

mallorcajeff

having started cycling in august I have spent over £500 on clothing and i was amazed but I am still amazed how well good stuff works so you do seem to get what you pay for a little bit. Coming from sailing though cycling clothing is cheap in comparison but I do know what you mean some of the prices are a laugh. If you go for santini its middle of the road I find and worth the money. Cheper stuff i find works out as a fasle economy in the end better to buy once than make my mistakes and end up with a room full of stuff i will never wear again and I dont suppose its worth selling any of it.

Nealmason1986

I use these http://www.cycling-jersey.net/

obviously something isnt right with it. I think they are senconds but i have used them for some time and i have alot of friends who use them and the stuff i get is pretty mint to be honest. i got the sky kit last week and it looks and feels mint. nothing poor about them.

We have our suspicions that it might be seconds from the real manufacturers. but i have not spotted any mistakes.

takes a while to come though

i would recommend to anyone

flanners1

Surely that is snide gear like the stuff from the East on the 'Bay?

Nealmason1986

mine is pretty impressive! i know a few people who have cycled for a long long time and used the top gear and they have said that its pretty decent stuff and they use it now!

these are people who cycle 60 miles each ride 3 times a week. they are doing one of the TDF legs this year and are using this stuff

mine seem good quality

BillyMansell

Flanners1 wrote:

Surely that is snide gear like the stuff from the East on the 'Bay?

It looks like it as the website is just offering a dropshipping service and are not themselves the retailer or supplier.

Each to their own.

cougie

A lot of the expensive kit is there because people will pay for it.

I think Stella Artois is a good example - cheaper brand in France but they marketed it over here as reassuringly expensive. And it was a success.

There's still plenty of decent affordable kit out there - you don't need to pay through the nose.

Pigtail

Nealmason1986 wrote:

I use these http://www.cycling-jersey.net/

snip>>>>>>

i would recommend to anyone

What's the shipping cost like?

tincaman

$6 shipping

Monty Dog

:roll: and people talk about 'broken Britain' and yet some seem happy to buy knock-off kit from China. There are well-known links between forgeries, organised crime, drug-trafficking and people-smuggling, but hey, if you're happy to keep these guys in 'business' then go ahead.

meanredspider

Also to throw the economies of scale into this debate. It's infinitely cheaper to make several million t-shirts than, say, 10,000 high-end cycle jerseys. Overheads are lost in big volumes for all parts of the supply chain.

markos1963

meanredspider wrote:

Also to throw the economies of scale into this debate. It's infinitely cheaper to make several million t-shirts than, say, 10,000 high-end cycle jerseys. Overheads are lost in big volumes for all parts of the supply chain.

+1
I used to work in high end fashion and it's the same there.
A plain white tee that will not change for several seasons will be able to earn back all it's development costs and make a good profit with only a small mark up. A technical cycling top with a design that will only last 6 months before a sponsor change and will only sell in the hundreds will always cost a lot more regardless of the fabric it's made from.

rick_chasey

Supply and demand...

giant_man

Very simple. Supply and demand.

Bar Shaker

It's not on selling knock off Livestrong stuff. Some of the revenue goes to Lance Armstrong's charity.

The profits from this stuff don't.

Monty Dog

^ yup, somebody's got to pay for the private jet, the fuel, the landing fees etc etc, I means that's a whole lotta jerseys they gotta shift...darn them Chinese for denying someone the ability to swank around in a jet to promote 'awareness'

cougie

BS - I see your point but how about if you bought the knockoff kit and donated dosh to Livestrong with the saviings ? They'd surely get a lot more revenue that way.

waynokio

Smokin Joe wrote:

The price is based on what people will pay for it, not what it costs to make.

this guys got it in one!

mattshrops

cycling is classed the same as motorcycling- it is a leisure activity.
that means youre gonna get scr@wed. - especially once you factor in your average cyclist(according to cycling plus survey) 40+ =money available.enjoy :shock:

Bar Shaker

cougie wrote:

BS - I see your point but how about if you bought the knockoff kit and donated dosh to Livestrong with the saviings ? They'd surely get a lot more revenue that way.

Yep that's a good point.

MrChuck

dirkdiggler69 wrote:

welcome to broken britain :roll:

Eh?

Anyway, as someone else says some stuff is expensive, some isn't- if you don't want to pay for the spendy stuff then get something else.

PostieJohn

MrChuck wrote:

Anyway, as someone else says some stuff is expensive, some isn't- if you don't want to pay for the spendy stuff then get something else.

Hmmm you make it sound so easy.
I've been trying to track down a new pair of bib shorts, for quite some time now, and I'm pretty shocked that I'm looking close to 3 figures.
That certainly didn't happen the last time in was in that market, 2-3 years ago.

Bar Shaker

PostieJohn wrote:

MrChuck wrote:

Anyway, as someone else says some stuff is expensive, some isn't- if you don't want to pay for the spendy stuff then get something else.

Hmmm you make it sound so easy.
I've been trying to track down a new pair of bib shorts, for quite some time now, and I'm pretty shocked that I'm looking close to 3 figures.
That certainly didn't happen the last time in was in that market, 2-3 years ago.

Decathlon, £49, they are the best shorts I have out of Nalini, Pearl Izumi, Endura and Nike.

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/EN/supportiv ... NFO-DETAIL

Monkeypump

PostieJohn wrote:

MrChuck wrote:

Anyway, as someone else says some stuff is expensive, some isn't- if you don't want to pay for the spendy stuff then get something else.

Hmmm you make it sound so easy.
I've been trying to track down a new pair of bib shorts, for quite some time now, and I'm pretty shocked that I'm looking close to 3 figures.
That certainly didn't happen the last time in was in that market, 2-3 years ago.

It's certainly not difficult to find bib shorts well under £100 - under £50 is equally easy.

Not sure which brands you've been trying to track down, but there are lots of the cheaper brands readily available. Google is your friend.