Guardian Interview: MD of Raleigh

[Crackle]

Mmmm when I was small everyone rode a raleigh arena. Can't say I'd consider them nowadays, I just (rightly or wrongly) associate them with low end stuff - guess they have a bit of work to do to improve their image!

Yes my mate went through about four Arena's. He was working as a commis chef and couldn't afford a decent bike when he started. He commuted 48 miles a day on his Arena, 6 days a week. He sourced them all from people who'd got them for Xmas and left them to rot in the back garden.

No I wouldn't buy a Raleigh. Why don't they bring back Carlton's, I'd look at them, though they went a bit crap before their demise.

 

[Zoiders]

Had a Raleigh M Trax bought second hand a few years back, a proper one made by RSP, as good as a rockhopper or stumpy from the same period, it was an excellent bike, sadly at the same time they were churning the Activator, the Raleigh Activator was the turning point, a piece of crap that burried them

 

[mickle]

Yay! Hi Zoiders!

 

[wafflycat]

I've still got a circa 1988/89 Raleigh Pioneer Trail in the garage. It's my hybrid. Decent enough bike. Still works well (thanks to the excellent ministrations of one's own person bike mechanic) and has a lovely paint jobbie. Mind you, because I have a couple of Bianchis and a recumbent trike, the Raleigh is not ridden these days - but it will be for a while as my Bianchi tourer is due for a refurbishment. The Raleigh took me *miles* when my son was a baby, as I had a child seat attached to the rear rack. It was my defualt mode of transport back then.

As a kid I was given a thoroughly lovely dark, dark blue Raleigh singlespeed one Christmas. Again - it took me for miles and miles round Northumbrian countryside and town, so that's circa late 60s

But I wouldn't buy a Raleigh now.

 

[Smokin Joe]

The last raleigh frame I bought was in 1996, a lugless welded job that replaced the Dynatechs (which were suddenly withdrawn after Raleigh spending the previous years telling us welded frames were finished). The rear brake bridge was out of line and I had to pack half a washer behind the caliper to get it to line up straight.

Raleigh were the biggest manufacturer in the world for decades, but they mostly ignored the continental road scene where a regular prescence would have given their frames a "must have" status among serious cyclists. Instead they made road frames as an afterthought while they chased every fashion going, from Choppers to cheap MTBs. They became the BL of the bike world.

 

[craigwend]

I had a 'purple chopper' as a child (fnar fnar)





(Article also explains what the two 'cyclelife' shops are doing near me)

 

[bof]

I cant see the point of the business the guy's running. Very thin margin, not building a strong brand (Raleigh used to make solid bikes, but never glamorous), competing with supermarket own-brand ffs and what sounds like a half-arsed move into shop franchising. Wouldnt buy its shares.

 

[Big Bren]

If Raleigh were pinning any hopes on that interview as a bit of free puff for the business, their clot of a chief exec managed to achieve completely the opposite effect; he comes across as a bitter, arrogant and deeply cynical man. An own goal worthy of Gerald Ratner.

That said, it's sad to see the brand in such an irrelevant position; I remember yearning for and eventually getting a Raleigh 'racer' as a kid in the late 70's/early 80's and feeling like I'd won the pools.

 

[John the Monkey]

I seem to recall their "Banana" and "Kellogg's Pro Tour" being on my wish list when I was younger. I agree that he doesn't come across very well in that interview, which is a shame. I do still own a Raleigh (Pioneer Elite Hybrid) and whilst not terribly exciting, it's a solid, dependable bike.

 

[SamNichols]

The female world number one rides a Raleigh, surely that shows that they can build a top class racing bike?

 

[wafflycat]

The female world number one rides a Raleigh, surely that shows that they can build a top class racing bike?

That means they've paid her to be in a team they've sponsored. It means naught about the bike. Nicole Cooke could ride a £69.99 BSO and still win races In any event - next year she's part of a British national team, rather than Raleigh.

 

[alecstilleyedye]

The female world number one rides a Raleigh, surely that shows that they can build a top class racing bike?

tom simpson supposedly rode a peugeot, but it was in fact a massi painted up as peugeot for contractual reasons.

 

[Disgruntled Goat]

This guy hasn't bought a manufacturing business, he's bought a brand - one that is still very stong amongst many (admittedly novice) bike buyers. I think he's just scratching his head about what to do with his brand. Personally, I think he's on a hiding to nowt.

Nice description of a traditional lbs though. Lot of truth there.

 

[Zoiders]

The female world number one rides a Raleigh, surely that shows that they can build a top class racing bike?

No

She Rides a Univega with Raleigh stickers on

Like alecstilleyedye said - you think Tom Simpson actually rode a Peugot?

Its intresting that Raleigh US manages to tap a vein and build up bikes(notice I dont say "make") people want, they sell a fixie for instance

Raleigh UK make toys, they havent made good bikes since RSP went under, the few high end road pushrods are Univega, Raleigh have tacked them on to the range as an after thought

 

[Cycling Naturalist]

This guy hasn't bought a manufacturing business, he's bought a brand - one that is still very stong amongst many (admittedly novice) bike buyers. I think he's just scratching his head about what to do with his brand. Personally, I think he's on a hiding to nowt.

Nice description of a traditional lbs though. Lot of truth there.

I couldn't agree more. What came out is that he's got no clear working plan for the business. He needs a clearly defined model line with a marketing plan designed round the rusted trusted name, emphasising reliability and availability of replacement bits. In short, a pitch that appeals to the middle classes who are willing to pay more for something that doesn't fall to bits in the same way as a towpath special at speed on a cattle grid. Nothing in the interview suggests that he has the clear vision that he needs to succeed.