Dawes and Claud Butler bike maker reports drop in sales

I like a British based manufacturer to fill a niche in the market but I feel the same way as other people here, what niche do Tandem & Dawes etc feel they address?

When my wife was looking for a £350 womens road bike, in a 43cm, the tight budget meant choices were limited. So she bought the Giro 300 from Evans. It's a decent bike, for commuting, if uninspiring and we've made some minor upgrades. Now she's a few months in the saddle there's very little chance she'd buy anything made by them again though. I even looked at the Giro 400 until I saw what my money could buy elsewhere. Next I was encouraged to buy a CB Torino II by a LBS for £420 but couldn't bring myself to do it, even if it was flying the flag. So in my opinion they need to consolidate their range and branding, lower pricing and slowly develop a reputation for something decent. Aiming at mum's and dad's out with the kids clearly isn't inspiring for anyone.

My daily ride is a 60s Claud Butler and I love it but would not dream of buying one of the cheap modern versions - cheap and ugly.

A real shame - they used to make lovely bikes but no more – sold out years ago...

"Dawes, Claud Butler, Falcon, Boss, Townsend and British Eagle"

New slogan: "Tandem - cornering the market in has-been brands that no-one wants anymore"

Sorry if that sounds harsh Mr Shears, but it's true. When I was a kid we lusted after the Claud Butler and British Eagle, but things have moved on. You don't have to be in on the carbon fibre sportive market but that sub-£1k segment is crowded and competitive.

Also, just being found in the old-school bike shops means, to a certain extent, that you will only ever be seen by old-school cyclists, but those people know enough that if they're after steel or alloy and a british brand they're looking to the likes of Kinesis or Enigma. By the same token, those family-day-out cyclists that haven't really bought bikes before, don't know those little shops are there - they'll go to a big shed such as the one where they buy their car spares from. Even when they get there, they'll buy bikes that seem to offer the most bang for their buck, when brands such as Dawes look a little pricey by comparison.

Sounds like an old-school company has found itself in the midst of a new-school business environment.

No bike boom? You tell yourself that. Fact is, people used to see £400 as expensive for a bike. Now, largely thanks to the cycle to work scheme, a lot of people see £800-£1k as a decent 'normal' budget - and at that price there are so many better bikes that Dawes can offer, and the internet helps people find them.

As someone said above, Raleigh were in the same position, fundamentally dead and buried and they've started investing and turning it around. Tandem need to compete or give up.

its odd because I am a smidgen in agreement with the notion that the biking boom is a bit of a myth,for all the cycling hoopla weve had over the last few years, Im not convinced its creating more active cyclists,and certainly not more active leisure cyclists,which Id totally agree is Tandem groups main and potentially only customer base.

but then to go blame poor sales on this summer being too hot with people sat in gardens having bbqs instead...er think they are just making excuses for poor figures.

I still ride my British Eagle, but I think Id need to hit my head on a hard surface without helmet protection to consider buying from the same group of brands again, its not quite a BSO but its pretty close and the kind of bikes Tandem sell are matched by anything the likes of a Halfords churns out.

so Id agree I think their real problem is the range is outdated and being squeezed from lots of competing companies who offer,or at least appear to offer something better for the same amount of cash, just to blame it on rich middle age fund managers buying carbon frames seems to be spectacularly missing the point of whats happening to their business.

I was selling Claud Butler in Hardisty Cycles in Newcastle in the 90's before their manufacturing moved offshore. Those bikes were good value, sturdy machines with lugged construction, and easy to sell on price and brand awareness.

Here we are some 22 years later, Claud Butler is not a name I would even consider recommending a friend if buying sub-entry level (bso), entry level or higher end. Its just one of dozens of catalogue bikes with a graphic on the down tube.

Seems their brands are 'lost' in the paradigm shift in branding and pricing due to a confusion by their management, rather than any lack of sales potential in the consumer retail cycle market?

I bought a Dawes Galaxy Plus this February as I weighed 22st 4lb, wanted to lose weight, and thought the bike would be 'robust' enough for my mass and offer a bit of potential if I lost weight.

I'm now down to 16st so it has certainly helped with the first part. OK, I've swapped out the tyres for 25mm ones, changed the saddle, and removed the rack but with those changes it has seen me through almost 2,000 miles including my first century ride.

Now, I'd love to buy a nice carbon bike to go with my weight loss and increased fitness. But until the budget allows I think the Dawes will serve me very well.

I'd agree their marketing is fairly awful. And the bike is far from light. But it is reliable, well built and perfect for the combination of fat lad and a hill.

I hope they can find a way to make it work.

I meant that tandem had a range similar to Halfords and that you got what you paid for i.e above £300 the stuff is OK.

I never said, inferred, or meant that Halfords stuff was inferior, as most people know, Carrera and above is competitive in the market on quality and price.

Last British Eagle I would was £13 from Asda, we bought it as it was cheaper than the airfix kit we went to buy....

Thing is about Claud Butler and Dawes, they are ' good enough' for most people and unlike the other tandem brands, aren't trash ( all are heavily discounted) and the people who but them don't usually have aspirations to move up or use them enough to wear anything out.

I have friends with Claud Butlers that do a few days out a year and maybe one sportive every 2 years, they are quite happy with what they have and only do tyres and brakes. It's pretty unlikely they would buy another one.

Tandem stuff is on a par with Halfords, the supermarkets and sports direct as far as I have seen, only sell comedy rubbish.

I think a key issue is where the bikes are sold.

Most people casually wanting a cheapish BSO will head off to Halfords, Sports Direct, Evans or any of the other big visible sheds. Even bloody Asda flogs what look like half reasonable bikes now

Not a lot will seek out the cramped back street LBS run by a grizzly ex-racer with 25 yr old faded Karrimor panniers in the window.

You may get great service and advice, but they have to find them and get though the door first.

Most of the brands they have are just cheap stuff stickered up with brand names from years ago. Few people now will remember the good stuff from Claude Butler or British Eagle which was last sold in the 80s.

This is common story in British business - ALDI and Waitrose doing well, Tesco less so. Primark and Selfridges doing well - Marks and Spencers less so
The middle market is floundering.
When money is tight people will either buy cheap or buy good quality.
Tandem have some really quality names in their roster but they have cheapened the brands.
I'd be glad to ride (and pay good money for) a Dawes tourer or a British Eagle if they were high quality and classy bikes but at the moment they are just mediocre bikes in a very crowded market of mediocre bikes.

I would never go near that brand again! After 3 months of having there Dawes Giro I walked it ti the closest bike shop to me and gave it to them, (which was a job and a half)
worst bike I have had the misfortune to purchase.

The rise of the professional second hand market is probably biting into the sales of these brands quite a lot.

seems to me more likely that one company is being left behind by the market, and a clutching at straws for excuses.

The question of market booming or not is something that can only be answered by looking at the market as a whole, not one company with fairly 'meh' bikes...

When the Giro started in Belfast a local cycling blogger made a great point about the legacy it would leave in relation to new cyclists. He argued that the Belfast Marathon every May Day bank holiday also brings out the crowds but does that lead to an increase in people walking rather than driving to the shops? Not really so it is no surprise that there may be an increase in those buying racing bikes and taking it up as a sport but will it encourage others to use bikes in other parts of their lives? That is not as clear.

I think Tandem's problem is their target market; the £250 to £900 market is absolutely overcrowded with offers, and Tandem really have done nothing to market their brands.

The Dawes and Claud Butler names used to carry some weight many years ago, but now there would be no reaction from the average bloke in the street beyond possibly a slight recollection of the names.

Maybe it's coz yer bikes are shite. Just saying...

Dawes, Claud Butler, Falcon, Boss, Townsend and British Eagle - maybe Tandem need a rethink on the brands, the quality of product, and the target market.

http://claudbutler.co.uk/cycle-range/range/claud-butler-road-touring/cb3092-2014

Just to educate myself, seems very expensive for what it is and not many sizes, the rest of the range seems similar.

and the Dawes website is broken.

As i see it, there has been a boom in cycling as a leisure pursuit, nothing more.

This may sound harsh, but how many people want to buy Dawes or Claude Butler, a company such as Raleigh has been working to change there image to catch the current market, still have a lot of baggage, but they are trying.

However Dawes, the Galaxy and that is about it, and Claude Butler, cheap and nasty, now i might be wrong but that is what i see.

Uh, sounds like they're blaming anything that comes to mind for the lower sales?

How about the bikes being sort of boring, so not appealing to current commuter/student/hipster tastes?