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Board price for team Naish

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Created by Krist > 9 months ago, 13 Nov 2016
Area10
1508 posts
25 Nov 2016 6:43PM
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Yeah it's pretty obvious that racing is strong in Australia from watching the ISA Worlds. France looks pretty strong now as well, and of course the US and Hawaii. But the many countries were fielding teams that suggested that SUP racing might be only in its infancy in that country. Some of the competitors there were doing their best - and I admire them for it - but were just weekend warriors really. So you can see why companies like Naish might want to have different marketing strategies in different parts of the world.

burleighlocal
255 posts
26 Nov 2016 8:22AM
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JB said..
Krist,

(My personal opinion and rant - not Naish or Naish Aust.)
Having a good market in Australia is a great thing, but bypassing the dealers is not. It is (in 99% or cases) the dealers that are promoting racing, running training groups, supporting races and events and also the ones that are there to demo boards to you, teach you about the boards and so on. Some countries do not have this, we are very lucky to have such dedicated and talented dealers that are in majority of the time some of the best paddlers in the country themselves. There is however an ego in most paddlers that feel they should always get a deal regardless of what they bring back into the sport, stripping hundreds of dollars off high value gear because they shop around and screw the local guy who has poured so much time and energy into them in the early stages. Unfortunately the on going effect is not so good. Yes there is lots of cheap brands around now, and they are all cashing in on the hard work of the major pillars, however how much are they giving back to the sport? As a lot of them go direct, the dealers are not getting any cut for their hard work along the way and as a result, like windsurfing many will disappear over time, meaning less events, less training, less races and so on. What is the point of having a race board if there are no races? (exaggeration).

All this said, have you signed up for the program, and has your local dealer been in contact with you to discuss it?

Rant done, may delete once i've woken up more.

Ride safe, support your local,

JB


support your local? Great idea…I had Chris Garrett shape me a board for 1/2 the price of a Naish. Best decision ever.


burleighlocal
255 posts
26 Nov 2016 8:22AM
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Krist said..
So i think I have it clear now , because you have a strong market in Australia we can go suck a lemon right ?


correct.

Area10
1508 posts
26 Nov 2016 9:24AM
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burleighlocal said...
Krist said..
So i think I have it clear now , because you have a strong market in Australia we can go suck a lemon right ?


correct.

Look guys, they are running a business not a charity. If fewer people would pay the inflated prices that we are being charged for these boards (and Naish are no worse than many other brands in this respect) then we'd all be getting boards for "team rider" prices. Get your local shaper to make you a Maliko-type board, save yourself some cash, and feel the warm glow because you've been contributing to your local economy in a far bigger way than you would have been doing buying a production board.

PTWoody
VIC, 3982 posts
26 Nov 2016 5:00PM
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There is no getting around the fact that any team rider agreement between a manufacturer and rider squeezes out the retailer. In a market where there are little or no retailers supporting that brand, it makes sense for the distributor to strike up a direct to customer arrangement in order to move product at wholesale prices and help create awareness of the brand. That might encourage local retailers to stock the brand as there is clearly a demand for the product. But where you have retailers willing and eager to stock the brand, it would be suicidal to undercut them by offering wholesale deals to customers.

AA
NSW, 2159 posts
28 Nov 2016 7:03PM
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Can someone please explain the point of owning a race board and not having a race to paddle it in?
There ain't no money running race events.
The race market is so fragmented right now. This could just be the tipping point. Bye bye SUP racing.

Area10
1508 posts
28 Nov 2016 5:03PM
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The majority of people who own sports cars never race them on a track.

A race board isn't "a board you can only use when racing", it's a "board that could be used for racing".

If you are a runner, you can look up the time of the world record holder in your age division and there are websites that will tell you how you compare. The majority of the people who use these websites rarely actually take part in a race. They use websites like this - and buy expensive running gear - because they want to challenge themselves, and improve, without the hassle, aggression, and attention that races involve.

I think the same thing is true of SUP. The fitness and self-improvement market will be far larger than the number of people who take part in races, and they will still want sporty gear, not big touring tubs.

I just deliberately bought a race board that is uncomfortably tippy for me. I have no intention whatsoever of ever racing it. But the challenge of it is making flat water paddling fun for me again, where it had lost its gloss before. There are more people like me than there are people who race regularly. I just don't think that retailers in some markets are really seeing this at the moment. The "fitness, fun, and challenge" sector of the market will be bigger than the pure race or (non-inflatable) touring market. Just look at your local gym: how many people there actually take part in races?

PTWoody
VIC, 3982 posts
28 Nov 2016 9:21PM
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Of course the other analogy is cycling - the market for lycra and racing bikes and clowns blocking traffic along Beach Rd in their weekend pelotons is probably 1000x the number who ever enter a race.

PRAWNDOG
WA, 306 posts
28 Nov 2016 6:42PM
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Every industry in our slowing economy is cutting over heads and reducing costs, you need to be competitive to get business it's not just a given anymore. if your customers cannot afford to purchase your product it's no longer relevant................

Area10
1508 posts
28 Nov 2016 8:03PM
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PTWoody said...
Of course the other analogy is cycling - the market for lycra and racing bikes and clowns blocking traffic along Beach Rd in their weekend pelotons is probably 1000x the number who ever enter a race.

Yep. I live on a peninsula and MAMILs on bikes block the roads everywhere so I have to burn masses of excess fuel dawdling along in a 2 mile traffic jam behind them while they brandish their green credentials and fantasise about Bradley Wiggins.

But their numbers just keep on growing, and so do the numbers of non-racing fitness buffs I see SUPing on the canal near me.

Here in the UK we also have a "SUP Bike Run" (SBR) national series which is a triathlon with SUP instead of swimming and mtb rather than road racing. It's against the clock rather than against other competitors and is hugely popular. There is only a small overlap between the people that do SBR and those that race in the national SUP race series. Mostly the SBR crowd are cyclists who are using SUP as a cross-training tool. These people will spend £5k on a bike, so £2.5k on a SUP might not seem quite so crazy to them as it does to a bunch of poverty-stricken old surfers and their groms.

And then there's the sailing crowd, who are also increasingly using SUP as a training tool. Money to burn there, and they are interested in high-tech composite stuff. Mostly they don't race either, unless it's in a yacht. But they do train hard and seriously and want the best kit.

So, pure SUP racers are not the only market for "race boards" by any means, and they are a demographic that might appeal to retailers, if only you can find a way to establish awareness within them.

Krist
QLD, 288 posts
28 Nov 2016 10:49PM
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Your spot on , the club I am in has a lake time trial every week and it's very popular for bettering yourself and just being with other like minded paddlers and the after paddle board talk usually last long after everyone has finished their lap . we have boards from $300 to $4000 and everyone is there to improve their personal time and get fit because paddling is the most pleasurable exercise I and most people who try it can find so all that said if I see Joh Blo in Europe getting his boards for 33.33% cheaper then me I feel a little jipped and as I have said before I get that the distributor is giving up their time with demoing and sponsoring of events it was just a to much like having my nose rubbed in it cheers K

PTWoody
VIC, 3982 posts
29 Nov 2016 11:00AM
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The other most obvious situation where people will buy expensive race boards but never enter a race is in order to go downwinding. We do lots of downwinders around these parts as you would be aware, and yet we don't have any dedicated downwind races in Victoria these days and haven't had one for at least a couple of years.

Area10
1508 posts
29 Nov 2016 6:07PM
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Yeah my own group of buddies are pretty much like you guys in that respect. We all downwind, and all have multiple boards. We are in the water a lot, for e.g. surfing, touring, fitness, downwinding, socialising, family outings and introducing newbies to the sport. We all do other sports as well (with varying levels of involvement) nd many competed at them in our youth. But we only SUP race rarely, and on those occasions pick races which are nice or interesting paddles in themselves, and do it socially, really, as an excuse to all get together and have a laugh. Generally, within our age categories we do pretty well when we race, and there are often wins or podium finishes. But we couldn't really care less about that, and sometimes don't even stay for the medal awards. A problem for us with racing is you actually get to paddle less than if you don't race: If you are in training, you have to have rest days and everything you do needs to be set according to a training plan. F**k that! We are having too much fun SUPing to worry about that kind of cobblers. We just want to do what we want, when we want, and enjoy it.

Rather than more races, what we need is more clubs IMO. But clubs take time, effort and skill to run, and that's time we could be spending SUPing...so we just do it informally.

We are, I think, pretty typical of the many other groups of paddlers round here.

I actually feel a bit sorry for the retailers and distributors because the nature of their business means that it is difficult for them to belong to such a group of buddies. At some point business gets in the way. Maybe this is why they underestimate this demographic: they aren't a part of it.

tobyha
NSW, 40 posts
29 Nov 2016 9:55PM
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I can only speak from personal experience of the paddling scene in Sydney. The retail shops here put a massive effort into supporting the community and sponsoring events. I would say the person whom runs are local shop is very much part of the social scene and is always happy to give advice both on boards, but also on technique, runs and coordinates week day training sessions... All in all pretty much a great advocate for the sport and good guy. The other local shop has run a great series of fun events over the winter and spring catering to people enjoying a social race and even 3km course for first timers, all fun paddling with friends and nothing serious. The Naish guys here in Sydney are also great, with staff members also running training sessions, supporting club surf event and putting on other events like the Naish worlds.

All in all I can't give these folks a big enough rap and support the local distributors approach, given the way the market works here. I agree with some of the previous comments that different markets might require different approaches. Have to say that the people I am disappointed in are Naish HQ as it seems to me this situation could easily have been avoided.



Area10
1508 posts
30 Nov 2016 2:41AM
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The Naish distributor for the UK is also excellent, and puts a lot of effort into supporting the sport. The retailers that Naish uses are more variable IMO. So I don't think this scheme is anything to do with the quality of the distributors, and might not even be related to the quality of the retailers either, and I think it is very important to make this clear. This scheme probably aims to solve a specific marketing issue that Naish may have, to do perhaps with eg. market visibility or perhaps oversupply. We don't know the delivery details either. It is perfectly possible in the UK at least that maybe delivery of any of the items bought under this scheme won't arrive until Spring 2017, when there are only 6 months left until the announcement of the 2018 boards. I have absolutely no idea if this is the case, but the situation might not be as simple as some are imagining here.

Personally, I think it's a great idea by Naish. Anything that reduces the cost of boards, even if for only a few, is a good thing over here. I just wish they'd send a Maliko and a Jav my way... maybe I should apply and see what happens.



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"Board price for team Naish" started by Krist