Do I live in a different world?

[400bhp]

No, perhaps not (although it does sometimes irk at the end of a 60 hour week ) , but then no one should judge others on what they do spend their disposable income on

I think that's a whole new thread there.

 

[400bhp]

Ha ha - how ridiculous is VAT! I had a quick look through the tables of charges and the arbitrary nature of the rules is mind-boggling.

You have too much time on your hands

GWS mate.

 

[black'n'yellow]

I bobbed down to Harry Halls last week to have a nosey - it surprised me that the Lusso stuff is apparently made in Manchester.

There is a certain irony there, isn't there. £50 for a Lusso winter jacket made in the UK - or £250 for a Rapha winter jacket made in China.

 

[Andrew_Culture]

I'm not a reverse snob, I'm just fiscally comprised :-)

 

[ColinJ]

You have too much time on your hands

GWS mate.

Not really - I'm getting very short of money so I should be working on cash-raising schemes rather than looking up stuff like that! I have a short attention span and a curious mind so the internet is a huge trap for people like me ...

 

[Andrew_P]

Glad it is not only me with the Assos adverts, I cannot even bring myself to look at the item - amazed anyone buys the gear with the weird presentation.

 

[Zakalwe]

There is a certain irony there, isn't there. £50 for a Lusso winter jacket made in the UK - or £250 for a Rapha winter jacket made in China.

The made in china snobbery is one I don't understand, quality wise the bar is raised much higher in the Far East than here. Since we began outsourcing to maximise our profits we've let our manufacturing go to the dogs. If rather a made in china label than one that says made in UK when all that was actually done here was make a label and sew it on. I've seen that on footwear - made in a Thai factory, shipped to Italy where a leather sole with "made in Italy" is glued on.

 

[black'n'yellow]

The made in china snobbery is one I don't understand, quality wise the bar is raised much higher in the Far East than here. Since we began outsourcing to maximise our profits we've let our manufacturing go to the dogs. If rather a made in china label than one that says made in UK when all that was actually done here was make a label and sew it on. I've seen that on footwear - made in a Thai factory, shipped to Italy where a leather sole with "made in Italy" is glued on.

Lusso stuff is actually made by people in Manchester with sewing machines n everything.

 

[Zakalwe]

Comment wasn't directly aimed at Lusso shocker. Anyway, Rapha stuff is made by people too - with sewing machines and everything.

 

[black'n'yellow]

Comment wasn't directly aimed at Lusso shocker. Anyway, Rapha stuff is made by people too - with sewing machines and everything.

So it is - but the irony (which was pointed out earlier) is that Rapha will charge you a premium for the privilege of Chinese outsourcing. Most companies usually outsource to China in order to keep prices lower, rather than higher...

 

[Zakalwe]

You seem to be implying that Made in China = cheap, which isn't the case any more. It's certainly telling that the really cheap clothing shops like Primark or H&M don't stock anything made in China any more, it's all made in Bangladesh or Turkey these days. Anyway, I doubt a factory in the UK could keep up with demand at a price reasonable enough to hit the price point Rapha aim for when marketing, sponsorship, pro team management costs etc are taken into account. Especially when their union tell them to go on strike because there aren't enough free biscuits.

 

[BalkanExpress]

I'm a bit of a reverse snob. I am very reluctant to wear clothes with logos of any sort, or buy expensive branded gear. I became a cyclist with a mindset pretty much like the OP.


I've gone through goodness knows how many bike lights. Two Lidl halogen rechargeable ones, that were actually reasonably good lights, have both bounced out of their mount and smashed. The second one had a different mount, and I thought oh good they've fixed it, but unfortunately not. I'm very close to buying this instead.

try Bike24, Rose bikes or one of the other German sites, much cheaper than the UK so when you get it you'll feel you've a bargin

Ohh and if you do get one let us know what it's like: I too am tempted

 

[black'n'yellow]

You seem to be implying that Made in China = cheap, which isn't the case any more. It's certainly telling that the really cheap clothing shops like Primark or H&M don't stock anything made in China any more, it's all made in Bangladesh or Turkey these days. Anyway, I doubt a factory in the UK could keep up with demand at a price reasonable enough to hit the price point Rapha aim for when marketing, sponsorship, pro team management costs etc are taken into account. Especially when their union tell them to go on strike because there aren't enough free biscuits.

Not sure what business school you went to, but I'm glad I didn't go there. Low-volume production usually results in a high cost per unit and unit costs usually fall the higher you go into volume and it's not like Rapha is selling those jackets by the container-load - we're still talking relatively low-level batch production.

Lusso already makes a jacket that does the same job as the Rapha one for significantly less. Now, you can try to justify Rapha's costs as much as you like, but all I see are two jackets - one costing £50 and the other costing £200 more.

 

[Mr Haematocrit]

try Bike24, Rose bikes or one of the other German sites, much cheaper than the UK so when you get it you'll feel you've a bargin

Ohh and if you do get one let us know what it's like: I too am tempted

Your not comparing like for like though... Take Specialized as a brand with a presence in the UK... They have UK trained dealers and service engineers, they have concept stores which have bike fit centres. Specialized frames have a lifetime guarantee. Compare this to a Rose which does not have a UK presence or support structure, as such if your Rose frame is damaged or destroyed by an accident or a fall within five years from the date of purchase, you will receive 50% of the retail price of a new frame. From the UK Rose will also charge you for the shipping costs incurred.

You'll feel you've a bargain if everything is as you would expect, if this is not the case you could find yourself wishing you went with an established brand

 

[Zakalwe]

Not sure what business school you went to, but I'm glad I didn't go there. Low-volume production usually results in a high cost per unit and unit costs usually fall the higher you go into volume and it's not like Rapha is selling those jackets by the container-load - we're still talking relatively low-level batch production.

Lusso already makes a jacket that does the same job as the Rapha one for significantly less. Now, you can try to justify Rapha's costs as much as you like, but all I see are two jackets - one costing £50 and the other costing £200 more.

In not entirely sure what question it is you're even answering with this post, so I'll leave it from here.