A raft of this year’s hottest launches contained a halo bike above £10,000. Price tags that were once the lofty preserve of niche (often Italian) brands that sat in the garages of millionaires have now trickled down to the club run, leading to questions from some riders, and outrage from others.
“Surely, you could buy a motorbike for that money?” is a not uncommon refrain.
For Specialized there was the £10,500 Tarmac S-Works SL7 and £10,750 S-Works Aethos, both of which had an extra £1,000 added to the price months later. For BMC it was the SLR01 One with SR AM Red AXS, at £10,250. Trek’s Emonda SLR09 sat just below the threshold at £9,700 while the Giant TCR SL Disc was released at £9,499 before jumping up to £9,699 soon after launch. Then, there was that €10,000 BMC Masterpiece frame.
These price hikes are above inflation and are focused on the upper ends of bike ranges. A 2015 S-Works Tarmac SL5 Disc RRP’d at £8,000 while the 2021 S-Works Tarmac SL7 sits at £11,500. In comparison, a Shimano 105-specced Allez was £1,200 in 2015 — the 2021 model is £1,249. In all cases, of course, bikes have seen change and development.
I set about to ask some smaller brands what they thought might be driving this price increase. The answers surprised me.
Unicorn hair
“Obviously, things like exchange rates and Brexit are going to affect price points,” explains Tim Allen, who builds bikes for customers at Soigneur London as well as having his own contacts in production. However, he reckons the price boost has more to do with material costs than shipping costs.
Bu hikaye CYCLING WEEKLY dergisinin January 07, 2021 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye CYCLING WEEKLY dergisinin January 07, 2021 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
"We tore around the Sydney suburbs at 60kph in a terrifying, feral pack"
Fast, furious and furry tales from Australia
RIDDEN AND REVIEWED BROMPTON G LINE £2,499
A Brompton for running riot in both town and country
How do different gravel conditions impact your tyre choice?
There are a myriad of tyres on the market but selecting the right one is easier than you think
FEAST OF SWEDEN
Soon after landing in Gothenburg, I began to realise how little I knew about Sweden.
THE WORLD'S GREATEST GRAVEL EVENTS
Globe-trotting gravel racer Joe Laverick chooses his eight favourite events, from coastal Wales to the wilds of Kenya
THE CALL OF THE WILD
Tempted to embark on a long-distance bike adventure? Let former round-the-world record holder and author Julian Sayarer inspire you to strike out and hit the road
Saint Piran accused of using non-UCI legal bikes
Cornish team also alleged to owe former staff tens of thousands of pounds
JOE LAVERICK GETTING INTO THE FEED ZONE
I've ridden through hundreds of feed zones in my time racing a bike.
Lowden not ready to stop after retirement
Former Hour record holder eyes UK time trial scene
Pogačar makes history (again) at Lombardia
Slovenian makes it four in a row at the late-season Italian Monument