Looks like planet x/on one want Raceface, check this out:
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Really big news if it's true, planet x obv still feeling flush after buying Titus
Ha, I was joking about this the other day,hope they dont overstretch themselves.
If crc don't get there first....pocket change to them!!
I really hope this is just a p*sstake. Race Face are a Canadian company, based near the North Shore of Vancouver, and should stay that way. How would you like it if Santa Cruz bought Hope?
Race Face WERE a Canadian company
fixed that for you
I hope they don't bite off more than they can chew. Get titus properly going again then find another project.
Weren't Titus a predominantly American company? So the idea of them being Canadian means jack.
Radoggair +1
On One a Rotherham(?) based company already own Titus who were a Arizona(?) based company? Not really anything new
If anything surely raceface (and titus) could become more UK orientated (rather than californian as per too many other things) and that could be a good thing if they were to absorb them rather than merely own them?
Race Face WERE a Canadian company
fixed that for you
I meant what I said. If there is something to buy, then they must still exist in one form or another.
If they move them out of Canada, they may as well re-brand and start it as a new company.
So you wouldn't mind if Hope, Orange, On-One etc all moved overseas then?
they will buy the rights to use the name and the designs,Race face stuff is made in the far east the same as everyone elses surely? but they won't give a jot about the canadian employees i shouldn't think
So you wouldn't mind if Hope, Orange, On-One etc all moved overseas then?
not really, if the product is good and what i need then i'll buy it regardless of who makes it and where its from
Thats why i have a Honda and not a crappy Rover in my driveway
+1 rocketdog.
its typical PX / OO marketing spin.
I wouldn't mind if orange or hope did ..
I see where you are coming from and I can see its a shame they'll probably lose (some of) any influence coming from being based there. Ultimately though its not really upto us aside from choosing not to buy from them?
That is my point: Using the name is pointless.
The fact is that Race Face are ingrained in the mountain biking culture of Canada, and has been instrumental in the development of the scene out there.
Wade Simmons, Brett Tippie, Mike Kinrade, Richie Schley, Darren Berrecloth, Geoff Kabush, etc etc have all been associated with RF at one stage or another.
The name means ef-all elsewhere, except a logo on a shiny bit of metal.
If Race Face have gone bust then everything is for sale. One of those things for sale is the right to put a sticker on bit of metal made in the far East
I don't see this as great but its hardly news that the way brands are traded is souless and commercial
race face bb = crap at best
carbon race face cranks = snapped in 2
race face chainrings = things of beauty but didn't last
The only thing i liked was race face shorts and even there buckle snapped on me. Having synonomous names doesn't make your product great and i for one dont give 2 hoots about any of those riders ( they are magic at what they do, granted). They did design good looking equipment but if it means another company taking them over to still make them a legit company then i'm all for it.
If i was loaded i would still buy a lambo even if it is owned by Audi.
If they move them out of Canada, they may as well re-brand and start it as a new company.
What utter tosh.
They have the technology and the designs already in place. That has nowt to do with Canada.
Your profound statement above means that we cannot use Race Face products outside of Canada because they are made for Canadian riding.
I'm a big fan of the carbon sixc bar from them, that is good
I would hope that they can manage to own it but still keep design and offices in Canada to maintain the heritage, that seams like the best compromise to me.
(hi James, u should have told me u were doing snowdon, how was the new fork?)
americans and canadians are far too patriotic, would you honestly rather loose a company forever than just have it owned by a foreign company.
How can ANY!!!!!ONE relate Hope to the dross that RaceFace became. Yes, once they were a bling / niche Canadian manufacturer based near the North Shore, but they spiraled into procuring pure shite! and selling it on the back of their ever diminishing reputation. **** at best!
Opinion issued
Kev
From a RF employee, posted on the NSMB forum:
One day when the dust settles and people have moved on, someone will write a book about how this went down (or something like that). But for now assume that any rumors you guys hear are just that. Anybody working at RaceFace, who was at a level in the company where they know any of the details of what went down, for the immediate future (and most likely for quite some time to come) won't talk about it. On monday Craig is going to release a statement, all employees were told not to "broadcast" this as there are other people involved, many not in this country, who shouldn't get this news via the internet. This seems kinda pointless now as people have been twittering this shit all day and my phone has been ringing since Thursday evening. The cat is out of the bag. But, anybody pointing fingers, placing blame, coming up with explanations etc... if any of there info were actually true I'm sure there would be alot of crap going down, threats of lawsuits, etc.
It's not MEC, it's not the fault of all manufacturing in North America going to Asia, it's not whatever else you've heard. It's complicated, it's not just one thing, and it happened for different reasons depending on who in the company you talk to.
The whole situation just really sucks, I don't think we'll ever see another company like RaceFace again. There are other North American bike component manufacturers, but most of them are machine shops that make bike parts to keep their machines from being idle. RaceFace was a 100% dedicated bike parts factory, our CNC machines never made anything but bike parts. We were in this weird limbo between the big guys and the small guys. We broke ground because we were small enough to do things that seemed crazy, but big enough that we could afford the R&D and the marketing to do and promote something new.
RaceFace survived off of the dedication, talent and originality of it's employees. There was always a really high turnaround rate as RaceFace was a hard place to plan a career around. The pay was so-so, the benefits minimal and the workload and stress high. But the job itself, I think most people on this board understand why you get a job in the bike industry. There's nothing better than waiting in a lift lineup and seeing stuff you made on everybody's bike. (that and the bro deals, man I'm going to miss those...) But thanks to that feeling of pride, that perk of seeing people enjoying stuff that you made, we got this core group of individuals that just worshiped anything on 2 wheels. The people who worked at RaceFace really REALLY loved their jobs. That's why today is extra sad. I'm going to get another job. I'm going to go manufacture trucks, or steel girders, or packaging equipment or something else. But nobody there will really give a shit. I won't give a shit about what I'm doing.
A lot of people's dreams died Thurday at 3pm.
Yes, I know it's a little emotional, but the guy just lost his job.
How can ANY!!!!!ONE relate Hope to the dross that RaceFace became. Yes, once they were a bling / niche Canadian manufacturer based near the North Shore, but they spiraled into procuring pure shite! and selling it on the back of their ever diminishing reputation. **** at best!
I can: the two sets of Hope brakes I've had have been sh*t!!!
hope could go the same way as raceface. anything is pretty much posible at this moment in the economic climate. Cos really, were still in the shits and only just creeping back out slowly.
"hope could go the same way as raceface"
They do appear to have quite a number of similarities to raceface ..
[[Hi calvin, if you read this thread again, we decided at 11pm the night before so not sure how easily you could sorted anything, plus it wasn't the quickest of ascents given those who were with me
Erm, not sure on the forks, they're still in their box .. ]]
Surely British companies buying up foreign manufacturing is a good thing?
IMO Raceface lost their way years ago.
here was always a really high turnaround rate as RaceFace was a hard place to plan a career around..............................The people who worked at RaceFace really REALLY loved their jobs.
Bit of a contradiction there but not good that people will lose their jobs. Always liked their stuff, in fact RF Turbines were the first really bling add-on I ever bought for a bike. I hope something gets sorted out but hopefully not along the same lines as Syncros.
Bit of a contradiction there but not good that people will lose their jobs. Always liked their stuff, in fact RF Turbines were the first really bling add-on I ever bought for a bike. I hope something gets sorted out but hopefully not along the same lines as Syncros.
Why the contradiction? What he is saying is that as a workplace, it was not for everybody. Those who loved it stayed, those who didn't left fairly quickly.
I've worked at places like that.
mikey74 - MemberI really hope this is just a p*sstake. Race Face are a Canadian company, based near the North Shore of Vancouver, and should stay that way. How would you like it if Santa Cruz bought Hope?
If the alternative was them closing doors, I guess I'd be quite pleased.
I think what he is saying is that the actual job was great but management made it difficult.Bit of a contradiction there
Surely British companies buying up foreign manufacturing is a good thing?
Are you sure they wouldn't just buy the brand name, not any factories with machinery and employees.
B.A.Nana - MemberSurely British companies buying up foreign manufacturing is a good thing?
I suspect they would just buy the brand name, not any factories with machinery and employees.
Don't forget the IP.
I'm not sure which is more amateur, publicly stating that you are trying to buy a company, or publicly stating that you are trying to buy a company when you are not. Well done Planet X....
Why is that amateur?
Surely it depends how the company folded? If it went in to UK equivalent of administration, then the administrator will just be looking to make as much money as they can selling assets on.
To me that would be machinery and the company name, I very much doubt they would sell both separate things as one.
If thats the case Joe Bloggs could buy the name tomorrow, approach a machine shop in China and get Race Face stuff produced and back on the shelves tomorrow with out customers knowing any difference.
IMO these days the 'made in America', 'made in UK' flag doesnt count for much, its all about whether a product has a good reliable reputation, and don't care if it comes from China or where ever, they probably use the same machines to make the part...
I hope they do buy it, I want some of those Next SL 2x10 cranks.
Hark at all the corporate gurus up there^^^ 😀
and don't care if it comes from China or where ever, they probably use the same machines to make the part...
Tru dat.
I don't understand the sentimentality that people attach to 'Made in'
It's a lump of metal that's pressed, forged, cnc-ed by a standard machine or process. The position on the planet of that machine has no effect on the quality of the part. I'd say that there are a lot of factories in China with more knowledge and skills and are better tooled-up than many Western manufacturers.
R&D might be different but it's bicycles were talking about not semi conductors so I don't thik that factors into it too much either.
I thought we where all going to chip in and buy it. 🙁
"Designed in" holds more cachet for me than 'Made in" which is IMO what was RF's selling point.
Plenty of value still in the name and designs so I'd be amazed if RF as a brand disappeared but it'll be interesting to see in what form it'll continue.
I thought we where all going to chip in and buy it.
I'm too skint after forking out for one of those SIXC bars, sorry.
Whoever buys Race Face (and I'm sure the brand will survive) will have a positive commercial future I'm sure.
They make some great products and some rubbish ones - and generally charged a bit too much for all of them (or was that Silverfish?)
+1 for FunkyDunc
A lot of Shimano mainstream products are made under license in Malaysia after all and they have a great, and thoroughly deserved, rep.
I know my Ibis and Yetis are made in a non-descript factory, but hell, at the end of the day, they work, they work well and there is plenty of change in my pocket from if they were made in the states/EU.