Halfords to sell Bromptons

[PH]

Last week SportsDirect bought Evans out of administration and promptly announced that it expected to close at least half the stores. Looking at SportsDirect's track record (anyone remember Field & Trek?) I suspect that the remaining branches will be dumbed down, starting with the phasing out of the repair and servicing side of the business, then an exodus of experienced staff, then the gradual elimination of high-end bike brands and their replacement with whatever SD can buy cheap and slap one of their own brand names onto. Look out for MuddyFox bikes [shudder] coming to an Evans near you soon. More branches will be closed and sold off. Compared to the SportsDirect Evans of the future, Halfords may look like a premium cycle shop. Even if SD wants to keep the Brompton dealerships, Brompton may not wish to be associated with it and in any case the Evans chain will be a fraction of its former size.

There's a lot of conjecture there, however dislikeable you find Mr Ashley, it'd be wrong to dismiss his business acumen based on some of his present enterprises. Yes you could say Sports Direct only does well by selling the cheapest kit at the lowest price and doesn't care much how it does so, but it would also be true to say that it's success is due to an understanding of that market. They've had Tri UK for a year and there's no sign of Muddy Fox there, it's a different market. Likewise I'm not expecting to see House of Fraser chasing the Primark customers. I have no idea what he intends for Evans, they could be asset strip it and absorb the brands and goodwill into SD, or build it's online presence up to rival the big players. What we do know is they have the wherewithal to put any plans into action and a track record of doing so, unlike Evans's last couple of owners. Time will tell.

[Cyril Haearn]

Mr Ashley likes to park his tanks on peoples lawns (wykepedia)

What about decathlon?

[Bonefishblues]

That would be a bold move, if you mean SD might have an interest in Decathlon.

SD's big (valued at 2.5bn big) but Decathlon's a behemoth in comparison, I think.

[mjr]

They've had Tri UK for a year and there's no sign of Muddy Fox there, it's a different market. Likewise I'm not expecting to see House of Fraser chasing the Primark customers. I have no idea what he intends for Evans, [...]

https://www.cyclechat.net/posts/5426940/ reports cheap Dunlop (a Sports Direct brand for non-tyre products IIRC) suitcases appearing in House of Fraser, so I wouldn't be sure of that. I think we'll have to wait and see what he does to Evans.

[TrevA]

Didn't take long, Brompton display filling the window of the Derby Cycle Republic. I was just riding past so didn't have a proper look, but the prominence given to them suggests it's going to be more than just another brand they stock.

Yes, I had a lengthy e-mail from Cycle Republic today, extolling the virtues of Bromptons.

[AndyK]

There's a lot of conjecture there, however dislikeable you find Mr Ashley, it'd be wrong to dismiss his business acumen based on some of his present enterprises. Yes you could say Sports Direct only does well by selling the cheapest kit at the lowest price and doesn't care much how it does so, but it would also be true to say that it's success is due to an understanding of that market.

Oh yeah, shedloads of conjecture. It's just my near-future nightmare SF scenario. I'm putting a marker down so I can come back and say "I told you so" in a couple of years' time if I turn out to be right. (Or say nothing if I'm wrong, of course.) Nothing to do with Mr Ashley himself, just the operating practice of his company.

The bit about closing down half the chain isn't conjecture, it's the first thing SD said after the takeover.

I'd argue SD's success is more about buying a well-respected brand that's fallen on hard times, using it on cheapo kit and charging higher prices until people eventually figure out that the quality is no longer what it was (Karrimor and Muddy Fox being cases in point).