What If It Was Our Sport . . .
December 12, 2008 by Mike
Filed under Think Different
What if . . . instead of the top three American (or your country’s) car manufacturers in danger of closing shop it was three of the top boat makers who were going under?
No more boats from Vespoli, USA; Pocock; or Resolute.
How would that effect you?
Buy from a foreign maker? Keep your boat alive forever? Steal a boat?
What if . . . it were the top oar makers in the US going down? If C2 and Dreher no longer made oars.
How would that effect you?
Or no more Nielsen Kellerman, Row2k, or JL . . .
Would it matter to you? Would another business fill the void left?
Would you stop rowing?
A free market allows new companies and enterprising people to step in where there is an opportunity. Rowers are as A-typical as people get, and before you realized Row2k or C2 were gone, there would be another there to take their place.
It seems though, that right now rowing may *almost* have the opposite problem: too many companies filling not a lot of demand.
The competition from the far east and china, as in so many products, has already overwhelmed long established boat and oar and scull makers here in the UK. Eton made boats and beautiful sculling blades, Aylings of whom their highpoint was making the Coxless Four for Steve Redgrave and co.’s magnificent Olympic Gold in Sydney have also closed down.
It seems we must bail out the Fords and GMs of this world, but what about the smaller companies?
It seems to me although the eastern boats are cheaper, the quality has deteriorated, but that section (low end) of the market was vital to the quality makers to keep the order book going.
The perfect free market is a myth.
We shall not see their like again.
Well, I would certainly realize if C2 were suddenly gone and Hudson and cry. From my experience, we rowers tend to get loyal to those that serve us well. I feel it will be companies like them that survive because when you call, a live person picks up on the other end and talks with you. I agree there are too many companies serving a small group of people, which is why this type of service is even more important and these companies have built loyal followings. It is all about attention to details. And a smart play on their part is, they make the boats per order and not like cars where they sit in showrooms hoping that someone likes the color and/or options combo selected for it (car companies take note).
As an owner of a shell, I am going to do everything to make it last a very long time. They are not cheap and do not want to replace it when it can be avoided (plus, it would never get passed by bank of the wife).
As far as electronics go, I think they have the biggest worry because anyone of the many companies could easily compete with NK. How many people can mold carbon fiber, make a boat or oars and then sit around and wait until it starts winning to back up why people should buy one? The brothers at C2, Hugh Hudson and Jack Coughlan have spent many years building, competing, redesigning and competing some more to build the reputation they have. Basically, it would take way too long for most companies to build a reputation and be profitable before they go bankrupt. In todays economy, companies do not have the luxury of learning and progressing through success and failure. It is succeed or bust.
One of the many ways rowing is good – if you wear glasses and it rains they do not get wet!
I will never stop rowing!
Oops – I worded the “brothers of C2″ sentence wrong. I meant the Dreissigacker brothers that started C2 as well as Hugh and Jack from Hudson. Sorry for any spelling errors too:)
C.
@ John: interesting thought on too many. Who do you think we would lose?
@ Chris: It is a shame about those companies. I remember feeling exactly the same when wooden boats were phased out, and some companies with them.
@ ChrisinLA: Great that you won’t stop rowing . . . but will the experience still be the same? Better or worse . . . that is a really big question.
Mike,
Here are my thoughts. The free market would fill the voids however here are some additional thoughts.
If three large boat manufacturers went out of business;
1) there would be a boom market for used boats.
companies involved in after-market products such as shoes, riggers, etc would flourish
2) coaches would be forced to do a better job of repairing scratches, crushes, punctures etc.
3) coaches would be forced to do a better job of teaching boat handling to alleviate the careless damage
4) transpoting boats would be more professional
5) large well funded programs would lose an advantage by being able to purchase the most current technology
6) rigging would take on a much more important role where it would become an integral part of coaching at all levels
7) boat repair facilities would pop up across the country to extend the life of boats.
9) cleaning, washing and lubricating boats would take on new meaning
If NK went out of business
1) MIT, Drexel University, Renseleer, WPI students/coxswains would start an internet company with a replacement product within 24 hours
If row2k went out of business
1) USRowing, World Rowing, Regatta Central or a firm or an individual would finance an alternative (which Ed would run if they were smart)
If JL went out of business
1) no affect since there are many alternatives
Bob
@ Bob: wow . . . besides the trauma and hardship for the owners and workers at the companies . . . almost seems as if you are saying that there would be some significant upsides. Hmm . . .
Basically, I think Bob has some good ideas, but there is one interesting thing to note. If Vespoli, Resolute, and Hudson all fell to the economy
Demand in far excess of supply for boats (like many other products) will not last long in a free-market economy. Someone, likely an influential person from one of the failed manufacturers, would take what they knew and start an offshoot. If the person was smart, they would, at very least, market the improvements based on their deficient parent. If the North American boat builders failed, there would likely be a general feeling of distrust in similar North American products, and an offshoot would have to work hard to buck that. I see this becoming the exact issue with the Big 3 auto makers. I won’t buy an American car because I know what American cars *were* like. Remember, consumer economics is about PEOPLE and their feelings toward buying things.
Why this is unlikely: As in the car industry, there are market substitutes. Also, (like the US car industry) in order for this to be an issue, there would have to be something noticably deficient about their products in comparison to the presumably successful foreign brands. Since this is not the case, and North American-built boats thrive on their own turf, I see the possibility of losing these significant suppliers as quite low (mostly because they have so much *domestic* demand). Smaller companies might get smaller, and larger ones might have to charge more, but the North American shell market will survive and meet constant (or slightly smaller) demand. The bigger ones might even get into building more of their own components to reduce marginal accessory costs.