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RIP to Colnago (the brand, not Ernesto!)
Last Post 05/19/2020 10:45 PM by Frederick Jones. 12 Replies.
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Cosmic Kid

Posts:4209

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05/05/2020 12:42 PM
Sold to a group out of the UAE....they will almost certainly destroy the brand in an attempt to grab marketshare and push the brand down to lower price points...mark my words.

https://www.bicycleretailer.com/industry-news/2020/05/04/colnago-sold#.XrGlEqhKiUk
Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
6ix

Posts:485

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05/05/2020 01:24 PM
You mean like Pinarello? Colnago is about to lose all desirability. It's like seeing a Maserati compact hatch for $25K.
Orange Crush

Posts:4499

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05/05/2020 01:29 PM
It really depends on whoever is behind the investment. It could also mean more financial leeway for Colnago to focus on quality products without having to worry about underlying financial bottom line. Time will tell.

Same group that sponsors UAE Emirates team.
zootracer

Posts:833

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05/05/2020 11:53 PM
Colnago are great bikes. Have become outrageously expensive over the years. I eye them all the time. I can buy a complete bike for the price of some of the Colnago frames.
zootracer

Posts:833

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05/06/2020 12:06 AM
Just read that Ernesto recently lost his wife and brother. He is 87 years old. Maybe he just want to retire. Too bad. Love my Master X-light....
Orange Crush

Posts:4499

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05/06/2020 09:43 AM
Yes, a lot of life changes and I take it no one ready to take over the reigns.

Like knitting skills, handcrafted frames are bound to disappear over time.

Y’all could still try and get a Groenewegen frame (formerly of Zieleman fame). Dylan may pick up the reigns from his father, grandfather and the generation before that if he can’t bike race anymore.
eurochien

Posts:163

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05/06/2020 11:44 AM
Colnagos have been my dream bikes for a long time, I wish I could afford one, like zoot I eye C60 framesets on a regular basis but they're just out of my price range.
zootracer

Posts:833

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05/07/2020 12:29 PM
The owner of my LBS (Bicycle Emporium, Auburn, Ca) is a Colnago dealer and personally knows Ernesto Colnago. He said Colnago sold 60% of the company to Chimera LLC. Colnago will maintain control of the company for the next 5 years, then it's a crap shoot to what happens.
Orange Crush

Posts:4499

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05/07/2020 09:47 PM
Dude will be 93 in 5 years.

If he didn’t find a proper successor it would have been a crap shoot one way or the other.
zootracer

Posts:833

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05/07/2020 11:32 PM
Dude will be 93 in 5 years.

I was thinking the same thing.
Berzin

Posts:76

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05/19/2020 05:24 PM
Unfortunately, even some beloved frame manufacturers are taking the corporate route to maintain business. What will follow will be the inevitable homogenization of the brand and all manufacturing will be taken to Asia. And that cost savings will be reflected in their profit margins, not on frame prices. I hope this doesn't happen.
Orange Crush

Posts:4499

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05/19/2020 08:02 PM
I’d have a hard time envisioning a UAE investor being in this for profit margin or going Asia route. Why do they hold bike races over there? Why do they want to host soccer worlds? It’s about using prestige undertakings to attractinternational attention for tourism and other investment to diversify away from oil as that revenue stream nears its end.

This investment is likely in that context but what it means for brand is another matter. Middle East investment in other undertakings like soccer runs hot and cold in terms of success due to differences in culture and philosophy.
longslowdistance

Posts:2881

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05/19/2020 10:45 PM
Maybe also a dab of ego, wanting some respect from the western culture that appreciates their return of petrodollars (hello Man City and by extension NYC FC) but o/w mistrusts. Money can buy a lot of respect, even in Europe.
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