Originally Posted by
mulleady
Brompton's pricing is based on relative demand for their brand and also the fact that their manufacturing continues to be based in the UK, not oursourced to a low cost country. Perhaps there is something to be admired in that?
Perhaps it would be more appropriate to say "relative supply".
A big turnoff I have when it comes to the Brompton is that here in the US you have to practically beg someone to sell it to you. Not only are they exorbitantly priced, but even stocking dealers don't actually stock the bikes or compatible parts and the closest dealer is often hundreds of miles away. No thanks, I don't need to go chasing people for the privilege of paying them a lot of money. Dahons are available in every city and bikes from Downtube, Pacific, and Bike Friday can be delivered to your door with moneyback trial periods.
While I wouldn't mind owning a Brompton, I'm not going to buy one unless I can try out all the various options and I'm certainly not going to rearrange my schedule to get to a shop hundreds of miles away on one of the 10-12 days a year when they just so happen to have a single Brompton configuration in stock. When I shop I compare things side by side, I like to have a choice of dealers, and I'm not going to stop doing so in lieu of an impulse buying frenzy (especially if I'm paying a premium, when I'm even more inclined to inspect and compare). Looking at the bikes that were available 10 or 20 years ago I have no doubt that the Brompton would have been my first choice, but today the rest of the market is moving so fast that by the time I jump through all the hoops to do my due diligence on buying a multithousand dollar Brompton it will probably be obsolete (at least I hope so because, let's face it, even as one of the smallest folders available the Brompton doesn't live up to the folding bike dream of "always take your bike with you").
In the end I think the most overlooked factor when it comes to comparing the various folder offerings is location. From what I understand Raxel pretty much has unlimited choice in his folders and his view of the Brompton is no doubt shaped by that. Those of you in the UK probably find the Brompton more available, but for me buying a Brompton seems like such a monumental hassle that I doubt I'd ever get around to buying one even if I intended to.
P.S. How is hiring relatively rich englishmen at the expense of poor chinese admirable? I would think that providing jobs for the less fortunate would be the thing to be admired.