Walmart vs LBS bikes, would you consider a Walmart branded LBS bike?
 

Edit: The above quote makes more sense than my OP. :)

The title is a bit confusing. I'm more relating to the fact that there still are some crossover brands. Mongoose, Schwinn, and probably others that distribute both to LBS and xmarts.

Sure you can go to Walmart and buy a 80 dollar Mongoose bike but on the other hand, you can find rather high priced LBS based Mongoose bikes as well. Same for Schwinn. You can get the cheapo Walmart Schwinn but you can also go to your LBS and buy a Schwinn Signature series bike for quite a bit more money.

So think about this, if you go to an LBS and buy a 800 dollar Mongoose bike and then ride it for a year and sell it used, will you take a much worse hit on resale due to the brand being diluted by Pacific ownership/hate from general biking community? Or can you still sell that 800 dollar used Mongoose for around the same depreciated price as you could with an equivalent Specialized that you paid 800 for and have to sell used?

I'm just wondering if buying a crossover brand is a bad idea when new and on the other hand, is buying a used crossover brand a good idea because you can buy a super cheap LBS bike diluted by the xmart brand crossover?

"The title is a bit confusing"

The entire post is confusing.

LOL

Okay, I will try again.

If you try to sell a used 800 LBS bike with a walmart brand, will you take a much worse hit in resale value over selling a used 800 LBS bike with a LBS only name? Everything else being the same such as style of bike, etc.

One thing to be aware of: Wal-Mart has products made especially-cheap, just for them to sell. Wal-Mart does this because they ALWAYS want to have the lowest price for an item, no matter what quality level that buys.

If there are separate dealers selling the same brand, Wal-mart usually specifies items that they can sell for less than the lowest price that independent dealers could possibly sell it at, and still make a profit. With many durable goods brands, a condition that the dealers usually insist on is that the highest quality-level that Wal-Mart is allowed to sell, is lower than the lowest quality level that the dealers are selling.

So if you buy a name-brand of anything at Wal-Mart, you aren't necessarily getting the same thing that you would from a private dealer.
A name-brand bike at Wal-mart is not going to be the same quality or price as at a regular bicycle shop. And if you see a bicycle model at Wal-mart and go to a separate bike shop and ask for it, they will probably tell you that they don't have that model, and that they can't even order it. It was made custom-order just for Wal-Mart to sell.

This isn't just anti-capitalist ragging on Wal-mart, it is a fact.
The 2006 story below is about how Snapper lawnmowers turned down a Wal-Mart deal that would have required them to make super-cheap mowers and brand them with the Snapper name. The story also mentions a few other brands that had done the same thing, for Wal-mart or other big-box stores.
http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/...n_snapper.html

I'm going to say yes.

I think bikes are like most things that are sold used, brand is really important. I used to buy/sell a lot of motorcycle parts and gear and I stopped buying certain brands because they were too hard to resell when I was done with them even if they were of similar quality than the name brand stuff.

Some brands hold their value much better than others (Cervelo? trek? cannondale?). Part of the reason is when people go to look for something they will search specifically for those brands and then push the used price is higher. Go buy a $800 Trek, Cannondale, even bikesdirect bike and you will probably have something that holds onto it's value better than a mongoose/schwinn even if the frame is exactly the same but with different decals. Don't feel bad for the company, they made the choice to devalue the brand when they decided to start selling cheaper stuff at Walmart.

I *think* what bobotech is asking is, does selling a bike through Walmart cheapen the image of the entire brand, such that it affects resale value across the line, even for higher end models that are not available at Walmart.

If I want a Walmart-branded bike, why would I buy it elsewhere?

Yes!! This is what i was trying to say in my long winded confusion post!

I think it does dilute the brand image. The ignorant and uneducated look at the bottom line. Why pay $350+ at the LBS when they can go to Xmart and pay not even half that? Especially when they both say "Schwinn" featuring "Shimano" parts?

This is absolutely correct, and the same is true of big name brand machinery and appliances sold by Home Depot, Lowes, and other big box stores.

for something expendable and a commuter absolutely, not going to trash a 500 dollar bike

Schwinn currently makes their quality infused bikes, with the Signature label attached. The Signature label is suppose to indicate to the consumer, that if you purchase this model of bike from Schwinn, you'll be getting one of their very best.

Then there's the Big-Box-Store bikes that Schwinn makes available primarily through stores like Walmart. These bikes, usually have decent frames, but the absolute worse in components and build (or assembly).

This means that Schwinn (Dorel Industries) is leaving it up to the consumer to make the distinction between the two different tiers of bicycles. Well unfortunately, the average aspiring part-time recreational cyclist with a shrinking budget, is not too likely to attempt any research with regards to Schwinn and their product diversity.

The average Big Box Store bike consumer, will be ever so reluctant to take any measures to completely understand his purchased commodity. A sizeable number of these cyclists will remain ignorant, indefinitely.

They will continue to purchase these bikes and then complain about their poor performance, immediately afterwards. The bad news is then generated, it evolves, and takes new viral-like life forms. This subsequently, continues to drive the name brand of Schwinn down deeper into the ground. So deep into the ground, that fewer and fewer people voice any interest, in either tier of the Schwinn bikes. Nobody even cares about the difference between the Big-Bike-Store and the Signature Schwinns.

Most People Think...."They're all just Cheap Schwinns!" ...

- Slim :)

People over rate the value of "resale" value.

==========

Try looking at it this way.

If the Mongoose is the same price as a Trek and equivalent, people buying a new bike are going to prefer spending the money on the Trek.

That means the Mongoose has to compete with Trek by being a better value (either cheaper for the same bike or a better bike for the same money).

That is, the relative value will likely be reflected in the price of the new bicycle.

For once, I agree with ^^^ every word...

And, the history of a name like Schwinn confounds things too.

For many people (even still), "Schwinn" is synonymous with "bicycle". Oddly, for many, it's synonymous with "quality bicycle".

Most of the Schwinns people remember (eg, Varsity) were not really very good. While there were some quality Schwinns (the Paramounts, for example), most people aren't thinking of them. And, of course, the Schwinn company which produced those bicycles no longer exists.

Note that I am not saying there are no current Schwinns that are also quality bicycles. All that I'm talking about is the meaningless historical association of the name.

I suspect people worried about resale value don't ride much. Resale value is a real crap-shoot anyway.

Selling a $800 bike after a year is kind of bizarre. If you didn't use it much (preserving more resale value, maybe you should not have bought it in first place since it's going to be hard to compete with a new bike.

It is not just about the bike, it's partly about the assembly, and the customer service, or lack there of. Walmart doesn't know how to assemble a bike correctly, therefore reducing the life of its components. Also, their bikes have a tendency to be heavier, and the quality control is lacking. Most of their bikes have the very cheapest components that will not perform as well, or last as long. You want to enjoy a bike that will last, go to a bike shop. Most will take care of you.

I just used that as an example. I am wondering about all this after trolling Craigslist. Say I come across a decent Mongoose that has a low price, would it be worth considering to flip? Or due to the cheapened brand name, will it not be worth flipping even if it is a high quality bike? Schwinn isn't as good of an example only because people still respect the name even if its through rose colored glasses.

If W-mart sold airplanes, would you fly in one?

This is rather unexpected.

Lots of people here claim that craiglist bikes are priced too high!

I'd guess it depends on what the bike would cost new and how old it was and the price you could get it at and the price you think you could sell it at (and whether the difference is worth it to you).

There really isn't enough information to say.

That is, it sounds like a crap-shoot too!

Resale value doesn't bother me, because I don't think of that when I buy a bike. However, I do think brands that sell through discount chains definitely have their brand diluted. I used to love Schwinn, but I wouldn't think of buying one now except for the vintage stuff. It doesn't matter to me if they are any good now, it just isn't the same company with all of that wonderful history. It's just another Pacific-made bike with a Schwinn sticker on it.

The only thing a Wal-Mart bike has going for it is unscuffed paint. That's it.

When Walmart starts to sell recumbents, it will be a sure sign that the Zombie Apocalypse is upon us.

Brilliant!!!

Thread is before your time- hope you got your Twinkies.