mstateglfr 

These are sister companies owned by the same parent- Dorel.
Moving away from model years will allow dealers to not be pressured to discount prior season offerings that are still in the current model's year.

The collections will last for a few years before being overhauled and while colors will be introduced thru the span of the collection, there will be mainstay paint schemes too that last the entirety of the collection.

Also, the bikes will now be released based on the calendar year so the newest offerings will be available as spring approaches and everyone is wanting something new, instead of during the late summer when everyone is already riding.

bruce19

The idea of "collections" as opposed to model years makes sense to me.

mstateglfr 

Yes, its what smaller brands do- Yeti, Santa Cruz, Canyon, Open, Fairlight, etc etc. A frame made a year ago with 105 and a mid-level finishing kit is then the same cost as a frame made this year with 105 and the same finishing kit. Perhaps there are different colors, but that doesnt then force the one bike to be worth less since it is effectively the exact same bike and value.
It could be a risk for a larger brand though since many stores are Cdale and something else, so that other major brand will have fresh and shiny bikes in Q3 and Q4 while Cdale has the already established stock. But it could help Cdale in Q1 and Q2 when their stock is refreshed and the store's other major brand is stale.


https://www.bicycleretailer.com/indu...r#.XxXG221KjRY

Digger Goreman

Just another reason to keep my C&V fresh

shelbyfv

Makes sense to me. Once it's no longer new, who can remember the model year of their bike?

Sy Reene

I guess we'll see how it plays out.. might be hard to raise prices on the same bike if it's the same bike just a week later etc and nothing has changed. At least with model years you could say it's the latest.. both in the store or a customer trying to sell a bike later (who might now have a 2-3 year span that their bike age could date from and seller wouldn't know for sure).

blakcloud

I like this model. Rivendell has been doing this since its inception. Yes, smaller company but shows it can be done successfully. The current model is too much like the auto industry, 2021 bikes being released in 2020 (Trek, I am talking to you). Hope it works out for Cannondale and GT. Thanks for sharing this.

Koyote

Releasing new products - whether bikes, cars, or anything else - on some arbitrary annual schedule, regardless of actual technical change or innovation, has always been more about marketing than anything else.

Sy Reene

Maybe, but now it sounds like there won't be (if the OP is right) any technical changes for 3-4 year periods. Hopefully Shimano doesn't come out with 12-speed or something..

Leinster

105 went to 11 speed less than a year after I bought my CAAD10. Cannondale just went ahead and released the next CAAD10 on schedule with 11 speed and a different paintjob, changed nothing about the frame, other specs etc. The CAAD12 didn't happen for another year or 2 after that. I'd imagine this gives them more freedom to follow more closely component manufacturers' releases. Eg, "Mavic have new wheels coming online in August. We'll put them on every Mavic-specced bike that goes out of the factory after September 1. Leave everything else as-is."

General Geoff

That's exactly what it is!
https://www.treehugger.com/how-plann...-began-4856701

The concept was developed about a hundred years ago by executives at General Motors, and it had a profound effect on the economy and western culture at large, helping to catalyze the movement toward consumerism.

There ARE some R&D benefits to it, when you have designers constantly striving to improve their products, but the big updates to cars and bikes usually occur in 5-10 year cycles, and the interim minor tweaks are mostly just cosmetic.

mstateglfr 

The linked article and others on the topic address this.

alcjphil

I have never understood the obsession some people have about the model year of bicycles. Anyone who has followed the model year "progression" of bicycles can easily see how many bike models actually downgrade from one year to another to maintain a price point. Yes, some high end models actually offer new tech, but run of the mill bikes can go quickly downhill in quality as time goes on. Bring on the "Collections" scheme, it sounds much more honest and consistent.

Sy Reene

Sorta.. the article makes it seem like Cannondale is fairly unsure of how exactly though. This sounds like then they'd have to put one bike next to another on the floor, both titled the same but differently priced? Or one store has new component bike, another doesn't? Or bike is ordered from the distributor and it's pot luck whether new or old specced bike gets delivered?

The other issue seems is that while every other brand has seasonal sales to clear inventory, Cannondale won't. So that period of time where they think they can now be selling their bikes at MSRP where they used to not be able to, the other bike manufacturers will be undercutting their pricing.

"Hage said Cannondale will deal with new component launches as necessary, perhaps making rolling spec changes as new parts are available, but without tying such changes to a new model year."

shelbyfv

It will be interesting to see how this works in shops that carry multiple brands.