Or so it would appear. Mike Ashley, chavvifier in chief of once good businesses is circling Cotswold Outdoor, looking to buy it.

Given the way he destroyed Field & Trek and Karrimor, turning both in to purveyors of utter shit, if his bid to buy the company is successful, it’ll be curtains for them.

what’s the problem ? makes a gap in the market for someone else.

It’s a pity, Cotswold store by us are very good.

Not a surprise. They’ve been undercut heavily by the big discounters.

The thing is; as soon as he buys it. A fair few of the good brands will pull out supplying them as soon as he drops the prices (and he will). Just like they did with field and trek. Mountain equipment, scarpa, salomon, etc.

CFH – that’s not even 20% true.
Karrimor went bump before Lonsdale bought them. F&T were on the slippery slope and aaccelerating rapidly before that fat twunt bought them.
They were purchased for their name, loyal customer base and shop network. Without Ashley they’d be long gone, that doesn’t make it right but he’s not completely to blame.

If you want a Karrimor rucsac but an OMM rucsac.
If you want an Ultrafleece don’t be lazy, Google K2 Karisma fleece

Do your homework and stop being the victim here

This is neatly as stupid as the idiot thread this morning bemoaning the lack of outdoor kit when that muppet wants 1990s top end kit but won’t pay for it.

I love the fact that you can get a cheap pair of Salomons and tennis balls half price in Lillywhites/sports direct. But equally shame if Cotswold descends into the bargain basement

I hope that doesn’t happen. Over the years I’ve bought plenty from Cotswold including a few pairs of walking boots. Always had good service and advice, you can’t buy that over the internet.

I too hope it doesn’t happen, if only as 2 friends are managers of stores.
Here’s one of them on the 2009 Trans wales from the STW front page. Take a bow(wave I guess) Russ

So that’s why there’s a 50% sale on and the Oxford Road shop in Manchester is closing down…

Cotswold is so overpriced anyway I’m unsure how they have lasted this far against the likes of go outdoors & decathlon

Companies need to offer a reason for people to shop in their stores. If the are not competetive then let them fizzle out and companies like alpkit and Embers will sell a bit more. Top end brands will still have an outlet somewhere.

Lets stop bemoaning this! The answer is so obvious! Flashy empty the spare change out of your pockets. I’m sure there’ll be more than enough to buy and restore this emporium to its rightful place as purveyor of high quality accoutrements.

Cotswold were a one shop set up out of South Cerney when F&T sold mail order from a list and before the Internerd was even dreamt of. They then went retail and opened dozens of shops whilst everyone else concentrated on online. Hmm, high overhead/low margins/lots of competition…. What happens next…?

Cotswold were brilliant at selling ‘real’ outdoor gear as were F&T before all the lifestyle bolleaux took over. Then you could either buy mail order, waste time in mountainous areas shopping or go to Black’s (which sold proper, real gear to proper, real climbers/mountaineers).

Now we have lots of choice but the quality/expertise seems to be all online. Just have a look in places like Keswick, only one proper gear shop left and all the others are lifestyle supermarkets selling tat and miniature carabiners <sigh>

Worth asking about discounts in Cotswolds. I was behind someone in my local store and he said “I work for X, could you stock the discount on, please?”

My turn: “I work for Y, any chance we get a discount?”

Yes. 15% 🙂

The thing is; as soon as he buys it. A fair few of the good brands will pull out supplying them as soon as he drops the prices (and he will). Just like they did with field and trek. Mountain equipment, scarpa, salomon, etc.

Odd. Don’t F&T still sell most of those brands?

Few things from my time there:

– Their stores aren’t struggling at all. LFL sales were well up in my store year on year.

– The Manchester store is closing because it is the end of the lease and the renewal was astronomical.

– They will price match any other store, so no more expensive than anywhere else.

– The staff are far more knowledgeable than just about any other store I have been into, with the exception of some of the smaller climbing stores in North Wales and Lake District.

Ashley may be rather classless, but there is no denying his business acumen.

I also find the complaint about “lifestyle tat” to be somewhat hollow: it’s simple economics to sell the sort of products that your customers will actually buy, preferably with as high margin as possible.

As previously stated, Mike Ashley has saved certain brands – and it just so happens I wrote a blog post on it a few months ago http://www.richardhamer.co.uk/lets-talk-about-mike-ashley-and-karrimor-3

I’ve got all the kit I need so rarely go into outdoor shops these days. Question is, if Cotswold do get taken over and the proposition is taken downmarket/mass market then who’s left when you need decent outdoor kit – just the independents?

In London Village there’ll be only Ellis Brigham left. Peglers in Arundel was ace but they shut down last year.

Sounds like I’ll have to take a trip to the Lakes when I need new kit!

As previously stated, Mike Ashley has saved certain brands – and it just so happens I wrote a blog post on it a few months ago http://www.richardhamer.co.uk/lets-talk-about-mike-ashley-and-karrimor-3

I don’t tend to agree with you. He’s saved the brand, but only its name, not its reputation for quality. I’ve looked occasionally at Karrimor stuff in his shops – it doesn’t look or feel good at all in comparison with past Karrimor stuff. It’s more on a par with the stuff churned out by Mountain Warehouse.

On a sidenote, a veteran of the mighty Slough Observer? I think you may have arrived just as I left, or perhaps we even overlapped slightly?

“lifestyle tat”

Virtually every MTB product is “lifestyle tat”.

The Karrimor stuff ranges from cheap tat through to not bad kit, look at some of the event jackets not bad bits of kit.

I like Cotswolds but I do get 20% discount.

For what it’s worth – I was in the Aberdeen store this week & overheard the staff giving some excellent advice & help with fittings to to an older woman who needed her first proper pair of hiking boots.
She was there for the good advice & hopefully rewarded them for by buying there, but perhaps people are more happy to just mail order & use review comments these days…

Cotswold

Who?

Sorry one day Mike Ashley will buy Howies.

Its all cyclic. Rise and fall of it all

I dont mean to be harsh but its true.

I’ve got a pair of Karrimor walking boots I bought probably five years ago, they’ve had a lot of use and very little care and I can’t fault them. Not a loose stitch or a leak anywhere.

There’s an inverse snobbery that blindly assumes that anything sold by Ashley’s brands must be crap. Some of it is, fair enough, but not all of it.

It is a shame to see brands you like change for the worse or disappear. I still miss Our Price, Olympus Sports and Dillons…

dave_rudabar – Member

For what it’s worth – I was in the Aberdeen store this week & overheard the staff giving some excellent advice & help with fittings to to an older woman who needed her first proper pair of hiking boots.
She was there for the good advice & hopefully rewarded them for by buying there, but perhaps people are more happy to just mail order & use review comments these days…

The picture up there ^^^^ slightly submerged Russ
Is the manager of the Aberdeen store

Given the way he destroyed Field & Trek and Karrimor, turning both in to purveyors of utter shit, if his bid to buy the company is successful, it’ll be curtains for them.

CPT have you turned to the other side?

Surely you should be praising the wise and noble market as it is perfect 😉

Cotswold Who? Sorry one
day Mike Ashley will buy Howies.
Its all cyclic. Rise

and fall of it all
I dont mean to be harsh like
Winter but it’s true.

So, they’re on the brink
Damocles’ sword already poised
New aisle for tracksuits ?

Karrimor ceased to be a decent brand nearly 20 years ago. Their stuff is generally no worse than most of the ‘lifestyle tat’ that fills shops like Cotswolds.

Cotswold is so overpriced anyway I’m unsure how they have lasted this far against the likes of go outdoors & decathlon

Decathlon has shown that cheap far eastern made stuff needn’t be stupidly expensive; they have exploded the outdoor gear bubble, and brought customers reasonable kit for a lot less money than most of the other brands which also sell cheap far eastern made stuff. In my own experience, Decathlon’s own fleeces are actually better thn Berghous, etc. £8 vs £50. It’s a no-brainer.

So the outdoor lifestyle bubble has burst. Good. Let’s hope the same happens to cycling.

Virtually every MTB product is “lifestyle tat”

.

So true. Overpriced average quality cheap labour produced gear at premium prices.