The other day while buying cheese at Costco, we noticed a brand new Cannondale 29er and had a hard time believing our eyes. When we asked an employee if there were more, she told us the bike had been purchased at a Poway, California store and that a guy was trying to return it.
Turns out Cannondale found out about the bikes and have shut them down, according to a story in Bicycle Retailer.
Some Costco outlets are offering a “limited amount” of Cannondale bikes, according to a letter that the company’s Dave Manchester sent to U.S. retailers on Tuesday. Manchester is senior vice president of North American sales and marketing for Dorel’s cycling sports group, which includes Cannondale. . . “We’ve identified a distributor outside of the United States who conducted the unauthorized sale of their supply to this mass retailer. Action has been taken against this distributor and they are no longer part of our distributor network. Additionally, the bikes will not be covered under any warranty,” Manchester said in the letter.
So let’s see. Cannondale made their money selling bikes to the distributor. The distributor got theirs. Costco got paid. But the buyers of the bike? No, Cannondale says they’re screwed for buying their bike at a good price and the company is not going to honor the warranty. How’s that for customer service? Come on Cannondale! Don’t blame the customer for your screw up.
[Link: Bicycle Retailer]
Cannondale has strict policies for a reason. I work at a bike shop, and the reason is not spite. The reason is the bikes were not assembled by a professional mechanic. I for one am glad that unlike Diamondback, Mongoose, Haro, DK, and Schwinn, Cannondale refuses to sellout and cheapen itself by going mass market.
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