WEBVTT - Jim Felt on High-End Racing Bikes (Audio)

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<v Speaker 1>All right, the lux life when it comes to two wheels.

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<v Speaker 1>Here to tell us more is the founder of Felt Racing,

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<v Speaker 1>a maker of Felt bicycles, Jim Felt. Jim Felt, thanks

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<v Speaker 1>very much for being with us worries. Glad I can help,

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<v Speaker 1>all right, So tell us tell people that are not

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<v Speaker 1>familiar with the with Felt the bicycles, why a bicycle

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<v Speaker 1>might not have any breaks, why it might have the

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<v Speaker 1>gear change on the left hand side, and tell us

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<v Speaker 1>about the price. Well, you're probably talking about the bike

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<v Speaker 1>we just developed for the Olympic Games for the US

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<v Speaker 1>cycling team women's pursuit team, uh this year for the

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<v Speaker 1>real Olympics. And what we did is like any projects.

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<v Speaker 1>Sometimes sometimes we pick and choose projects ahead of time, um,

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<v Speaker 1>based on marketing trends. Sometimes it's purely that it comes

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<v Speaker 1>to us. And we were asked to take on a

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<v Speaker 1>project for like the Olympic Games or something. This in

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<v Speaker 1>particular was the Olympic Games. So we developed a bike

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<v Speaker 1>a track for the women's pursuit team from ground up,

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<v Speaker 1>which consisted of and we just started with a clean canvas,

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<v Speaker 1>as I'll say, and uh, you know, we're kind of

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<v Speaker 1>known for pushing the envelope on aerodynamics and everything and

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<v Speaker 1>when you're in riding inside of a velodrome. We wanted

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<v Speaker 1>to find out some new new information that hasn't been

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<v Speaker 1>found before on what goes on aerodynamically inside of a velodrome,

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<v Speaker 1>and that caused us to put the drive train on

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<v Speaker 1>the left hand side. Matt Miller here um joining him today,

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<v Speaker 1>and I'm excited to talk to you because I'm really

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<v Speaker 1>into UM bikes. Can you make money on these super

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<v Speaker 1>high end and we're talking about, you know, ten twenty

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<v Speaker 1>dollar bikes. Can you make money in that market or

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<v Speaker 1>do you have to get out into UM the cross market,

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<v Speaker 1>into the gravel bikes, into the fitness bikes and the

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<v Speaker 1>mountain bikes to really make money. I think you really

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<v Speaker 1>have to have a broad range in order to make money.

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<v Speaker 1>To be a full branded bike. It certainly helps do

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<v Speaker 1>that the projects. You know, when you're talking about the

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<v Speaker 1>thirty track bike, you know, I mean the consumers and

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<v Speaker 1>the customers that you have to to use those bike.

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<v Speaker 1>Those bikes are specific for that, you know, for that

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<v Speaker 1>event or something like that. So there's uh kind of

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<v Speaker 1>the niche of the niche markets. But it does well

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<v Speaker 1>for our branding, exercise and stuff like that. We definitely

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<v Speaker 1>got some huge exposure from that project for doing that

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<v Speaker 1>Olympic project. And you keep making bikes UM in America.

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<v Speaker 1>I know that almost everybody, especially obviously the big brands

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<v Speaker 1>that we think of as American made bikes like Cannondale,

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<v Speaker 1>UM and Raleigh have all moved the most the majority

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<v Speaker 1>of their production out to UM lower labor countries. Do

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<v Speaker 1>you have to move as well? Yeah, I think. I

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<v Speaker 1>think for a couple of reasons. That is one price

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<v Speaker 1>for the end price of the bike, because the bikes,

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<v Speaker 1>as as you know, some bikes are you know, ten

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<v Speaker 1>fifty thousand dollars now at some of the high end bikes,

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<v Speaker 1>and they would be even more than that if we

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<v Speaker 1>were to do of the labor in the US. UM.

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<v Speaker 1>But one of the biggest things is that, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>five ten years ago, most of the bikes out there

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<v Speaker 1>were steel or aluminum. Uh now we're now the bikes

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<v Speaker 1>out there are probably composite construction, meaning carbon fiber. And

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<v Speaker 1>you know, the Orient especially is well known and pretty

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<v Speaker 1>much the leader in composite technology. So they're doing things

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<v Speaker 1>over there UM with those materials that we just simply

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<v Speaker 1>haven't caught up to. In here in the state. It's

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<v Speaker 1>it's interesting because we developed the materials for aerospace over here,

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<v Speaker 1>but aerospace is actually looking to the bicycle industry for

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<v Speaker 1>the technology because we're using those materials unlike that they

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<v Speaker 1>can even do in in aerospace right now. So we're

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<v Speaker 1>kind of, uh, we kind of complement each other. Jim

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<v Speaker 1>Felt tell us a little bit about the one bike

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<v Speaker 1>in particular, because I know that Matt Miller has been

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<v Speaker 1>desirous of this. It's across F sixt X with the

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<v Speaker 1>Shamano one oh five groups Set. Whatever that means, You've

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<v Speaker 1>got to tell me. And then I want to know

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<v Speaker 1>about this new uh seven seven thousand five Eastern aluminum

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<v Speaker 1>that you've put together. Well, yeah, that's um, there's there's

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<v Speaker 1>uh yeah. I mean the F sixty five is uh

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<v Speaker 1>been a go to bike for us for for quite

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<v Speaker 1>some time now. UM and Shimano, the who is the

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<v Speaker 1>manufacturer of the group set as a leader. I mean

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<v Speaker 1>they're known for their bicycle components and their fishing equipment.

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<v Speaker 1>UM kind of well known for that. UM and the

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<v Speaker 1>one oh five is reliable and not too expensive. I'm

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<v Speaker 1>not looking to drop ten grand, but Jim, to what

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<v Speaker 1>extent are you beholden to these groups that manufacturers because

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<v Speaker 1>Shimano and s ram Um they're so expensive, it's it

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<v Speaker 1>seems odd that someone would pay so much or unusual

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<v Speaker 1>unique so much um for a component of a part

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<v Speaker 1>of the product he makes. Yeah. No, and you're talking

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<v Speaker 1>about the two probably leaders. There's a couple other component

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<v Speaker 1>manufacturers out there, European brands that are that are also

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<v Speaker 1>producing components, but your Shimono and shram are the two

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<v Speaker 1>key suppliers to the bike industry. They go head to

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<v Speaker 1>head on on price and quality, and it's at those

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<v Speaker 1>different levels. You are correct, one oh five. There's kind

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<v Speaker 1>of a mid price point level of very good quality.

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<v Speaker 1>All right, Jim, thanks so much for joining us. Jim

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<v Speaker 1>Felt there, uh, the head of Felt Bicycles. This is Bloomberg. Yeah,