[Closed] Loyalty to brands?

Brands I am loyal to - Patagonia.
Brands I won't touch - Anything owned by Rupert Murdoch if i can avoid it.

Bike wise -
In: Salsa, have been riding and loving their ideas and ethos for years.
Out: Trek, no real reason other that I can figure.

So, who'll be first to say Maxxis?

Funny enough, I've got a Trek Remedy 9 right now, which is superb but I'd sell it in a flash (if I could get a good price for it) to buy another CANNONDALE. I've ridden 'dales most of my cycling life and I really miss seeing the name on my frame......

Not so loyal to any one brand really.

But anywhere that offers pish customer service is likely to be on the no trade list for a very long time.

I'm loyal to specialized although I only currently own 1 I have had many over the years.

I've had a few over the years and still think they are the best . It's Chromag for me and I'd love one of their fatbikes but my stylus will have to do.

Sombrio, don't really know why, I just like their stuff. Except gloves, my experience with their gloves was not good but then I ride gloveless unless it's really cold anyway.

I'm not brand loyal exactly but there's definitely brands I like and who I trust/have proven themselves... Cotic, DT Swiss, BMC are pretty decent, Fox riding gear. And there's others that've proved themselves on balance to be worthwhile despite some issues- Five Ten, Hope, Formula, Halfords, KS, Rockshox... More good than bad, but still, some bad.

At the other end of the scale, there's On One. I don't care how cheap it is, you're still dealing with liars and scoundrels.

And then... There's the [i]weird[/i] ones. Like, I've [i]never[/i] had a satisfactory Endura product. But I keep buying them! Literally the only saving grace is that it always fails quickly, or just doesn't work as described in the first place, so it's nice and easy to get refunds. But even knowing this I keep buying their stuff. It makes no sense... Stockholm syndrome or something.

I'll swerve towards Shimano only as it's always been OK for me. I'll try to find the bike clothes in the Endura range first, after those two, I'll go with whatever.

Brands I won't touch - Anything owned by Rupert Murdoch if i can avoid it.

+1

partly its familiarity - not just / so much loyalty.
I kind of know my way around Endura sizing (as much as anyone can) and they generally work for me.

Got quite a few Specialized bikes in the household (and have had many many more). The LBS stocks them, the LBS owner is a good friend and give cracking service -- ergo, Specialized is I suppose a brand I gravitate towards. Having said that there are other bikes in the garage..

Loyalty implies more than just "I like their stuff" though - that would mean Cairngorm & Spey Valley beer, Macallan whisky...

Late edit after chatting with the wife -
Won't deal with Chainreaction Cycles any more. Several iterations of terrible service from both of us. Don't think we've used them in over a year after they took 36 days to refund us for something they never delivered - twice.

Endura -
Hmmm I also appear to have this problem. If their inserts weren't so good I'd not use them again.

Shimano, anytime I've gone away from them I've regretted it.
Oakley for sunglasses as I just like them.
Specialised for cycling shoes as they fit my feet and work well.
Decathlon road bibs as despite spending shed loads on other brands I've yet to find any that fit me better.

Not me but the Mrs, Roberts for road and ibis for off road

Sidi cycling shoes because they're a good fit.

Apart from that, I'd buy anything. Except for Trek/Specialized/Santa Cruz

If I find something I really like, that works well for me, I'm inclined to buy from that brand again.
My best transmission & braking experiences (road & MTB)have come from Shimano and I tend to stick to them now where possible.
Had bad experiences with Suntour & Campag back in olden times and that put me off for life. Sram I can live with, but Shimano always would be my first choice.
Had three Kleins as I thought they were just awesome. (Hate to say it, but other than for looks & kudos the Trek made one I had was a better bike than the originals. Shhhh...)
The ride of my Genesis Io blew me away, so when I was looking for a 29er SS, it had to be a Fortitude.
I loved my old Zaskar LE & have bought another GT - a Grade Alloy 105.
(I want one of the 25th anniversary Zaskars, but can't justify another bike right now!)
DHB clothing has impressed me with the quality & VFM, so I've recently bought a few items.

Shimano for gears and shoes. Also becoming loyal to their clothes too.

I would say it's more about familiarity than loyalty,if I get good service & value for money then I return.
Specialized & Giant for bikes,never had a problem with either brand.
For components I've always used Shimano & see no need to change.
Unlike someone on here the other week, I find Merlin great,had a couple of pairs of wheels with Hope hubs built by them,never had a problem.They're quite local to me so I call in & buy stuff on my way up to Rivington.
For clothing I love the merino stuff from Ground Effect,it's from the other side of the planet but turns up quickly enough.
Road stuff I like DHB,I find it good value.

I wouldn't have thought of it as brand loyalty [i]per se[/i] but I seem to have ended up with a fair bit of Rab stuff. It's decent quality and can be had at a fair price but most importantly the fit suits my shape. That means I'm more inclined to click "buy" on Rab when I'm online rather than take a punt on fit with any of the equally decent brands who have a range of much the same type of stuff.

I have had 6 Santa Cruz bikes over the years 3 new and 3 S/H but I think my next will be something else, they're simply too expensive for me now. Shame really as I was pretty brand loyal but even a heckler is silly money.

I've only ever owned Giro shoes (apart from ancient 5-10 impacts), because they seem to fit my feet pretty well and I haven't ever been brave enough to try anything else. I'm also a complete convert to lace up cycling shoes now, and riding in my old velcro strap and ratchet ones feels horrible.

I have a quite clear mental list of brands I'd buy from and brands I wouldn't.

Some backed up with reasons like good previous experience or I like the brand image/products they make. So the likes of Troy Lee, Santa Cruz, Hope and Thomson are comfortably on this list.

Other brands I avoid for no real reason, for example I'd never buy a Giant or Trek MTB.

Then there are brands like fox clothing and Schwalbe tyres which make it onto my avoid list for actually disappointing me with their products.

Shimano. It works.
Endura. It works.
Giro. They fit.

Everything else depends on how mush it is. I was pretty loyal to Specialized until Paul's started bashing out cheap Cannondales.

I avoid Shimano and e13, dont like Specialized but would have one if the deal/bike was right, Mondraker burnt their bridge with me when they sold me an early foxy (worst bike ive ever owned). No loyalty, ive owned 12 or so bikes over the years and 10 different brands

DHB. Always found the clothing good VFM and therefore rarely look elsewhere.

I know what I like and I like what I know

Road bikes...
Both Trek
Both Bontrager finishing kit (deliberately so)
Both Shimano drivetrain
Both Continental tyres
Both came with FSA headsets, both excellent.

I make that 4 brands (5 if you are being picky) total over 2 bikes, 1 a modest budget bike, t'other a bling dandy horse.

Of my 4 mtbs...
3 are Santa Cruzes
All have rockshox forks (3 pikes, in various flavours of travel and wheel size, and a bluto)
3 have shimano brakes
All have SRAM 1x11 drivetrain
3 have Thomson stems
3 have Easton carbon bars
3 have maxxis tyres
3 have reverbs.
3 have hope hubs (tbh this was because Chris King didn't do an xd free hub at the time, had they had, that's what they would be.

Like I say, I know what I like, and like what I know.

North Face (much like Rab above, know it'll fit), Hope (good experiences with way above the warranty customer care), Shimano (they work, while experiences with SRAM brakes and gears have been bad)

On the flip, almost every Scott or Trek that friends have owned has broken. Would never touch either. And Yeti, because of the generations of frames with dodgy chainstay, and for shockingly refusing to warranty some horrendous frame failures I know of.

I'm a Spesh slut; blame it on that bike shop in Totnes my parents would have to drag me past by my ankles as a 10 year old.

Road bikes - anything

MTBs - among others, I've had 2 specialized (plus 1 I bought for my wife) and 2 Lapierres. My next bike is most likely to be a camber or zesty xm.

Shimano, Hope, Race Face, Thomson, Surly, Endura clothes, Giro helmets and shoes. Bicycle Union BMX gloves, 9 years old and still going strong.

bikes: Yeti... i love Yeti stuff... i've had 4 frames all without a moments problem, & if they made a CX bike now, i would have one in the garage already (i know they did make one, but i wanted disc brakes & got an amazing deal on a stigmata). I also own a lot of yeti riding clobber, but i feel i'm starting to look a bit silly on that front, so depsite the fact i like the fit and finish of the riding gear i'm moving away from it.

cars: I've owned 10 VW's & my next car will (hopefully) be a golf r, or maybe a t25 camper as a second vehicle, but i'm currently driving not a VW, the shock!

trainers: Nike

jeans: levis and carhartt... fit me great and last really well, so i've stopped looking at anything else.

Probably Assos and Kinesis. Always had an Inbred too!

Orange bikes since 1990 for me. Had loads, liked them all. Have tried many others but keep coming back to Orange even if they are not the best value.

Parts wise, Shimano, Thomson, Fox work for me. Used to like Pace but their general uselessness these days has put me off.

Don't like Trek ever since they hoovered up many decent brands then crushed them. I don't like SRAM inc the modern Rockshox and have no desire to get anything On-One.

I'm a Spesh slut; blame it on that bike shop in Totnes my parents would have to drag me past by my ankles as a 10 year old.

It's a hairdressers now.

Giant mountain bikes. I bought my second new Trance this year.
Shimano drive trains. Corporate conceit in its pricing mean that hell will freeze before I fit SRAM.Never had any issues with Shimano in almost 30 years.
Endura clothing ( I do wear other kit as well) , never had any which hasn't fitted well or lasted.

Having mentioned Shimano drive trains above, I'm on my first Shimano disc brakeset (slx) and it's excellent. My shimano Saint pedals will be bin bound soon though.

I was loyal to Orange for years, as they gave me some great and cheap sails when I was dinghy racing.

Patagonia when I can afford to, just great kit and good attitude.

Hope.
Orange.
Altura.
Endura.

Calgary Flames.
Edmonton Oilers.

😉

I've owned 11 konas (snapped 1, had 2 nicked 🙁 , sold 2 still got the others)

Got a Sony tv, ps3, speakers and freeview recorder

Prefer shimano gears, (every time I flirt with SRAM they fall apart)

Prefer hope brakes but like most other stuff I buy if there's a bargain I'll take it, so I've got some shimano sets

I've yet to find a brand that are the best at everything they do
And its really foolish to stick with one brand as there's always someone bringing out something newer and better really

Currently Stanton - on my third on in just over two years (Slackline 853, Switchback 631 and now a Ti Switchback). Had a fair few Spesh bikes too, including my first proper MTB back in 1997. They're not sexy but seem to churn out some great bikes.

Apart from my Reverb, I avoid Rock a Shox at all costs having had some poo forks in the past. Interestingly my Fox forks have all been good.

Shinano brakes have all been good for me too.

Hmm. Giro helmets (they fit me well) and Oakley sunglasses/riding glasses.

Android phones? Does that count as a brand?

Shimano, Cannondale, Endura.

Big no for Trek. They had to know about Lance...

Loyalty is applicable to people, and maybe dogs, but not brands. Some soulless marketing drone applied the word to brands and the whole world seems to have fallen for it. Yuk.
Too many guests over Christmas and too much brandy have made me splenetic.

I'm not particularly brand loyal at all. Dakine and Camelbak are probably as close as I get, but given they're often competing then it doesn't show much loyalty to have both. Works Components might feature if they had a larger range of products.

I avoid Sram for most thins, but they do make some good kit albeit with iffy quality control.

Trying to narrow it down the actual brand loyalty rather than 'stuff I buy' as in stuff where, if I need a certain item here's only one brand I'll consider.

Bike related:

Thomson, my 4 bikes have 5 Thomson stems and seatposts between them, it's become somwewhat of a default choice.

Chris King headsets: Buy new frame, factor in cost of a black Chris King headset, my brain does the maths automatically now.

Howies Merino Base Layers: Tried 'em all, still go back to these, have 7 of them now in various styles.

Sidi Mega Wide shoes - 47 please, fit me like a glove.

Giant bikes, Giro helmets, Gore gloves and warmers, Chrome socks.

Giant seem to do nothing badly and some things (carbon) very well. Plenty of other great carbon bikes out there, but I like what they have done. The Defy is a fantastic all round bike that can do anything. And I have two. The Propel is a thoroughbred race machine that is still comfortable on a century. The Trance and Anthem seem well made, well specced and ride as well as their road counterparts.

Giro helmets just fit my head perfectly. Gore stuff works and merino socks and casual cycling wear from Chrome is a nice to have.

I did look hard at a Mondrian Look frame recently, probably the only carbon frame i'd consider as a "statement" carbon bike. Otherwise it would be Pegoretti.

Hope Bike Bits (Wheels & Brakes ..had a few of both, started with the Mono Mini)
Raceface Bars & Stems
Madison Clothing just works well and is reasonably priced

Samsung Mobile 'Phones

DT hubs and spokes for sure. Used to use Hope hubs back in the flange-cracking days, which you could forgive due to the OK prices at the time and the great warranty. Tried Chris King hubs after that and ironically cracked a flange and got nothing but grief from the warranty guys, so that was that.
Shimano gears and brakes. Tried SRAM drivetrains and brakes. Loved the performance of the brakes, but they all rotted and fell apart eventually. X0 stuff always either seized or developed play.
Love Treks. Used to think they were the blandest brand out there, but have 3 now and likely will stick with them.
Thomson of course.
Dangerously, I seem to have pretty bad ocd with bike stuff, so if I ever change brand of one component, I HAVE to change said component on my other bikes to match... Not sure why.
Shimano shoes (though I have Sidis I like too), Giro helmets (Troy Lee for full-face), Gore clothing, Oakley.

Samsung TVs and Apple stuff. Got a Samsung Galaxy S5 to try and convince myself I wasn't an Apple fanboy but HATED everything about it. Got a Windows 8 PC for similar reason and hated that too...

hmmm, I suppose shimano given my brief, but multiple rear-mech-snapping foray into sram.
Specialized tyres - just work and never fail to inflate first go tubeless.
Giro helmets - I have a Giro shaped head.
Mavic shoes on the bike and salomon off the bike. I assume they are the same or linked companies given the near identical fit.
On-ones - always had one and they do the job well and fit my budget.
Next - pants and jeans - they fit and are cheap enough for me.

Mostly 'brand loyality' is just that I know what works and if the brands don't bugger about with the product too much, then I know I can buy it in confidence that it will fit/work for me, and I can't be bothered shopping around/researching everything to death whenever I need a chain/pants/shoes etc.

With 4 ibis and 2 9:zero:7 Fatbikes in the fleet I guess there is a theme...

Other favorites based an good durable no nonsense products
Sidi shoes
Time attak pedals (6 sets)
Maloja shorts
Gore bibs
Hope brakes
Race face cranks
Mavic wheels

Shimano
Stan's rims
Bontrager tyres

Looking at my bike stuff there is no pattern I can spot. I seem to get whatever brand supplies an item I need at a price I want to pay at the time.

I am not a very good rider though, and never seem to be able to tell the difference between items! I reckon I am lucky to have started Mtb recently as everything seems to work ok!

patagonia...since i began/learned climbing in the early 80`s until today

for bike stuff the pattern is
shimano for gears
maguras for brakes
dt swiss for wheels

since i nearly only ride fatbikes right now...
salsa, as long as not all frames are in carbon..
(and i expect that this will come, like santa cruz )

Like

Mavic for cycle clothing.
Arcteryx for outdoors clothing.
Ralf Lauren and Paul smith for general clothes.
Primark for t-shirts
American Classic for wheels and hubs.
SRAM for components , because I like gripshift and think double tap is a nice system.
Selle Italia for saddles.
Phillips for sonic tooth brushes and razors.

Don't like and would never own, based on having their stuff previously.
Anything Bose
Sony
Hope
Ford, Vauxhall, Renault, Peugeot, fiat, BMW.
Casio g watches.
Next
Tudor watches

Shimano - drive chain, cranks, brakes, wheels, Several spd shoes, pedals (holy crap, didn't think i had that much).
Spesh clothing
Endura
Charge spoon!

Vans size 9 trainers. They always fit perfectly.

I don't change my bike very often so don't have a pattern there. I do like things a little different to run of the mill stuff so now riding a Liteville (and loving it)
Seems to be going for Mavic shoes/clothing at the moment as it fits right and seems good quality/spec for the money.
Car-wise, I'm a bit of an Alfa fan. Had a 156 and now a 159ti. Very much looking forward to the new releases over the next few years as I think I'll keep the 159 til something equally nice comes out.

Shimano for brakes and drivetrains and shoes. Giro for helmets. Rockshox for suspension and Vittoria for road bike tyres. Mavic for cheap and robust wheels when I need them.

santini and northwave for road gear

shimano for shoes as they fit nicely

Specialized helmets fit me nicely too, so look to them first.

Giant road bikes
MTB Scott Scale

Group set Shimano

Road tyres VIttoria

Gore Windstoppet (8 years old)

All of the above have never let me down

not that I know of.

Hmm, brand loyalty to me suggests buying stuff even when you know it's no good for what you want (loyal, through thick and thin) to stay loyal to the company.

I've not bought anything knowing it was not the best value/performance/fit/color (delete as appropriate) just to stay loyal to a brand.
The closest I've come is Santa Cruz bikes, even though they have a certain stigma attached to ownership.
They have consistently been better for what I wanted at the time compared to other brands I tried, so they had my money. My sixth SC will be demoed at the end of the month.

Time pedals - both off and on-road, up till this summer when we got sick of them changing their road pedals/cleats again and have gone to Speedplay for road - still Time for off-road.
Rudy Project cycling glasses - 4th pair now.
Campagnolo for road and CX - when will they finally bring out that hydraulic disc/ EPS groupset?
Fizik saddles on everything

Outdoor kit: Patagonia. Lasts for ever, good ethos. Strayed occasionally to Haglofs & Fjallraven.
Running shoes: Asics GT 2000 series.
Running shorts: Pearl Izumi
MTB: Hope brakes and hubs, WTB saddles, CK headsets, KMC chains, Time pedals
Hi-fi: Naim

Stuff I like based on previous experience:
Sombrio clothing
Dakine clothing and packs
Osprey packs
Shimano Shoes
Giro Helmets
Fox Gloves
Maxxis Tyres
Patagonia clothing
Chromag Bikes and Bits
Shimano gears and brakes
Surly bikes and bits
Saveoursoles socks
dhb clothing
Oakley Sunnies/riding Glasses/normal specs

Stuff I won't touch:
Endura
Specialized

Stuff that has earned my loyalty:-
Turner
Hope
Oakley
Mostly through their customer service

Those I avoid:-
Specialized
Trek
Because of the way they conduct business. I know it is a business but they don't represent what cycling means to me.

As above, there are brands that merit loyalty through their customer service- Hope and Oakley.
Other brands based on previous experience - Shimano drive trains, Campag road stuff, Endura, Continental, Sidi, KMC, Osprey.
The ones I won't touch now - anything by SRAM except for cable disc brakes. Shimano hydro brakes and chains.

Alpkit - well made, well designed and decent price.

Shimano for drivetrail and brakes. Thought I was succumbing to brand blindness and went for SRAM and my experience was dreadful for their mid-range stuff.

Rockshox was a bit of a mixed one, Pikes are amazingly good after coming from Fox, Reverb has had so many problems but their customer service has pulled it out the bag and I think I'm a fan.

Merlin - competitive priced and excellent service a rarity.

Patek Philippe, wouldn't stoop to anything less

Awaiting delivery of my 3rd Transition so guess I've inadvertently become something of a fan boy

Was the same with GT back in the day - had 5 in succes

Hope for hubs and brakes if I could afford them

Not loyalty as such, more "likes" really.

Endura
QUAD Marin's
SRAM DB5/ GUIDE brakes, yes really...
Hope hubs, love their adaptability

Only one real brand dislike. No, hate actually.

[b]Apple.[/b]

Can't stand the company or its over priced products. Could go on about my loathing for Apple but it would make me sound radicalized.

And breath.....

Kona, except that they currently don't really make anything that I want to ride.

[url= http://www.chromagbikes.com/ ]Chromag[/url].

[url= http://www.crumpler.com/au/messenger ]Crumpler[/url], although my messenger bag is 15 years old and scarcely showing its age, so it's not like they get much business from me!

I struggle with Giants. No good reason, just never look at them and get that "[url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTLZ5LTix3Q ]MINE[/url]" feeling.

🙂

Hope bit
Sram gears, every time I try shimano I know why.
Carbon frames 🙂
Used to be spec shoes but the prices got too much and the local dealer was crap, might try again now I've moved.
Maxxis rubber can't complain about it and way cheaper than the Schwalbe stuff
Torq energy products
Dell laptops
Evoc luggage
Virgin Australia

[quote=phil40]Looking at my bike stuff there is no pattern I can spot. I seem to get whatever brand supplies an item I need at a price I want to pay at the time.
This is pretty much me, but I do have a couple of preferences:
Specialized
Superstar <dons flame suit>
Sony

There's also only a few brands I wouldn't ever buy...
Trek (the Lance thing, the brands they swallowed and ruined, and the way they treated Greg LeMond)
Apple
Hayes brakes

I struggle with Giants. No good reason, just never look at them and get that "MINE" feeling.

Me too. From a purely personal point of view, I think it is the fact that Giant just doesn't have a very inspiring history. IIRC. it had simply made frames for others, then thought 'why not put our own marque on them?'

I'd rather have something that grew up around actual riding, or location, or something.

But I could be wrong.

I seem to get whatever brand supplies an item I need at a price I want to pay at the time.

I'm sort of like this, but while there are very few brands I wouldn't consider it does tend to be the same few ones that hit the spot. Dunno if that counts as loyalty or not.
I don't buy enough bikes for there to be a pattern there (although at the moment it seems likely any new bike would be a second Pinnacle). But whenever I'm looking for outdoor gear Rab, Mountain Equipment and Montane virtually always make the shortlist whereas, say, Berghaus and the North Face never seem to have anything at the right combination of price, function, and stuff I basically like the look of.
Also as mentioned above brands I already have have got a head start if buying clothes online because fit is a safer bet.

I love my Giant Defy - if/when I buy another road bike it will be a Giant.

Other brands I like -
Shimano (everything just works - unlike the beautiful but temperamental Formula brakes I had)
Oakley
Charge spoon saddles
Topeak stuff (dull but nicely made)
Nikon cameras
Camelbak
Nike for trainers

Brands I don't like -
Trek (they must have known about Lance)
5.10 (couldn't get on with their Freerider shoes - uncomfortable and felt cheap)
Apple

I also forgot: John Lewis.

Like and repeatedly buy:
Specialized shoes and helmets as they fit me really well.
Charge Spoon saddles as my arse gets on with them.

Stuff I don't like: Altura and Endura clothing. IME Poorly designed and falls apart.

Shimano probably. Their stuff works, it's (relatively) inexpensive and ubiquitous for good reason. Not sure I see the point of experimenting with other brands for drivetrain (although I do have SRAM on the road bike). When I was riding with a guide in Spain several years ago, he was full of praise for Shimano having seen lots of other gear fail on his clients' bikes.

I'd rather have something that grew up around actual riding

My Giant Defy SL won Paris Roubaix last year. that makes it a keeper 8) . My Propel SL won four stages of the same Tour de France (flat stages, it's true, and I'm no sprinter!)

It may be a while before they can truly claim a full race heritage, but I imagine they've already made some impressive frames for others 😉

Andrex bog rolls make me happy.

My Giant Defy SL won Paris Roubaix last year. that makes it a keeper . My Propel SL won four stages of the same Tour de France (flat stages, it's true, and I'm no sprinter!)