Viathon is backed by the big box retailer but has teamed up with industry veterans that'd designed frames for brands like Cervelo and Pivot. The wheels were Shimano RS100 or whatever is the wheelset that sells for about $100. Or assembled in store by Walmart employees???? Their investments are totally separate from Walmart even though Steuart is on the main Walmart board.. Walmart thinks so, and the retail juggernaut is betting its customers do too. Correct that 74 million. The Boundary has the geometry of a road bike with the heart and handling of a trail bike so you can rumble confidently across all kinds of mixed terrain and races. WhatsApp. He doesnt have a marketing team: he outsources that to Idaho-based Cranktank, the PR and marketing outfit led by Adrian Montgomery, ex of Scott, and Scott Montgomery, ex of both Cannondale and Scott and who is also the current president of Reynolds Cycling. a buddy of mine, bought the g1 gravel bike to keep at his lakehouse (insert dentist joke, he's actually a cpa). All rights reserved, an opinion column about Viathon's unique formation, Workers at REI Cleveland store vote to join union, Hi-Torque closes Road Bike Action and Electric Bike Action magazines, Top Executives Tackling Biggest Bike Industry Challenges at the 2023 Bicycle Leadership Conference, Suplest shoes now available in North America through Blacksmith Cycle, NY City Council passes lithium-ion battery safety package. Walmart already has impeccable high-end bicycle connections. I'm seeing an unbranded power meter, but no mention of it. 3 - OP linked to the Walmart site, which had little information. Considering the Walmart shopper and what bike theyre on now, the answer is probably yes. i gave it a spin. Kev has 43,000 subscribers. At this writing, the various models are listed at "Summer Sale" prices on the Viathon website. Viathonbicycles.com has more info. I would have thought their frame prices would have more closely matched online Chinese carbon frames. Savvy consumers may baulk at the Walmart connections not just because of the value connotations but also the corporates reputation for poor labour relations but nor is Viathon a bike brand for the decal-focussed. @jason-99: If a home mechanic rounds off the flats on a nut, because they used a Wal-Mart adjustable, is that the fault of the tool or the mechanic? Walmart.com brings on bike brand called Viathon that is - reddit The impetus for the brand was therefore personal, not corporate. Shop all Genesis Bikes with sizes ranging from 18" to 700c, in kids and adults sizes. I wouldn't ever recommend this bike to someone getting into the sport, because in my biased opinion xc geometry is not a good starting point and the price is simply too high. Just go to Bentonville, ride those trails, a lot of which is paid for w/ money from Wam-Lart, and I think you suddenly like the idea of their bikes a lot more. The impetus for the brand was therefore personal, not corporate. MTB, Black 648 3+ day shipping Best seller $91.14 16" Marvel Spider-Man Bike for Boys' by Huffy 435 Im guessing thatwithout the connection to the largest retailer in the world, Viathon wouldnt be getting nearly this level of attention. But Viathon is a Walmart corporatenot Waltonproject, intended to expand Walmarts current bike offerings to the specialty market. It just so happened that I have one of these stems to spare so that Andy T could check it out on the Viathon G1 to see if that might tame the harshness of the massive carbon front fork. Turner Bikes - Titanium Mountain & Gravel Bikes And failing. Could always ride it and return it! I was recruited two and a half years ago to raise the game and show what Walmart can deliver in terms of bikes, Spinhirne-Martin tells me. At first it was seemingly impressive for $2500. Cue the cheap-crap jokes. Department-store bikes look a lot better than they used to. what happened to viathon bikes We got bills to pay and we work our asses off for you ya jergoffs. In effect, the brand is a sortie into a high-end scene, allowing Walmart to test the waters of a rarefied market. It's why car companies like BMW don't come out with a new 3-series every year, but more like every 7. As a straight-up road bike, wed have no issues with the Viathon G1. The average person is a Walmart shopper, he says. Sign up to receive GearJunkie content direct to your inbox. The frames are customized for REI's product line and highly durable. It's been just about four months since a line of consumer-direct carbon road, gravel and mountain bikes premiered from a new brand called Viathon, emerging out of the bright Sea Otter sunshine like the goddess Athena springing full-formed from the forehead of Zeus. what happened to viathon bikes. Second, the designers chose to mount a dropper seatpost as standard equipment on the M.1. Turner Tech I'm cheering for you walmart!!! 99% of Americans walk into a Walmart store every week. Viathon M.1 GX Eagle 2021 | Bikes.fan Writing in 2016, Dunn wrote: Digitally native vertical brands (DNVBs) are maniacally focused on the customer experience and they interact, transact, and story-tell to consumers primarily on the web., Dunn added: The DNVB is born on the internet. Equipped with a SRAM XO1 Eagle drivetrain that shifts seamlessly, Stans 29 carbon wheels, and an FSA K-force carbon handlebar, this thing was designed to climb. Walmart will sell bikes under this brand soon with price tags up to $6,000. Viathon is a start-up carbon bike brand with a difference. VIATHON M.1 MOUNTAIN BIKE PROMO VIDEO: M.1 | XX1 Eagleproduct description: One of the lightest, fastest mountain race machines that money can buy, the top-line M.1 delivers a SRAM XX1 Eagle drivetrain for race-proven, single-ring shifting performance. Walmart hopes its own expensive bike will be proof of concept to attract mainstream brands to that marketplace brands that previously opted out, like Evil and Niner, which are both sold at Walmart-owned Moosejaw.com. Dont squint at the pix. The crankset was square taper FSA even though Sora was already using HT2 by this time. Someone in the Walmart family must be a mtb enthusiast as they also fund the Bentonville Arkansas trails which I believe is where their HQ is located. America's low price leader served up a single no-name (and possibly open-mold) model with full mechanical Ultegra group, complete with wheelset, at a very low price point. I just pay the numbers. The bikes will be available to order within weeks. By July, barely 90 days from its glitzy premiere, Viathon had announced via direct mail and on its website that it was dropping prices on all models by as much as $1,000 per bike, to as low as $1,998. But it is building out a platform not just with more and better bikes, but with video and editorial support. And every single article, including this one, focuses on the Walmart ownership. Viathon riders, like every other bike customer, will need service. Bike industry seems super healthy (at least outside looking in), coming from the moto world. The R.1 is a true road racing bike, the G.1 is for gravel and the M.1 hardtail is for cross-country riding. The R.1 is available in five stock frame sizes (52-59cm), and three complete bike build in addition to the $2000 frame & fork. Get Free Shipping Storewide ViathonBicycles.com w/ Coupon (Activate). So how much cheaper are these complete builds? Press J to jump to the feed. All rights reserved. Sales are via the brands website, and this does not feature the Walmart name in the about us section. Viathon is a standalone direct-to-consumer brand that, by rights, shouldnt exist. Blog postings are outsourced to cycling journalist Aaron Gulley. I want high-level quality customer service to begin with, and I can control that in the US.. Oct 2, 2019 by James Smurthwaite Viathon Bikes launched to surprise, confusion and intrigue back in April, offering high-end carbon XC hardtails despite links to Walmart. Viathon is a new direct-to-consumer bike brand owned by Walmart that launched this week with a line of carbon bikes that sell between $2,300 and $6,000. Huh, no one wanted to buy a $6k hardtail that has no track record? Surprised it hasn't happened already or will it appear on tomorrow's front page! Thanks to a dropped chainstay design, the G1 clearance for 700c x 40mm or 650b x 2.1" tires and a maximum chainring size of 50t, according to the viathonbicycles.com website, while walmart.com boasts 700c clearance up . Thread starter nakman; Start date Apr 12, 2019; nakman Club Secretary . For those people, being able to buy a high-quality bike online means they dont have to go into a potentially scary, elitist, unwelcoming bike shop where theyll be uncomfortable and possibly judged.. In that sense, Viathon hit the nail on the head.. Walmart is the largest retailer for bikes in America by a good margin. Two Walmart heirs, Tom and Steuart Walton, are themselves highly enthusiastic riders who have invested in cycling companieslike Allied Cycle Works and Rapha, and they directed the trailbuilding grants that have helped transformWalmarts home base of Bentonville, Arkansas, into a world-class mountain-bikingdestination. The history of the bicycle business is, in one sense, a history of powerful outsiders coming in to teach us dumb yokels how things are done in the Big Leagues. Join Outside+ to get Outside magazine, access to exclusive content, 1,000s of training plans, and more. "We're trying to build a culture, building an education," Jordan said at the introduction. unless you can pay for it with your grocery bonuses / tickets that accumulated over a year after you forgot the card on your neighbors house after playing some domino. Kudos to them, but that story stretches back some 15 years and is still far from over. The multi-tier distribution model of sporting goods companies doesn't help either but it's a reality that's likely not going to change. Bikes I'm a kiter, and that industry is even worse. The website has no we-can-offer-keenest-prices-because-were-Walmart spiel. Its one of the biggest online merchants in the world, No. Also if you make that thing for many years, it further amortizes the investment. Like was stated, much of the pricing for this sport is utterly absurd. Since 1994 these are the words that continue to resonate within us. I'm honestly surprised by how many people don't realize the Walton family is already waist deep in the cycling industry. That makes sense. Dollar-for-dollar there are other carbon-framed high-end bikes out there that undercut the Viathon offerings. @I wonder how many ZX-6rs are produced and sold. Whole Foods kinda sells bikes through their shit parent company Amazon. philadelphia bicycles - craigslist Boost? Bike is not returnable if damaged or not fit for continued use (Please see Warranty and Crash Replacement policy) ", i wouldnt buy the mountain bike but their gravel offering is interesting for sure at 3k. what happened to viathon bikes - malaikamediatv.com The initial feel is that of being a disjointed one- the front being very stiff while the back is not so much, at least on gravel. With Walmart backing this brand, we can engage in a bike segment other brands wont touch.. Matt Macduff's prototype Altruiste is the slopestyle bike of your Will people buy them? With the backing of Walmart, we can scale very quickly.. Get 40% off Select Items ViathonBicycles.com w/ Coupon (Activate). If we stopped inventing new shit the whole circus might just collapse in on itself overnight. Explore, search and compare thousands of the world's best mountain bikes here on Mountain Bike Database. Although from a bike industry perspective, the geometry is a few years outdated even for a hardtail. Good, we need more of this competition. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Someone asked above how can they sell for this much cheaper? The M1 carbon hardtail, with a SRAM GX Ealge driveterain comes in at a bargain price of $2,200, with the top-level SRAM AXS electronic drivetrain equipped model hitting $6,500. Probably trying to compete with REI. bike brands don't make as much as you think per unit. Very glad for your fair judgement and perspective. Press J to jump to the feed. Maybe you don't, but I do. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts It appears the newswas first mentioned in a Pinkbike story. Complete builds start at $2,300, and top out at $3,500 for the gravel models and around $6,000 for the road and mountain bikes. Twitter. We have incredible traffic on our site. The GX spec would be tempting if the geometry and looks weren't reminiscent of my 2009 Stumpy hardtail. Sold exclusively through Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles. And just like any other reality, outsiders ignore ours at their peril. 3G for Ultegra, double the 105 model. You do not get the benefit of having a face-to-face resource for things like minor adjustments, tune-ups, or advice, as you would in a bike shop experience, but maybe that doesnt matter to some of you? And 2 years ago, the company hired Zach Spinhirne-Martin, a senior buyer at CompetitiveCyclist.com. Read more. Who am I kidding. For the last update and a link to the introductions, Click Here. Should brick-and-mortar or other online retailers worry? Marketing has been slow-burn so far, rolling out a website and social media, getting journalists on the bikes at Sea Otter, and paying for GCNs Simon Richardson to ride the G1 from Outerbike in an advertorial video posted on 12th July and which has already had 34,000 views. Viathon G1 Bike: At The Finish - Riding Gravel This segment of the gravel bike market has fierce competition for your attention, and Viathons G1 doesnt strike us as being outstanding from much of what is offered now. Prices of big brand quality mountain bikes jumped the shark years ago. Then theres the idiots who think they can get 1500 for their POS 1988 cr125. Viathon is a new direct-to-consumer bike brand owned by Walmart that launched this week with a line of carbon bikes that sell between $2,300 and $6,000. Viathon's goals seem to be crystal clear with the R.1: Build a race-ready road bike for a high-end audience without the high-end price tag. Have your questions answered, get a virtual tour of our showroom, collect measurements, or talk about financing options. But Quan is the only person mentioned in a team of top bicycle industry veterans with decades of collective experience. The only other real face behind Viathon is brand manager Zach Spinhirne-Martin, who spent nine years with the online retailer Competitive Cyclist before joining Walmart as its bike category manager. Unlike, say, the car industry, its relatively cheap to launch into the world of making bicycles, even bespoke framed ones. So we have the greatest potential to reach a larger subset of the American population than any bike shop, or any other brand, he claims. cycling, Press J to jump to the feed. Bike MSRP vs. what people actually pay is a whole nother conversation. Our gravel, road, and triathlon bikes are designed, tested, and assembled in North America; engineered for performance, and crafted with rider-first geometry. Managing editor Dean Yobbi told the story in BRAIN's May dead-trees issue and online as well. But the bikes are neither crap nor cheap. http://www.walmart.com/cp/viathon-bikes/8471299? Frame weight is a claimed 1,010 grams for size 54, including derailleur hardware and bottle cage bolts. Walmart (and the greater MTB community, tbh) would be better served by selling an aluminum hardtail trail bike w/ decent components, a dropper, and moderate/slack geometry that is trail ready out the door for $800-$1200 (a pricepoint unobtainable currently in the new bike market) so that new riders AND riders who are cash strapped have somewhere to get started that isn't going to fall apart on them after a few rides. As for the wheels, Viathon M.1 GX Eagle 2021, has a 29 aluminum model. They have dumped millions into cycling in AK, even helping to fund the Arkansas High Country Route. A Viathon representative told me that Walmart simply wanted the story to be more about the bikes than the company behind them. Walmart launches upscale Viathon road, gravel and mountain bike brand Viathon M.1 GX Eagle Mountain Bike Review | Super light weight hardtail By James Smurthwaite Spinhirne-Martin tells me to look around the Laguna Seca Raceway, which is teeming with fans, baggy shorts-wearing bros, and Lycra-clad racers with rippling muscles. can i return it after thrashing it for a season? And that right there is the problem with any form of cycling, "my bike is better than yours" bullshit mantra. Compare that to a top end World Cup dh bike at around 10-15k. Moosejaw now sells cycling gear on their website and has a retail bike shop in Birmingham, MI. Complete builds start at $2,300, and top out at $3,500 for the gravel models and around $6,000 for the road and mountain bikes. The parts kits feature quality components from premium suppliers like Fizik, Hed, and Zipp, and the pricing is competitive with a number of brands. I'd be interested in something like this (depending on where I lived) but it would likely be a third or more mountain bike for me and that seems unlikely. For anyone familiar with the beer industry, this is like Anheuser-Busch creating Shocktop, not Anheuser-Busch buying Goose Island or Elysian. Walmart didnt opt to adopt more modern geometry, possibly because its current customer base will have to take a few steps to catch up to the rest of the bike market. The finishing kit and drive train on the G1 option of the Viathon gravel bike is decent and should be seen as a good value. If they somehow get interested in riding they will take what Wmart has to offer, and if they have a lot of money and want the "best", Wmart is now there for them. "With Walmart's reach, we will create an awareness of the brand.". Viathon has chosen a RockShox SID RLC with 120mm of travel. The GVR is designed for the speed of race day and fast-paced action on pave and open fire road sections. Viathon is for riders who appreciate uncontrived quality, demand craftsmanship but recognize value, who pedal for health yet savor the ride. Not sure where you were getting the 2400 price tag before price drop because I seen reviews months ago and 1900 was the price then not 2400. Compare prices, components, suspension, reviews, images and more on current and past MTB's. You can even share reviews, comments and questions on mountain bikes. Certainly, there are many Walmart shoppers among us, though likely few who have bought a bike there. The SRAM components and Zipp cockpit pieces are quality bits that should last the rider quite some time. Thanks to its robust construction, coarse tyre tread, powerful brakes and . (The Walmart connection can be found only on the sites copyright line.) Now on to the final word on this carbon fiber crushed rock roller. All Genesis Bikes | Kids & Adult | 18 inch to 700c | Kent Bicycles And I suspect Viathon isnt relying on a deep tech story to market its bikes for a simple reason: the frames dont seem to offer clear innovation in design or materials. I dont shop at Walmart anyway since they decided to blame guns for violence. Some cyclists are extremely brand-loyal, willing to pay a premium for pride in heritage brands like Bianchi or Pinarello. Dont squint at the pix, the forks face the right way. There hasn't been a new supersport motorcycle design from ANYONE in like over a decade. viAtHOntM is a systemic product. The bikes look fine. Its a fine balance caused by the nature of disc brake calipers, front wheel spacing, hub flange spacing, and wheel design. here is a whole range of styles with bikes for children all the way up through adults. Trail systems even in coastal areas are getting so well-built (and relatively easy due to limited elevation, at least on the US east coast) that a lot of people can easily get into the sport if they have a bike. Who does this serve?! All Viathon bikes come with a 2-year warranty. DSA_CATEGORY:BIKES DSA_MARKETABLE_CATE Hi all Thanks for the reviews and updates. And I want to get more people on bikes. what happened to viathon bikes - s208669.gridserver.com Why would pile-em-high-sell-em-cheap Walmart be interested in such a high-end part of the bicycle market when the market-dominating retailer is already Americas biggest seller of keenly priced bicycles? Love lower price bikes and bringing the MTB sport to more people.. what happened to viathon bikes - masar.group Let's see the salaries of engineers at Specialized giving us all these "advancements" in recent years that 90% of people riding mountain bicycles on trails don't need. But Im a little mystified that the mountain bike is a cross-country hardtail 29er, a style of bike thats pretty out of fashion at the moment. It uses four R12 bearings and everything is held together by the crank's 19mm spindle. If the demand for an entry level bike is there, then they can produce enough units to make it financially viable. ! 439mm size large w/ no XLactually dont care, but love an opportunity for a Zoolander quote!! New bike brands come and go, but its rare that one makes as big of a splash with its debut as Viathon, a new direct-to-consumer marquee that launched this week. REI bikes are made by the largest manufacturer in the industry, Giant. I wanted to make bikes that I would want to ride, says Spinhirne-Martin. Viathon Is Walmart's New High-End Bike Brand - Outside Online Walmart are best known for their $300-$500 bikes that. But when people saw these bikes here, it was like, 'Hey, these are real bikes! I'll bet. this will fail big time not just a little. Thats a call youll have to make. My point is, the greater MTB industry is set to explode, but the issue of entry level cost is still a major concern for people who simply are not willing to dish out >$1000 for a bike, and unfortunately, for anything less than that, you are crippled with lousy geometry, fall-apart components, and a not-so-fun early experience. At these prices you can buy if for the components and off the frame. Well, so much for that. The G.1, one of 3 models launched by Viathon, is a modern gravel bike with a 1,010g claimed 54cm frame weight with hardware. I might consider buying it for the components. Not that Viathon is going mass-market anytime soon. Full on rippers. what happened to viathon bikes - daxasys.com Schedule a free call. what happened to viathon bikes - ricepharmacy.com Spinhirne-Martin says yes, and reiterated that he wants to grow the bike industry, not put other brands or bike shops out of business. That's a common argument in PB comments and everyone blows up saying you can't actually get a good mx bike for that price so why did I see one like you mentioned for 6k at my dealership? Good. The load is transmitted through four large bearings and a large 19mm chunk of steel. The S-Works Epic only comes with an 11-speed groupsetthe Shimano XTR Di2so the Viathon wins in our books with the snazzy eagle. The brand is starting with three models: the R1 road bike, the G1 gravel bike, and the M1 29er MTB. Required fields are marked *. Review: Viathon R.1 Road Bike - VeloNews.com Don't think too fast. Sure, some R and D for that motorcycle has come from up and down the lineup, but the same can be said for the bike companies. Viathon is a start-up carbon bike brand with a difference. And the bikes look good! Its a night and day difference!, exclaimed Andy. I spoke with him at the recent Outerbike expo in Idaho, the second public outing for the brand. Doesn't really looks like a revolution to me yet. Nowadays, a search for Viathon bikes on the Walmart website (see here, here and here) returns a notice that the item is no longer available; the image from the final link (also shown above) displays another brand and model entirely. He said that he originally felt that the rear triangle was fairly smooth, but now that the excessive vibrations have been tamed up front, the rear stiffness jumped out as something he didnt feel was as comfortable. That bit of information, incidentally, is not something youll find on Viathons website. I mean, they still have to make the same deals with sram, rockshox, shimano etc. Thats a fine goal, but lets not kid ourselves: $2,300 is both a lot of money and also not appreciably cheaper than the pricing offered by a number of other brands. Spinhirne-Martin says Walmart is launching with the hardtail to fill in holes in what they already offer on the Walmart.com marketplace. RZC Investments, founded by Tom and Steuart Walton, grandsons of Walmart founder Sam Walton, owns Rapha and part-owns Allied Cycle Works, a high-end bike manufacturer based in Little Rock, Arkansas. One of the podcasts I listen to (maybe Singletracks?) Bikes - Ventum GravelNut April 10, 2019, . A First Look at Viathon, Walmart's new Mountain Bike Honestly the bike prices are high because people buy them LOL. They want tech, they want new features, they want new stuff. Bayside Women's Cruiser Bike, Rose Gold 1385 Pickup 2-day shipping Best seller $648.00 Hyper Bicycles Electric Bicycle Pedal Assist Mountain, 26 In. So, we feel this is a good bike, but maybe that stiffness and the specifics on spec and business model are not for everyone. When everyones selling a $3,500-ish Shimano Ultegra disc-equipped carbon gravel bike with an oversize headtube, asymmetric rear triangle, and scads of tire clearance, its a little hard to stand apart from the crowdeven when there are real differences. They are direct to consumer from the website, just like Canyon. The bike thats getting the most attention is Viathons new hardtail mountain bike, though Walmart is also launching with road and gravel options. Apt analogy. And its partnering with shops, mobile shops, and more, as well as creating an online fit calculator. I did hear you and Andy mention 2300 on podcast 65. While you could swap to 650B wheels, and the bike can carry a front rack, there isnt a lot of versatility built in here beyond that. what happened to viathon bikes - bngrz-studio.com It turns out that Walmart bike buyers, as much as theyre dismissed or even ridiculed, include some passionate fans.