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Most respected brand? |
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 Topic: Most respected brand?Posted: 26 Jan 14 at 10:23pm |
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I thought it would be interesting, in the run up to the dinghy show, to canvass opinion on the most respected brand in dinghy sailing. Harken, North, Gill, Winder, RS, P&B, Y&Y, a.n.other?
Show your appreciation of the companies that have shaped our sport and are committed to its future by nominating them here! |
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iitick
Far too distracted from work 
Joined: 09 Sep 13 Location: Tunstead Milton Online Status: Offline Posts: 392 |
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Posted: 27 Jan 14 at 8:50am |
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This is an interesting question....but. You use the word "brand" rather than manufacturer. None of the "brands" have factories turning out fittings or stitching clothing. They buy in, mark up and sell on. Anything to do with sailing is expensive. If these businesses are operating properly then they buy as cheaply as they can and sell as expensively as they can. In order to sell expensively they need to promote the image of the product. Harken do this very well, how many times do you see "Harken fit out" in an advertisement?
On balance I like Rooster because Steve Cockeril seems like one of us....or at least that is the way he promotes his company.......
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jeffers
Really should get out more 
Joined: 29 Mar 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 3048 |
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Posted: 27 Jan 14 at 9:08am |
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Steve Cockerill is a genuinely nice guy and is always prepared to take time to speak to people.
Rooster are also good as a company. Always ready to give advice and help where they can and always ready to sort out any issues with your order should they arise. They also seem to be doing pretty well, perhaps the rest of the dinghy world should take note?
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Paul
---------------------- D-Zero GBR 74 |
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yellowwelly
Really should get out more
Joined: 24 May 13 Online Status: Offline Posts: 2003 |
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Posted: 27 Jan 14 at 9:24am |
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well in answer to the original question, I'd say Harken. They have been synonymous with high quality for as long as I've been sailing, they are innovative with their range and in general, the operating companies in both the UK and US couldn't be more helpful with even the lowest of value consumer enquiries.
It's also nice to know that from industry peer-to-peer award, Andy Ash-Vie, Harken UK's boss, just won the MTA Personality of the Year... showing he's not only respected by his customers and employees, but also his competitors and industry collaborators. In general, they are the company whose brand I respect the most and whose product range never fails to impress me.
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JimC
Really should get out more
Joined: 17 May 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 6662 |
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Posted: 27 Jan 14 at 9:26am |
Well he is "one of us", but then so are most people in the industry. I don't know that I've met anyone in the industry who didn't start off as a sailor and with sailor's enthusiasm. I like to think I've got on with pretty much everyone I've met who's in the business, although of course that might just be a mark of the patience and tolerance needed to make a living with boats. There is, of course, a glaring exception where one international manufacturer is concerned, and we all see the friction it causes, but IME almost everyone in the industry started out as a sailor and an enthusiast. Edited by JimC - 27 Jan 14 at 9:28am |
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Rupert
Really should get out more
Joined: 11 Aug 04 Location: Whitefriars sc Online Status: Offline Posts: 8956 |
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Posted: 27 Jan 14 at 10:44am |
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http://www.goodwoodboat.co.uk/
The Goodwood Boat Company do it for me - actually building real proper boats in a world of plastic. I guess most respect because it is something I could have gone into 20 years ago, but didn't have the guts, gumption, and lets face it, talent. Having said that about plastic, RS are a brand that I respect. |
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Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686
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winging it
Really should get out more
Joined: 22 Mar 07 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3958 |
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Posted: 27 Jan 14 at 11:02am |
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Harken, Rondtan. Clothing wise I am a mix of Gill and Zhik. I would have said Typhoon but the Goretex feet in my death bag have turned out to leak like a sieve.
I recommend Rooster to the kids because it's affordable so it doesn't matter so much when they grow out of it.
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the same, but different...
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Chris 249
Really should get out more
Joined: 10 May 04 Online Status: Offline Posts: 2041 |
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Posted: 27 Jan 14 at 11:17am |
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I've met Mr Rooster; seemed like a nice guy.
I got nudged at a buoy rounding when I nudged in front of Mr Zikh once. I turned around to ask him (in all honesty) which one of us had made the mistake (as it could have been my fault) and saw that he had instantly started doing a circle. I'm still not sure if I was in the right (which is why I turned to ask Brian) and I was most impressed by the fact that he had instantly played by the rules, and more. He retired in his early 40s after an earlier business success and just started Zikh to keep occupied. I'll give a thumbs up to our sponsor, Y&Y - one of the last mags that seems to cater for the grass roots sailor. I used to work in the industry and have met very few narcs. However, I have to say that those who play in the big dollar end of the big boat game seem to often become infected with a nasty virus that makes them very bitchy towards any boat that does not have a six figure campaign budget each year. Thumbs down goes to the Oz branch of a very, very big beach cat manufacturer. I wrote an article about a high performance competitor of theirs (ie in a different market sector), trying hard to be even handed and including a famous (AC, Olympic medal) sailor's remark that the competitor's boats were not as strong as those of VVBBCM. Very, very big beach cat manufacturer promptly cancelled a year's worth of ads, although they admitted that not a single thing (apart from the positive opinion about their product's strength) that I had written was subjective - for example I had referred to established yardsticks but that was because they are an objective measure of speed. The thing was that I only found this out after I had interviewed their head for another article in which he had stressed how he just wanted to cooperate with other cat manufacturers to help that side of the sport in general. The parent company makes claims about boat and membership numbers that do not add up, which indicates that they too are Hypocrites. Sad, since I like some of their stuff. Edited by Chris 249 - 27 Jan 14 at 11:27am |
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Ruscoe
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Joined: 12 Jan 10 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1514 |
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Posted: 27 Jan 14 at 11:30am |
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In all honesty i think Sailing brands are all rather week, not proper brand name that seems to stand for anything, other than some notable examples:
Rooster sailing, it has an obvious business model. A clear direction, brand image, marketing clarity. Etc. So as a brand in dinghy terms i would say its the strongest (in the purest sense) Harken, again same as above. Up until recently i would of said north sails, but that seems to be a muddy mess. Segmented parts of a business, with the overall North umbrella branding. Seems to be little in the way of an understandable 'public perceived' business strategy or mission statement, which we all tend to associate with big high street brands. |
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Daniel Holman
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Joined: 17 Nov 08 Online Status: Offline Posts: 997 |
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Posted: 27 Jan 14 at 1:37pm |
I used to love harken, and while their kit is good, you just get the feeling that some of the smaller younger hungrier brands are catching up - whether it be on cost/value (selden on small boat kit) or innovation (Karver etc on big boat kit) |
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