It's my understanding that Performance and Nashbar are actually the same company. Is this true? If so, what exactly is the difference between these two mail-order catalogs?
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Performance and Nashbar...same company?
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They were independent for a long time, but Performance bought Nashbar a few years ago. Since then, they've marketed Nashbar as a deep discounter specializing in closeouts, and have marketed Performance a bit higher up in the market, as evidenced by their own label clothing line which is rising in quality and price.
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What DavidsonDuke said. Wait till Nashbar has one of their 20% off coupons and you can stock up on basics for not too much coin.
"There is no better than adversity. Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss, contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance the next time."
Malcolm X -
+1 what Duke and Hab said.
Performance also has brick and mortar stores in some locations.
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They also share 'technical-help' phone centers. Same guy answers the phone at both places; not sure if he was in the USA or not.
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And Nashbar has no brick and mortar stores.
It is his word versus ours. We like our word. We like where we stand and we like our credibility."--Lance Armstrong. -
Yes, they are the same. The difference: Performance has a lot of crappy stuff with a small percentage of decent equipment. Nashbar has pure garbage but they sell it ridiculously cheap.
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If you are just looking for STUFF, Nashbar is worth a look.
I am looking for some cheap SPD MTB type shoes. Nashbar is not a bad place to go for such things.
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Not sure if you would say bought out a couple of years ago.
They were the same company back in 2003 when I worked for them.
They also bought out Super-Go another mail order and brick and mortar chain in SOCAL.The only real difference is that Nashbar carries a lot more close out name brand products.
As for the term crap and cheap, well I can say that they source their products from the same Asian manufacturers as the expensive name brand companies do. The only difference between the name brand and the Perf/NB product is the packaging.
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Shh Woogie! I wanna use my Italiano last name on some Chinese "crap" and mark it up 1000%
Nick
P.S. I guess one advantage of getting old and keeping a hobby for so damn long: I remember when Bike Nashbar was Bike Warehouse, and I rememember when Gary Snook would sometimes answer the phone at Performance.
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There are items I buy only at Performance. LOOK style Delta cleat pedals. For this guy who has to choose between float and knees, those pedals work as well as any. $50. They don't care for serious winter riding, but for the rest of the year, they work well. And since I don't have much money tied up, replacing them when I have any doubts is an easy one. Performance usually has the black cleats in stock too.
Also plain yellow jerseys. Those are usually in stock and I can almost always order one in small. Their last batch had fabric that does something like pilling easily, but the fabrics change. I suspect they will get that right soon. I've started using their Elite shorts. Not as good as Segois but not far off at 1/2 the price. Too thick a pad but aren't they all now? 70 miles fixed works so they pass the real test. There's a place for Performance. And I like that they have several B & M stores here around Portland.
Ben
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