mje wrote:
Last I heard Klepper was down to around 300 boats a *year*. Nautiraid is all but gone from the North American market. I don't know what Folbot does, but they're probably as big as the other major makers put together.
I'm curious: Do you (or anyone else) have any insight into Folbot's finances? I'm sure you know, they just eliminated 3-4 models. It's my understanding that when a company "restructures" in such a way, it's at least partially because they are having financial issues. The Folbot fanboys have adopted a more optimistic perspective that it's just smart business and the company is fine; time will tell who is right. [Folbot's recent change of ownership/management probably doesn't bode well for the future, but again, time will tell.]
tsunamichuck wrote:
I think its bleak, for kayak manufaturers in general. The place to market now is China. Manufacture there for the Chinese market.
I think the market for hardshells will probably be fine; they're pretty ubiquitous. The market for folders has always been more dicey. On the one hand, more people are living in cities with limited space, and folders are their only option; on the other, kayaks certainly aren't essential: While they certainly provide mental and physical health benefits, they're essentially elaborate toys. [Please don't disparage me for this; I'm just being honest. As much as a love kayaking, it's not certainly not a necessity.] When the economy is strong, the market for well-made adult toys generally does fine, but when the economy is tenuous, most people tend to focus on essentials.
It's difficult to quantify the level of interest for folders, but if the number of persons who post here is any indication, it's probably fairly limited. There are only about, what, 8-10 of us who post here regularly? We're certainly not the only ones, but it does indicate there probably aren't all that many of us.
I can only imagine how difficult it most be to run a company in such a highly competitive, fairly limited market. I suspect/hope we'll begin to see more customized, limited-producer who do it more as a side business. Again, only time will tell the future...