If you’ve been part of The Herd for a while then you will be fully aware that this time of year is when we launch our new range for the coming season. Well this year is a little bit different. Have no fear there is plenty of brand new stuff coming (and I do mean plenty) but the sequence of launching is a little different to normal. So rather than face 50 questions via social media etc I thought it best to put this “rough guide to SS24” together.
First off, why the difference in schedule? Well over the last 8 -10 years we have been making pretty much the same garments with some additions here and there and of course some tweaks / updates to the fabrics and fit. The fit on our legacy (for want of a better word) products works extremely well for a lot of you, but perhaps it’s a little too “race fit” for others. I myself sometimes want a race fit but other times I want something that’s a little less “spray on” if I’m just out on a casual ride for example. So this year we are launching some brand new jerseys and shorts. We will still have the Ibex fit jersey from previous seasons but we have made some minor tweaks to modernise the look and feel of it. But on top of this we have brand new “Everyday jerseys” and “Everyday Bib shorts” coming.
The concept of these “Everyday” garments is that they are a much more true to life fit. So if you buy an XL t-shirt or top in your off-the-bike-mode then you will absolutely be an XL in the Everyday fit. If you want a racier feel then you can size down etc. “Everyday” as a concept will also, in many cases, mean more budget friendly. We fully appreciate this whole cost of living saga, it’s been as tough on businesses as it has on personal finances believe me. We’ve all seen many companies (both small and massive) in the cycling industry unravel over the last few months. So we’ve tried where possible to keep prices the same or even lower despite our costs going up dramatically in some areas over the last couple of years. We need to keep the lights on, but at the same time we appreciate that the products we sell are effectively luxury items. Although when you see some of the designs this year you may feel they are a necessity rather than a luxury!
These new products gave us a chance to start from a fresh slate. Get the fabric and fit spot on for our audience. Keep our usual superior quality in place whilst keeping the price as keen as possible. Don’t get me wrong, we will never be a “budget brand” we simply don’t have the volumes for that, but our goal is to bring to market the best product we can at a price that’s proportional to the costs. In addition we will of course add our well know Stolen Goat design flair into the mix.
Design flair is an important point. We certainly have a particular graphic style here and we like to push the boundaries when it’s appropriate to do so. Over the last year or so that has been harder to do because realistically you have to make a certain volume of each design to make it work financially, and if that number gets too high then “riskier” designs become, well… riskier. So I think we have been guilty of watering down our options graphically speaking to make sure we didn’t end up sitting on a lot of stock. Overstocking has been the death of many businesses in the industry of late so you can see how that mindset creeps in. But with some adaptions to our supply chain we are now able to offer more “out there” designs in smaller numbers. This means we can be bolder in our design decisions and never be left sitting on a pile of 3000 rainbow-unicorn themed jerseys that people said they REALLY wanted but turns out.. they didn’t.
That was a very long winded way of saying that we have made some additions to our supply chain and we will be launching some great new products this season with a plethora of amazing design options. All of these things take time to get right, and more importantly getting them all to coincide with a specific launch date is impossible. So we will be introducing new things regularly according to the following loose schedule (don’t hold us to it, we’re just trying to give you our best calculated guess)…
- End of March: New Ibex Advanced Bib shorts. These are the most advanced shorts we’ve ever made and take it from me, are absolutely amazing to wear, on any length of ride.
- End of March: Pre-Order open for a selection of the new Everyday jerseys. A multitude of awesome designs, and this year we are offering the same designs for men & women. So if you like a design, you will be able to buy it (as long as stock lasts). No more “I wish they made this in a men’s cut” type comments (as much as we love your comments).
- End of March: Fresh sock designs, some new (design wise) accessories like neck warmers and turbo towels etc.
- End of March: New Advanced Tri-suits. A fresh take on our highly reviewed tri-suits. This new tri suit is incredibly comfy and perfect for both advanced and beginner triathletes.
- Early April: New Ibex Bib Shorts. Our new, mid level bib shorts that will give you all the features you love and need.
- Early April: New Everyday Jerseys stock lands (initial batch).
- Early-mid April: Fresh gilet & base layer designs.
- Early-mid April: Pre-order open for 2nd batch of Everyday jersey designs
- Mid April: re-stock of our popular mitts (key colourways like black / navy etc)
- Mid April: Fresh designs in our classic Ibex Jersey with some upgrades to the features for a more modern aesthetic. This includes the stock drop for the Race Club jerseys
- Late April: 2nd wave of Everyday jersey design stock lands
- April onwards: occasional new releases of special projects and designs (we have some really cool collabs launching this year, watch this space for things like Chase The Sun, and an absolutely epic project with Tate Britain, a very noteworthy “Big Chief Signature Series”, and in May a US inspired collection).
- Early May: New Everyday Bib shorts… our budget friendly option for those of you looking for a great pair of shorts at a great price.
- Early-Mid May: Fresh cap designs
I hope that helps plan your budget accordingly hehe :-)