[email hidden] (john Acres) wrote in :"]news:[email hidden]:
Quoted message said:It seems three are a number if issues within this thread of comments:
1. BiGHA's is a dumb design. That's possibly true. I think it is a good design. Bt I've been
wrong--and right--before. I certainly agree the company is a huge risk in product and manner of
distribution. Time will tell.
2. BiGHA is manned by executives of BikeE. I'm not exactly sure of what an executive is.
Executives are those unseen shadowy boogie-men behind most of society's
ills. They do no actual work and are on earth only to exploit the labors of others. That is the
definition I hear all the time, all though it isn't MY definition.(~: Oh yeah, they wear suits
and drive big cars.
Quoted message said:BiGHA hired a couple of sales people, an accounting clerk, assembly people and two designers from
BikeE/ Are they executives? I was an investor at BikeE--I lost a lot of mney there--but I was never
on the BikeE payroll nor did I ever do any paid consulting for BikeE. In fact, I never received
payment of any form from BikeE, though I did invest in that company. I don't consider myself an
executive but I've really never understood what that word is supposed to mean.
3. BiGHA is a bad company because the people at BikeE were dishonest. I disagree with both
contentions. I know the people that staffed BikeE. All are decent, honest people. I left BikeE
entirely in March of 2002 so I was not involved directly in the final days. But I was tracking
their progress because I hoped they'd pull thorugh and they owed me a lot of money. BikeE did
everything it could to survive. They reduced staff, moved to smaller quarters and cut costs
wherever they could. BikeE was always an underfunded company and had narrowly escaped death
many, many times during its history. It didn't survive this last scrape.
I am very "closely associated" with a biz owner, my S.O.,and it would probably surprise employees if
they knew how close and frequently the company has come to shutting down over the past 18 years. A
recent bailing by a staff accountant, that wasn't doing her job,left before year end stuff was done,
and actually had left behind some very costly "ommissions" that made what is normally a tight
financial time, quite stressful. A previously unknown tax break saved the day. Without that, I might
be posting from the computer at the library. Events like the above take place daily in the corporate
world, while self- centered employees(and consumers) go on oblivious.
Quoted message said:BikeE's demise was not clear to me until the final day when it simply ran out of money. They made
payroll and had nothing left.
Like that.
Quoted message said:Bike dealers are, for the most part, wonderful people. But not all of them pay their bills. A few
because they're dishonest. Most because they've got cash problems like everyone else. BikeE was
also supposed to collect from a couple of component vendors that had been responsible for the
defects that caused the recalls. For whatever reson, that money did not come through and its
difficult to chase a debt in Taiwan..0
Anyone who hasn't dealt with sub-contractors and suppliers may not recognize this problem, and I'm
glad you brought it up. BikeE's staff didn't machine every little bolt, bracket, etc. I suppose the
wheels were purchased already with spokes in place, and wheels were as I recall one of the sticky
points. One might say that it is still BikeE's "fault" because they told the vendor how they wanted
the parts. I know from my own experience that getting the vendor to actuaally build stuff the way
you want it is often an uphill battle.
Quoted message said:
I think it's unfair to characterize BikeE staff like this. They did not know that the end was
emminent. Sure, you can look back in hindsight now and say the indicators were clear.
I agree, even though I wasn't there. As I mentioned above, business is often risky.
Quoted message said:
But that's hindsight. BikeE's employees were trying to save their dream. They were caught between
creditors that wanted repayment--including me, a shortage of cash and a slow economy.
To me, they behaved exactly as a good basketball team that is 20 points down with five minutes to
go. They didn't count failure as an option. If that's a crime, I'd be pleased to share a jail cell
with such people.
Don't know what this means because I don't know(or care) about basketball, but assume it means
keeping things working until the last moment.
Quoted message said:Everyone is entitled to their own opiniuon. No one lost more from BikeE than I did. I miss those
dollars very much. But I also miss that another US manufacturer dropped away. I am sad that
several good people los ttheir jobs. And yeah, I feel badly for BikeE owners--which I am one of
as well.
But I am not bitter and I am not angry. Life is about exploration and adventure. These cannot be
worthwhile without risk. I consider BikeE a valiant effort that ultimately failed, though my role
was only as an investor. My attentions are now on BiGHA. I am very glad to have the chance to
associate with everyone at BiGHA. I count as friends the people of BikeE as well. There's not one
of that I would not entrust my wallet to.
To me BikeE proved that one could make and sell lots of 'bents, and they made a substantial dent on
the collective subconscious towards making "non- diamond frame bikes" more visible and mainstream.
Thanks for giving a different perspective to the conversation.
Happy trails to you and Bigha, rorschandt
