Sitting on a crowed train out of Waterloo station, I started to read an article in Marketing Week sub titled “We’re obsessed with nostalgia. But the past was pretty awful, so why do we keep banging on about it? Well retro sells, so surely it’s here to stay”.
The hook for the article was the announcement that the Raleigh Chopper Bike was being re-launched. Not surprisingly there was a large picture of the bike in the middle of page.
Before I had got through the first paragraph the guy sitting next said “Isn’t it fantastic they are bringing the Chopper Bike back?” He then went onto recount how he and his mates were thinking of buying one for their kids. Two things surprised me. Firstly, he was the third person that day to say exactly the same thing and secondly, he only looked to be in his early to mid thirties. My astonishment continued when the lady selling the refreshments, who was about the same age, was equally enthused by the re-launch
The surprise at this reaction has nothing to do with the excellence or not of the bike but how long ago the first Chopper was first launched (35 years) and that it has been out of production for the last 24 years.
The reason I know these facts says nothing about my interest in cycling but my devotion to Google. There are over a 2000 references to the Chopper Bike and numerous web sites devoted to its loyal following.
Clearly there is something about the bike and its harmony with the era that has hit a chord with a very large group of consumers. I just wonder how many other discontinued products, with loyal enthusiasts are waiting to be re-launched. Maybe I have just discovered a new branch of market research – Retro Mining.
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