Originally Posted by
WilcoRoger
So James, you are proposing to enter the market and establish yourself as a low price - low quality brand and work it up from there. That's not something I'd do. In my experience once you establish yourself as a low price/low quality brand, it's awfully difficult to get out of that bracket and takes a loong time.
My 2 cents.
Actually, I was subtly proposing he drop the idea entirely before amassing debt over a me-too effort in such a challenging market. It might be easier to create a new car brand than a new luggage brand, it's simply not an industry that is kind to newcomers.
As for the quality strategy, I was saying he needs to drop that train of thought from the outset because the feature set he is describing already exists in bags costing under $100. If he is moving forward with his existing design, he cannot compete on quality, only design and price. He will not get retail distribution so no one will be able to touch/feel his product before buying.
As currently constituted, his bag is a $50 Chinese knockoff of the Bluesmart with the addition of a cupholder which is an idea borrowed from yet another Chinese bag one can find at travel trade shows. That's not the foundation to break in to an industry. "Quality" in an online product is defined by "quality of idea" or "quality of innovation" not "sturdy materials".
BJ