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TECH NEWS
Rapha launches Core range with £75 jersey and £100 bib shorts
This is Rapha’s brand new Core range which is focused on making owning a Rapha jersey and bib shorts more affordable - a complete outfit will cost from £155.
Yes, it’s not exactly cheap, but it’s significantly more affordable than other clothing in the company’s range.The Core Jersey costs £75, compared to £100 for a Club Jersey or £220 for a Pro Team Shadow Jersey, while the matching Core bib shorts cost £100, compared to £160 for the Classic Bib Shorts. The women's non-bib shorts cost £80.
The Core range ushers in a range of jerseys and shorts, available for men and women, with a clean and understated appearance, not compromising on design, with a tasteful range of colours. The design is simple and unfussy, with colour-matched zips and logos. There are details shared with other Rapha clothing and there is even a low-profile left armband, a key Rapha design detail.
“Rapha has distilled twelve years of experience in production and design to create a new standard of clothing, for every cyclist, on any ride,” says the press release.
To keep the prices low, the jerseys and shorts are made from a simply polyester material which the company describes as being a “soft and light stretch”. The jerseys, available for men and women, get three rear pockets and a concealed zip pocket, and colour-matched zips and Rapha logos. The jersey is shaped to fit the body on the bicycle, with raglan sleeves and side panels providing stability.
The bib shorts actually use the same padded insert as used in the more expensive Classic shorts, but the construction and material keeps the price down. Details include silicone leg grippers and laser-cut hems and flatlock stitching.The shorts are available in an all-black or white on black colour options, the latter intended for use with a light-coloured jersey. There’s a non-bib option for women as well.
“The Core collection is about optimising innovative fabrics and processes to set a new standard for everyday cycling apparel,” says Alex Valdman, Rapha’s Head of Design.
“It’s about making the kit that riders could wear when putting in the hours on their bikes. It’s also about us being able to release products that are still at the Rapha standard but which aren’t heavily branded. It’s about the quality, the details, the function, the fit, the fabric, and that’s where the pared-back nature of this collection comes from. But you have to create texture too, otherwise, it will be cheap, plain and boring. That was the real challenge – how do you take something that is supposed to be so toned-down but still make it very interesting?”
Does Rapha have an arty video to go with this launch? You bet.
See the new range at http://pages.rapha.cc/stories/rapha-core
David worked on the road.cc tech team from 2012-2020. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds, and you can now find him over on his own YouTube channel David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes.
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22 comments
After years of anti-Rapha prejudice, I caved in and bought some Core bibs and a Club jersey. The shorts are comfier and feel better-made than my Assos Centos and wee on my Howies bibs from some height. It is easy to see why the jersey costs more than my Torm gear, even in the sale - the fit and quality are much better. I've finally found cycling gear nirvana, now all I need is a pay rise.
Aspirational.
I think that's the problem I have with Rapha.
Do I get a medal?
Just bought a Ridge jersey for £4 in halfords. It feels great.
Oh my, so much moaning.
Save time, money and personal angst by riding your bike in the kit you already own, I'm sure it'll work just fine... probably this time next year too!
I like them but don't tell anyone.
... As for the Core kit? Polyester v Lycra? I'll stick with the classic shorts. In this case I suspect you will get what you pay for. No point having the same pad for Classic and Core if your 'plumbers smile' (as the French call it) is showing through above the pad by the end of summer.
Rapha have sold a lower priced range for some while - their Sky replica kit, some of which I have and I have no complaints about - the shorts are very good. This seems to be a debadged version of that idea, and none the worse for it - more choice can only be a good thing.
I've had the opportunity to try out the kit, and while it is of simpler design och construction than some other Rapha kit I have to say that the bib shorts are really good.
The jersey is good too, but then I think having good bib shorts is more important and probably also more difficult to design and produce.
I'm no Rapha apologist but one thing to my mind that is often overlooked is the free repair or replacement program.
Only one "trip" down the road in slippery winter roads and the kit is then not so expensive!
J
throw in a bit of judicious sales shopping, and you're away. One year I bought a winter jersey, which went on sale the next day. They gave me the difference as a voucher, which I used towards getting a pair of half-price shoes, for about £90. The carbon sole edges cracked, so they replaced them with a new pair
You could try that with Castelli or Torm. There's an undoubted marketing element to it all, but I don't care, you can get it cheap, it'll do the job marvellously, and they'll take care of it if it goes wrong, whoevers fault that is ....
Massive hype, however I personally am utterly underwhelmed by the kit.
Summed up by 'Alex Valdman - Rapha Head of Design' himself, on their site... "That was the real challenge – how do you take something that is supposed to be so toned-down but still make it very interesting?"
Answer: as there is Zero innovation here, you look to the marketing/pr team to make it interesting.
I can't see how this move by them will do anything other than undercut their more expensive kit sales. People have already moved from buying 'full price' Rapha to buying 'sale priced' Rapha kit (on the bell curve). I'm not a hater of Rapha, I'm a big fan of a lot of their kit who sees the stuff as 'aspirational' gear to own.
I've just had my expecations mis-managed by product managers and marketeers with targets to hit. If they'd have just said, 'we've made some cheaper gear to give everyone the chance to own the best kit' it'd have been far more appealing to their existing customer base.
I think I've just trolled... I need to get a life....
Yeah, I'm underwhelmed too. I was expecting something fancy to keep my core warm and instead we have a piece of kit that doesn't seem to differ much from what the competition offers for that price.
Interesting that they didn't promote this at the same time as their more typical Rapha products.
Why is it interesting? And they did announce it at the same time, they've staggered the releases of the Spring/Summer kit. The new Pro Team items will be next.
I think you hit the nail on the head. I'm really surprised to see this happen; it reminds me a great deal of Apple's move into the "Performa" range back in the early 90s where they diluted the brand at a time when the company was already struggling. The Core range will undoubtedly allow more people to access the armband; it'll also stink as it's made of polyester. Not stinking is one of the key attractions of the merino blend Rapha kit I've now had for well over 5 years and done an awful lot of riding in.
I'm sure they know exactly what they're doing but, IMHO, it's a major dilution of what you point out quite rightly to be an aspirational brand. I do wonder if there's a move afoot here to pacify investors or something similar who want to see bigger numbers.
Look at Torm Jersery's, Sports wool, better looking, cheapier and comes without the Rapha "tag".
Torm are great. Need to make their pockets deeper though. Far too shallow.
I can get a pure wool jersey for that price elsewhere.
Well done. Here's a medal.
Next they'll be making stuff for Aldi...
I'm no maths Genius but I'm pretty sure that £100 plus £75 is not £155. I think £75 for a basic 100 percent polyester jersey is taking the mickey. I'd wait until they are £40 in the sale.
The price I put in the first paragraph is the women's non-bib shorts (£80) and the jersey (£75) which is the cheapest combination. I will clarify that in the copy, thanks for your feedback
Early days perhaps, but no red or white jersey shown on their site. Shorts look good, given that they're using the Classic pad.