GEAR NEWS: Transform your training this winter with Power Station Training

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 UKC Gear 28 Nov 2017
Dave MacLeod Power Station Training for Climbing and Bouldering, 4 kbPower Station is the world's first modular, highly adaptable and functional freestanding training station. It has been designed specifically to address the needs of climbers who want to train at home, in the office or gym more frequently and more effectively.

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 ianstevens 28 Nov 2017
In reply to UKC Gear:

> Power Station is the world's biggest rip-off piece of wood that could be made as a GCSE resisitant materials project. It has been designed specifically to extract as much money as possible from punters want to look at an expensive bit of wood at home, in the office or gym more frequently and more effectively.

Fixed. Seriously, is anyone going to pay £2k for this??
1
 planetmarshall 28 Nov 2017
In reply to ianstevens:

Maybe commercial gyms are a more realistic target audience. It looks like a high quality product, but climbers have been building their own custom setups for years for a fraction of the cost.
 ianstevens 28 Nov 2017
In reply to planetmarshall:
I think you're right - but that isn't how it seems to be marketed. FWIW, I have a similar set up made out of what I presume was an old bed I got out of a skip down my road. Invested a heavy £2 in a pack of screws mind. Looks tatty but functions, and given that it's in a spare room in a houseshare this does't matter. It's not like I've got a huge "old bed frame" motif on the living room wall, ala the advert.
Post edited at 13:22
 Ciro 28 Nov 2017
In reply to ianstevens:

> Fixed. Seriously, is anyone going to pay £2k for this??

I've known climbers who would pay £5k for a watch...
4
 planetmarshall 28 Nov 2017
In reply to Ciro:

> I've known climbers who would pay £5k for a watch...

But there's not exactly a strong tradition among climbers for DIY watches.
 Ciro 28 Nov 2017
In reply to planetmarshall:

Tradition or not, the climber who pays £5k for a watch doesn't build his own training wall - he employs someone else to do it. You and I are not the target market
1
 BFG 28 Nov 2017
In reply to Ciro:

> Tradition or not, the climber who pays £5k for a watch doesn't build his own training wall - he employs someone else to do it. You and I are not the target market

See, that's the thing I don't quite get about this.

I've always wanted a training area in my house (beyond the fingerboard). I rent, so never looked at actually doing it and besides that's why I have wall membership.

However, I could either build something similar to this myself for significantly less cost, or go find someone to build something better in a similar cost range. I don't quite get who they're target market is.

I don't begrudge them charging this much. The price is dictated by the market; if people are willing to buy it then fair play to them, if they aren't then it'll have to change. I just don't quite get who would buy that.
 Yu Kaycee 28 Nov 2017
In reply to UKC Gear:

You’ve got to think about the return on investment. Sure, it may be expensive... but with it I’ll be able to take on my local climbing walls business directly. I reckon if I charge £6 per entry, I should be able to get 6 entrants per day. As long as I space them out, it should be fine. That’s a monthly turnover of upwards of £1K. After three months, I should have broke even. I will then wait another three months, saving enough to get another one. By now, word will have spread of my new climbing institution, and I can start diversifying. I will run training classes, get a youth group, and run my own bouldering league competition. I will look into installing an autobelay on the sides for those inclined that way.

If I continue in this way, I reckon it should take no more than 5 years to have established a flat-full of power-stations, amassing enough profit to actually buy out my local climbing wall.

At that point, I have suceeded. Free climbing at my local wall. Pretty good return on investment if you ask me.
2
 alx 30 Nov 2017
In reply to Ciro:

Do you think it’s meant to tap into the prison market?

In reply to Yu Kaycee:

> You’ve got to think about the return on investment. Sure, it may be expensive... but with it I’ll be able to take on my local climbing walls business directly. I reckon if I charge £6 per entry,....

Your local climbing wall must be incredibly poor and overpriced, if it could be "taken on directly" by a contraption around 3 foot wide and 4 ft high.
4
 SteveSBlake 01 Dec 2017
In reply to thebigfriendlymoose:

Yeah, but he's not just talking about one - he plans multiples.... The only thing missing in his business plan is kids parties.....

Actually he probably has space for an inflatable paddling pool, indoor SWS, now he's cooking.

Steve
 Ciro 01 Dec 2017
In reply to alx:

> Do you think it’s meant to tap into the prison market?

If you're using prison as an apt euphemism for the city of London, then yes
 Yu Kaycee 01 Dec 2017
In reply to SteveSBlake:

It will be the powerstation psicobloc
 Flinticus 26 Dec 2017
In reply to UKC Gear:

Maybe the house used in the ad is indicative of the target market.

£2k is a bargain designer chair.
 Hay 26 Dec 2017
In reply to PanzerHanzler:
Good for you and I mean that non-sarcastically - that looks a genuinely good thing you've made.
Thing is that cost has a number of variables and price is only one of them.
In the case of the Powerstation Vs a homemade installation I'd see (some of) those as:
Price
Time
Ability on the tools
Space to make a mess during building
Space efficiency
After sales support
Ability to move house with it
Residual value after you're done with it

At that price I'd expect it to be good to use, well thought out, well made a long lasting. I am sure it probably is.

Bruce



In reply to Flinticus:

> Maybe the house used in the ad is indicative of the target market.

Seems to me that there's a reasonable number of people who want a house that looks like it came out of a Scandanavian furniture catalogue.

There's also a fair number of people who don't care what their house looks like and are happy to put a huge piece of gym equipment in the front room and get the place manky with sweat and chalk dust.

However, the intersection between the two sets is near zero.

 Flinticus 26 Dec 2017
In reply to tom_in_edinburgh:

If I had the money I might fall into that space!

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