The type of people to wear Hokas are exactly the type of people to frequent Costco.
Not exactly sure what the implication is here, but I’ve been running in the Hoka Mach series for a couple years now (comfortable, lightweight daily trainer) and I’ve never shopped at Costco in my life lol
Geometry Dash said: Was in my local Costco and saw they have Clifton 10s selling for $115. The 11s don’t release until July. Going to make a lot of specialty runs shops pretty pissed.
Yeah, that’s classic Costco. Selling them early and cheaper is definitely going to upset specialty running stores, especially before the 11s even drop.
Was in my local Costco and saw they have Clifton 10s selling for $115. The 11s don’t release until July. Going to make a lot of specialty runs shops pretty pissed.
Wow, this is major red flag and tell-tale sign of the state of affairs at Hoka.
Brands like Nike and Adidas have been in Costco for ever - but they are 45 and 27 billion dollar revenue brands - Hoka is about 2.3 billion. Point is, Nike and Adidas are so big and diverse in their customer and consumer bases, that being in Costco doesn't impact their brand perception or cache at all and almost all the products you see there are designed and developed for that market and price point (aka very low landed cost product you won't see in any other channel). It's like their "rainy day" bank account (metaphorically speaking).
With Hoka, the Clifton model is basically their Pegasus (Nike) or their EVO SL (Adi). This shoe should never be in Costco, so what this says to me is that Hoka simply has too much inventory and they have too much inventory because your specialty running channel has better options now (which I know is the case because I know people in the running specialty channel). The are also selling the Bondi there too BTW.
Hoka just tipped into the "fatigue" stage of long term business cycle but just sat there too long procrastinating/not having any idea what to do. They did the classic "expansion" into lifestyle product which always works for a bit as it piggybacks onto the momentum of the performance business, but once that falls away so will the need for "cool" Hoka sportswear shoes (which are more ironic than cool if we are perfectly honest).
They have absolutely no innovation on any level at all there - not functionally or even perceptively. I mean they kicked off the "maximalist" running boom and let every other brand overtake them on that. The product direction is "be more like Nike" which makes sense as their head of product is a former Nike "heavy hitter" (reject). Anybody remember Under Armour? 10 years ago they had a market cap of over 23 billion dollars and a share price of nearly $53. Today they have a share price of $5.32 and a cap of just under 2 billion. Forgetting who you are and trying to be someone else rarely works in this industry, just ask UA. Hoka right now are on the precipice of cratering what they were able to do in the last 4-5 years and this brand isn't that special that they are immune from this potentially happening. The adoption of smaller, more niche brands that aren't Nike or Adidas has been great for the industry as a whole and has created a lot of opportunities for brands like Hoka and ON. But on the same level it means that those opportunities also exist for other brands who are just as hungry and your seat at the table isn't guaranteed for any fixed period of time.
This brand really lost it's way and it certainly wasn't and isn't big enough to be taking on this much water. Costco, yikes.
Why are you people upvoting this is very clearly AI-generated nonsense.
There have been a number of brands that were once considered specialized (maybe at one time in their corporate expansion even I dare say "exclusive") that are or have been sold at Costco.
Examples include: North Face, Under Armour, Oakley, Patagonia, Columbia etc.
Hoka is just another 'popular' name brand that lost some of its shininess and cashing in on appeal to a broader market.
Ah but those brands usually sell different versions of their products at discount warehouses or seasons later, not the same exact products at the same exact time as regular stores. Saucony has shoes in Costco right now but they are not the same running shoes you see in specialty running stores. Nike has apparel at Costco but not the same apparel you’ll find at its stores. The quality is usually a step down. In this case it’s supposedly the exact same product at the same time.
Now, that being said, I understand Hoka is trying to put a stop to this. They did not sell to Costco directly and were surprised to learn their shoes were back in Costcos as they had gone through this 7 or 8 months ago and stopped it back then. It sounds like Costco might be buying from a shady third party instead of Hoka directly. Hopefully it will be fixed soon 🤞
What is it about Hoka shoes which gets people here so mad lol I can't understand it.
Clifton is great for easy miles. Mach 6 is great for steady running and long runs and actually fills a nice gap in the market because it's stable and snappy and not ridiculously overly cushioned. A modern classic if you will.
Would I pick the rocket as my race day or workout shoe? Probably not, though haven't tried it to be fair, but I know others who have it seems absolutely fine.
I'd give all their shoes an extra point if they were a little more durable but I think that's well offset by virtue of them being slightly cheaper than their competitors.
What is it about Hoka shoes which gets people here so mad lol I can't understand it.
Clifton is great for easy miles. Mach 6 is great for steady running and long runs and actually fills a nice gap in the market because it's stable and snappy and not ridiculously overly cushioned. A modern classic if you will.
Would I pick the rocket as my race day or workout shoe? Probably not, though haven't tried it to be fair, but I know others who have it seems absolutely fine.
I'd give all their shoes an extra point if they were a little more durable but I think that's well offset by virtue of them being slightly cheaper than their competitors.
Yeah, I don't get it either. FWIW, I was in my local CostCo a couple of weeks ago and didn't see any Hoka shoes. I checked online and saw that I could buy the mens Arahi 7 or the women's Bondi and something else... can't remember what model... Gaviota? If I needed shoes, I'd buy the Clifton for $115. Returns at CostCo are so simple that if I'm not sure of the size, I buy clothes in two sizes so I can go home and see which size fits better and then return the other item.
What is it about Hoka shoes which gets people here so mad lol I can't understand it.
Clifton is great for easy miles. Mach 6 is great for steady running and long runs and actually fills a nice gap in the market because it's stable and snappy and not ridiculously overly cushioned. A modern classic if you will.
Would I pick the rocket as my race day or workout shoe? Probably not, though haven't tried it to be fair, but I know others who have it seems absolutely fine.
I'd give all their shoes an extra point if they were a little more durable but I think that's well offset by virtue of them being slightly cheaper than their competitors.
I thought these were two separate discussions.
I don't dislike Hoka shoes/they don't get me mad at all. I'm kind of ambivalent to a lot of brands tbh - exact same sh-t just in different packages.
From my side (and the regarding my post) it's another interesting footwear industry story of how a brand really ascended up the ladder but now seems unable to not just maintain their momentum, but now start to freefall. The Costco thing is actually more confirmation of a lot of things I've heard from people involved in the footwear market over the last 6-8 months.
Someone mentioned why this is a big deal because other brands do it all the time? It's not quite the same. First of all there is a big difference between footwear and apparel. The footwear world, especially in specialty running is far smaller in terms of key customers (your Runners Warehouse, Fleet Feet etc etc) and this is a big deal to those types of accounts that are stocking the same product lines and with the Bondi/Clifton, the same models. Patagonia has so many SKU's of "fleece sweatshirt", if an overstocked model shows up in Costco it doesn't really register amongst their massive customer base. Using UA isn't a great example because they are most similar to Hoka in terms of the size and scope of their footwear business and they've lost 20 billion dollars in market cap in the last decade.
In general there are only two times when an athletic footwear brand is looking at Costco as a retail partner and both are indicative of the states of their business.
1) When they are so large and in so many channels - speciality running, bigbox wholesale, lifestyle/trend, that they can then carry a "made for Costco" line that just serves to top up the revenue. This typically has zero impact on their brand perception.
2) When a brand is struggling so much they can't get rid of their product and use Costco to do it for them. But when you do this, you have them sell the exact same stuff consumers are used to seeing in their running store - except undercut by $20-$30. This does not help your perception as a premium running brand and certainly doesn't lead traffic to running stores/websites which tends to really annoy those guys (who are also running a business).
It annoys the loyal customer base too, because believe it or the not the mark up in price at specialty stores is also a social indicator that you know about running, and can afford nice shoes. I have a set of hokas from racing shoes, trail shoes, trainers.. etc and my biggest flex is that my hoka collection is worth more than some guy's jordan collection. It's annoying to see them horring themselves out to Costco, really makes me want to get on board with a different brand. Most people won't admit that the reason they buy certain things is the mark up, but it's absolutely the truth. The shoes are comfy yes and stylish, but they were also never available in simpleton stores so there was an added mystique. The brand is going to disappear into obscurity like reebok if this continues. And brands like new balance have had a resurgence by becoming private retailers and sticking to their guns as an actual curated and self respecting brand with retail locations. I own an apparel brand, third generation, and im not afraid to admit I will wear a 150 dollar Lululemon hoodie, because the brand carries an inherit value I know the mark up is insane, and I never bought one just received them as gifts. It's an insane business strategy to horr your brand out there so blatantly.
It annoys the loyal customer base too, because believe it or the not the mark up in price at specialty stores is also a social indicator that you know about running, and can afford nice shoes. I have a set of hokas from racing shoes, trail shoes, trainers.. etc and my biggest flex is that my hoka collection is worth more than some guy's jordan collection. It's annoying to see them horring themselves out to Costco, really makes me want to get on board with a different brand. Most people won't admit that the reason they buy certain things is the mark up, but it's absolutely the truth. The shoes are comfy yes and stylish, but they were also never available in simpleton stores so there was an added mystique. The brand is going to disappear into obscurity like reebok if this continues. And brands like new balance have had a resurgence by becoming private retailers and sticking to their guns as an actual curated and self respecting brand with retail locations. I own an apparel brand, third generation, and im not afraid to admit I will wear a 150 dollar Lululemon hoodie, because the brand carries an inherit value I know the mark up is insane, and I never bought one just received them as gifts. It's an insane business strategy to horr your brand out there so blatantly.
Each to their own but that’s an insane reason to buy a shoe imo. They’re a tool.
You’d be better saving the money and buying a nice watch.
Why are you people upvoting this is very clearly AI-generated nonsense.
Can you clarify who or what Groverunner is? A real person (someone you know, a public figure, or an online username)? A fictional character (book, show, game)? A company, team, or brand? Once I know the context, I can give a meaningful answer without making unfair assumptions.