Here is the link to the story...............thought and comments? Sparta company lays off workers | News8000 WKBT La Crosse
That's really rough and it stinks to see that the archery business at Mathews isn't booming. Better buy the new 2015 model to help them out when it's released. Oh darn
Bowtech seems to be doing pretty good. Maybe this will be good for the boys over at Mathews in the long run. They can refocus and come back with something even better
Is it that they are in tough times or are they cutting numbers to squeeze in under a small business to avoid the insurance crap that Obama pushed?
What a load of crap!! You can blame Obama or any other politician for a lot of things but to blame them for a bow company laying of 35 people is crazy. And mind you this is a company that has not really came out with anything "new" in years. As a matter of fact, you hear people argue that the bows from years ago (Z7) is better than anything Mathews puts out today. Then go and sponsor 7-8 out of 10 hunting shows and advertise on about every 3rd page of any magazine and ask why they have to lay off 35 workers. But your right, I'm sure its Obama's fault.
I don't have a dog in this fight at all, not sure why others have such negative responses to this. I feel bad for those that lost their jobs but I'm sure Mathews will continue on and do fine. Not sure if you have experience running a business or managing your own P&L but it's pretty common for struggling businesses to spend heavily on sales and marketing. Increased revenue can fix almost all problems if managed properly, and there is almost always a direct correlation between increased revenue and spending on marketing/sales.
It's a product thing IMO. When the Creed and other Z7 models were released they were thriving. Now that other companies have big hits like Elite and Hoyt they are taking a lot of the work from them.
I believe I stated a long time ago that Mathews better stop trying to cruise on their name and be investing in new designs to keep up with the competition. It's either a grow or die life.
I think you're going to start seeing more of the conglomerate companies coming through and buying up good companies with good products like Mathews. It's the wave of the future. When it's a larger company that holds many different brands, they can keep everything under one umbrella, and they have the ability to navigate through bad economies easier.
One thing I wanted to clarify about my post as well, is that just because they are laying off 35 employees it doesn't indicate they are struggling or hurting in any way. A company the size of Mathews likely has 300-400 employees. It's certainly possible that over time they accumulated a number of people that just don't add value to the business. I'm sure their company will carry on business as usual and continue to make and sell a lot of bows.
It's certainly unfortunate for those that lost their jobs. In today's business world the easiest expense to leverage is payroll. When things get tough, they leverage payroll by laying off workers and forcing the "lucky ones" to do the work of two or three people. To me, it's a fatal flaw in business practice because without great employee's there's no way to have a great company. Product quality will suffer, customer service will suffer and the downward spiral will usually ensue. On the other times, sometimes trimming the fat could open room to eventually backfill those positions with better, more engaged employees. I'd be curious to know what percentage of their staff were layed off. If it's only 1 or 2 percent, then I would see this as trimming the fat. If it's 10% then I'd say they are in for a long rocky road.
The question for the consumer is why would you buy a Mathews when there are a number of bows on the market that are just as good but priced significantly less?
You may or may not be right. But I'm guessing it is around the 10% or more mark. If they had 350 employees then 10% would be the 35. 350 is a lot of people and I doubt they have that many working there. Could be wrong though.
Limbsaver made a bow for a while that was the ugliest compound on the market and it did not last long. So what does Mathews do? Make a riser just as ugly! Hell, if your spouse was that ugly you would not even walk next to them in the store.
I actually don't mind the look and concept of their risers, it's the fit and finish that seems to be lacking for me.
