Customer Reviews

No Hands: The Rise and Fall of the Schwinn Bicycle Company, an American Institution

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

Since hubby and I are both avid cyclists and also work at a bike shop (myself part time, him full time) this book interested me. It is at once a history of the bicycle in general, and about Schwinn in particular. Ms. Crown and Mr. Coleman relate in vivid detail the creation of the Schwinn bike by Ignaz Schwinn, and how subsequent generations of the family (who owned the company up until the 1990's) developed new products, but later let opportunities (such as the development of the BMX and mountain bike -which was created with old Schwinn parts) slip through their fingers. By the 70's the controlling family members appeared to have little or no interest in bicycles -- only in their annual incomes from their family trust -- and failed to realize that they were letting down the family name and reputation for quality.The book also touches on other bike manufacturers, such as Specialized, Gary Fisher and Trek, and how these companies profited by Schwinn's 'falling asleep at the wheel' old boys' club-type school of thought. Apparently, Schwinn never realized until it was far too late that there was/is a vast adult market out there! This book is compelling reading for anyone interested in bicycle history, or just American business in general. Highly recommended if you can find it!

This is the often rather grim story of the fall of a great empire. The Schwinn company was built by an immigrant with a knowledge of mechanics and a fierce dedication to quality. Over several generations, the company gradually fell apart, as subsequent, born-privileged Schwinns took less interest in the company product, focusing on marketing at the expense of manufacturing, and arrogantly believing that the prestige of their name brand would endure over their stubborn reluctance to innovate or modernize. Along the way we get informative and interesting glances into the beginning of BMX and mountain biking, fascinating portraits of the personalities involved, and a strange sense of the interconnectedness of all the big names in the bike industry, as Schwinn's errors lead to the rise of Trek and Giant, and effect many other familiar bike companies. Definitely worth a read.

Frankly, this is the first book I've read cover to cover in a long time. Whether you like bicycles, business stories, or want to read a fascinating behind the scenes look of an American icon, this book is for you.

I have given the book five stars yet I have not read the book. I just now found out of its existence but it is definitely on my list of books to read and I'll tell you why that is.

My father, Walter J. Binkley, was the manager of the Special Parts Department at Schwinn until he retired in 1968. I remember visiting him on many occasions at the factory at 1750 N. Kildare Av. and him showing me all the latest things they were working on for the next years models.

My dad was frustrated over the lack of knowledge of the new engineers entering the company and suggested to Frank Schwinn that he let my dad put them to work for six months or so working with the machines they were designing parts to be manufactured by. That way they would learn the limitations of those machines and not try to engineer something the machines dad had that could not even come close to producing. Frank Schwinn disagreed with my dad but he did throw him a bone of sort. He could have them for a week and show them the ropes, so to speak. It wasn't much but it was a start and dad was smart enough to take what he could get and then try to get more.

Schwinn, at that time, manufactured most all of their own parts from frames to peddle cranks, nuts, fenders, everything and anything you can think of and dad made it right there. Dad and his foreman and right hand man Ed Sherlock were quite a team and had been together for many years including through World War II when Schwinn stopped manufacturing bikes and produce munitions instead. Specifically 20mm and 40mm projectiles for air to air and ground to air weapons.

Those same Conomatic six and eight spindle screw machines that made those projectiles were now employed making parts for bicycles. During the war years they ran 24 hours a day on three shifts and now after the war, they were still running sixteen hours a day with two shifts. They were the same machines and they were getting tired but as hard as dad fought for new machinery all he could do was modernize what he had or, when the break-down was serious enough, the powers that be would allow him to get a used replacement. It was a constant battle keeping up production while pampering these relics into producing quality parts. Something Schwinn was famous for and my dad insisted on without the urgings of Frank Schwinn.

My dad was a proud man and loved what he did at Schwinn for over 28 years but he could see the writing on the wall and decided to get out before the end came. He was tired and had given as much to Schwinn Bicycles as some and more than most with very little to show for it. A meager retirement through profit sharing that proved not to be enough. He had bought a farm in south central Indiana and moved there with hopes of becoming a gentleman farmer. As it turned out he had to work until his dying day but again, he was a proud man from the old school and complained very little if at all. He simply did what needed to be done and that was it. That's the way people were back then.

I am looking forward to reading this book and then, perhaps, you will hear from me again. Until then, keep on crankin'.

This is a fascinating cautionary tale about what happens to a business -- no matter how famous -- when it loses focus on its customers and competitors. For anyone who grew up riding a Schwinn, it's hard to avoid rooting for the company to succeed, even though one knows (in advance) that in the end the company failed. It's a little like watching a horror movie where you want to yell out to the screen, "watch out," in the vain hope the actors in the movie can here you -- I kept wanting the management of Schwinn to wake up and save the company, even though you know they won't.

Highly recommended -- too bad this is out of print. Worth buying a used copy to read.

This review is from; No Hands: The Rise and Fall of the Schwinn Bicycle Company, an American Institution

As an avid Schwinn collector myself, I found this to be an interesting read and a depressing read at the same time. This book reminds of us of a time when Schwinn was a household name for American bicycles with outstanding quality second to none. Now-a-days you find Schwinn bicycles at your local Walmart, Target or Toys R Us at the cheapest prices in town and of the lowest quality. I proudly own a Schwinn Phantom, Paramount and two mountain bikes that I refuse to let go of. I'm still looking for an original Stingray to add to my collection!

The book gives a detailed account of the development of the bicycle in the earliest years at a time when the automobile was just beginning to gain popularity. We learn of Schwinn's founder Ignaz Schwinn who was a German immigrant that migrated to Chicago with a vast, mechanical knowledge and how he formed Schwinn with Adolph Arnold (a financial investor who was also from Germany) to form the Arnold & Schwinn Company in 1908 at Chicago. We learn of Ignaz's son Frank W Schwinn who took over after his father died and help excel the company to be the industry leader in bicycle production. Schwinn bikes carried the reputation as being one of the best and most durable bikes ever built.

It's amazing for any company to last for more than a hundred years, but Schwinn slowly started to decay within itself when it either failed to adapt to changing trends in bicycles or they simply adapted too late. Schwinn was innovative in developing the fat tire bicycles such as the Phantom and popular children bicycles such as the Stingray, but was slow in developing the BMX and mountain bikes. Schwinn's bicycle fat tire was largely responsible towards the development of the mountain bike. The late mountain bike development proved to be the most fatal blunder by Schwinn because the mountain bike became the most popular bicycle innovation of the eighties and is just as popular today.

We also learn of the other bicycle companies that blossomed and was able to take advantage when Schwinn couldn't such as Specialized and Trek. Schwinn became a financial mess when its Chicago plant failed to upgrade its own equipment and subsequently fell behind other bicycle manufacturers in overall bicycle quality. The failures of the Chicago plant forced its closure and the financial problems began with the huge financial debts owed in that plant. Further financial problems continued with other financial mismanagement by Schwinn in addition to some overseas deals in Asia & Europe that simply did not workout. The book was quick to point out some of the trends or business decisions that Schwinn could have made to stay afloat in the bicycle business such as their failure to lock up some shares in the Giant Bicycle Company which imported a lot of bicycles for Schwinn in their early years before they literally became a "Giant" company themselves and subsequently refused to sell shares to Schwinn while offering to buy Schwinn instead. Schwinn filed for bankruptcy and the Schwinn family was forced to sell its company and name to Pacific bicycles (an Asian bike exporter) which resulted in the end of all US Schwinn production. The Schwinn name still exists today, but only in the form of inexpensive bicycle imports and accessories that are found primarily in department stores such as Target or Walmarts or Toy Stores and not in regular,top-quality, bicycle stores.

In conclusion, this is a very interesting book not just for bicyclists or Schwinn enthusiasts, but for anyone with mild interest on how a company can succeed, endure and tragically fail. As a devoted Schwinn fan, it's still comforting to see the Schwinn name on some products today, but I know the "Schwinn Quality" now is just a shade of what the company once was, so it was very interesting to read about how that exactly transpired. Overall, I highly recommend this book!

Statistically only a small percentage of family owned businesses survive past the third generation, and this book demonstrates why.

The Schwinn family practiced a form of primogeniture....management of the company passed to the first born male of each subsequent generation, with the other family members sharing in the profits. The company was founded by a talented and driven man, but as the company came under control of spoiled brats, named Schwinn, with an entitlement mentality, the fatal rot set in. The other family members not directly involved in management cared nothing about bicycles and were only interested in their profit sharing checks.

The saddest thing about the demise of the Schwinn company is that they helped to create, and then failed to capitalize, on the very trends that put them out of business.

Examples:

Schwinn was the first American bike company to mass market derailleur bikes...the Varsity and Continental models....heavy bikes targeting the teen boy demographic. When derailleur bikes caught on with adult cyclists, who demanded lighter and more refined bikes, Schwinn refused to produce them! As one Schwinn manager dismissively told a Schwinn dealer who requested light-weight derailleur bikes, "What do these people want to do with them? Ride them or carry them?". That dealer soon stopped being a Schwinn dealer.

The first BMX bikes were custom affairs that were produced in Southern California using Schwinn Stingray frames. When the Schwinn suits back in Chicago heard about this, they sent someone to check it out. Their conclusions: A minor fad that will peter out very quickly. By the time Schwinn executives realized it was not a minor fad, other bike companies controlled the bulk of the BMX market.

Likewise, the first mountain bikes were built in Northern California using old Schwinn balloon tire bike frames. When Schwinn management investigated, they decided that the people involved in mountain biking were California "weirdos", probably drug addicts, and that the mountain bike fad would not catch on in more "normal" parts of the US. When Schwinn could no longer afford to ignore the mountain bike craze, it was too late for them to capture a sizable portion of the market.

Despite failure after failure, no one at Schwinn would admit that what they needed was to bring in professional management. So a great American brand was killed off through arrogance and greed.

The book is misnamed. It is titled the story of Schwinn, a family saga, but this is less a business book and more a history of biking in America. People who love to read the great American business stories are better served by reading the authors' original article in Crain's Chicago Business: not much more is added on the subject; the later generation Schwinn family are slammed for running the company into the ground, so they didn't cooperate or give interviews, so the story is rather impersonal, gleaned from available public records.

Bicycle enthusiasts would love this book: it tells the story of the invention of the mountain bike; it relates how names like Giant, Trek, Schimano were born. It also tells the story about the death of Schwinn, but the story as told is less the death of Schwinn and more the birth of California companies and foreign competition.