RBK Skate market?

[grnmtnvt 18]

Does anyone have any numbers on RBKs market share of the commercial and/or the pro market? And, why don't you see more players at all levels in their skates? Is it an issue of quality, marketing, time on the market, or all three? This was my first year back playing a while and I ended up picking up a pair of 20K skates. They felt most similar to my early-mid 2000s CCMs.

[Zorlac 22]

I see lots of players in Reeboks. Both in the NHL and local leagues. The 11 and 12ks are real popular in the local beer leagues around here... I have some 11ks. Great skates! I do hear that the 20ks are awesome. Wish I had a chance to try the fit out on them.

Off the subject: Where in VT are you from?

[Vuronov 18]

Bauer certainly has a lock on the feet of NHL players percentage-wise, seems almost every player I see is wearing vapors, but Reebok isn't absent from pro player's feet. I'd wager they're second in % for NHL use, a distant second but second none-the-less.

As for local retail use, I still see a lot of Bauers but the % of Reeboks is a lot higher along with Eastons and some CCMs.

I think a lot of it is just familiarity with the Bauer name, many players growing up with parents that may have also used Bauer, the consistent quality of their skates, and some good marketing.

When CCM faltered in the early 2000, that left Bauer to really clean up the market and when Reebok came along and bought CCM but also put out their own skate, they had to fight against many players who had just gotten used to Bauer being the best and using Bauer everything.

Just my 2 cents though.

[grnmtnvt 18]

I ended up buying my 20k skates because they felt most like the old CCM tacks 952 skates I had and the early Externo skates. But I love them. I just don't see many around me on beer league players or kids at the high school level. But it is an area without a wide variety of LHS options.

[jsykes 35]

Depends a lot on location in the retail market. RBK is probably our worst selling skate along with their sticks. Their protective does ok, but not so much the helmets. RBK was right with Easton at our least selling skates, however, with the Mako, Easton has taken the spot leaving RBK at the bottom. I've already sold more Mako skates than I have RBK 20k and 18k combined.