geschrieben von balletboy  am 24.02. um 01:44:45

My simple answer is that people make dancebelts because they believe in dance and the dancer.  Many manufacuturers produce products that loose money to keep clients "brand loyal."  If you buy a Capezio dancebelt, you might be more likely to buy Capezio tights and ballet slippers.  But I like to think that Capezio, because they make several styles of dancebelts, is really concerned about their dancers.  If they didn't, why would they make several styles?

I don't think it's a matter of the dancebelt market being bigger than we think, or I don't want to.  In some aspects, the dance-market is a very specialized market, with limited high volume items.  If a manufacturer wanted to do high volume, they would make soccer-wear.

I think that some dancebelt makers have fallen to the wayside because they failed to market their products properly.  Les Stenhardt could have survived moving to new designs and fabrics, but at one time they had were "the" dancebelt that they got lazy.  When the Danskin 1100 came to the market, it was an alternative, and the Danskin name meant something.

I've got dancewear from many manufacturers who are now gone.  They purported to have better fabrics, better styles, better fit.  I gave them the benefit of the doubt, but found "problems" that led me back to other makers.

I'd love to see dancebelt sales figures!  Manufacturers rarely put out such detail.  I wonder if we asked them politely.....

balletboy

>Eric's question asking what happened to Wendy Knits brings up a broader general question: why would a dancewear manufacturer even bother with dance belts?>Dance belts might be the ultimate "nitch market".  What is the potential profit making an ultra-specialized item only worn by an extremely small part of the population?  Most men don't even know what a dance belt is, and even among those who are vaguely aware of them, how many have actually bought or worn one?>Male dancers need them.  Ice skaters wear them.  Many get sold around halloween for costumes featuring tights.  Actors and Renaissance Faire players wearing tights account for some sales.  Some guys just like them.  Who else?  How many dance belts are purchased each year?  If you wear them, how many do you have?>We are fortunate that several dancewear makers have decided the dance belt market is big enough to bother with, giving us a choice of styles.  How many others have given up?>-Les Steinhardt - premiere maker of the old fashioned style, disappeared soon after new materials and the thong revolution changed dancewear forever>- Wendy Knits - great thong design, even advertised in DANCE magazine, now gone too.>- Danskin - owned the dancewear market as the biggest company until they got caught up in the '80s aerobics craze, went crazy with shiney aerobics styles, and eventually retrenched as a women's-only line of dance and active wear.>- Gwhiz - a mid '90s startup that started up, then went straight down.>Capezio is a large company who took over Danskin's position as the leading dancewear manufacturer.  In order to be a full-service supplier to small stores who want to deal with only one or two suppliers, they almost have to offer a full men's line, including shoes, tights and of course, dance belts.  >MStevens represents the classic small manufacturer: started by a former dancer with some unique ideas for making better dancewear.  She must have had some male advice, because the MStevens dance belt has many fans.  Other small companies like Sansha and Baltogs also make dance belts, but you have to wonder how many they actually sell.>Whenever a new dance belt design is introduced, you have to wonder what kind of research they conduct.  Imagine a job as a dance belt tester!>This is just an open musing with questions but no answers.  If anyone can supply information or ideas, please add to the thread.  

• Re: How about "Because they believe in dance?" - Dr. Dancebelt - 24.02. 07:15:26