peripherals-misc
02/09/2004, 2:40pm, EST
Monday, February 9th
Willow Design shuts down, offers final close out sale
Carrying case manufacturer Willow Design is shutting down and will no longer be producing its wide range of carrying cases for laptops and other Macs due to competition by overseas labor costs. A "final closeout sale" runs through the end of February: "All our cases are hand sewn in small batches by individual seamstresses so with all of them, you can count on superb protection, functional ergonomic designs and meticulous craftsmanship. This is an expensive way to make the cases though, and with increased competition of offshore, manufactured cases run through with labor rates of 22¢ - 25¢ per hour, we found we just couldn't compete. Two options would have been to drop our standards or ship our production offshore -- neither of which was acceptable. So we have decided to stop making the cases."
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...they were just ripe to be bankrupt.
I think it's more like...
"People didn't buy our cases because they were overpriced, and not stylish"
Maybe if they were 50% of what they are now, then it would be a good deal.
am i the only one that need more than a neoprene sleeve for my rather costly laptop in order to feel secure? no wonder they are out of business.
i've never been that impressed with their designs – and i must not be the only one. the design of the logo alone gives a bad first impression.
oh well, i feel bad for them because i'm sure they worked hard. but it takes more than hard work to be successful.
I TRIED to convince myself to buy one, or at least try one, but couldn't bring myself to do it. The cases look practical, but dull. Actually, rather Dell-ish.
Really, their designs come straight out of 1970's backpack style. Been there, done that.
Ta Ta. Ciao Ciao.
For the record, my case is http://www.willowdesign.com/SC-21.html
Sorry to see them go.