ASAT being discontinued?

William Hanson (live2hunt)

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Saw a post on fb where a guy said firstlite informed him that that would no longer carry ASAT for their 2018 line up. Has anyone else heard anything about this?

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twall13

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I haven't heard that but I wouldn't be surprised as it's supposed to be going on sale 40% off tomorrow. Last time I remember them doing that was when they were closing out real tree inventory.

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They stated ASAT wasn’t going to be included in the 2018 lineup on a post on IG. Looks like I’ll have some vintage camo.....
 

fngTony

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Don’t know if it’s true but the pitchfork crowd on FB is growing at an alarming rate.

If they do I think it’s a bigger blow to asat than firstlite.
 
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Stupid move to discontinue asat by FL but I assume the royalty fees are annoying for them to pay and eat into margin.


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MattB

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Hoyt discontinued most of the traditional camo patterns in favor of the new, cool Sitka/Kuiu/Ridge Raper stuff for 2018.
 

Dobermann

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That's what I was guessing when I saw the 40% off too.

I wonder if they're figuring that Cipher pretty much will do the same job that ASAT does, in terms of the color palette ... and possibly better, in terms of the pattern?
 

NHRedleg

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I am bummed about them dumping ASAT as I love the pattern; works well here in Northern New England on the ground and in a treestand. I also won't wear anything but merino for base layers and prefer it for mid layer as well. Looking for potential alternatives I found this site: THLETE Hunting Camo - Hunting Clothing and Camo Apparel - Camo Hunting Gear and ordered up the Alpaca Hybrid Quarter Zip, it is a long sleeve 190 wt t-shirt, to check out. The pattern looks pretty good, very predator like, and made in the USA to boot.
 

topher89

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Just like every business, I assume they made a financial decision. They need to make $ and I would bet the ASAT numbers were not close the their sales numbers for other items as well as the royalty fees the pay for the pattern.

They need to make a buck just like everyone else.
 

Stwrt9

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Honestly this makes a lot of sense business wise for First Lite to drop ASAT. I'm sure they had to pay a royalty fee to use ASAT where as they have 2 Patterns of their own to sell against it. Not to mention sales determine which way for them to proceed. for instance if ASAT sales are down and their other 2 patterns are up why keep the one that's costing you money. So basically on any particular item they will make X amount of money more per item when they sell Fusion/Cipher compared to ASAT due to royalties. I know this sucks for you ASAT users but it's not financially worth it it's not financially worth it.
 

jm1607

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Wow... That sucks

I think they've gotten too big for their britches. Alot of people buy their clothes just for ASAT.. I think they will take a much bigger hit from this than they are anticipating.. I bet they drop them, take a huge hit in 2018 with sales, then pick them back up in 2019 lol..

I guess I'm glad I'm 100% stocked up now.. Guess I'll buy some odds and ends in ASAT on sale today..
 

406

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That's too bad. I remember an interview with Cal about this time last year where Cal flatly stated that ASAT would never go away, that it was a core product, and that the relationship with FL and ASAT was simply too strong.

Disappointing... Between this, sizing issues, and their pretty shitty cust service, I'm thinking I'm probably about done with them.

Is that sale today?

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jm1607

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That's too bad. I remember an interview with Cal about this time last year where Cal flatly stated that ASAT would never go away, that it was a core product, and that the relationship with FL and ASAT was simply too strong.

Disappointing... Between this, sizing issues, and their pretty shitty cust service, I'm thinking I'm probably about done with them.

Is that sale today?

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Ya, today only.. On sale pretty much everywhere

Hey, do you remember where you saw/heard the interview? Could you post a link?
 

406

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Ya, today only.. On sale pretty much everywhere

Hey, do you remember where you saw/heard the interview? Could you post a link?
I think it was The Rich Outdoors. I was hiking in in the dark and listening. Only reason it stuck in my mind is because I remember thinking"good" when he said it. I have some of the original ASAT from the original company and it's heavier than the FL stuff.

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PNWTO

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Disappointing... Between this, sizing issues, and their pretty shitty cust service, I'm thinking I'm probably about done with them.

Could you highlight your CS stories? Not that I don't believe you; just curious. I have been contacting them incessantly about restock of certain sizes and if they have a new vendor for Fusion/Cipher hydrographics and the only traffic I get back is "soon."

I like ASAT but I think it is a cult following at best given the rise of Gucci-flage in the past decade. I was planning to buy about four digits worth of FL ASAT gear in the spring but I guess I will examine the Fusion/Cipher offering now. I do think that Cipher borrows a lot from ASAT and I'm sure the three patterns cannibalized each other in the sales ledgers a bit.
 
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The decision to discontinue ASAT was based on nothing more than low sales. The licensing fee component is so small that it really doesn't matter. If ASAT was selling even moderately it would continue to be in our line but unfortunately it has slowed to a crawl. ASAT is a super effective pattern but demand has dropped off in such a way that it doesn't make sense to stock it any longer. We really do appreciate the feedback and are grateful
for our ASAT customers.
 

sneaky

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Welp, guess I'm finished with FL then. My ASAT Stormtight jacket has fallen apart anyways. Seam tape all came loose, and the last time i washed it one of the chest pocket zippers came completely out. Bummer, liked their ASAT line but they too have gone to the new trends.

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Bummer, I really like First Lite and ASAT. I had been thinking about slowly switching over to Cipher but they never have my size in stock in a few items that Im looking to get. When I ask, they simply dont know when it will be back in stock? Ive definitely been considering switching companies all together.
 
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