Kifaru in the classifieds

[Chucklehead]

Its just not the "cool" thing anymore. Influencers exist because the marketing method works.
Few years ago Kifaru was in. (and sprinkle in a little Mystery Ranch)
Few years later it was Stone Glacier
After that was EXO
Now this year it seems like Initial Ascent is the "in" thing.
I'm sure in a couple years when EXO comes out with a K5 it will be all the rage.
It will go on and on and on.

I'm sure there are tons of people on here who have bought all these packs. (And in that order.) You don't have to wonder why:
Its all who has the best marketing/perception on social media, forums, podcasts, YouTube and of course rokslide.

They will buy a new pack and say "boy this XYZ is way better than my ABC I've been using for years".
Never mind that they are comparing something that is brand new to something that has probably hundreds of miles on it.
That'd be like trading in a chevy that has 200k on it, go and buy a brand new ford and say "boy, this ford drives way better than my chevy" Well it better, Its brand freaking new. But in their mind, it justified the purchase they made.

You are always being marketed to.

 

[Coopsdaddy]

I think it’s mainly snyder.
Like him or not he kills shit and has a personality.And most of us like killing shit.
Who the hell are the new owners?some rich dudes or corporation.
If exo sells out to some company or rich guys than the same will happen to them.
I like Snyder and his content.
I have a exo now mainly because there’s no better acting guys in the bussiness.
That’s who I like to give my money.At the end of the day there’s multiple packs that can get the job done.

 

[rcb2000]

I think it’s mainly snyder.
Like him or not he kills shit and has a personality.And most of us like killing shit.
Who the hell are the new owners?some rich dudes or corporation.
If exo sells out to some company or rich guys than the same will happen to them.
I like Snyder and his content.
I have a exo now mainly because there’s no better acting guys in the bussiness.
That’s who I like to give my money.At the end of the day there’s multiple packs that can get the job done.

The years of Kifaru when Kifarucast was with Snyder and Frank were the peak years, while Patrick owned the company.

 

[guitarpreston]

Market saturation.

 

[danwattsmessick]

Aron leaving is the biggest contributor to the decrease in sales and I don’t think anything can convince me otherwise.

 

[pirogue]

I ‘ve still got a couple Kifaru packs from the Patrick Smith days. Great packs, but guess what; neither are still available, and haven’t been for years. It’s like when Snyder became influential, one would think the design department had a mandate to introduce so many new packs, (with poor designs) or get fired, and get rid of packs that worked.

 

[woods89]

I think Patrick Smith was what made Kifaru great, and as his influence waned it was a long slow slide from where it had been. Just my opinion.

I'd also add, I can't think of an example in the hunting industry where a founder has sold the business and things have got better. I'm a happy Exo owner, and should be set up packwise for a long time, but I'd expect the same if they change hands. So far they seem committed to staying the course, but I think every business owner gets to a point where a really good offer sounds pretty attractive.

So to recap, I'd say Kifaru was best when Patrick Smith was running the ship, Stone Glacier was best when Kurt Racicot was doing the same, and Exo is currently in that moment.

 

[huntsman22]

and Dana Gleason.....

 

[tony]

Mel Terkla was the real Kifaru.

 

[woods89]

and Dana Gleason.....

Yeah, he needs to be on that list as well!

 

[ChrisA]

Its just not the "cool" thing anymore. Influencers exist because the marketing method works.
Few years ago Kifaru was in. (and sprinkle in a little Mystery Ranch)
Few years later it was Stone Glacier
After that was EXO
Now this year it seems like Initial Ascent is the "in" thing.
I'm sure in a couple years when EXO comes out with a K5 it will be all the rage.
It will go on and on and on.

I'm sure there are tons of people on here who have bought all these packs. (And in that order.) You don't have to wonder why:
Its all who has the best marketing/perception on social media, forums, podcasts, YouTube and of course rokslide.

They will buy a new pack and say "boy this XYZ is way better than my ABC I've been using for years".
Never mind that they are comparing something that is brand new to something that has probably hundreds of miles on it.
That'd be like trading in a chevy that has 200k on it, go and buy a brand new ford and say "boy, this ford drives way better than my chevy" Well it better, Its brand freaking new. But in their mind, it justified the purchase they made.

You are always being marketed to.

I guess I'm an outlier. When buying my very first pack I researched a ton and Aron offered up his number and invited me to call him. I really enjoyed his podcasts and felt like I knew him personally. However, I never did and ended up ordering a gen 1 exo because of the introductory price and I liked the key talking points of the pack. It worked very well so I bought a K3 a few years later. I've packed 7 elk, a whitetail, and 4 mule deer with the exo packs and couldn't be happier.

I despise being marked to and am owly enough to never do business with a company that has a frickn annoying radio commercial and the like. I about lost my shit at Casey's when I couldn't mute the frickn advertising on the fuel pump earlier this week.

Disclosure: I'm a latch key Gen X'er that grew up 5 miles from town and haven't turned a TV on in 6 years.

 

[BAKPAKR]

I think Patrick Smith was what made Kifaru great, and as his influence waned it was a long slow slide from where it had been. Just my opinion.

I still have two Kifaru packs from back in the day when you could pick any color you wanted, as long as it was black.