After acquiring Endor AG, Corsair intends to keep the Fanatec brand around for sim racing products - and has big plans, as Corsair CEO Andy Paul revealed in an interview with YouTuber Will Ford, better known as Boosted Media.
The future of Fanatec sim racing gear has been uncertain for most of 2024. With the acquisition of parent company Endor AG by Corsair, things are now looking to be back to a more sim racing-focused approach - this was evident at ADAC SimRacing Expo 2024, where a number of new Fanatec products was unveiled.
This was only a small step towards the future, however. In an in-depth interview with Boosted Media's Will Ford, Corsair CEO Andy Paul gave interesting insight into the company's plans for Fanatec, both for the near-term future as well as for long-term projects.
Most importantly (we kid, of course), Paul confirmed that Corsair will not "put RGB lighting on all of the steering wheels" in response to the humorous implication many in the sim racing community made when the acquisition became clear - a nod to Corsair's RGB-laden keyboards and other peripherals.
On a more serious note, Paul highlighted how Corsair intends to tackle the customer service backlog that Fanatec still has. A worldwide system of agents can look into simpler customer questions, for instance related to shipping status of their orders, but the more in-depth questions will still be handled by Fanatec staff in Landshut. "If someone has a serious problem, we want to deal with that quickly", stated Paul.
Recently, the response time to support tickets was two weeks, according to Paul, "but they're bringing that down pretty quickly. Our goal is to get things completely cleared and up to date before we get anywhere close to Black Friday." The traditionally discount-heavy holiday is coming up on November 29, 2024, leaving Corsair with a month to pull this off - a lofty goal, but it shows that this is a priority of the company.
Thus far, Fanatec hardware is not available in stores and can only be ordered online - something Corsair wants to change with its existing infrastructure. Paul: "We've already identified some of the mid-range products, either ClubSport or ClubSport Lite, that we should be able to bring the costs down for with our bigger factories, so we have enough room to cover the margins in retail."
The company has already identified stores and chains in Australia, the US and the UK in which they want to make Fanatec gear available.
Initially unveiled as a Corsair product, the upcoming rig seen here at SimRacing Expo 2024 has been rebranded to Fanatec.
In the long run, Corsair wants to focus on gear in the $300-500 price range, but "at the moment, we try to make sure that we get as big a market share as we can in the $500 and up category", explained Paul. "That's were Fanatec has made its name."
After that, however, the company wants to take the fight to Logitech and Thrustmaster, who Paul identifies as the biggest competitors in the lower price range mentioned previously: "There is no reason why we can't compete."
On the other hand, the high-end segment will also be a staple moving forward, as Paul highlighted Corsair's ability to provide full sim racing setups now - including rigs, PCs, monitors and peripherals. Paul wants to move things forward now:
"Complacency is the biggest thing you have to worry about. We everybody acting as though someone is coming to steal their lunch every day and they have got to fight that off. The way you do that is by continuing to make great products and market them correctly."
What do you make of the new Corsair-led direction Fanatec looks to be taking? Let us know in the comments below!
The future of Fanatec sim racing gear has been uncertain for most of 2024. With the acquisition of parent company Endor AG by Corsair, things are now looking to be back to a more sim racing-focused approach - this was evident at ADAC SimRacing Expo 2024, where a number of new Fanatec products was unveiled.
This was only a small step towards the future, however. In an in-depth interview with Boosted Media's Will Ford, Corsair CEO Andy Paul gave interesting insight into the company's plans for Fanatec, both for the near-term future as well as for long-term projects.
Most importantly (we kid, of course), Paul confirmed that Corsair will not "put RGB lighting on all of the steering wheels" in response to the humorous implication many in the sim racing community made when the acquisition became clear - a nod to Corsair's RGB-laden keyboards and other peripherals.
On a more serious note, Paul highlighted how Corsair intends to tackle the customer service backlog that Fanatec still has. A worldwide system of agents can look into simpler customer questions, for instance related to shipping status of their orders, but the more in-depth questions will still be handled by Fanatec staff in Landshut. "If someone has a serious problem, we want to deal with that quickly", stated Paul.
Recently, the response time to support tickets was two weeks, according to Paul, "but they're bringing that down pretty quickly. Our goal is to get things completely cleared and up to date before we get anywhere close to Black Friday." The traditionally discount-heavy holiday is coming up on November 29, 2024, leaving Corsair with a month to pull this off - a lofty goal, but it shows that this is a priority of the company.
Gear To Be Available In Stores
Moving forward, Corsair wants to have Fanatec fully under its roof quite quickly, too. "In three or four months, we'll have [Fanatec] fully integrated. That'll alow things to go a lot smoother", said Paul. "We start next year to roll out products to retail, but we got a lot to do until we get there."Thus far, Fanatec hardware is not available in stores and can only be ordered online - something Corsair wants to change with its existing infrastructure. Paul: "We've already identified some of the mid-range products, either ClubSport or ClubSport Lite, that we should be able to bring the costs down for with our bigger factories, so we have enough room to cover the margins in retail."
The company has already identified stores and chains in Australia, the US and the UK in which they want to make Fanatec gear available.
Initially unveiled as a Corsair product, the upcoming rig seen here at SimRacing Expo 2024 has been rebranded to Fanatec.
In the long run, Corsair wants to focus on gear in the $300-500 price range, but "at the moment, we try to make sure that we get as big a market share as we can in the $500 and up category", explained Paul. "That's were Fanatec has made its name."
After that, however, the company wants to take the fight to Logitech and Thrustmaster, who Paul identifies as the biggest competitors in the lower price range mentioned previously: "There is no reason why we can't compete."
On the other hand, the high-end segment will also be a staple moving forward, as Paul highlighted Corsair's ability to provide full sim racing setups now - including rigs, PCs, monitors and peripherals. Paul wants to move things forward now:
"Complacency is the biggest thing you have to worry about. We everybody acting as though someone is coming to steal their lunch every day and they have got to fight that off. The way you do that is by continuing to make great products and market them correctly."
What do you make of the new Corsair-led direction Fanatec looks to be taking? Let us know in the comments below!
