Concerns Arise Amid CEO Dismissal at Fanatec
I believe we are all aware of the dismissal of the CEO of this company by now. Some of you may be greatly relieved, but I couldn't be more concerned. Fanatec has been struggling with poor management for several months now, and it's understandable that heads are rolling, but there are rumors circulating that the dismissal was requested by the bank. There are two theories I've read about this: the first is that the bank requested it to extend the credit, which I don't see as such a bad option. Money is needed to grow. The second rumor suggests an agreement between investors and the bank to postpone credit payments until June, and this really worries me. My current situation with Fanatec is that I'm waiting for a refund of over €2500, so the fact that they had to postpone payments concerns me greatly.
In December, weeks after ordering the CS DD+, I purchased an aluminum structure that has been empty since I bought it. Now, months later, I find myself waiting for a refund in order to purchase the CS DD Extreme. At this point, I'm not even sure if I'll get my money back, and if I do, I'm unsure how wise it would be to make another purchase from Fanatec. Though the market is saturated with brands, as they say, "better the devil you know than the devil you don't." I hope this situation resolves satisfactorily.
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But don't you understand that the company, as it was until today, was destined to fail without any changes?
The situation was serious, much more serious than the usual fanboys managed to hide, and it was getting worse and worse, rather than better. The "creative" financial behaviors that this company used with the money "advanced" by customers certainly could not go unnoticed by the supervisory bodies.
Of course, if and after you got your refund, you should have simply stayed away from this company!
I have a complete Fanatec system, and I certainly don't want Fanatec to fail and be left without hardware and software support. But continuing like this would have been inevitable.
Perhaps it is already too late, even with the new management class Fanatec will not be able to re-emerge, and will fail, however it is the first sign that there is a desire to avoid failure and put things right.
What method did you use to pay? Can you contact them and ask them to do a charge back?
At no point do I say that the CEO's dismissal shouldn't take place. I believe it's quite normal that when things aren't going well and there's no improvement in sight, drastic changes need to be made. However, that doesn't mean I'm not worried. The fact that a bank, which is the one providing you with the money to operate as a company, is requesting conditions related to dismissals gives me the feeling that something serious is going on. I'm concerned because, as I've already mentioned, I've been waiting for a refund of €2500 for a month and a half. I'm worried because I've already invested €2000 in an aluminum structure for a steering wheel. I'm concerned because even though I know there are other alternatives in the market, I already had my goal quite clear. I'm worried because I don't know how this is going to end.
Hello, the method I used to pay was VISA, and I am in contact with the bank to try to recover my money. I'm not sure to what extent VISA or my bank would take responsibility if the company doesn't pay. I know the bank's first move is to talk directly with the company. I don't know how things will end up.
Well we're living in the information age so do your research so the "devil you don't know" becomes known 🤣
Having read the financial report for Q3 last year, it doesn't look that bad. Unless things have worsened considerably in a matter of months, then the company has hope. It need changes clearly. Their profit has been huge over the last 3-5 years down to release of GT7 and also the increase in Sim Racers from Covid. It was always going to drop again eventually. It just seems they need some restructuring to account for the 'normal' revenue rather then what they have been blessed with over the last few years.
If I have read it correctly they lost about 5 million in the year ending Sept 2023. When you see the year before alone they made 20 million, it puts it into context.
I hope that the changes of management etc is a move to make changes to avoid further loss rather than an effort to save a sinking ship!!