[James Baldwin]

I am in the business of building products around licensed brands, so I am always interested anyone who is able to make a buck in licensing products. But the top brands are very rarely (if ever) the best products. Conversely, the lowest priced brands are not always the lowest quality products. It is always much easier to make money on a name brand than on an unknown (otherwise, us marketing guys would be working at McDonalds).

I certainly can't fault the groups making money on Shelby licenses. Without licensing to these companies, where does Shelby make his money? Just a way of life.

As much I as I like to poke fun at some of the Shelby branded recreations (Eleanor, new GT350, guitars), I certainly won't fault Shelby or the people behind it for trying to make a buck. All I hope is that it does not tarnish the brand enough to affect the resale values of the Cobra line.