Who Manufacturers AFG Treadmills?

General Information:A lower end line produced by Johnson, the producers of Vision, Matrix, and Horizon. The packaging on these machines is nothing short of spectacular, especially considering the price. Their component quality has picked up. AFG is the replacement for Horizon in the ultra-cheap price points and is only producing units that have a minimum quality level for walkers. If you run on an AFG, I see a Treadmill Doctor in your future.

Manufacturing Philosophy:Hit low price points and sell as many as you can seems to be the philosophy of this brand for Johnson and at this point, they are doing it very well. We visited the headquarters and major factory outside of Shanghai and found that Johnson is the most integrated manufacturer of fitness equipment in the world. This can be both good and bad. The good is that you are in control of almost all aspects of production. The bad is that you are in control of almost all aspects of production- if you mess up there is no one else to blame. They are focused on doing things the right way so it appears that this is a case where it is good overall. We were impressed with their quality procedures and design and testing processes and the reviews will reflect these facts. Keep in mind, the AFG brand is the bottom of the bucket for Johnson.

Company Outlook : AFG has bounced around from specialty retailers to online retailers and now in the mass market. With the reduction in quality of the retailer, the reduction in the quality of the product has followed. We would think they will sell a bunch of these since the volume in the fitness industry is in the low price points but where there is volume, quality barely exists.