If, for sake of argument, you made something which sold almost as fast as ‘it’ could be made, would you have any need or desire to alter, change or develop your product? Maybe not, why meddle with something which works, yes some variations may be needed to ensure the product was as compatible with as many markets as possible but major change…?
Such was the situation Villiers found themselves in as suppliers of engines to a considerable number of motorcycle makers in the UK. What they produced they sold, and if one maker didn’t want what was produced, or perhaps wanted something a little different, well, they could jolly well buy the basic unit and alter it themselves.
In actual fact as the Sixties dawned a number of makers were doing just such a thing and Greeves in particular would eventually twig how small a step it was to go from modifying someone else’s engine to making their own. The folklore surrounding Villiers’ attitude to those who wanted to gain more from their engines or hoped Villiers would be more amenable to providing what they wanted
