BROOMFIELD, Colo. (BRAIN) — SealSkinz USA is adding to its bike-specific product offerings with its new Halo Overshoe and its first-ever line of warm weather cycling products.

The Halo Overshoes are available to dealers now; the Spring/Summer 2016 line, composed of 18 products, will ship to retailers in February.

The Halo Overshoe has a built-in rear-facing LED light that's visible from 1,600 feet away. The waterproof and breathable overshoe won a 2015 ISPO Gold Award in the Outdoor Accessories category. It is offered in lightweight and neoprene versions and has an MSRP of $60.

SealSkinz' 2016 Spring/Summer line will be available in both traditional and new bright colors. It includes 14 mountain- and road-specific items. The line features SealSkinz' patented StretchDry technology, which makes its products fit close to the body, while ensuring they are waterproof and breathable. SealSkinz has also implemented water repellent technology in the line.

The company holds true to its British heritage, keeping summer showers in mind as it created water-repellent single-layer gloves and socks. Rain beads and runs off, and the accessories dry more quickly than non-coated products. The company said its water repellent treatment also renders fabric water-and stain-resistant without altering its weight, breathability, thickness, or texture.

More information at sealskinz.com/US. Dealers who are interested in SealSkinz may contact infousa@sealskinz.com.

There is nothing the media likes better than a dead cyclist. Unless it’s a dead cyclist who was not wearing a helmet. That salacious and often completely irrelevant bit is invariably tossed in as a lagniappe—a little (bloodstained) bonus—in every report involving the death of a cyclist. 

Here’s how it works: “The cyclist, who was not wearing a helmet…” implies not only that a helmet would have saved the cyclist’s life, but that the cyclist was therefore somehow culpable in their own death. The rider in question could have been struck by a drunk driver, flattened by a runaway train, or obliterated by a falling comet. It doesn’t matter. If the cyclist is not wearing a helmet, their death is no one’s fault but their own. 

The opposite line—“the cyclist, who was wearing a helmet…”—works almost as well. It implies the danger of riding a bike is so enormous that even a talisman as powerful as a helmet failed to work its magic. Again, the drunk driver/locomotive/comet possibilities are irrelevant.

You’ll also note the headline is, inevitably, “Cyclist Killed,” and never “Driver Kills Cyclist.” Often the driver isn’t even mentioned in the headline. If it bleeds, it leads. And if the thing doing the bleeding was on two wheels when the bleeding started, it leads even better. 

Now figure in what politicians like to call the drip, drip, drip factor (the line comes from an old Rolaids ad). Google News articles tagged with “Cyclist killed” average three to five a week, every week, which is to say, a couple hundred times per year. That’s hundreds of times the cycling = death message is shown to millions of Americans each year where the bottom line—what we in the marketing biz call the takeaway—is that riding bikes is pretty likely to kill you. Drip, drip, drip.

Never mind that Department of Transportation fatality stats show the number of cycling fatalities per year has declined about 30 percent over the past 40 years. Or, that, although the number of cycling fatalities fluctuates from year to year,  overall results have remained more or less steady since 2000. 

The constant and overwhelming media message is simple: Every trip by bike is a potential trip to the graveyard.  Of course, that’s nonsense, and a review of the actual figures exposes that media-induced hysteria for the cynical fraud it is. But who cares? Via consistent (drip) repetition (drip) over time (drip), that cycling = death message has become engrained in the public perception. And in the business of marketing, the business of public relations, the business that sets the national agenda about how people spend their time and money, that perception has already become reality.

Here’s just one example:

“Bicycle Traffic Deaths Soar; California Leads Nation,” screams the Los Angeles Times headline from Oct. 27, 2014. The lead includes the gleefully macabre fact that “between 2010 and 2012, U.S. bicyclist deaths increased by 16%.” 

Odd thing is, the 2012 stat is macabre only in relation to 2010, which had the lowest number of cycling fatalities ever recorded. (Of course, the 2010 figure isn’t even mentioned.) In fact, during the 37 years since 1975, 2012 was the 11th safest, with 726 cyclist fatalities, or about 10 percent fewer deaths than the 40-year average of approximately 800.

However, the point is not about what number of dead cyclists is acceptable (at the risk of being obvious, the acceptable number is zero). The point is that diverting public conversation from road safety to an indictment of the dangers of cycling gives the anti-bike crowd a free pass on matters of driver responsibility and the necessity for maintaining safe riding infrastructure. More and more, the cycling = death mantra has become a literal get-out-of-jail-free card for drunk, distracted, and malicious drivers, as well as a convenient excuse for anti-advocacy groups to do nothing at all about it.  

The problem is not bikes. It’s not cycling. The problem is that bikes and cycling are being unfairly characterized as a deadly pastime. And that, by doing nothing to stop it, we’ve allowed that demonization to happen. 

Next time: Selling Cycling in a Culture of Fear

RICHMOND, Calif. (BRAIN) — Cycle Monkey is now going to distribute Tout Terrain bikes and other products in the U.S.

Tour Terrain is a German maker of high-end city and expedition touring bikes, suspended trailers for children and cargo, and the Cinq5 components line.

Cycle Monkey also distributes the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 internal gear hubs in the U.S.

"Tout Terrain designs bikes for a cycling lifestyle for both daily transportation use and extended tours. Each bike is designed to be comfortable and durable whether taking a bike trip around the globe or pedaling to the office each day," said Neil Flock, the owner of Cycle Monkey. "Tout Terrain's innovative design features make the bikes stand out, and the models with Rohloff hubs with Gates Carbon Drive belts create expedition-ready, low-maintenance packages."

Jim Glose, the sales director for Cycle Monkey, said, "Bringing the full Tout Terrain line to the US will make it easier for cyclists to get a hold of these class-leading bike. Bikepacking, touring, and expedition cycling are a fast growing segment of the cycling industry right now. Offering the quality and experience of Tout Terrain, coupled with Cycle Monkey's expertise with Rohloff and belt drive, will enable dealers to answer this demand with solid technical support from the start."

As part of the Tout Terrain launch, Cycle Monkey is building a roaming demo fleet. The sales program for stocking dealers includes an industry-standard dealer margin, which the company said is "unique for an imported niche brand."

SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif. (BRAIN) — Marzocchi is unlikely to contribute much to Fox Factory’s bottom line for at least a year, Fox executives warned investors Wednesday, saying it will take some time and money to resurrect the Italy-based brand, which is currently dormant.

Fox has agreed to buy the Marzocchi name, intellectual property, inventory, testing equipment and other bicycle-related assets from Tenneco, an Illinois-based Fortune 500 company that primarily is in the automotive parts business. Fox is not planning to buy Marzocchi’s power sport-related assets, and Fox executives made clear that they are buying assets  — mostly non-physical — but not getting an on-going business.

“Tenneco announced they were shutting this down in July and … we are in the process of purchasing it in November — not a lot good was happening in that time,” Fox CEO Larry Enterline told analysts during a third quarter earnings call.

Fox plans to move Marzocchi’s operations from Italy to Taichung, Taiwan. Fox will likely continue to offer some existing Marzocchi products and will also use the brand to help extend its reach to lower prices. Prior to the Marzocchi opportunity, Fox already was planning to introduce a fork in mid-2016 that will bring the brand down to its lowest price ever.

“We are looking at how we take (the Marzocchi acquisition) with the plan we already had and optimize the two of those things,” Enterline said. “We look at this as a way to help us extend maybe deeper and faster into that price range. Also, I think we’ve got a brand here with a following … and clearly we are looking to take advantage of that.”

Fox president Mario Galasso said the company is still evaluating how to best use the Marzocchi brand.

“It will fill some holes for us and we may have some overlap,” he said. “But Marzocchi has a good history to it and it continues to have a following and that’s going to be part of our story.”

“Some of their products will continue to live on,” Galasso added. “We will have an expanded product line offering and some of the new products will say Fox and some of the new ones will say Marzocchi. We are in the midst of figuring out how that line is going to lay out."

Assuming the purchase is completed this quarter, company officials expect Marzocchi’s fourth quarter sales to be negligible. But CFO Zvi Glasman said the brand could generate “a couple million” dollars in sales next year. New costs related to the acquisition and moving Marzocchi to Taiwan will create an operating loss of about 1 cent per share in the fourth quarter and next year, Glasman said.

The Marzocchi purchase was the subject of several analysts’ questions in the 66-minute conference call, and in answering one of the final questions, Enterline sought to downplay the acquisition’s importance.

“This was obviously not a landscape-changing deal for us,” he said with a chuckle. “It’s pretty small.”

Easton/RaceFace contribute

While Marzocchi’s bottom-line contributions are far off, Fox’s purchase of Easton Cycling and RaceFace late last year is adding revenue. The company said a 17 percent increase in bike-related sales in the third quarter was almost entirely due to the addition of Easton/RaceFace business. Fox’s sales in the quarter, including power vehicle-related business, totaled $106.2 million.

Besides the new Easton/RaceFace business, Fox’s bike business benefitted from a good reception of Fox’s 2016 model year products, which helped it earn back some OE marketshare it lost in the prior season, Enterline said.

“We think (model year 20)17 will be very good also, so we will continue to get back some of the spec’ position we may have lost a year ago,” Enterline said.

Fox’s bike business also enjoyed higher margins in the third quarter in part due to lower manufacturing costs in Taiwan. The company is now making about 79 percent of its forks and 63 percent of its shocks at its Taichung factory. By the end of the year, Enterline said he expects the factory will be making 80 to 85 percent of both shocks and forks.

Fox Factory was split off from Compass Diversified in a 2013 IPO. It acquired RaceFace and Easton Cycling in December 2014. The company’s stock is traded on NASDAQ under the FOXF symbol and its stock performance is tracked on BRAIN’s stock page.

SAN DIEGO (BRAIN) — The Bicycle Tour Network kicked off its 26^th annual conference Wednesday afternoon, returning to the Bahia Resort Hotel in San Diego. The event brings together the bicycle and tourism industries for four days of networking and sharing of best practices.

However, several attendees who flew into the San Diego International Airport were delayed Wednesday afternoon as flights were canceled or diverted due to a standoff with a gunman at an apartment complex under the airport’s approach path. The Federal Aviation Administration halted incoming flights for several hours Wednesday afternoon as a precaution, and conference organizers expected many attendees to arrive late Wednesday or early Thursday morning.

Last year’s event drew nearly 250 attendees for lectures, interactive sessions, group discussions and panels on how to successfully run and promote bicycle events and tourism.

The conference also has a vendor expo, giving companies the chance to meet ride directors and tourism companies.

“When the conference was first held, the purpose was to bring together just multi-day bicycle tour event directors to share knowledge and help others who had an interest in starting events,” said T.J. Juskiewicz, BTN president and RAGBRAI director. “That focus remains today, but the Bicycle Tour Network has broadened the scope to include single-day and weekend recreational bicycle events and festivals, tour operators and travel and tourism officials that highlight their cycling opportunities.”

Wednesday’s schedule included afternoon discussions about cycling events and bike tourism and a dockside evening reception and cruise along the San Diego harbor on the William D. Evans Sternwheeler Boat. 

Tapped to speak at the conference is Chris Speyer, Accell North America’s chief executive officer, and Tim Blumenthal, president of PeopleForBikes, who will present the keynote Thursday morning on “Fun for Everyone — Growing Cycling in North America.”

PeopleForBikes is the presenting sponsor of the conference. Also supporting the event are Primal, Interbike and Adventure Cycling.

On Friday, IMBA’s Mike Van Abel will lead a breakout session on mountain bike tourism. And a panel made up of retailers and suppliers including Mike Gann of Niner Bikes will lead a mid-day breakout session on the endurance adventure category.

Among the topics to be tackled this year are the economic impact of bike tourism; social marketing; success stories in parks and on public lands; developing partnerships among cities, bike tour operators and bike events; bike tourism and local food and culture; and the future of e-bike tours and tourism. 

CORTEZ, Colo. (BRAIN) — Osprey Packs has hired Vince Mazzuca as senior marketing manager and Jennie Wong as sales and marketing coordinator.

Mazzuca will provide leadership to the marketing team, contributing to the development and execution of the brand's marketing strategy. In addition to strategy, Mazzuca will lead consumer and trade events, media planning, sponsorships, promotions and sell-through. Prior to joining Osprey, Mazzuca served as marketing manager for Ruffwear and global marketing manager at Yakima Products.

Wong will oversee execution of all domestic sales meetings, trade shows, dealer visits and in-house presentations. Wong's experience in the outdoor industry includes work with Royal Robbins in purchasing, customer service and marketing.

"We're excited and fortunate to have these two experienced industry experts join our growing communications team," said Rob BonDurant, Osprey's director of marketing. "In addition to the professional experience each brings, is their equally important cultural connection to the products we make and the sports we support. 2016 will be an exciting year for the Osprey community."

LONDON (BRAIN) — Rapha and Team Sky will end their four-year sponsorship agreement at the conclusion of the 2016 season, Rapha founder Simon Mottram announced this week on the company's website. 

"It's been an amazing ride so far and the success of the partnership has been beyond expectations. After reflection and discussion, both Rapha and Team Sky have decided not to renew our partnership beyond the current four-year deal, which concludes at the end of the 2016 season."

During the sponsorship, Team Sky notched two Tour de France victories with Chris Froome. Mottram said Rapha will use the final season with Sky to focus on research and development projects that are in progress.

"Going forward Rapha will continue to find partnerships that serve and connect with our customers wherever they are from, and across the many levels and disciplines of this beautiful sport. The success of our Cycle Clubs and the RCC (Rapha Cycling Club) gives us the confidence to keep moving forwards, to try new ventures and trust our instincts. From 2017 we will continue to support racing in many ways, especially locally, but we will also focus on new geographies, partnerships and categories. We will be announcing news on these exciting developments soon," Mottram said.

ORANGE, Calif. (BRAIN) — Ironman CEO Andrew Messick and USAT president Barry Siff will be among the keynote speakers for its 6th annual triathlon trade conference, being held Jan. 24-26 in Marina del Rey, California.

This will be one of the first opportunities to hear Messick talk about Ironman's future under its new ownership – China's Dailan Wanda Group.

Siff, recently elected to the ITU Executive Board, will provide an update on the state of the sport from both the USA Triathlon and ITU perspective. He will share first-hand knowledge and experience about what changes are on the global triathlon horizon and what the industry should plan for.

The TBI Conference also includes The Ron Smith Awards Celebration reception and dinner on Monday night, where the winners of the Ron Smith Award  and the Steve Hed Award will be announced.

Conference details and online registration are available at triathlonbusinessintl.com/2016-la-conference.

MADRID (BRAIN) — Rotor Bike Components has named Sergio Iglesias creative director. In his new role, Iglesias will be in charge of Rotor´s brand identity, its visual presence in the marketplace, and the brand´s long-term creative direction.

"After 20 years of working in a creative capacity for companies like Opel, Coca-Cola, Terra USA, Red Bull, Trek and Nike, I am finally able to unite my professional vocation with my passion for the bike," said Iglesias. "My objective has always been to seek out challenges that demand the best of me. Rotor is a brand that´s outgrowing itself by the day, which will require me to ride the creative trends of a global marketplace."

One of his first major projects will be to assist with the redesign of Rotor's website, rotorbike.com.

"We want the new website to become a tool of reference for people who are curious, enthusiastic or even skeptical about Rotor´s flagship Q-Rings (oval chainrings), as well as its other products," Iglesias said. "It should be a virtual storefront for all our products, both current and soon-to-be-released."

Iglesias joins Rotor as the Spanish brand expands into a variety of mediums and materials, including carbon fiber, high-tech textiles and high-grade aluminum composites.

"Sergio is coming on board at an exciting time for Rotor," said Chris Tarlton, global marketing manager. "Having his creative input in our key projects will ensure we can continue to grow the brand and add a great deal of marketing muscle to this great tech company."

Iglesias will work out of Rotor´s Madrid headquarters, "which has been expanding in all areas of the company, including engineering, manufacturing, marketing and sales," the company stated.

PORTLAND, Ore. (BRAIN) — Portland-based distributor Cyclone Bicycle Supply has acquired New Jersey's Action Bicycle USA.

As of Feb. 1, 2016, both locations will operate as Cyclone Bicycle Supply.

Action has been in operation since 1988, while Cyclone opened its doors in 2003.

In addition to distributing third party products, Action has developed its own products. Cyclone said the addition of Action's dealer base and East Coast distribution facility will solidify its coast-to-coast reach.

"(Action's) Ralph Zotta and I met in early 2015 to discuss working together in a way that leveraged both of our strengths. At Cyclone we've been working hard to level the playing field for IBD's with tools like our Cyclone Bike Shopper App, giving retailers the ability to virtually expand product selection without expanding in-store stock levels, creating a huge opportunity for the IBD retailer. Meanwhile, Action has created great in-house product lines with good value for their customers. We plan to expand both. All house brands will continue under Ralph's guidance and you will see our ordering technologies and shipping options expand in the next year," said Erik Deeter, Cyclone's CEO.

In 2016, retailers will see an increase in delivery and service options. Cyclone will offer same day delivery to Portland and NYC/NJ metro area accounts, one- and two-day ground shipping to the major metro areas of both East and West Coasts, as well as reduced ship times to Midwest and Texas. Cyclone will expand selection at both warehouses to stock the core products that Cyclone is known for, as well as key product from the Action catalog.

MONTREAL (BRAIN) — Dorel Sports third quarter revenue was flat at $266.5 million, but was up about 9 percent after removing the effect of currency exchange fluctuations — an increase that Dorel Industries credited to its IBD sales.

The company said increased demand of its 2016 model year bikes drove the increase. It also said Caloi bikes sales grew in Brazil at lower prices.

In the first three quarters of the year, Dorel Sports sales were down 6 percent to $746.5 million, but were up 2 percent in currency-neutral, or "organic," terms.

Dorel Industries, Dorel Sports' parent, announced total revenue of $679.3 million for the quarter, up from $673 million last year.

In the Sports division, which includes mass market and IBD brands, Dorel recorded $4.5 million in pre-tax restructuring charges in the quarter, related to structural changes in both the Cycling Sports Group and Sugoi divisions. Dorel is consolidating its Sugoi and Cannondale apparel product lines into a single global apparel portfolio with Sugoi as the primary brand, which will be moved to a new "Sugoi center of excellence" at a new location. Dorel said the apparel-related restructuring will cost an additional $1 million in the fourth quarter but once completed will deliver annual cost savings of an estimated $4 million.

Third quarter adjusted operating profit was $10.8 million, down $9.3 million, or 46.3 percent. Dorel said currency fluctuations cost the sports divisions about $10 million in the quarter.

"Despite challenges through much of 2015, Dorel Sports will turn the corner in the fourth quarter with increases over last year in both sales and earnings," said Dorel president and CEO Martin Schwartz. "Considerable changes have been made in the segment, new pricing has been implemented on 2016 model year bicycles and Dorel Sports has launched its largest ever number of new bicycle platforms. These new investments will pay off with the start of a new positive trend going forward. Foreign exchange remains unpredictable, however the segment is in a stronger position to face this issue."

SAN DIEGO (BRAIN) -- Chris Speyer, CEO of Accell North America, told attendees at the National Bicycle Tourism conference Thursday morning that they play a major role in helping grow the pie in an otherwise stagnant bike market.

For the last decade, the number of bike units sold to specialty retailers has remained between 2.4 and 2.6 million, Speyer noted. “At the end of September, we’re showing a flat result compared to last year in terms of units sold in. We will maintain our consistency as an industry and we will sell between 2.4 and 2.6 million units,” he said. “When you have a pie that’s one size for a long time, on the wholesale side we’re fighting each other like crazy to acquire a bigger piece of the pie.”

A flat, no-growth market has created an environment where all the players -- suppliers, retailers and event organizers -- are engaged in what Speyer called hand-to-hand combat to increase sales and grow their marketshare instead of growing the overall pie.

“I think a lot of you are interested in growing the pie,” he said. “Your old habits don’t drive everything you do.”

Speyer said the bike industry has for years promoted a certain idea of cycling, drawing mostly upon images of suffering on a bike, and limited its reach to the general population by using words like “gnarly”, “huck” and “sufferfest” instead of telling a story of inclusiveness. Speyer showed photos of riders bleeding from a fall or wincing as they summit a long climb as examples of how riding is conveyed in cycling media.

“As an industry we’re failing,” he said. “We’ve lost track of what’s central to the experience of getting on a bike -- the fun and joy of getting on a bicycle.”

And he sees bike events and tours, whether single or multi-day adventure rides, charity rides, or self-guided or fully supported tours, as key to attracting new riders who remain largely untapped. “If you’re a tour operator, you have to target women, families and urban riders, and those who have lost access,” Speyer noted.

Speyer urged bicycle event and tour directors to embrace new opportunities and bicycle categories, like e-bikes and gravel bikes, which are making it easier for riders to access certain types of riding and terrain.

“E-bikes, gravel and all road all equate to access. They open things up for more people, think about including those in your planning,” Speyer said. “Look at one bike for all roads -- that trend is tremendous,” he added, describing a recent ride along a rail-trail in Canada called Le Petit Train du Nord that included stretches of paved and gravel roads and is a growing tourist destination.

Indeed, rides such as the popular RAGBRAI, which draws thousands, have incorporated dirt and gravel roads. Last year, RAGBRAI offered a gravel loop during one of the days of the weeklong ride, and ride director T.J. Juskiewicz said that will likely be included again next year.

Speyer also advised bicycle tour organizers to reach out to industry suppliers to find more ways to work together.

“It’s a great time to ask for support and assistance because all of us are looking for new ways to market products and new communities to talk to,” Speyer said. “When you do your presentation to a supplier on why you’re going to be a great partner, fun and diversity are critical messages they’re listening to. Talk about what you’re going to give them that’s new.”

Tim Blumenthal, president of PeopleForBikes, who joined Speyer as a keynote speaker Thursday morning, pointed to several trends that support a growing interest in adventure rides and bike touring.

“People want to accumulate experiences more than they want to accumulate stuff, and that’s a change,” he said. “And people want to ride with others. People want to be social. But the truth is, most people end up riding alone.”

Blumenthal also noted that in today’s connected digital world, where it’s nearly impossible to go off the grid, more and more people are looking to unplug and reboot. And many bike vacations, tours and rides provide the perfect setting to do just that.

The National Bicycle Tourism conference, which is being held at the Bahia Resort Hotel, ends Saturday with a morning ride.

MONTEREY, Calif. (BRAIN) — Registration has opened for the Subaru Sea Otter Classic, which will be held April 14-17, 2016. Organizers of the 26th annual event have added several new events, including a 38-mile recreational gravel road ride, an e-MTB race and variety of events intended for veterans and active-duty military members.

The gravel ride is called The Open Road Tour. It will be held on dirt and asphalt on the surrounding trail and fire road system of the Fort Ord National Monument. It will be held Saturday morning and start with the Sea Otter Gran Fondo and Mountain Bike Tour. Open Road Tour participants can expect hot showers at the finish and a post-ride lunch and beer.

The e-MTB race will be a 60-minute off-road lap race held within the Laguna Seca Recreation Area. It will be held on Friday afternoon and will offer age-group categories.

The Sea Otter also will have its usual festival, expo, demo area, food court, beer garden and racing in several disciplines.

More information: seaotterclassic.com.

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (BRAIN) — FTI, Inc., which sells lube and cleaning products for industrial, marine and gun use, is entering the bike market with a synthetic lube, grease and a degreaser, under the Tetra Bike Lubricant brand.

The lubes feature the company's fluoropolymer lubricant technology, a synthetic oil formula that the company claims delivers optimum friction-reducing and metal-conditioning properties across a wide range of climates – from sand and mud to humidity and extreme cold.

"When Tetra Bike Lubricant penetrates key friction points and exposure surfaces, friction and wear are reduced, and debris buildup is much less prevalent. The result is a smoother, more efficient ride. Additionally, cleanup is much easier," the company said.

The Tetra®Bike Cleaner Degreaser is a water-based formula designed to remove road grime and salt, as well as pre-existing lubricant and solvent residue. The product also includes an additive to prevent flash rust from forming before parts are re-lubricated. After rinsing and wiping down bike parts, Cleaner Degreaser leaves nearly no residue. The company said the product is gentle on the skin, and generally harmless to non-metal parts and finishes, including rubber, polymers and composite materials. It can be used in ultrasonic machines or parts washers.

The company is seeking distributors and selling dealer direct. Its first products — a 2-ounce. lubricant, 4-ounce cleaner and a grease syringe — each retail for $7.99.

More information at tetrabikecare.com.

MANHATTAN, Kan. (BRAIN) — Big Poppi Bicycle Company owners Aaron Apel and Jeff Koenig have announced plans to close the store at the end of December. After serving Manhattan and surrounding rural communities for seven years, the partners decided it was time to switch gears.

"Retailers often get forced out financially, but that's not the case with Big Poppi. It was a seven-year success story," said Koenig, who also works as a small-business consultant and sits on the NBDA board of directors. "Hopefully our successful history can be used to the benefit of other small-business owners, in the bike and other industries."

Apel and Koenig considered selling the store and had several parties interested in purchasing the business. "But we just couldn't find the right fit, and we weren't willing to sell it to just anyone," Koenig said.

Big Poppi opened in 2009 as a full-service, full-line store that catered to new cyclists. It currently sells Fuji, Scott, Cannondale, Liv and Giant. Apel's wife, Melanie, was one of the first Liv ambassadors and has worked to build a sizable female clientele through clinics and other women's events.

Koenig said Big Poppi spent around $300,000 over the years marketing to non-enthusiasts and beginners in order to build the cycling communities in the 10 counties the shop serves.

"We've sold a lot of bikes and gotten people passionate about cycling," said Apel, who ran the business day-to-day. "We've helped people graduate from big-box bikes to shop-quality products and have gotten them into a new lifestyle."

Apel said he and his wife plan to stay in Manhattan and that he hopes to continue his work with area land managers to develop safe cycling infrastructure and trails on public land.

"I'm ready for a new direction and to have more time to dig deeper into trail development here," he said. "We're a little behind the times in Manhattan from a trail standpoint, and if someone doesn't step up now we might lose what we have developed."

Koenig said he also hopes to stay involved in the industry and will continue his work as a business consultant and with the National Small Business Association.

Big Poppi's closure will leave the town of Manahattan without a dedicated bike shop. However, specialty outdoor retailer The Pathfinder, which was recently acquired by St. Louis, Missouri-based Alpine Shop, has a bike department and carries Specialized and Salsa. But the news that Big Poppi is closing isn't going over well with the cycling community Big Poppi has cultivated over the years.

"We've had a lot of people coming in here in tears," Koenig said. "They're saying they don't want to shop anywhere else."

Big Poppi consistently employed about 12 people, many of them college students. Apel said that the decision to close the store was well thought out and coincided with the season's slowing in order to minimize impacts on staff.

"We waited for the timing to be right. Part of the way we made the decision was based on some natural attrition. We were in a place where we wouldn't affect too many employees," he said.

"In the end, everyone will land on their feet and this may push a couple of our guys to venture out on their own with a service-only shop. I'm excited to see what comes of that," Apel added.

Big Poppi has liquidated the majority of its inventory but will remain open for service and special order through the end of the year.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (BRAIN) — Park Tool has introduced a new program designed to help local non-profit cycling organizations get the repair products they need.

The Park Tool Community Grant Program will provide tools to 10 non-profit cycling programs. Each of the grant recipients will receive  than more $1,400 in Park Tool products including Park's Professional Mechanic tool kit, two repair stands and its Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair.

"Over the years we've done our best to provide assistance to as many organizations as we could. The new grant program will help deserving non-profit organizations get the tools and repair stands they need to help them give back to their neighborhoods and communities. These community workshops, youth clubs and bicycle recycling programs do great work and we're delighted to be able to help with that work," said Eric Hawkins, Park Tool's president/owner and chief mechanic.

Applications for the grants will be accepted until December 31 at parktool.com/form/sponsorship-request. Winners will be announced in mid-January. 

PHOENIX (BRAIN) — Pivot Cycles has hired Bryan Mason as domestic sales manager, supporting U.S. dealers as well as inside and independent reps.

Mason has seven years of experience in industry sales and marketing, most recently as global sales and marketing manager for Kali Protectives. Before that, he served as sales manager at Ellsworth Handcrafted Bikes for two years.

“I’m excited to have Bryan join our team. I’ve been following his work for several years, and am impressed by his approach to the ever-changing dealer environment,” said Daniel Limburg, Pivot’s global sales manager. “His strong sales experience will help us to streamline processes and focus on ways to make Pivot Cycles the strongest partner for dealers, via improved efficiencies, strong dealer focus, and by providing the sales tools our reps need to support and maintain Pivot’s tremendous pace.”  

Pivot president and CEO Chris Cocalis said: “We are so excited to have Bryan join the Pivot Cycles team. Bryan brings a lot of talent and drive to the table and he shares our goal of supporting both dealers and customers at the highest level. We are experiencing huge growth right now, both in the U.S. and internationally, and we are working on great new programs and tools to support our dealers and distributors as we expand. Having Bryan on board further supports our already strong domestic team and allows us to dedicate even more resources to developing our international business.”

Mason said he is excited about the new role. “What Chris and his team have built in just a few years is truly impressive. Pivot product is exemplary and I am proud to work with an industry leader in performance and technical innovation. I look forward to collaborating with all of our USA dealers and customers as Pivot continues to grow,” he said.

Mason is based in the Tempe, Arizona, office and can be reached at bryan@pivotcycles.com.

WILTON, Conn. (BRAIN) — Dorel Sports has promoted Nick Larsen to global head of parts and accessories for Cycling Sports Group. In the role, Larsen will oversee all aspects of the business from product design and development to distribution and sales. Larsen was previously creative director for P&A.

Larsen holds a degree in industrial design and has nearly 20 years' experience in the cycling industry. He is the driving force behind the Charge Bikes brand, which celebrates its 10th year in 2016, Dorel stated. More recently he and his team created the Fabric P&A brand. Over the past 10 years, Larsen has also been involved in the U.K.-based design and marketing of the GT and Mongoose brands.

In his new role for CSG, Larsen will lead the Frome, U.K.-based global design center, with responsibility for growing the company's P&A business worldwide for Fabric, GT and Cannondale.

"The growth of our parts and accessories business is a vital focus for CSG, and I am convinced that we will succeed," said Russell Merry, newly appointed senior vice president and general manager at Cycling Sports Group North America and the United Kingdom. "Nick and his team have a proven track record of creating innovative and class-leading product, and I am looking forward to seeing our P&A range expand and improve."

Larsen, who has assumed Russell Merry's previous responsibilities in P&A, said: "I am thrilled to step into this new role. We have an incredible facility here in Frome, and we have built a hugely talented design and product team that has already created industry-leading products, and we've only just started! With a combination of highly innovative design, great ergonomics and creative sourcing, we are already well on the way to becoming market-leading P&A brands."

CHICAGO (BRAIN) — Abus Mobile Security LLC is implementing a new minimum advertised price policy. Abus first implemented its MAP policy in 2011 and strengthened it in 2014. The company said the update provides easier to understand advertised pricing and stronger enforcement policies.

Under the new policy, a retailer who violates the policy will be denied purchasing rights for four weeks on the first offense. A second violation will result in the purchasing rights of the dealer being terminated for six months. A third violation will cause a termination of purchasing for at least a year, with reinstatement of the account by application and at Abus' discretion.

Abus' MAP policy manager, Greg Heck, said, "My colleagues and I have invested significant time analyzing the market and evaluating the Abus MAP Policy. Based on this review, we felt the time was right to update our policy again. We always seek to protect the Abus brand and the quality of its products in the eyes of consumers, and believe this new policy is an important piece of that commitment."

For a complete copy of the MAP policy dealers should contact Abus at MAP@abus.com.