Think of a quintessential British bicycle company and you likely think of Brompton. And if you work in an area that sees a lot of cycle commuters, Brompton’s folding bikes are likely a daily sight, as they have become almost synonymous with city life. Easy to fold, easy to ride, there’s a reason they’ve been as popular as they have over the last few decades. But the bike industry has changed a plenty since Brompton’s first folding bike hit the market in the 1970s, even if the iconic design behind the folding bicycles remains similar.Â
But with electric bikes making commuting more attractive, and developments in material sciences, bikes are changing and so are the appetites of consumers. So ahead of the Sea Otter Classic, in which Brompton will be hosting its World Championship race, BikeBiz caught up with Brompton CEO, Will Butler-Adams to talk about the company’s legacy and what’s next.Â
Brompton has been one of the quintessential British success stories of the last century. What do you think has enabled the brand’s longevity in such a volatile climate?
We are not interested in being a ‘brand’, we are interested in making useful products that make life better and last a long time. Our focus has been on our customers, beginningg a 20 or 30 year relationship when we sell bike. We have now sold over 1.2million Brompton’s and are looking after bikes we sold 40 years ago. We are obsessed with detail and refining our product, as close to perfection as the latest engineering will allow us, we don’t follow trends but want to continually evolve to improve the experience for our customer. A brand is not a logo it is trust, not just from our end consumers but also from our dealers. We are privately owned and have a long term approach, which gives us the freedom to make decisions that are not about protecting this months profits but on looking after customers, our dealers and staff for the next fifty years of Brompton’s journey.
Let’s talk about the direction of the brand. You’ve got commuting dialled, gravel riders interested, and e-bikers, too. So what’s next?
The exciting thing about being an engineering company that makes bikes, is that technology, material science, design….the potential of engineering continues to evolve and with the advent of AI this evolution will only speed up. This is allowing us to optimise our products in ways that were unimaginable as little as ten years ago. The original Brompton design was drawn in pencil on tracing paper, models were made from wood laminates, today we have 3D printers, powerful finite element analysis tools and virtual Brompton’s to test software with more advances on the horizon. This means that the speed of innovation of the products we already have will accelerate beyond imagination, never mind any new products we may have in the pipeline 🙂
Can we touch on the engineering of the bikes? There are many competitors in the folding bike market, but none quite so efficient or as recognisable as yourselves. What do you think makes a Brompton bike so superior?
We have spent fifty years refining the design and manufacturing process of the Brompton. It is easy to make a bike strong and easy to make a bike light but to make it strong and light is not so easy and means that you are taking the product very close to the limits. If you want to work close to the limit you need to be in control, both of the quality of the materials you use (demanding high quality and tight tolerances) as well as the manufacturing process (where the refinement of our jigs, fixtures and control software deliver right first time). If you want a bike to last for 30 or 40 years you need to care about detail which may not be obvious when you first buy the product but reveals itself over time.
Credit: Chris J. Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via GettyÂ
The Brompton World Champs race is at Sea Otter this year. It seems to be really hotting up as one of the must-have events on the race calendar. How is the brand using this to attract a wider audience?
As a sector we spend too much time talking to ‘cyclists’, encouraging them to buy yet another bike. At Brompton our mission is to create urban freedom for happier lives, if we are going to do this we need to speak to a much wider audience. In the US circa 5% of the population are cyclist but 90% of the population know how to ride a bike. It is those that can ride a bike but aren’t that we need to engage. Most parents the world over teach their children how to ride a bike, cycling is universal, so the storytelling, retail experience and events must be for all. The Brompton World Champs is an example of that, where the main aim is to have fun and everyone is invited. To make it more normal we are getting rid of super efficient Lycra, and replacing it with style & chic, and to add a bit of theatre it is a ‘Le Mans’ start….I will be there on the start line raring to go!!
