BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
Boardman Bikes’ UK retail strategy for its Elite product range has been altered as of September 21st.
The changes should offer a much greater focus on multichannel sales via the official website, and has been implemented with the intention of providing the UK cyclist with an array of choices for purchasing items from the Boardman product range. Customers will be able to purchase product direct to their homes or work addresses, using click-and-collect, or in-store. The direct-to-consumer focus will enable the company to be more competitive, ensuring that it offers its customers the highest-performing product at every price point. The change in strategy will also ensure that the range will be available for purchase direct from the website, which launched yesterday, September 21st.
Whilst the focus is on direct-to-consumer sales, Boardman Bikes retains a number of independent dealers, who will continue to offer the line in-store and via click-and-collect, and the full range is available through Cycle Republic stores, with the Performance range remaining available in Halfords stores and online.
“There are multiple reasons for our decision to change the UK route to market for the Elite level product,” reflected Andy Smallwood, managing director at Boardman Bikes. “In a highly competitive market, the change will enable us to have more aggressive retail pricing as the cost and efficiency saving we make is passed onto the customer. Our investment in multichannel is in direct response to the change in customer buying expectations. We feel that it should be up to the customer to decide how they buy a bike. By dealing with Boardman directly, we also ensure that we giver customers consistently excellent levels of service,” Smallwood concluded.
The change in strategic direction will only affect the UK, with all international operations remaining unchanged.
