BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
Keep a keen eye on the sports nutrition market, but have no idea what’s what? If so, read on to find out which distributors are in charge of energy and nutrition brands, as well as which carry bottle and accompanying cage product. Mark Sutton does the rounds on behalf of those with an appetite for satisfying customers…
Moore Large
The One23 range has expanded yet again to feature a comprehensive range of bottles and cages. The Pro Cage, which is designed to mimic more expensive streamlined designs, is available in black, red or white and is constructed in resin, weighing 28 grams and retailing at £6.99. A variety of alloy and stainless steel cages are also available, as well as a ‘tool can’ in two sizes.
Moore Large also has a range of ETC bottle cages and a huge range of bottles in various colours and sizes from the following brands: ETC, One23 and Polisport.
01332 274200
Fisher Outdoors
Proving a big boost to dealers with limited space in store, Fisher Outdoors has come up with plenty of clever point of sale displays for its Maxim product, as well as a number of promotional offers.
As the sponsor to the CyclePremier Metaltek road team, Maxim’s product will receive a marketing push this year much thanks to the team’s exposure in national competition. The range includes a wide selection of carbohydrate, protein and vitamin products for use before, during and after exercise.
The firm feels that Maxim’s High Energy gels should be a key seller going forwards. Some of these highly concentrated carbohydrate gels also include magnesium to prevent cramping and caffeine for mental and physical stimulation.
Also new for 2011 are the Maxim Energy gel drinks. These are more fluid and negate the need to drink water with the gel. Available in citrus and orange flavours, the gel drinks contain sodium to replace lost nutrients in sweating.
01727 798345
Paligap
With Torq’s roots firmly entrenched in both fitness consultancy and mountain biking, combined with the extensive research and development that goes into each product, dealers won’t go far wrong by taking on a little stock here.
Adding to its own ingredients, Torq critically analyses the best bits of competitors’ product and takes on board the findings ahead of its next product launch.
Using only ingredients derived from natural sources, the firm is of the opinion that artificial ingredients like sweeteners offer no performance advantage, can cause stomach discomfort and could potentially harm your health long term.
Advanced compounds like D-Ribose, HMB and L-Glutamine naturally occur within the human body and represent some of the most potent supplements available on the market today, hence the inclusion of each among the range.
Powder product comes in tub sizes ranging 500 grams to 6kg.
Currently, Paligap’s best selling products from the Torq line are the Rhubarb and Custard gel and the raspberry and apple bar, retailing for around £1.35.
01454 313116
Wildoo
If your firm could use a little extra promotion, check out Wildoo’s custom printing programme, which has probably the most comprehensive range of bottles sizes and colours ranging from 330ml to one-litre capacity. In many cases, a company name or logo can be ‘moulded’ directly into the plastic for that extra tailor-made touch. All the bottles feature non-leak screw-on caps and an easily pinched soft pulling spout. Minimum order quantities for custom printed designs start from just 150 pieces and the firm can include up to five colours per design. New for 2011 is the stylish new Max 800ml bottle featuring a widened 60mm opening.
For more information see wildoo.co.uk.
08709 771550
Zyro
Zyro had another successful year with PowerBar, finishing 2010 having sold 38 per cent more units. Once more, this year, sales have exploded and to date for 2011 the distributor is 90 per cent up year-on-year.
Basing its ingredients largely around fruit content, Powerbar’s C2Max carbohydrate blend is said to get energy to the muscles 55 per cent faster than glucose alone. The previously favoured Energize drink has been superseded by new IsoActive and IsoMax lines, which are now in stock with Zyro. IsoActive is a refreshing, energizing, isotonic sports drink containing the five main electrolytes lost in sweat, and the C2Max carbohydrate blend. For training, IsoActive is perfect. For when it really counts, IsoMax is what you need. Based on IsoActive but with 50 per cent more energy per serving, it includes caffeine for increased mental alertness, and PeptoPro protein hydrolysate. This absorbs faster than whey protein isolate to prolong performance, delay fatigue and enhance recovery.
Both new drinks are also available in single serve sachets, as well as medium and large jars.
01845 521700
Upgrade
Lezyne has bottle cages in all of the most common materials and price brackets and lightweight solutions for even the most gram-conscious cyclist.
Starting with the performance cages, the Road Drive Carbon cage, retailing at £44.99, comes in a glossy finish and weighs in at just 26 grams, making it barely noticeable. The low profile design has integrated mounts for Lezyne’s Road Drive pumps and tough ribs to clamp onto the bottle.
At the other end of the budget scale, Lezyne’s Power Cage is a rugged hollow alloy solution with a 3D forged base. It’s tough and double the weight of the carbon alternative, but costs just £7.99.
Mid-range there are plenty more alloy solutions, including a CNC’d cage retailing for £18.99 and weighing in at 39 grams. Ovalised mount holes allow for a greater degree of adjustment during installation.
01403 711 611
Madison
As one of Science in Sport’s distributor’s in the bike trade, Madison has access to the latest ‘Go’ line, for which the nutrition firm is focusing its marketing efforts at present.
Two such products are the Go electrolyte drink and the Go bar. The former of the two has a new Green Tea and Lemon flavour, which combines the stimulation properties of carbohydrates with the hydration properties added by electrolyte inclusion. Go is maltodextrin-based, making it light on the stomach and clean in taste.
There are also two new flavours of Mini Go Bars – Red Berry and Blueberry. Best suited to pre or post-training, as well as multi-day events, the Go Bar is packed full of oats, rice, corn and real fruit meaning that there is a steady release of energy. Go bars typically contain less than two grams of fat per 40 grams bar. Each bar contains vitamins and minerals, though omits added sugars.
0208 385 3385
I-ride
Two new flavours of Zipvit’s 60ml energy gel satchets have just become available via I-ride, the exclusive UK distribution partner. These two blends are the ZV7 Banana and ZV7C caffeinated Cherry Cola flavour.
The banana gel is caffeine free and contains a massive 51 grams of easily digested carbohydrate energy to keep your legs pumping the pedals. The Cherry Cola provides 51 grams of carbohydrate and includes a synergistic mix of caffeine and tyrosine that provides what Zipvit say is a "significantly bigger performance boost than standard caffeine gels". These retail at £1.49 for the banana and £1.75 for the caffeinated.
If it’s protein supplements your customer is seeking, perhaps recommend them Zipvit’s ZV9 Protein bar in chocolate caramel flavour. Costing £1.75, these are the bar of choice for the Cervelo Test Team.
ZV9 bars contain high-quality proteins from whey and milk and one of the first things you notice as you bite in is the smooth soft texture. Each bar provides 20 grams of quality proteins, none of which is sourced from soy, gelatin, or collagen hydrolysates.
01444 243000
Windwave
Dutch parts and accessories goliath BBB has now been with Windwave a few months and should have caught the attention of most retailers by now, much thanks to the sheer scale of its catalogue.
For the cyclist seeking a bottle cage, or accompanying bottle, BBB has a variety of options, including the aerodynamically designed 6061 T5 lightweight aluminium Aerocage. The two-piece design has an integrated bracket, with extra composite protection on the cage’s upper arch. The £12.45 AeroCage weighs only 43 grams and comes with stainless steel bolts.
Moving on to the bottles, retailers should look out for the Alutank at £8.45 for the 600ml capacity and £9.95 for the larger 750ml unit. The top cap valve of the AluTank is made of soft Kraton, with a locking mechanism.
02392 505320
Cube
Cube’s streamlined accessories line contains a few printed water bottles and cage solutions, of which latter aerodynamic carbon unit costs £44.95 and weighs in at 36 grams.
As with other carbon Cube products, no corners are cut with the quality of this carbon, meaning your customer should never need further investment here.
The printed plastic Team line and AM bottles, both of which are Cube branded, hold up to 750ml of liquid and feature a soft spout.
01905 798692
Chicken Cyclekit
Brand new bottle-making machinery installed at the new T.A. factory ensures perfect, no-leak bottles with every batch. As a result, custom orders are now able to be completed far quicker than previously. The same personalised choice of up to five different colours in the design can be made even more striking with pip, top and band designs in varied colours.
Chicken Cyclekit’s Gary Hughes told BikeBiz: "A full range of bottle cages are available from different suppliers, notably Deda, Cinelli and Tifosi whose designs appear the most popular."
If it’s a totally un-branded water bottle your customer is after, the distributor can dispatch a line of five coloured bottles minus markings, which retail at just £3.99 and hold up to 600ml of fluids.
Chicken Cyclekit, among others, is also a stockist of the SKS CageBox container – a tool kit disguised within a water bottle, housing a mini pump, spare tube and multi tool.
01525 381347
SKS
If you’ve a particularly high accessories turnover, SKS is definitely worth a shout. Available in the UK through Madison, Chicken Cyclekit and Raleigh, you’ll always have a sustainable source for the diverse catalogue.
For example, the manufacturer produces several bottle cage designs, ranging from £6.99 through to £34.99, as well as accompanying bottles in both half litre and 700ml capacities, at £3.49 and £3.99, respectively.
For smaller frames and suspension builds, check out the ‘Slidecage’, retailing at £8.99. This unit allows quick modification and adjustment for both right and left handed riders.
For a further look at the massive catalogue that SKS offers, visit sks-germany.com.
Hotlines
If your customer is after one of the very lightest bottle cages around, then look up the Controltech Comp carbon cage from Hotlines. It’s pricey at £64.99, but at 29 grams and specced with titanium bolts, this monocoque carbon cage is among the lightest available.
To sit within the customer’s shiny new cage, you may as well up sell them a matching Controltech water bottle at £6.99, which holds 600ml. Alternatively through Hotlines, Ghost also offers a bottle of the same capacity, but at £4.99.
0131 319 1444
Science in Sport
The major announcement form Science in Sport this year comes in the form of packaging and point of sale material, both of which have undergone a redesign in order to better assist the customer’s purchasing decision.
The packaging on the ‘Go’ line, which spans powder mixes, gels and bars, illustrates this revamp best, with the flavour of each clearly labelled at the top of each product and it’s intended use explained on both the lower and rear of the packaging.
As well as Madison listed above, Moore Large and Harris Active also carry Science in Sports line.
