BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
Earlier this month saw the inaugural SPIN London cycle show over the May Bank Holiday weekend at the Truman Brewery.
Aiming to appeal to urban cyclists, including everyone from the commuter to fixie fan, SPIN included a trade and press-only evening on the Friday, Rollapaluza, live DJ sets, food from Jimmy’s Cycle Bistro and the usual bike show elements.
SPIN London founder Alex Daw is currently planning the show’s return. He told BikeBiz: "[We’ve] almost [set the dates], we’re just negotiating with the venue. The show definitely won’t be in the same space as this year.
"We also have a Seasonal SPIN penciled for late November so watch this space."
Daw judged the show’s debut to be a success: "I’m pleased that the event happened, as an independent event, with no major sponsorship or funding. For a first year event I’m very happy with how it went.
"Most exhibitors were happy to show their products to a fresh audience at SPIN, some had never done that before. Some made some great connections, met trade clients and also sold direct to visitors.
"I was suprised at how popular the interactive elements were, LCC had a tyre changing timed contest and that had crowds gather regularly. The talks went down very well as did the Rollapaluza racing which always goes down well.
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So what can we expect from SPIN in future? "We want to try and get more BMX brands involved, add more audience participation elements and ensure the exhibitors get the maximum exposure that they deserve."
Commercial sponsorship is a target too, Daw revealed: "We are also looking at potential sponsors as well. The first year was 100 per cent independent so tough to get off the ground, we’ve done that now and are riding on!
"Here’s to the next SPIN. Thanks to everyone that supported it in this, the first ever year for SPIN."
