DESPITE ITS fair share of up and downs, the Government’s salary sacrifice Cycle to Work initiative has had a hugely beneficial effect upon the UK’s bicycle industry. Back in 2010 we held a straw poll
NEWS 4-6 MYSTERY SHOPPER
Our undercover reporter heads to Newark-on-Trent and comes back with a report of dirty carpets and cluttered displays. The horror, the horror...
FOCUS ON… MEDIA SPECIAL FISHER EXPO Sponsored by 1 1
We’re still in show reportage mode, so here’s a round-up from Fisher’s Expo show...
A crucial C2W change, bike dealers get involved in the Big Pedal and an in-depth look at Get Britain Cycling
and Cycle to Work (C2W) was time after time picked out as having the biggest impact on the trade, encouraging people who already cycle
to buy more expensive bikes than they might have bought and also – crucially – encouraging a lot of people considering buying a bike to buy one (in the words of the CTC’s Nick Fish). Hard to argue with that, right? It’s certainly not perfect, with some retailers frustrated at
16 31
The cycle sector is increasingly well served by print and online media. We speak to the major players and provide a guide to the key mags and sites
TODAY’S CYCLIST 25
...and from Moore Large’s dealer days, starring Lake, Knog and some new brand additions
E-BIKES They can’t make e-trikes fast enough apparently. We look at a trio of new arrivals in the sector
OUTDOOR & FITNESS When is a bike not a bike? When it’s a running machine! Confused? We reveal all on pages 53 to 55
SHIFT ACTIVE MEDIA 53 CYCLE COMPUTERS 19 DEALER PROFILE PEOPLE NEW PRODUCTS 61 COMMUNITY
Cyclestreet’s boss went from redundancy to a thriving business. We find out how
56
For the second month in a row we detail how fashion types are coming to the bike trade
66
Evil is back for 2013 while Schwalbe launches new road tyre Ultremo ZX Tubeless
SPOKESMAN EVENTS 72 OFF TRACK 84 NUMBER CRUNCHING 82 86
Carlton Reid takes on the thieves single-handed, super hero-style. Kind of.
SPONSORED BY
63 69
When did you last send a letter? Exactly. We get with the programme for our community page
43
a margin-slicing cut taken by Cycle to Work providers, but even considering that few would argue that the salary sacrifice scheme has helped them to shift more bikes than they would have without it. The key concern around Cycle to Work has always been how long will it last. Naysayers have been foretelling the end of the scheme since, well since the scheme became popular years ago. They’re right to sound the warning bell of caution,
Like a bolt out of the proverbial,Cycle to Work has been expanded, rather than culled, and will now include safety equipment alone.
particularly given the current climate and the Government’s wish to cut back wherever possible (though I’m not sure Parliament has got around to suggesting a cut in MP wages yet). So, all things considered, the future for C2W is, as ever, subject to the whim of those in power. And here we are, like a bolt out of the proverbial, with a new confirmation from HMRC that Cycle to Work is being widened out to include safety equipment – even when the customer isn’t buying a bike. The definition of safety equipment (page four) will no doubt cause some head scratching and a few chancers too but the initial move from the trade has to be to get the message out to the consumer. Now the cycle to work scheme won’t just help them get a bike in the first place, but it will also help them to upgrade their kit and keep them riding even when they don’t want a new cycle. A chance to get a customer back into your shop? A chance to get a customer to purchase one of your (safety) products when they were previously thinking they were too cash-strapped to consider it? Despite a change in rules, becoming applicable to VAT and looking like it was on its last legs once or twice back there, Cycle to Work has come through and now looks to be set to deliver another boost to the Great British bike trade. And after the tough summer we had last year, this will, for some be coming at just the right time.