OPINION
After Helmet and Lock area
workshop capacity, space assigned to product categories, and understanding where revenue comes from is more important now than ever. Does a metre-wide display of bottle cages at a prime store location make commercial sense? What is the potential best-case return? For years, most grew each year; yes, we worked hard, but we also benefitted from a predominant tailwind. That tailwind in recent years has shifted, so now could be the time to consider aerodynamics. From a retail perspective, I am curious, interested and
inspired to learn when I visit my local supermarket. It is a typical, large, fringe-of-town affair, the same as most towns have. To me, like or loathe them, they are the experts at retail. Nothing is anywhere without a reason. How the store flows, the positioning of product, good – better – best, end of aisle, top, middle, or bottom of shelf, lighting, smell, everything is designed to appeal to you, and help you, the shopper, spend. A dopamine rush from the front doors. For any retailer, the supermarket’s methods should be of interest. What can we learn, and why wouldn’t we want to? With PACs, three of the most popular items in store are lights, locks, and helmets. Working for ABUS, the good news
44 | February 2026
for me is that ABUS offer all three, lights admittedly in a small way, with just a few helmet lights. Focusing on locks, consider how the average IBD lock wall has changed over recent years, how much is a decent lock, what does the lock range look like, and how much revenue does that lock sale bring?
I will offer two recent examples of store visits. Store #1 has a 4-metre-wide section of mostly D-Locks
from a variety of brands, with retail prices between £10 and £50. I have no doubt that this retailer purchases these locks at a great price, but even with a 60% GPM, what is the best result from selling that lock? With such a wide assortment of locks at the same retail price, is that validating to the consumer the amount a lock needs to cost? Placing so many similar D Locks horizontally across the eye-line (buy-line) leads to a predictable purchase and value in the till. Store #2 has a small selection of just five locks, and yet,
interestingly, the store manager tells me that lock sales are popular. These locks are partly out of sight behind the till area, in the bottom third of a slat wall. Retail starts at £10 for a cable lock and tops out at £55 for a D-Lock. If the consumer manages to find these locks, what is the best
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