Friday, 29 March 2024
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Specialized UK buys Infinity Cycles, adds East Anglia concept store

Specialized UK today announced the acquisition of Durham based Infinity Cycles.

It is understood that this marks the first time the UK business has purchased a retailer in the Specialized dealer network, marking the next stage of investment in the Ecosystem of the UK business.

Over in the United States a letter recently came to light asking retail partners to reserve the right for Specialized to buy partners considering selling; sources CI.N has spoken with indicated that this strategy may now have crossed the Atlantic. CI.N research has around 11% of UK independent bike stores or workshops down as ‘considering selling up’ in the near future.

CEO and Founder, David Robinson, said, “I’m incredibly proud of the story of Infinity Cycles, the business I started in 2009. Recent years have seen dramatic changes within the industry, providing great opportunities for those within it.  My team and I are excited to work with Specialized, to continue to develop the store and give riders an even better experience.”

Robinson will remain at the helm, with all of his team remaining part of the business, working alongside Specialized, continuing to serve the Durham area cycling community.

In the second part of the announcement, Specialized UK announces the opening of a 10th Concept Store. Interestingly, the press release refers to this a, ‘brand store’ – a notable shift in language given the www.specializedconceptstore.co.uk web domain and previous ‘Concept Store’ naming.

Of this new opening, the announcement reads:

“Working in partnership with Darren Thomas, MD of Cycle Revolution and owner of the extremely successful Specialized brand store in Chelmsford, they have created a state-of-the-art destination store for cyclists in East Anglia. Darren, who already runs several successful stores within the group will now use his team’s expertise to an area which has huge potential.”

Darren said, “Partnering with Specialized enables us to deliver amazing customer experiences. We share a mutual desire to provide the best possible products that facilitate great experiences whatever your age or ability. The strength and depth of the Specialized product portfolio also enables the innovation to be ahead of the curve in a rapidly changing marketplace. The partnership, formed in 2013 allows us to share ideas, our vision, and resources, which results in creating loyal customers that drive a growing and influential brand!”

The brand concludes that, “expanding Ecosystem is focused on better serving riders; when, where, and how they want. Today’s announcements provide yet more ways for riders to physically interact with the Specialized brand, alongside their online partners and via specialized.com”

For owners of Specialized Concept Stores – independently owned businesses operating under the a common branding, sharing a single www.specializedconceptstore.co.uk transactional website – the promoting of specialized.com, which enables the brand to sell direct to customers, possess an interesting business challenge.

In the United States, Specialized encourages partners to sign an agreement to notify the brand if the store owner intends to sell. The contract is short and sweet, but shows Specialized wish to reserve the right to make a counter offer within 90 days on retail premises that it desires to keep within its retail network.

Brands including Trek have, in the US, been buying up the dealer network, whilst, in the UK, opening stores which the UK business owns.