BOTS and the art of bicycle retailing

Cycling gets a new definition at BumsOnTheSaddle's new location, the exclusive Specialized Concept Store, featuring the most advanced cycling products from the brand in a clean yet energetic environment personifying Specialized's heritage and spirit of the cycling community.

Founded in 2006 by Rohan Kini, a software engineer by profession, BumsOnTheSaddle or more commonly known as BOTS, aimed to revive the art of cycling in India by not only bringing in the best cycling brands into the country but actively engaging themselves to create a cycling community too.

"BOTS is not only about offering the best biking gear but also promoting cycling as an exciting way to be active and fit. We regularly organize races, trails and events time to time to bring more people to take up cycling. Honestly, I think that our marketing activities have been very minimal. Our focus since the beginning has only been directed towards increasing awareness on cycling and its benefits,” says Rohan Kini, CEO, BumsOnTheSaddle.

While most bicycle stores in India are typically characterised by a crowded space stacked with rows of cycles, BOTS' Specialized Concept store offers a refreshing experience for the shopper to browse through products in a clutter-free space and zones which are well laid out.  

"This is India's first Specialized store, which offers products by one of the world's best cycling brands. They found BOTS as a very passionate biking company and decided to enter India with us,” Rohan Kini explains.

Located on Infantry road and spread over 1600 sq ft, the store interiors blends the natural elements of the sport of cycling with the highly technical qualities of the Specialized products. With an array of products and services, the store has various zones that not only showcase the range of specialized products but also educates and assists the customer in getting the right cycling gear.  

"The space efficiently features a Body Geometry fit studio for our trained Body Geometry Fit technicians to fit riders to their bikes, a clean and organized service area where our skilled mechanics service and tune the bicycles and, of course, a showroom where riders can find the right product for them in a well-lit and organized environment,” says Joseph Wheadon, Director of Global Retail Services at Specialized.

Other special features of the store include a well-lit, full length mirrored changing room for customers to try on apparel at ease. The store design also aptly includes large visuals of road, mountain and other scenery associated with cycling to inspire riders.

Designed and developed by the Specialized in-house team, the store uses authentic and natural materials such as brick and wood to highlight and enhance the products. The Specialized Concept store also uses in-store imagery to communicate how the products can enhance people's lives through adventure, fun and fitness.

"Instead of just focussing on the product, the in-store graphics inspire people to ride. It portrays the joy of biking and how it connects people with nature,” says Rohan.

Defined by simple and clear interiors, the store groups products and imagery by category, where women's bikes and equipment are merchandised together as are the men's. "Since bike fit is very important, we put the Body Geometry Fit studio right at the front. The service area is positioned so it can be directly seen from the front door, and we want people to see the quality of that space and the service we provide,” Joseph comments.

Offering world renowned products and services for the first time in India, the company faced challenges in deciding how much space should be given to each part of the brand they wanted to showcase. Talking more on this, Joseph says, "The opportunity we created was for us to refocus on what's important and for us that was providing unprecedented service to the riders through the Body Geometry Fit studio and Mechanical Service area.”

With a lot on offer, the merchandise is displayed in a clear pattern, that groups products to enhance the riders' experience. "We feature our best products on clean clear product displays and group products like apparel, shoes and helmets that enhance the rider's experience,” Rohan explains.

What sets the store apart is the excellent customer service, where the friendly staff interacts with customers to educate them about the various products, offer bike maintenance and even inspire them to take up biking to keep fit, active and even go green.  

According to Rohan, the launch of the new store has not only received great response from its close-knit cycling community but even inspired other passersby to walk-in and get more information on biking.

Following the successful launch of this first concept store, BumsOnTheSaddle plans to roll out stores across 100 locations in India over the next eight years.