ENCINITAS, CA (BRAIN) — Skins Compression has hired Ben Harper as channel manager for its endurance and winter sports business. In his new role, Harper will report to Skins senior marketing manager Danielle Said to support internal and external sales teams. Harper’s focus is to maximize exposure for the brand via endurance and winter sports …
LAGUNA HILLS, CA (BRAIN) — Val Vanderpool has joined Bicycle Retailer and Industry News as a staff reporter. Vanderpool recently relocated to Orange County after spending the past year and a half piloting a demo van and teaching women’s clinics at bike shops in the Western region for Giant Bicycles. She comes to the magazine …
In Chicago’s working-class neighborhoods, bikes are tools for getting around town. CHICAGO, IL (BRAIN) — On the final day of the Dealer Tour, our group made its way into Chicago’s South Side and Lower West Side, working-class neighborhoods where two modest but friendly shops are satisfying a growing demand for bicycle repairs and low-cost transportation. …
MADISON, WI (BRAIN) — With more than 2,600 votes recorded, a 5th grader from Missippippi won Saris Cycling Group’s third annual poster contest. Winner Hannah Pauls won a trip to Washington, D.C., for the 2014 National Bike Summit as her prize. “We are thrilled to learn that a student from Mississippi won. It really means …
BLOOMINGTON, MN (BRAIN) — QBP now carries Zoot athletic apparel, Aqua Sphere swim gear, and X-Lab bike accessories for triathletes. “Multisport has seen exponential growth over the last decade, so we’ve been expanding our lineup to meet the demand,” said Nik Hobbs, a member of QBP’s multisport-focused team, Q-Multisport. “We’ve got more than 40 brands …
WATERLOO, WI (BRAIN) — After years of managing its Trek University retail training program in-house, the bike maker has partnered with online training provider Sparc to a create more streamlined and accessible training platform for Trek retailers and their staff. Trek introduced the new program to North American dealers last month. It allows retailers to …
BERKELEY, CA (BRAIN) — GU Energy Labs has brought aboard Lauren O’Connor as its new senior marketing manager. O’Connor joins the energy gel brand from fitness product maker Trigger Point Performance, and brings more than eight years of experience in marketing, public relations and advertising. “We are thrilled to have Lauren on board as the …
SAN DIEGO, CA (BRAIN) — Sales and marketing executive Mike Ely is leaving NiteRider after 15 years with the company to lead Australian parts and accessories brand JetBlack Products’ expanded push into the U.S. market. JetBlack manufactures a range of cycling products, including eyewear, pumps, headsets, bottom brackets, car racks, bags and trainers. In its …
UPDATED CHICAGO, IL (BRAIN) — Al Fritz, one of the legends of the U.S. bicycle industry, died Tuesday in Chicago at 88. Fritz’s long career at Schwinn was most notable for his invention of the iconic Sting-Ray 20-inch muscle bike in the early 1960s. Schwinn sold millions of the influential bikes, which later were converted into …
MONTREAL, Quebec (BRAIN) — Reporting its first-quarter earnings Thursday, Dorel Industries singled out the delayed arrival of spring and its effect on bicycle sales as a key factor holding down sales and profit for the start of 2013. “As stated in our year-end results press release issued March 6, 2013, the year is off to …