Cambrian’s Bicycle Division Relocates, Reports 30% Increases in Conti Sales

Cambrian Tyres has reported a healthy growth in sales of its sole bicycle tyre brand Continental. With year on year unit increases of 30 per cent since 2007, Cambrian reports it is now selling four times as many Continental tyre units as it was in 2000. “Not only tyres, but our tube business has also seen a dramatic rise as we’ve strived to make the Continental brand more attractive both in terms of margin and depth of range,” commented Cambrian’s bicycle brand manager Shelley Childs.

The company has relocated its bicycle warehouse to a purpose built distribution centre five miles away from the company headquarters in Aberystwyth. “Being situated between two sites as we’ve been in the past has been taxing on our staff, transport, deadlines etc with the growth we’ve had, and so we’ve been planning the move for some time. We’ll be faster, more efficient and that can only be a good thing for our customers and the brand which is fast becoming the UK’s favourite bicycle tyre brand. Our motorcycle business across all seven major tyre brands is still the main breadwinner at Cambrian, but we are catching them up quickly,” commented Childs.

The company reports that Continentals’ growth is across all aspects of the range, with a slight slant towards the race segment: “Continental is definitely a favourite with the road market, and has been traditionally but the MTB and City/Urban ranges are just as strong and the depth of the range in these areas means a dealer can stock Continental without worrying about missing sizes or poor margins any longer. Our wholesale partners Madison and Jim Walker are helping the brand in its growth and they must be credited for their efforts. Both wholesalers have fantastic B2B facilities and have invested time and warehouse space in the brand meaning that we can deliver Conti to the dealer far quicker than in the past. If there is a product that is out of stock at the wholesaler then that product will be available at Cambrian Tyres, meaning 99 per cent of the entire Conti portfolio is always warehoused in the UK.”

Continental is also seeing growth globally but the rise in the UK fits with the current cycling boom that is happening in Britain. Childs adds “We are lucky to be working with such a brand as Continental. Whilst everyone knows Conti as a huge multi-national company, the bicycle division has a family like atmosphere, one small factory in Korbach makes all the German made tyres in the range which accounts for around 50 per cent of the total Conti range, and the two wheel division is totally self sufficient within the company. If they make a loss, they are in danger as with any company and so everyone is on their toes in Germany, totally focussed on providing their partners like Cambrian with a typically efficient German service.”

With sponsorship activities for 2010 including the Athertons off road and 6 ProTour teams including Columbia on road, Continental is a product in demand, says Cambrian, and it is the Black Chili compound that is the talking point at present.

“Every team wants them,” reports Childs. “During the winter of 2009/10 we must have had sponsorship request from almost every major UK road team asking to use Continental Tyres. That speaks volumes. We can’t sponsor everyone, but we’ve partnered up again with some long term friends like Rapha-Condor-Sharp & Motorpoint along with some new setups like Endura and we are looking forward, as everyone is to the season ahead both from a sales perspective and a sporting one”.