Reinventing the wheel

 

The Freedom MachineBicycle retail in Australia has been one of the industry’s hardest hit sectors in recent years, and while local bike shops continue to shut their doors amid increased global competition and online pressure, there’s one retailer who says it’s reinventing the wheel, and has a new look store to prove it.

The Freedom Machine, a five store chain in Melbourne, says it’s changing the face of bicycle retail in Australia with its new store along one of Melbourne’s most iconic shopping strips, Chapel St, Prahan.

Founded in 1975, the long standing brand has taken a stance against international competition and the big bad web with a 300sqm store offering Australian first cycling technology, a repair workshop, free wi-fi, and instore events including Friday night happy hour.

“We believe we are setting the new standard of bicycle retail with our new store,” said Emidio Ubaldi, director of The Freedom Machine.

“Online is always a cost and battle for us, but we remain positive. We’re in the retail business and there’s no use being upset about the fact that the online market is here. It’s just a case of understanding how we can compete against it and what we’ve got that’s different to the internet,” said Ubaldi, who joined the company in 2007.

A major highlight of The Freedom Machine’s new Prahan store is its bespoke bike area, Trek Project One.

From colour palettes to grip tapes, Project One, developed by bike wholesaler Trek, allows customers to create their own dream bikes instore with just the click of a button.

“Project One is quite exceptional and for us. It’s the best way we can combat our biggest competitor, which is the internet. One of the most crucial things is being able to have people want to come instore, and with customisation tools like Project One that allows us to do it.

“Some dealers don’t use it at its maximum, but we’ve designed the store so there is a specific area for it.

“Using an iMac, we sit in the Project One area and spend time with the customer designing their own bike. Once they’re happy with it, we press a button, the order goes off, and within three to four weeks the bike is instore ready to ride.”

Located alongside Trek Project One is The Freedom Machine’s instore fit system, Precision One.

The technology, used to fit cyclists to a specific bike model, is still relatively new to the Australian market, with The Freedom Machine one of the first bike retailers in the country to use the technology.

The Freedom Machine

Aesthetics key

While technology is a major drawcard for the store, The Freedom Machine has focused just as heavily on its interiors, including fixtures, lighting, and, most importantly, branding.

The store uses a variety of textures and materials instore, including heritage timber taken from a former Melbourne Myer store and drop lights once used at the historic HM Prison Pentridge.

“All the timber comes from the old Myer site, which is more than 85 years old, and the drop lights we have over the communal table have come from Pentridge, so that would certainly have some stories to tell if it could speak.”

The Freedom Machine has tried to create a balance of its branding when designing the store, as well as using as much natural lighting as possible.
“The major brief with our designer was that we wanted people to come in and feel comfortable. We wanted to create a mood that would make customers want to hang around in the shop and talk bikes.

“At the same time we were conscious of the fact that when they leave the store they remember what store they have been in, so branding is really important for us.”

The Freedom Machine logo, a green barcode with ‘TFM’ written above, has been positioned in vital areas of the store, including its entry, behind the main counter, and behind the repair workshop.

The Freedom Machine

In doing this, The Freedom Machine had to redesign the structure and colour of its ceiling.

“We’ve still retained the suspending ceiling, but we have painted it a dark charcoal grey and used floating plaster panels which, when you walk into the store, channels you straight to the back of the store and gives you the visual impact of the branding at the rear of the store.

“We’re trying to get to the point where the green barcode is an identifiable logo on its own rather than having to have to the TFM letters as well.”

Pricepoints for The Freedom Machine bikes vary from around $200 for children’s bikes up to round $16,000 for road bikes, with the store also boasting an instore workshop.

Free wi-fi, a coffee machine, and Friday night happy hour are other incentives implemented by the retailer to get people in the door and keep them instore longer.

“We’ve got a really large communal table where customers can just sit around. We have free wi-fi so customers can sit and have a coffee or a drink, and we have a happy hour on Friday nights between 6pm and 7pm.

“We haven’t got a bar, just a mini fridge underneath the communal table, but we basically just want people to hang around, talk bikes, and even play around with Project One.”

The company’s newly relaunched website will soon include an e-commerce component and click and collect. Customers will also be able to hire bikes, book test rides, and purchase tickets to instore events.

“One of the important things, and again it’s about fighting the internet, is to create and promote events, as well as have our own instore events. One of our events is a Tour De France night. All of these events can be booked and purchased online as well.”

The Freedom Machine

What’s ahead

The Freedom Machine’s other stores are located in Port Melbourne, Brighton, and Williamstown.

In May TFM purchased Richmond-based bicycle retailer, Richmond Cyclery and its 170sqm standalone store on Bridge Rd.

Once converted to The Freedom Machine banner, the site will be the next store to undergo the rebrand.

The Freedom Machine“Our Prahran store has set the benchmark and our next store will be Richmond. Hopefully it will open at the end of the year and be the same style and feel as the Prahran store.

“Coming into next year we will be remodeling Port Melbourne and Brighton. Williamstown is almost at the same level so it doesn’t need that much work.”
Brighton is around 200sqm, with Williamstown and Port Melbourne between 500sqm to 600sqm.

“The ideal size is probably around the 300sqm mark and that is purely because of bike stock. Bike stock takes up so much space, so in order to display them properly you need quite a lot of floor space.”

Ubaldi told Inside Retail Magazine he believes the bike sector will soon see several retailers put the brakes on expansion, including The Freedom Machine.
“Victoria has had an influx of bicycle stores opening up. I think that within the next two or three years we’ll start to see a lot of them clean out.

“We’ve started to see that happening already. I think five [stores] will be the limit for us unless things start to change dramatically within the retail market.

“Expanding outside of Victoria is a possibility, but definitely not as our own stores. We may look at other businesses or a franchising option, but we won’t be considering anything like that within the next four to five years.

“For now we will keep it at this number. It may happen, but at the end of the day it all comes down to opportunity.”

This article first appeared in Inside Retail Magazine’s December/January 2014 issue. To subscribe, click here.

The Freedom Machine

The Freedom Machine

You have 7 articles remaining. Unlock 15 free articles a month, it’s free.