Pilot schemes culled due to success of superstores and online
Halfords owned Bikehut and Cycle Republic brands will be dropped, the retailer announced today.
In its pre-close statement, Halfords said that the stores are not delivering sufficient financial return and that the increasing success of online sales – particularly for accessories – combined with the success of its superstores has impacted on Bikehut and Cycle Republic stores.
The wider bike ranges available in Bikehut and Cycle Republic will be incorporated into Halfords superstores, while the stores themselves will be rebranded, where appropriate, to Halfords Metro outlets.
The stand-alone bicycle stores will be rebranded at a cost of £1.5 million.
The news follows Halfords announcement that it sold over a million bicycles in the last financial year – more than a third of every cycle sold in the UK last year, according to the firm.
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Halfords CEO David Wild said: “Our early action to reduce costs and maintain a prudent balance sheet provides a solid platform for future earnings growth from our core strategic growth initiatives.
“The integration of our stand-alone cycle pilot into the main business signals our intention to focus our efforts on enhancing shareholder value through the more material expansion opportunities presented by Central Europe and our multi-channel activity, where we continue to generate significant sales growth.”
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