BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
Malt-loaf maker Soreen is to launch a big budget campaign to get more Brits on bikes. There will be an unveil of a high-profile brand ambassador at the start of the campaign, and there are tie-ups with an upmarket newspaper with the promotion pointing to a dedicated website.
The promotion starts in April and lasts until June. Millions of the brand’s "squidgy energy" products will be emblazoned with the get-cycling messages.
Via on-pack messages Soreen will also be aiming to raise awareness of the "lost" 1930s cycleways discovered by BikeBiz editor-at-large Carlton Reid. There are about 500 miles of these hidden-in-plain-sight cycleways across the UK, many of which Reid is trying to bring back to modern-day use. A Kickstarter campaign for the project raised almost £25,000 last year, and backers can still pledge support.
In an email to backers Reid said:
"Soreen is an ideal fit for many reasons (the fact I actually love malt-loaf isn’t one of them). For a start, the brand can trace its roots to 1938, when the cycle tracks were being built apace, and today’s factory is a loaf’s throw away from an extant stretch of period cycle track.
He added: "This is part of a linked network of routes that includes the Lostock Road cycle track. A 1930s photograph of a young woman riding on the Lostock Road track was used as the main backdrop for this Kickstarter project."
Project backers were quick to praise Soreen for its support. Roy Cuckow said: "Well done, Soreen! I shall rush out and buy a loaf right away."
Soreen has long used cycling in its promotional messages and, as well as its traditional loaves, it produces smaller bars that, eaten without butter, can be stashed in jersey pockets. Malt loaf is also a staple on the refuelling tables at sportives and similar cycling events.
