Stories

That time we launched a bicycle brand in Hackney.

What


In 2009, we built a retail bicycle brand from the ground up. Concept, identity, product design, supply chain solution, marketing and customer service. The whole shebang.


The Nologo Bike company set out to make the joy of fashionable, single-speed bikes available to everyone. Over an 8 year period, we reached 3 continents, 29 countries, hundreds of retailers, tens of thousands of customers and (let’s say) billions of miles of colourful cycling.


"We create attractive, great quality, single speed and fixed gear bikes at the right price. If there's anything else you need to know, just give us a shout@nolobi.com.

© Nolobi.com® 2016 NoLogoBikes Ltd: Distributors of really nice bicycles. All rights reserved.

# What Rides May Come"


Why


At the time, the pro-city cycling narrative was threatening to go mainstream in the UK, fixie fashion was on the rise and people wanted to join in.


Unfortunately, despite being one of life’s simplest pleasures, cycling can throw up a lot of barriers to entry. 


People wanted to jump on a cool bike, not enter a subculture; bikes cost more than people think; not everyone wants to go vintage, and cheap bikes from the high-street have a habit of being more frustrating than enabling.


The solution


Give the people what they want. Unpretentious products, decent quality, a brand to rely on, all their questions answered and a realistic price-point. 


Or as we put it;

No fuss, no frills, Nologo Bikes



Product, place, supply chain


We designed two styles of single-speed bike, one in your face street fashion, and one more premium look and feel.

All our bikes were light, robust and easy to maintain with widely available consumable parts. They could be swapped between a fixed gear or more commonly understood freewheel option with ease and were fitted with brakes for city riding. All our products came with a beginners guide and build your own instructions.


To achieve our price point we worked with a Chinese manufacturer, packaging solution and international shipping agents. We were wary of the criticism that is often laid at the door of Chinese products, but the truth is - they have the skills, the knowledge and the talent. When you work closely with people and treat them with the respect they deserve, they do a great job. So that’s exactly what we did.


To launch the brand we teamed up with Hackney Cycles. Not only did this allow us to share the investment, it delivered instant visibility through a high-street presence on the doorstep of the youth culture of  East London.





Marketing & Press


We built our story on the platform ‘What Rides May Come’. A whimsical notion that invited people to make the most of today, embrace tomorrow and live free.


Imaginative creative and a joyful tone of voice set us apart from the crowd, we teamed up with influencers and by celebrating every ride on one of our bikes, from anyone who wanted to share, we let our customers be our brand ambassadors.


We repeated the high street collaboration model with retailers around Europe, sold directly online and set up franchises as far afield as Santiago, Chile and supported each presence with local press.


The concept proved so popular we were approached by a number of ad agencies and brands for collaborations.


The first iPhone 7 in the UK was delivered on one of our rides.

And we featured in the Selfridges no logo brand exhibition. 


The business has since been folded into the Hackney Cycles business model, but the bikes are still for sale and continue to be the product of choice for new-to-cycling, fashion-conscious, freedom-seeking Londoners to this day.


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