Few sports are more techie and equipment oriented than biking. In the endless race to shave off a few grams and increase performance, exotic metals are used to make feather-light frames and hydraulic braking systems typically found in automobiles are employed to produce negative-g stops. Creating a bike store that speaks to this clientele in terms of selection is formidable—trying to accommodate both the two subspecies, the fat-tire aficionados (mountain bike) and the skinny tire crew (road), makes it even tougher.

When Jenson USA, a bicycle retailer in Southern California, contacted TRIO Display to design their new store in Corona, the design team knew they were facing a tough merchandising challenge. “The specs called for something close to 200 full bikes along with all the accessories, a full service tech area, seating for customers—in a 6000-square-foot facility,” said TRIO Store Designer Bill Mondigo. While Jenson included unicycles in the mix, finding rack space for that many bikes gave the conceptualization process a certain Tetris-like quality.

“Obviously fitting all the product in without making the aisles too crowded was the biggest hurdle,” said Bill. “Luckily, Jenson sent in a complete inventory list and a list of fixture needs. From that, we built a merchandising plan-o-gram to include with the retail store design.”

Part of the reason Jenson sought out TRIO to design the new store was they wanted to depart from the typical bike store format. “The aim is to entice the customer, to make it a destination,” said Jenson’s Director of Retail, Rudi Eddy. “Skate shops and surf shops do this very well, but you won’t find it in the typical bike shop. We want to build a long-term relationship with our clients.”� Rudi had first discovered TRIO Display through reading The Budget Guide to Retail Store Planning and Design penned by TRIO Head Designer, Jeff Grant. He liked what he saw and contacted Jeff through the TRIO website.

The design calls for the soffit over the front counter to be rendered in the shape of a bike wheel while the same themeing is carried into the floor fixtures, which resemble sprockets. Huge action shot banner graphics energize what might otherwise be a rather an uninspired vista of cranks, tires, and handlebars. The TRIO design team used a two-material floor treatment—heavy-duty vinyl aisles and carpet islands—to segregate the product from the traffic. To fill-out the bike-shop-as-destination concept, a small customer lounge with chairs, books, and monitors running bike videos was sketched in.

The new Jenson USA location will be rolled out later this year.