LAKE FOREST, CA (BRAIN)—GT will be going into 49 REI sporting goods stores by the end of the year with nearly its full range of products.
According to GT director of product development Mark Peterman, GT will be selling bikes that retail for $2,699-$299 at REI.
“We’re not trying to sidestep the IBD by any means,” Peterman said. “We’re trying to reach people that don’t go to IBDs.”
Peterman said that REI recently lost K2, and that REI was looking for a replacement. K2 is owned by Iron Horse.
“Folks there [at REI] realized that we had a lot to offer,” Peterman said.
Scott, Cannondale and Marin currently have product at REI.
“REI’s got a great retail venue,” Peterman said. “Mechanics are amazing. They have their own tech school that they put their mechanics through.”
Performance Bike will continue to carry GT’s “highest-end products across the board.”
“They’ve actually successfully increased sales of our highest-end products by a huge amount,” Peterman said of Performance Bike. “They’ve actually doubled our sales.”
For more on this story, be sure to read the November issue of Bicycle Retailer & Industry News.
—Jason Norman
