Canyon's always offered travelling demo days, but now partnerships with two UK bike shops will make things much more timely... and we can expect more centres to open during 2025 too
Famously a direct to consumer brand, you’ll now be able to view, bounce on or even demo a Canyon in the UK, after a new partnership with two UK stores, Moloko Cycling and Veloroo. So if you’re keen to get to grips with one you’ve now got two brick and mortar stores to visit to figure out sizing, or decide which bike to go for.
Like picking out a new kitchen, Canyon hopes its new experience partner showroom will help you find the right size and model
Does this signal a shift from direct to consumer sales for Canyon?
At the moment, no. You won’t be able to go into one of the experience partner stores and walk out with a new Canyon bike. The stores are there more to bridge the gap between the internet and to “support product testing and expert consultations in the buying process.” Essentially, each experience partner (of which Canyon aims to expand to 15 throughout Europe and the USA by the end of 2025) will have a “curated selection” of Canyon products, as well as running events.
The experience partners will include not only bikes but guidance on bike fitting and sizing
Each UK store will also offer customers advice on fitting and bike sizes with the Perfect Positioning System, which can help customers find the right size bike for them. Canyon will also be introducing its Collect and Ride service, which gives customers the choice of where they’d like their bike delivered and built. This will eventually be offered through additional service partners with Canyon throughout the year.
Canyon isn’t the only direct sales brand to go down this approach, YT opened its YT Mill in Surrey nearly five years ago for this exact same purpose, while Propain launched its own demo centre in Crawley back in 2022.
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So what bikes will be available to demo?
We know for certain that Moloko will have the Grand Canyon:ON, the Neuron:ON and the Neuron:ON Fly bikes available for demoing, as well as a couple of undisclosed mountain bikes on display in-store.
Richard Hudson, co-founder of Veloroo which has stores in Germany as well as Sheffield, said, “We’re thrilled to open a Canyon Experience Partner location in Sheffield. With its rich cycling tapestry and vibrant outdoor culture, the city is the perfect place to connect with the community. This is just the start of something truly exciting!”
Given the local terrain, with places like Lady Canning’s and Wharncliffe not too far away, it makes sense that Veloroo gets the brunt of the mountain bikes to demo. But they’ll also be holding stock of a couple of eMTBs as well, given the shop’s proximity to some of the best riding in the Peaks – an area renowned for its steepness and technicality, or as Hudson put it, “real riding.”
The Peak District offers great natural riding on Sheffield’s doorstep
We’re not sure exactly which bikes will be on display or available to demo in Sheffield just yet, but we can imagine there will be a selection of bikes like the Canyon Strive:ON, as well as bikes like the Neuron and Torque, to give a good range of disciplines.
Veloroo will be opening the doors as a Canyon experience partner on Saturday 15 March, and throughout the year will be hosting demo days and ride-outs, including a short one hour loop from the shop, giving people the opportunity to test Canyon MTBs or bring their own and join in the fun. Canyon’s also been hosting its own demo days for years, and we’d be surprised if it didn’t continue this alongside its new bike shop partners.
Both Moloko and Veloroo will also be stocking some of Canyon’s accessories and kit. You can find out more information on Veloroo and what they will offer as an experience partner on their website.