What the day's all about

Local Bike Shop Day is the one day a year when independent bike shops across the UK can come together to celebrate their distinctive culture. It's the day for bike shops to showcase and promote the passion, knowledge and personalised service they offer to their local communities.

It is an event that enables individual shops to be part of something bigger than themselves and, in so doing, to use Local Bike Shop Day to drive more footfall through their doors and the doors of other independent cycle shops around the country.

Feel free to read up more about the history of Local Bike Shop Day and the success that previous years have brought to the cycling industry here.

Drive people to your store

How will you be encouraging people to visit your shop on Local Bike Shop Day? Below are just a few ideas as to how you can get involved with Local Bike Shop Day and celebrate all that your shop has to offer.

• Running promotions in-store; this could include 10% off certain items, giving 15% of the value of onthe-day orders back as account credit, 3 for 2 on cycling accessories etc.

• Offer a free basic repair session/workshop; this could involve running a drop-in session for free puncture repairs or demonstrations in basic maintenance tips such as lubricating a chain, which lubes to use etc. As well as targeting experienced cyclists, Local Bike Shop Day is also aimed at encouraging people that are new to the cycling world to get on their bikes, so any tips you can share with current and potential customers would be much appreciated.

• Guided bike rides; help your local community to get out and enjoy their local area with a guided tour through countryside/National Parks, Local Cycle Routes or even Local MTB Trails. As well as giving people the chance to explore their local areas, this can also help new cyclists to build confidence.

• Organise a shop charity ride; encourage your customers to sponsor your staff, or even to jump on a bike themselves to complete a long distance ride in aid of a worthy charity - this could either be outside or on smart trainers.

Giveaways

Stay tuned to see if there will be any giveaways on the day this year!

Social Media

Once you have signed up spread the word to your community and encourage more people to get involved! This will not only help you to boost footfall to your store but also gives you the chance to highlight what makes your shop stand out, why consumers should shop local and what sets you apart from bigger national retailers.

If you're ever stuck for something to post about take a look at the suggested posts below or use the Local Bike Shop Day social media accounts for inspiration. Our social media accounts are Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Take a look at our social media pointers to reach more people:

• Spread the word with the hashtag #SupportYourLocalBikeShop.
• Tag Local Bike Shop Day in your posts. The @tag for Facebook, Twitter and Instagram is @LBSDayUK. We will then repost you helping you to increase your reach further still!
• Always include the url localbikeshopday.co.uk.
• Try and attach an image. You can use the "We are taking part" images provided by Local Bike Shop Day, or even a photo of your own shop looking inviting and ready to attract some new customers!
• Use local @tags and #hashtags to amplify your audience e.g. #Brighton. The generic hashtags are good too e.g. #WednesdayWisdom, #FridayFeeling etc.
• We recommend including a simple call to action as below: Ask us for more information about how you can win prizes and vouchers just by visiting your local bike shop on Local Bike Shop Day! Find out more at localbikeshopday.co.uk.

While we recommend creating your own content that is more personalised to your shop, we have written up some template posts for you to adapt and repost below:

We are taking part in Local Bike Shop Day! Switch to an environmentally friendly and healthy mode of transport by paying us a visit this [date] for Local Bike Shop Day! #SupportYourLocalBikeShop @LBSDayUK

Win prizes and vouchers by paying us a visit on [date] for Local Bike Shop Day! #SupportYourLocalBikeShop @LBSDayUK

Pop in store on Local Bike Shop Day this [date] to find all the advice and equipment you need to start your kids cycling as they head back to school! #SupportYourLocalBikeShop @LBSDayUK

Let’s all work together to keep the nation cycling through to autumn! Pay us a visit on [date] for Local Bike Shop Day! #SupportYourLocalBikeShop @LBSDayUK

Bike Shop Testimonials

"We were blown away by some of the comments our customers posted online for Local Bike Shop Day in support of Inspiral Cycles as their LBS. It was a great focus for our social media posts and they were shared widely. Support for #supportyourlocalbikeshop increased our online profile and has led to new customers discovering our shop."

- Fiona, Gary and the team at Inspiral Cycles in Bishop Auckland, County Durham

"I always try to support initiatives like Local Bike Shop Day as they help small businesses like mine reach out to customers, both new and old, while being part of a bigger movement. There's never been a more important time to support local, independent shops and so I was keen to use Local Bike Shop Day to remind people of all the benefits of shopping with us, rather than chains or online stores."

- Heather from Saddles and Paddles

"Busiest day ever with the highest turnover and many new customers. Local independent bike shops have little voice within national and local news outlets, so this is helping to give IBDs a voice and stay front of mind."

- Better Health Bikes, East London

Get in touch

Local Bike Shop Day is organized by the Association of Cycle Traders. If you have any questions or you’d like to let us know how you are promoting the day send us an email at info@localbikeshopday.co.uk.