DEALERS - DEALERS - DEALERS

Our Raleigh dealers are the power link that gets our side of the chain linked up with yours, the customer. “Our dealers represent all that’s great in the world of bicycling,” says Steve Meineke, President of Raleigh America. “They ‘enjoy the ride’ every day they open their doors; through their efforts, they are helping grow not only their businesses but the sport of cycling. We are proud to be affiliated with each of them and greatly appreciate their support of our company and brands.” With that said, over the next several months we want to introduce you to some of our top dealers - first up is Century Cycles and owner Scott Cowan reflects on changes in the bike industry since 1992 as they celebrate their 15th year of selling bikes.

When Scott Cowan opened the first Century Cycles in Medina in 1992, George H. W. Bush was president and Jay Leno was just starting his stint as host of “The Tonight Show.” Back then, Century Cycles sold one road bike a month and didn’t have a carbon fiber bicycle in stock.

Fifteen years later, Bush the Younger is president and Jay Leno is a late-night institution. Today, Century Cycles sells almost one road bike a day and has three stores displaying dozens of bikes made of space-age carbon fiber.

As the award-winning local bike store chain marks its fifteenth anniversary this month, the occasion has Cowan reflecting on how much the bicycle industry has evolved and improved since 1992, in particular addressing key issues of comfort and quality.

“It’s much more enjoyable to ride a bicycle manufactured in 2007, because it’s designed from top to bottom to be a comfortable riding experience,” says Cowan. “The bicycles that are so popular right now – including comfort bikes and retro cruiser models – did not even exist in 1992. Those new styles, along with the always-popular hybrid bicycles, comprise about 60% of our sales today.”

Century Cycles opened its first store in Medina in March, 1992, with one employee and about 50 bikes on the showroom floor. Today, Century Cycles has three stores, 35 year-round employees, and several hundred bikes on display in each store. The Peninsula Century Cycles store, which opened in 1993, is located along the Towpath Trail in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park and – in addition to bicycle sales and service – it rents bicycles, trailers, and tagalongs by the hour for use on the Towpath Trail.

Century Cycles opened the Rocky River store in 1998 in the historic former Rocky River post office building on Detroit Road, next to Herb’s Tavern. Century Cycles is proud to be selling Raleigh bicycles in Rocky River, a town that is one of the Washington-state bicycle manufacturer’s oldest retail outposts east of the Mississippi.

Century Cycles is an award-winning chain of independent bicycle stores that is celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2007. It has locations in Medina, Peninsula, and Rocky River. In addition to catering to cyclists and their families with high-quality bicycles and exemplary service, Century Cycles is active locally and nationally in support of bicycling paths and other issues of vital importance to the cycling community.

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