As we recover from the recent festivities I thought it would be timely to discuss briefly our upcoming plans for the year ahead and also a brief look-back on 2017.
2017 was by all accounts a thoroughly enjoyable year for us at stolen goat. Whilst the economic and industry related conditions are still in a “state of flux”, our determination to focus on customer service and adding value to the market has put us in good stead in our 5th year of business. I’m super happy with the team we now have working at stolen goat, a big shout out to Trevor, Andy and Rob for making 2017 so successful – you guys are living legends. We are looking to add another member to the Herd in the coming weeks to ensure we can continue to help you at every step of your goat themed journey in 2018.
Limited Edition Cycling Kit
Last year we developed a methodology for further increasing the value of our products with the core collection, that will continue into this year and beyond as promised. But the real excitement came for our Limited Edition pieces that ran through both seasons.
I’m pleased to announce that we have some really stunning limited edition kits coming this year. We’re so excited to see how you react to them as we have pulled out all the stops design wise this year. In addition to the jerseys, shorts, socks and arm warmers that we normally add to the range we have some brand new accessories to add to the collection that have been re-imagined from the ground up. Look out for the SS18 launch in mid February ;-)
This year we are also going to be experimenting with some designs that are exclusive to stolen goat subscribers and super limited for maximum cred for those “in the know”.
Women’s Cycling Kit
2017 was our biggest foray into women’s cycling kit and it was our most successful year in that department by a long shot. We will be expanding the range this year to meet the growing demands. Towards the tail end of the year we were picked up by womens cycling specialist Velovixen who are already having great success with our growing brand. For us, it’s very rewarding to be stocked by cycling’s leading womens only retailer, and they align very nicely with our ethos of super serving customers.
We also collaborated with La Ridley on a stunning womens only cycling jersey that has been very well received. La Ridley, based in Belgium, specialise in Womens only performance bikes so we were very excited to be working with them on this project. More to come on this partnership.
We are committed to womens cycling and will continue to provide new options for as long as we see demand.
Manufacturing
Last year we sat down with our suppliers and worked out an innovative way that we can make our manufacturing process more agile. It’s one of those things that doesn’t sound particularly exciting but could potentially revolutionise the way we serve you and the offering we are able to provide. I don’t want to say too much at this point but 2018 is set to be an exciting year for us indeed. We are always (and I mean always) looking for ways to push the boundaries on what is possible within our business and the industry as a whole, for now watch this space.
We are also looking into new market segments and we are seeing a growing demand for a Kids collection which we are now developing. We’re seeking out commercial partners that operate in the kids cycling space, in particular kids bike brands, to see if there are collaborative opportunities.
Rooooooooooooad Trip
We’ve got a sneaky little trip to Mallorca planned for March. We’ll be doing some cycling of course but also launching our range in what we think is the best cafe on the island. More on that and much more in the newsletters if you want to stay in the loop. I’m sure it won’t be the only trip we do this year.
Personal Note
On a personal note I’m loving watching this brand grow year after year in a crowded space. Meeting customers, riding with colleagues and friends, travelling the World and adding value to the cycling community are things that never get tiresome. Being part of something that means something to so many people is simply a joy, I’m very grateful to my team and our loyal customers all over the World who make this company so much flipping fun!!
Like many I’m sure – my training has taken “a hit” over the festive period so I’m very much looking forward to putting that right in the coming months. Before we know it spring will be here and as we all know – winter miles = summer smiles :-)
Thanks for reading and for supporting our journey. Happy cycling, and all the best to you and your family in 2018.