Challenge
We helped Rapha build a loyal following through the brand idea of 'The glory and suffering of road racing' and a retro aesthetic from the great past of Continental Road Racing.
The challenge was to broaden the brand's appeal and make it famous beyond 'the lycra set'.
Insight
There is a whole lifestyle and sub culture that surrounds European cycling that if more people knew about, they'd fall in love with.
Idea
As an online business, Rapha had a lot of fans but no high street presence. We thought that if people could experience the brand's world for real they'd feel even more intoxicated by it.
We created the 'Rapha Cycle Club' – a pop-up store, cafe, cinema, gallery space and fan hub that launched in Clerkenwell, London and The Bowery in NYC. This space was designed to reward existing fans and give them an experience they'd want to share with their friends and personal networks.
Results
Over the 3 months the clubs were opened they were visited by an estimated 30,000 people. Rapha sold an incremental 35% of goods to new customers and acquired an additional 12,000 new customers on its database. The Clubs were written about in all the cycling websites but also fashion and design websites.
The Cafe's were covered by Monocle who said that they were "the coolest retail idea in the world".
The clubs have been so successful that they have subsequently been rolled out in San Francisco, Tokyo and Majorca.