The RCYL bike was at the start: Cyclingworld Europe – Düsseldorf
One of the world’s most important bicycle trade fairs, Eurobike in Frankfurt, is just around the corner – which is why we want to take a look back at our first bicycle trade show of the year. That was Cyclingworld Europe in Düsseldorf. The trade show took place in old industrial halls with an incomparable flair in the Areal Böhler – the perfect location for a bicycle trade show! And the perfect place to present the latest version of the igus:bike. Hang on – wasn’t there something different? That’s right, we presented the new name for the bike for the first time at the trade show: RCYL! Why the name change? The igus:bike project is leaving the prototype status and rolling towards series production – the conditions for this are currently being created in a newly built hall at the igus headquarters in Cologne. However, RCYL also stands for the fact that our Urban Bike is made of 50 % recycled plastic, with a strong upward trend in the future!
Our outdoor stand on the test site
We were represented at two locations at the trade fair: one trade show stand in the building and one outside on the test site. Both places were fascinating. Let’s start with the tent at Demoworld. Fortunately, the weather was better than expected. After arriving in the downpour on Friday evening, Saturday fortunately got off to a dry start – a stroke of luck for our premiere. For the first time, people could test the RCYL bike “in the wild”!
We were all nervous – what would the test riders say? Would anything go wrong? How many people would want to ride our urban bikes? Luckily, we needn’t have worried. The positive feedback clearly prevailed and we were able to send more than 100 test riders onto the track in the course of the two days!
Fishing nets and water
We had also given some thought to the trade show stand in the hall. How interested are people in the bike? What do people think of the design of the trade show stand? Is the concept behind the bike clearly presented? And how will the public receive it? Here, too, all concerns we had before the trade show were unfounded. The RCYL bike met with keen interest and our stand was very well-attended. It was great fun presenting the bike to enthusiastic people! Visitors marvelled at innovations such as the plastic frame and drive or our lubrication-free bearings.
There were also very positive reactions regarding the design (“Finally a bike that looks different! A bike that stands out from the crowd!”) in addition to some critical comments, but that’s a matter of taste. And, as we all know, there’s no accounting for taste. The idea behind the bike was well received by everyone – no one else can offer a bike made from recycled plastic! In addition to our bike, the stand design also went down very well. Thanks to the fishing net hanging from the ceiling and the RCYL bike constantly sprayed with water, it was easy to explain the key points to interested people: the bike is made of 50 per cent recycled fishing nets and is rust-proof and maintenance-free.
Our VR station
View over our trade show stand at Cyclingworld
Of course, there was also the now frequently used VR stand, where people could playfully hunt for points in a virtual environment. As always, it was an absolute eye-catcher and a favourite with young and old alike.
Altogether, the trade show was a great and very positive experience for our team. Thank you very much for your visit and your feedback! If you weren’t at Cyclingworld but would like to try out our RCYL bike – the next opportunity will be at Eurobike ????
Our team at Cyclingworld