U.S. Bike Company's Sponsorship of Euro Cycling Team Pays Major Dividends; U.S.
Bike Maker Wins Major Race, Increases Sales in Europe
PR Newswire, Sunday, June 08, 1997 at 17:11
GEORGETOWN, Conn., June 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Cannondale (NASDAQ:BIKE), the
American bike maker famous for its innovative mountain bikes, is enjoying the
payoff from a gamble it announced last September; its sponsorship of the
Italian Saeco professional road cycling team. Cannondale's sponsorship of the
team has already boosted sales of its road bikes in Europe, and the company
scored loads of free publicity when Ivan Gotti of the Saeco squad won the Giro
d'Italia -- Italy's version of the Tour de France -- yesterday. Gotti won the
overall title of the 22 day, 3,892 kilometer event by a final margin of one
minute 27 seconds. The first Italian to win his country's most prestigious
race in six years, Gotti's victory is being celebrated as a national triumph.
For Connecticut-based Cannondale , the Saeco team's win promises to be
equally rewarding. "No other professional European road team has ever raced
exclusively on American-made bicycles," explains Cannondale's founder and
President Joe Montgomery. "In Europe, cycling is followed with the same
passion that football is followed here in the U.S. For an American bike maker
to have this kind of impact with a European team is nothing short of
historic."
History aside, Montgomery is already enjoying increased sales of
Cannondale road bikes in Europe. Sales of a new line of accessories, ranging
from duffel bags to cycling jerseys emblazoned with the Saeco team's logos,
are also strong. Although he declined to discuss specifics, Montgomery fully
expects the clamor for Cannondale goods in Europe to increase at an even
faster rate. "We've seen a huge jump in road bike sales already," says
Montgomery, "and with this win the excitement will surely grow. The European
road bike market is huge, and we've only scratched the surface in terms of
penetration." Cannondale's growing presence in the European road cycling
scene was foreshadowed earlier this year, when five-time Tour de France
champion Miguel Indurain purchased a top-of-the-line Cannondale at full retail
price.
Cannondale is the world's leading manufacturer of high-performance
aluminum bicycles. The Company's bicycles and bicycle accessories, which
include clothing, packs and bags, bike trailers and components, are marketed
under the Cannondale brand name and "Handmade in USA" logo, and are sold in
the U.S. and in more than 60 foreign countries. The company had net sales of
$145,976,000 in fiscal 1996.
SOURCE Cannondale
-0- 06/08/97
/CONTACT: William Luca of Cannondale, 203-544-9800/ |
