Last month Kate and I were lucky enough to visit the home of Canyon Bikes in Koblenz, Germany. We were going to present results from a 6-month PR project that we’d completed, meet our key contacts in Germany and get a more in-depth insight into the brand.
Our itinerary included a tour of their purpose-built factory and super smart HQ, followed by a decent bike ride of course!
We were greeted on arrival by the Head of Comms (Thorsten Lewandowski) and from that point on, we experienced the most amazing hosting and engaging (and very precise) itinerary.
First, we hit the Canyon Factory and it’s fair to say it’s the best-looking factory I have ever seen! How can a factory be so aesthetically pleasing?! We were immediately struck by how slick all the branding is from the VW van we were collected in, to the factory construction itself, to the concept store.
As we listened to Thorsten talk us through the operations of the factory (building these amazing bikes), we soon understood that there’s more to this brand than nice-looking products: there is true passion and heaps of innovation in everything they do. We were both a little dumbstruck by the scale and precision of the factory set-up. It was mind blowing and it is very exciting to be a part of. The factory has been built from scratch in Koblenz to ensure a legacy for both local people and Canyon’s birthplace, something that struck us as considered and considerate.
We moved on to visit Canyon HQ – known as ‘Canyon Home’ – to complete the tour and witnessed true attention to detail and investment in top equipment throughout all Canyon’s testing and finishing processes. Seeing sets of pro team bikes and founder Roman Arnold’s original bike trailer, from which he retailed parts, cemented the ‘wow factor’.
After a meeting about the project with the PR & marketing team, we headed out to the old town of Koblenz to get to know the team better in a more relaxed environment.
The next day was play time. Thorsten had ordered us bikes to suit our current levels of performance (Kate pretty strong, Layla not so much). Once prepped, we headed out to the hills and enjoyed a beautiful ride through the small villages and countryside just outside of town. We did some sightseeing along the way and tackled a few climbs; challenging for me, Strava-worthy for Kate.
This trip was worthwhile on so many levels. We were able to present the results of our initial project direct to key contacts at Canyon HQ; we were educated first-hand on the story of this inspiring, disruptive cycling brand; and we had a Moving Meet in the true sense – on two wheels.
The result is that we will be working with Canyon, on their Urban & Fitness bikes throughout 2020, which is the best result ever. We’re proud and excited for the year ahead.
