Rose Bikes from Germany founds a joint venture in Switzerland. Two Swiss retail and e-commerce experts will become co-partners: Carlos Friedrich and Bernard Winterhalter. The plan is to set up ten stores in Switzerland within the next four to five years. The flagship store will open in Meilen on Lake Zurich in spring 2020.

With its online store www.rosebikes.ch, the German mail-order company Rose already has a presence in Switzerland and, according to a press release, is already generating millions in sales there. Now the omnichannel bike retailer Rose Bikes wants to gradually expand its business in Switzerland and is founding its own Swiss company for this purpose: Rose Bikes Schweiz AG. Swiss brand strategist and retail expert Carlos Friedrich and Swiss e-business expert Bernard Winterhalter are on board as shareholders.

The joint venture is managed jointly by the Swiss and Germans: Co-founder Carlos Friedrich will take over as Chairman of the Board of Directors and, in his position as CEO, will be responsible for all marketing-related areas, including the stores and employees for Rose Bikes Switzerland. Bernard Winterhalter is responsible for all operational and financial areas as COO and CFO. From Rose Bikes GmbH in Germany, Tim Böker, co-partner and operationally responsible in his leadership role as Director Retail Marketing and Expansion, and Thomas Hetzert, Head of Retail Marketing, are members of the Board of Directors. The two support the Swiss organization in order to maximize synergies in the areas of product purchasing, Swiss online store, store systems, etc.

Sophisticated Swiss customers

"As a joint venture, we operate autonomously and focus on delivering relevant products and services for our discerning Swiss customers. This means that we can respond to local market requirements and still benefit from the purchasing advantages of our main company in Bocholt, for example," explains Friedrich.

The first milestone is the opening of an 815 square meter flagship store in Meilen in the canton of Zurich in spring 2020 with a total of five employees. In addition to office and sales space, a workshop for final assembly and service work is also planned there.

Expanding the branch network

"The location of our flagship store is very exposed on Seestrasse, where many motorists and cyclists pass by, which is ideal for us," says Friedrich, who has ambitious plans: "We want to gradually expand our store network in Switzerland and are planning to open more stores in German-speaking and French-speaking Switzerland."

Rose is not the only direct provider from Germany to communicate and implement expansion plans in this country. Canyon also wants to clearly show its colors in Switzerland with a stationary base for testing and service, and is also targeting the Zurich area. Canyon CEO Roman Arnold confirmed in an interview with Ride in August 2019 that the Swiss market is very important.