“Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success”. In the Belgian Province of Limburg, two talented Flemings have decided to apply this guidance from Henry Ford as a leitmotiv to develop a recognised open innovation centre for the EU cycling industry.

The Director of Cycling for Growth Initiative, Nicolas Urien, was recently invited by Flanders’ Bike Valley, one of the newest members of Cycling Industry Club to visit their premises in Beringen (Belgium). Originally founded by five companies (BioRacer, Flanders’ Drive, Lazer, Ridley and Voxdale) with financial support from the government of Flanders, the mission of Flanders’ Bike Valley is to bring together existing companies and start-ups in the field of bicycle & cycling sciences and technologies in order to help them develop their innovative products. Flanders' Bike Valley is managed by two experienced entrepreneurial managers with deep roots in business development and cycling industries. “We act as an external advisory board, especially on the go-to-market strategy. We organize regular workshops and we do pay special attention to ensure full cooperation between the companies“ said CEO Marc Hufkens. According to Managing Director, Bert Celis: “the time when companies -in particular SMEs- could only rely on their own R&D is over. We have to keep in mind that around 40-50% of innovations are made by the users. In Flanders’ Bike Valley we help them to identify what are the common strengths to unite existing companies and start-ups in one stimulative space”.

Flanders’ Bike Valley: Jobs and growth booster Flanders’ Bike Valley is already composed of 45 members. In April 2016, the organisation will enter into another dimension by inaugurating a new 2.400sqm building that will contain a wind tunnel as well as a business incubator housing 25 cycling firms. Open to the public, the so-called “BikeVille” will include a restaurant, Ghent University’s bicycle testing unit and a bike-fit zone operated by BioRacer. The aim is to deeply connect the companies with new customers and distributors, in particular through the concept store which is expected to welcome 10.000 visitors per year. “We want to create a Bike Valley Experience for visitors that will include the wind tunnel visit but also the option of visiting Ridley Race Productions, Bio Race and RsPrint, together with a race or time trial on Circuit Zolder in the evening” said Marc Hufkens. Started in March 2014, Flanders Bike Valley has been quickly successful in building an efficient cycling ecosystem to attract and retain companies. Today, more than 350 jobs are directly and indirectly related to such initiative. This results from an in-depth understanding of key ingredients for success within the current EU cycling industry: innovation, smart specialization, clusterisation but also public investment. It would have been difficult to set-up such project without the financial support from public bodies. Nevertheless, the return on investment is very positive in terms of growth and jobs creation. “And, due to the membership fees as well as the activities developed around the incubator (incl. wind tunnel, restaurant), we will be financially independent by the end of the year” added Bert Celis. It is proof, as if we still needed it, of the cycling potential in terms of jobs and growth in Europe. More information about Flanders’ Bike Valley and its members here.

The Cycling Industry Club (CIC) and CONEBI have recently launched the Cycling for Growth Initiative to extend  the influence of the cycling industry as a recognised voice at the EU level. New Project Director Nicolas Urien has been appointed to lead the project on behalf of both organisations. The main objective of the Cycling for Growth Initiative is to show how the cycling industry will deliver growth within the European Union and create the conditions to unlock funding in European public expenditure on cycling and e-cycling.