Two Belgian ECF members, Fietsersbond and GRACQ (the latter, a founding member of ECF)  are staying right on the cutting edge of developments that promote cycling. For over a year now, the Belgian cyclists group has been under contract to provide advice on how to promote cycling to a major international supermarket company. The company, one of the largest and most well-known supermarkets on the Belgian market, is preparing to announce a national cycling promotion scheme in the coming months.

They have not yet launched the publicity campaign and, of course, we don’t want to steal their thunder – so we cannot name the company right now; but regardless, the implications for cycling in Belgium will be potentially very large, as a result. Since this supermarket is present in most Belgian towns and has several outlets in each of the major cities, make sure to watch this space in the near future for developments along these lines.

However, this is the first of its kind to take root in Belgium, the idea has been circling around the cycling world for quite some time. There are many Bike to Shop initiatives already taking place in various cities, towns or regions across Europe. These initiatives have, so far even generated some national interest – with a few national schemes being carried out by and for cyclists – often with some government support.

While ECF is not privy to the details of the upcoming Shop by Bike campaign in Belgium, it will reportedly use primarily social media, at least initially. It should include incentives to bike to shop for customers and for employees as well. Additionally, in order to accommodate everyone who hops on their bike to pick up the groceries, there will also be some infrastructure improvements to better suit bicycles and the needs of cyclists.

The Fietsersbond is working together with their French speaking counterpart and ECF member GRACQ, which is important for many reasons in this multi-lingual & multi-cultural country.

Is this a European Premier?

So, what we here at ECF are wondering is: are there other companies that are currently making big efforts to support customers who arrive by bike? Many people have heard of what IKEA does with bikes at some of their locations in Netherlands and Denmark. If you have other examples of this kind of initiative – whether good or bad – we want to hear from you!

ECF wholeheartedly supports endeavors such as this one, which aim to incorporate cycling into the everyday life of citizens. As such, we want to encourage more companies to act like the supermarket chain that Fietsersbond is advising in Belgium. We want chainstores to have all of their shops welcome cyclists with high quality, attractive, cycle parking that is covered and safe and located close to the shop’s main entrance.  So we ask our members: are there companies or individuals that you feel we should contact? If so, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.

“We promise to lobby the most promising companies at the highest level to support initiatives like Bike to Shop. We know that most ECF members have a long history of promoting initiatives such as this one, which view cycling as a part of everyday routine, rather than the exception to it – and we want to help them with it,” says Randy Rzewnicki, ECF Project Manager & Policy Officer.

ECF is partners with the CycleLogistics project, an initiative that aims to incorporate cycling into more facets of life. In cities across Europe, the CycleLogistics project encourages people to shop by bike, and pedal their groceries, clothes, tools, toys of flower home – thereby making cycling a part of everyday life. Of course, while cycling with groceries requires that little bit of added effort, the rewards far outweigh that: eliminating the problem of parking, petrol prices or the “are we there yets?” coming from the backseat, normally, most people, are able to carry their groceries home in a basket or backpack. Therefore, it looks like the Bike to Shop campaign has got some serious potential – so if you know of any companies that are ripe for upscaling their campaign to the national level, give us your thoughts on the issue and by contacting RandyRzewnicki and stay tuned for the new developments at your local grocery store. 

About the Author 

Dr. Randy Rzewnicki is ECF’s Health Officer and Project manager for Cycle Logistics.