ASOLO, Italy (BRAIN) — Selle Italia has hired business development firm Lucidity to help it expand in the U.S. market. The Italian saddle brand is opening a warehouse, and sales and marketing office in Carlsbad, California.
Vittoria North America and other distributors will continue to sell its saddles. Selle Italia North America will have inventory available to support these distributors as well as shops who choose to work directly with Selle Italia. Selle Italia said the goal is to make it as easy as possible for dealers to buy and Selle Italia product.
Selle Italia owner Giuseppe Bigolin said, "When we started in this business, there was no television, no internet. We relied on distributors to buy and sell our products in their countries. What we did in Europe had no impact on the United States. The internet has changed that. Every person in every country knows what other countries are doing. In order to sustain the brand equity, and most importantly to respect the brand message, we must work more closely with all our partners in the sales chain. Lucidity will help us do this as well as drive marketing, social media, after sales service, community engagement and PR."
"Our mission is to help great companies like Selle Italia have a more direct impact and control over the North American market," said Richard Wittenberg, chief solutions officer of Lucidity. "We will actively market, sell and support the brand here in North America, making sure that everyone knows Selle Italia is the best saddle on the planet. We will ensure that consumers can get the saddle that want, where they want it, how they want it."
In addition, Selle Italia will partner with 20 to 30 shops in North America to provide saddle fit, extending its premium store network which it started in Europe. These stores will stock a wide away of saddles and fitting tools and receive special pricing, terms and consumer leads.
"We have to drive demand for the brand," said Nicola Baggio, sales and marketing director for Selle Italia. "The days of just putting saddles on a wall are gone. We are a saddle company, not a bike company. That means we have to create a better experience for all riders regardless of the brand of bike they ride. We also have to create a clearer connection between the brand, the product and the consumer among each of the different sales channels. Our new structure will help us accomplish this."
For more information, contact Richard Wittenberg at Richard@Luciditybizdev.com.
